Liverpool urged to 'break the bank' for Vinicius Junior with Real Madrid star a 'ready-made replacement' for Mohamed Salah

Salah is in the final year of his contract at Anfield and Liverpool are yet to initiate talks over a new deal with the Egyptian winger, who is reportedly still a major target for the Saudi Pro League. In the case of Vinicius Jr, Relevo recently reported that the Real Madrid star could consider leaving the club after his recent Ballon d'Or snub as Los Blancos might not offer him a new bumper deal, which would have been a guarantee had he won the Golden Ball.

Ex-England and Liverpool midfielder Murphy has now urged his former club to sign Vinicius Jr, as he considers the 24-year-old a "ready-made replacement" for Salah. Murphy stressed that the Reds need to find a player who has already established himself as a world-class star to fill in the void left by Salah's departure.

Speaking to Boylesports, who offer the latest Champions League odds, Murphy said: "On potential Mohamed Salah replacements, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is a really good player, similar to Luis Diaz or Cody Gakpo in running with the ball with his athleticism and his ability to make things happen, but he’s not prolific. He's not a goal threat for entire games. I've seen him play live a couple of times, I was at the Euros, I've watched him a lot. He's a terrific talent, but he's similar to what Liverpool have got in some respects.

"Liverpool have bought Federico Chiesa so we'll see how he evolves and develops, you know, he's got few injuries but we've all seen him at his best, electric, dynamic. To replace Salah, the type of player you want is a ready-made replacement who you know is going to produce the same goods, if Vinicius Junior isn’t happy at Real Madrid and doesn’t want to sign a new deal then Liverpool should break the bank to get him because you know he'll produce the goods because he's one of the best players in the world. But that's unlikely."

Murphy went on to admit that Liverpool would have to pay a fortune for Vinicius given his current status at Real, but also appeared to suggest a fall-out with club management could make it easier for the Reds to pursue a deal. "So you have to try and find these diamonds in the rough," he added. "You have to remember when Salah came, there were a few question marks. When Sadio Mane came, people questioned if Liverpool had overpaid Southampton and look what he went on to do. So it might be a case of Liverpool going and finding another one of these diamonds in the rough that can evolve into a goal-scoring right winger.

"But it's very hard to find wide players who have better goal-scoring records than one in three. Salah has the goal-scoring record of a striker, of a proper striker. It's incredible numbers that he produces. Replacing that is either, it's going to be a brilliant recruitment or it's going to break the bank, one or the other. Let's just hope Vini Jr falls out with Real Madrid and fancies joining Liverpool."

The Reds are high on confidence after thrashing German champions Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday night and will be next seen in action on Saturday as they face Unai Emery's Aston Villa in a Premier League encounter.