Salah changes the rules of the game: has the Saudi project lost its prestige in the face of Turkish cunning?

Mohamed Salah has been one of the names most closely linked to the Saudi league project since 2023, with Al-Ittihad emerging as a potential destination on more than one occasion. Yet the deal stayed far from settled as window after window passed.

This time, the scene has changed entirely. Trabzonspor did not settle for a financial offer. They built an entire project around Salah: a huge fan reception, wide media interest and enormous marketing value for a club that rarely gets the chance to attract a name of this stature.

To Trabzonspor, Salah is not merely a winger who scores and creates goals. He is a mobile brand. His presence can boost shirt sales, attract sponsors, lift viewing figures and drive up advertising value, while handing the Turkish league itself a new global star.

Here is where the deal goes beyond the figures in the contract. Trabzonspor are not just buying a player. They are buying a fan, media and tourism phenomenon whose effects could stretch well beyond the pitch.

Mohamed Salah was not the only case that revealed the ability of Turkish clubs to compete with Saudi Arabia in the market for stars.

Galatasaray pulled off one of the biggest deals in Turkish football history when they signed Nigeria's Victor Osimhen from Napoli, despite the player's name being linked with the Saudi league. Reports even spoke of his refusal to move to the Roshn League and his preference to stay in Europe.

Osimhen was not the end of it. The Turkish club also landed Germany's Leroy Sane, another name previously tied to a move to Saudi Arabia.

Fenerbahce competed hard too. They signed Anderson Talisca from Al-Nassr in a deal that confirmed Turkish clubs can pull players from the Saudi league itself, handing him a huge salary of around 15 million euros a year.

The club also recruited N'Golo Kante from Al-Ittihad, another move proving the traffic no longer flows only from Europe towards Saudi Arabia. Turkey has begun to enter the fray and snatch names linked with the Roshn League.

Besiktas had already chased global names of their own. Dele Alli, once linked with Al-Hilal, was among them, adding to a list of deals that makes the comparison between the two markets more realistic.

Here lies the paradox. Saudi Arabia still holds far greater financial power, especially after the Public Investment Fund's takeover of several major clubs and the flood of huge companies and investments into the sporting sector.

Money alone is no longer enough, though. A player of thirty-four like Salah, or a star at the peak of his powers like Osimhen, may weigh up other factors alongside the salary: European competition, the pressure of the fans, the historic atmosphere, a shot at major tournaments and the value a club can add to his career.

Turkey has the lot. The league there is not merely a domestic competition but a gateway to the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League. Its biggest clubs boast huge historic fan bases, while cities such as Istanbul and Trabzon offer extra pull for players and their families.

So when Turkish clubs sit down to negotiate with a world-class player, they are not offering him money alone. They are selling him a complete experience.

One of the most notable reasons for Turkish success in the recent period is the evolution of the way negotiations themselves are managed.

Turkish clubs have grown more adept at packaging offers that blend a high salary, a sporting project, a key role and a player's fan and commercial value, all while tapping into the desire of some stars to stay in Europe.

Read also: Salah and the journey to reclaim the throne: a historic scenario that returns the king to the summit of Europe

Saudi clubs, by contrast, need to sharpen their negotiating tools. The name "Saudi Arabia" alone no longer seals a deal, however big the offer.

Competition has turned smarter. The agent now asks about the project before the salary, the player asks about his role before the value of the contract, and the club asks about the commercial return before paying tens of millions.

One deal, or even several, hardly strips the Saudi project of its prestige. The Roshn League still boasts world-famous names, and its financial muscle remains among the biggest on the planet.

What is happening in Turkey, though, should sound a genuine alarm bell. Saudi Arabia pulled off the first phase by luring stars with its enormous wealth. The next demands something bigger: a league that makes a player want to join before he even glances at the contract.

Salah's move to Trabzon proves money no longer decides everything. Turkish clubs have learned to invest in their history, their fans, their European address and their commercial pull, crafting offers that are hard to turn down.

The clearest message for Saudi Arabia? The battle is no longer about who pays more. It is about who has the most convincing project.

Grasp that equation early, and Saudi financial power becomes far more dangerous once it fuses with marketing, fan and sporting clout.

Bet on money alone, however, and the Turkish market could find itself with a real chance to tip the balance of power in the race for stars.