Liverpool icon Mohamed Salah arrives in Istanbul ahead of Trabzonspor move

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Mohamed Salah was seen wearing the Trabzonspor shirt Wednesday as he closed in on a move to the Turkish club.

Trabzonspor said it had opened negotiations with the Liverpool icon , who flew to Istanbul to complete the deal.

He was filmed aboard a private jet wearing the team's blue and burgundy striped shirt and later arriving in Turkey.

“Trabzon are you ready? I can hear you. See you very soon,” Salah said in a video message posted on the club's official X channel.

Turkish TV showed still images of Salah wearing a shirt with No. 61 on it as he arrived in Istanbul, where hundreds of chanting fans waited to greet him. NTV also broadcast the Egyptian signing a maroon and blue Trabzon shirt and said his official signing ceremony would be held Thursday in the Black Sea city.

Salah is a free agent after leaving Liverpool at the end of last season.

There was speculation the 34-year-old Egypt international would end his career in Saudi Arabia, but it emerged this week that Trabzonspor was leading the race to sign him.

“We’ve started transfer talks with Mohamed Salah, he’s coming to Istanbul!” Trabzonspor said.

Salah established himself as a Premier League great with Liverpool where he won two league titles and the Champions League among eight major honors.

He scored 257 goals in 442 appearances for the Merseyside club and is regarded as one of its greatest players of all time.

But he endured a disappointing end to his time at Anfield with a dramatic drop off in form last season and a public falling out with then-coach Arne Slot.

He only scored 12 goals in all competitions, having scored 34 in the previous campaign.

He announced in March that he would leave the club at the end of the season, despite having a year to run on the contract he signed in 2025.

Trabzonspor is a seven-time Turkish champion and finished third last season.

Andrew Wilks in Istanbul, contributed to this report

James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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