LONDON — As Mohamed Salah prepares to depart Liverpool at the end of the season, a prominent analysis has positioned the Egyptian forward as the greatest player in Premier League history, surpassing icons like Cristiano Ronaldo, Thierry Henry, and Wayne Rooney. Published by ESPN, the piece argues that Salah's sustained excellence, team impact, and trophy haul set him apart in the league's storied pantheon. With Liverpool on the cusp of another title push in the 2024-25 campaign, Salah's legacy is under intense scrutiny, especially as reports indicate he will leave Anfield this summer after nearly a decade of service.
Salah joined Liverpool from AS Roma in 2017, arriving at a club that had not won the English top flight since 1990 and had lifted only the 2012 League Cup in the preceding decade. According to the ESPN analysis, Salah transformed Liverpool into a dominant force, serving as the team's undisputed catalyst. He has scored 191 goals in 323 Premier League appearances, maintaining a remarkable fitness record by missing just six games due to injury over nine years. Of the 335 league games Liverpool played since his arrival, Salah has been unavailable for only 25, with 19 absences tied to Africa Cup of Nations duty for Egypt.
The article highlights Salah's role in Liverpool's major triumphs, including the 2019 UEFA Champions League victory, where he contributed 10 goals and five assists during the run to glory. He was also pivotal in the club's Premier League title wins in the 2019-20 and 2024-25 seasons, according to reports. ESPN writer Gab Marcotti emphasizes that Salah has won every major club honor at least once, including standing alongside Liverpool legends Kenny Dalglish and Steven Gerrard as one of the club's all-time greats.
To be classed as the greatest, a player must have achieved incredible success -- individually and with their team -- and done so over a sustained period. Many players can claim to have enjoyed success and longevity, but the best of them take their game to another level by being a team's catalyst, even providing the X factor to take their side to glory, and Salah ticks all of those boxes.
This assessment places Salah ahead of Wayne Rooney, often overlooked in greatest-player debates despite his impressive resume. Rooney debuted for Everton at age 16 and moved to Manchester United in 2004 for a then-record £27 million as the world's most expensive teenager. He scored over 200 Premier League goals, joining Alan Shearer and Harry Kane as the only players to reach that milestone, and won 12 major trophies at Old Trafford, including five league titles and a Champions League. However, the ESPN piece notes that Rooney was a great among greats at United under Sir Alex Ferguson and was the most important player for only about two seasons after Ronaldo's 2009 departure, unlike Salah's consistent top billing at Liverpool.
Kevin De Bruyne, the Manchester City midfielder, is another contender for the top spot, having dominated the league for a decade with 16 major honors, including six Premier League titles and a Champions League. De Bruyne's 119 Premier League assists rank second all-time behind Ryan Giggs' 162, and he shares the single-season record of 20 with Henry. From midfield, he scored 72 goals, including 15 in the 2021-22 season. Yet, his fitness issues are cited as a drawback; in 10 seasons at City, he made 285 appearances but missed nearly 100 games, equivalent to 2½ seasons.
Availability is key to greatness, the analysis states, contrasting De Bruyne's absences with Salah's near-immaculate record. De Bruyne's impact under managers Manuel Pellegrini and Pep Guardiola was undeniable, but ESPN argues it falls short of Salah's reliability and longevity.
Cristiano Ronaldo's first spell at Manchester United from 2003 to 2009 showcased his emergence as a phenomenon. He missed just eight games due to injury in six years and won all major honors at least once, becoming arguably Ferguson's most important player during the three consecutive title wins from 2007 to 2009. Ronaldo scored fewer than 100 goals in that period, with his peak impact concentrated over three seasons. The article points out that while Ronaldo later achieved five Ballon d'Or awards, his Premier League legacy during that initial stint lacks the sustained depth of Salah's nine-year run at Liverpool.
Thierry Henry, the Arsenal 'Invincible,' frequently tops fan and expert lists as the league's best ever. Henry scored 175 goals in 258 Premier League games, boasting a superior goals-per-game ratio to Salah's. He brought grace, pace, and audacity to the pitch, becoming the face of the Premier League in the early 2000s. Under Arsène Wenger, Henry's Arsenal side included stars like Patrick Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp, Robert Pires, and Ashley Cole, but Henry was the force opponents feared most. Notably, he registered 20-goal seasons five times, a mark Salah has also hit five times, behind only Shearer, Kane, and Sergio Agüero.
However, ESPN differentiates Henry by noting he joined a winning machine; Arsenal had claimed a league and FA Cup double just 12 months before his 1999 arrival. When Henry left for Barcelona in 2007, Arsenal had not won the Champions League — a trophy Salah, De Bruyne, Ronaldo, and Rooney all secured. Salah, by contrast, helped elevate Liverpool from a trophyless stretch to European and domestic dominance.
Salah was different. He arrived at Liverpool when the club was approaching 30 years since its last league title in 1990 and when it had lifted just one trophy -- the 2012 League Cup -- in 10 years. He helped drag Liverpool to success, while Henry signed for a club that had already made that journey.
Salah's individual accolades further bolster his case. He is the only player to win both the PFA Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year awards three times. His standout moments include winning the Puskás Award for his '7th-best' goal of the year, as referenced in related ESPN coverage. Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has echoed these sentiments, stating in a related piece that Salah's Premier League legacy greater than Ronaldo.
The analysis acknowledges the subjectivity of such rankings, predicting backlash from fans of rival clubs. Arsenal supporters may bristle at Salah eclipsing Henry, while Manchester City fans could ridicule De Bruyne's placement, and United faithful might dismiss any slight to Rooney, Giggs, or Ronaldo. Ryan Giggs, another top contender, performed at an elite level for two decades at United, winning multiple trophies and evolving from winger to midfielder, but his case is built more on longevity than singular impact.
As Salah nears his farewell, Liverpool faces a significant void. The club must fill the shoes of a player who has been its inspiration across Champions League and Premier League successes. With the 2024-25 season underway, Salah's contributions continue to shine, but his impending exit raises questions about Liverpool's future under Jürgen Klopp's successor.
Beyond the pitch, Salah's departure marks the end of an era for the Premier League, where he not only redefined expectations for a forward but also elevated Liverpool's global standing. While debates over the 'greatest ever' will persist, ESPN's ranking underscores Salah's unique blend of consistency, clutch performances, and transformative influence. As one of the league's most prolific scorers in big games, he leaves with a legacy that, according to this analysis, stands alone at the summit.
The broader implications extend to how future talents might be measured against Salah's benchmark. With his contract set to expire and interest from Saudi clubs reportedly high, Salah's next move could further cement his status in world football. For now, Liverpool fans cherish the remaining months, knowing their talisman has etched his name indelibly into Premier League history.