The deal of the century is at stake. Mohamed Salah’s demands confuse Al-Hilal and Al-Qadisia.

Talks over a move to the Saudi league for Egyptian star Mohamed Salah have seen a new development after they clashed with the player’s desire to secure a huge financial deal, causing talks to collapse despite strong interest in signing him following the end of his historic journey with Liverpool.

The 34-year-old Egypt captain is still in talks over a move to Saudi Arabia, but his high financial demands have become the most obvious obstacle to completing a deal at the moment.

Salah became a free agent after his contract with Liverpool expired and left the English club last June, bringing down the curtain on an exceptional nine-year career that saw him win the Premier League twice, in addition to the FA Cup, Champions League and several other competitions.

Salah’s name has been linked with a move to the Saudi Arabian professional league in recent years, with Al Hilal and Al Qadisiyah standing out as the most prominent candidates to acquire his services in the current transfer window.

However British “The Sun” newspaper. Talks are understood to have broken down due to the Egyptian star’s high financial demands, with interested Saudi clubs attempting to reduce the contract value required to reach an agreement satisfactory to all parties.

Salah was reportedly earning up to £400,000-a-week with Liverpool after signing a new contract with the club in April 2025, which explains his insistence on landing a huge contract at his next stop.

Meanwhile, talks continue over a deal that could see Salah reunite with former Liverpool football executive Michael Edwards, who played a key role in signing the Egyptian star from Roma in 2017.

Edwards, 47, has been under heavy scrutiny by Al Hilal after he recently left his role at Fenway Sports Group as the Saudi club look to appoint him as chief executive in the next round.

Despite the failed negotiations, Al-Hilal and Al-Qadissia are still the frontrunners to finance a transfer deal for Salah, especially in light of the structural changes taking place in the Saudi Professional League.

Al Hilal rests on major financial strength following the entry of private sector investors led by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, one of the kingdom’s most prominent businessmen.

Last April, Kingdom Holding, owned by Prince Alwaleed, signed a binding agreement to acquire a 70% stake in Al Hilal Club, previously owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

The move is significant given news that the Public Investment Fund is set to exit ownership of the big four clubs – Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, Al-Nasr and Al-Ahly – after deciding to cut back on the huge spending spree that has characterized the project in recent years.

According to the reports, the Fund intends to sell all its shares in these clubs, including its 75% stake, in addition to the 25% held by the Saudi Sports Ministry.

Reports also state that Prince Alwaleed bin Talal previously covered the entire cost of Frenchman Karim Benzema’s transfer to Al Hilal, in addition to funding seven deals completed by the club during the 2025-26 winter transfer window.

As for Al-Kadisiyah, it also has huge financial leverage thanks to its ownership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s oil giant Aramco, making it one of the most prominent contenders to land Mohamed Salah if his financial demands are agreed.