Carragher Critiques Salah's Move to Trabzonspor

Jamie Carragher did not try to dress it up. For him, Mohamed Salah’s decision to swap Anfield for Trabzonspor is a waste of a still-elite talent.

Speaking on the Football Ramble, the former Liverpool defender laid bare his surprise that the 34-year-old winger chose Turkey over one of Europe’s traditional power leagues.

“I never believed he was going to go to Saudi, because number one, he's too good for that,” Carragher said. “I think he can be playing in Serie A. Turkey for me feels a level too low.”

That is the crux of his argument. Not that Trabzonspor is an unattractive club, or that the Turkish Super Lig lacks passion, but that a player of Salah’s standing should still be operating at the sharp end of the Champions League, not stepping away from it.

Carragher wanted a Serie A heavyweight

In Carragher’s mind, there was a clear blueprint. Cristiano Ronaldo stayed in the spotlight at Real Madrid and Juventus before eventually heading into more lucrative, less competitive territory. Salah, he felt, should have followed a similar route.

While Trabzonspor celebrate what is, by any measure, a stunning coup, Carragher cannot shake the sense of an opportunity missed. He expected the “Egyptian King” to walk into one of Italy’s historic giants, not a side that finished third in the Super Lig last season.

“I was convinced he'd end up at an AC Milan or Juventus or somewhere like that, maybe his wages were a problem,” he admitted. “I don't know him, obviously have never spoken to him. But he's like Ronaldo, he's so driven, his numbers mean so much to him. I thought, he can still do this in Turkey by the way, but I thought he'd want to play at a real prestigious club.”

The word “prestigious” hangs over Carragher’s assessment. San Siro nights, Scudetto races, Champions League knockouts – that is where he believes Salah still belongs.

Money, visibility and the Turkish gamble

Carragher’s criticism bites hardest when he talks about visibility and competitive edge. For him, Salah has traded the brutal rhythm of top-level football for a lucrative but softer landing.

To make the move happen, Trabzonspor reportedly assembled a package worth around €17 million per year. Serious money, even for someone who walked away from a £400,000-a-week contract at Liverpool.

Yet Carragher argues that the day-to-day standard of the league matters more than the Europa League nights that Trabzonspor can offer next season.

“Obviously his wage demands have put a few people off but I thought he might almost curb those demands a little bit to almost get a better club,” he continued. “To go to an AC Milan or Juventus or whoever it may be, play at the San Siro, still playing in big games, still playing in Europe. Turkey just feels like... I just think he's better than that.”

That line is as blunt as it gets: “He’s better than that.” In Carragher’s eyes, Salah has chosen comfort and a starring role in a smaller arena over the unforgiving glare of the very top.

A new kingdom in the north of Turkey

Salah, though, appears unmoved by outside noise. He has committed to a new chapter in the Black Sea city, where the expectations are fierce and the adoration already overwhelming.

At Istanbul Atatürk Airport, the scale of the reception made clear what he represents to Trabzonspor fans: a global superstar arriving to tilt the balance of power at home. They have not lifted the league title since 2022. Galatasaray and Fenerbahce have pulled away again. The club hierarchy is betting heavily that Salah’s goals, aura and professionalism can close that gap.

He will not be alone. The dressing room will include familiar Premier League faces, with Manchester United loanee Andre Onana and former Manchester City defender Stefan Savic among those he will link up with. For a player used to Liverpool’s standards, that at least offers a level of experience and pedigree around him.

Back on Merseyside, he leaves a complete legacy: Premier League, Champions League, every major trophy Liverpool could realistically chase in his era. He departs as one of the defining forwards of the modern English game.

Carragher, though, cannot shake the feeling that the story at the very top ended too soon. For him, Salah still had another act in one of Europe’s grand theatres.

Trabzonspor believe this is the start of something era-defining. The question now is whether, a year or two from here, the wider football world will see this move as a bold new frontier for Salah – or the moment he quietly stepped off the main stage.