Liverpool Legend Makes Bold Cristiano Ronaldo Claim After Mohamed Salah Exit Confirmed

Salah will bring a glittering spell in the Premier League to an end this summer.

Cristiano Ronaldo (left) and Mohamed Salah (right) both had excellent Premier League careers. | Tim Clayton/Malcolm Couzens/Getty Images

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has insisted Mohamed Salah will leave a greater Premier League legacy behind than Cristiano Ronaldo when he leaves Anfield this summer.

Salah will call time on his tenure in England’s top flight at the end of the current season, with Carragher warning of a “superstar famine” ahead of the loss of a player he argued is only comparable to Arsenal great Thierry Henry in terms of Premier League impact.

“In the pantheon of overseas attacking players to have excelled in England, only Thierry Henry eclipses Salah’s output and consistency,” Carragher wrote for The Telegraph.

“While many will argue the merits of players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Eden Hazard, Gianfranco Zola, Dennis Bergkamp or Eric Cantona, none of them produced the same devastating numbers as consistently, season-after-season, as the Egyptian.”

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Cristiano Ronaldo’s Premier League Record Compared to Mohamed Salah

Ronaldo was just starting his prime during his first spell in England. | Stephane Reix/For Picture/Corbis/Getty Images

	Cristiano Ronaldo	Mohamed Salah
Appearances	236	323
Goals	103	191
Assists	47	94
Titles	3	2

*accurate as of Mar. 26, 2026

When Ronaldo arrived at Manchester United in the summer of 2003, an 11-year-old Salah was still waiting to be spotted in Egypt.

Ronaldo, seven years Salah’s senior, was threatening to explode into a superstar, but his arrival at that level was not immediate. Three middling seasons and one excellent campaign preceeded his eruption in 2007–08, which yielded 31 goals in 34 games and ended with his first Ballon d’Or.

Where Ronaldo and Salah differ is the fact the former left the Premier League right at the start of his peak. Ronaldo became one of the greatest of all time on the books at Real Madrid, returning only in 2021 when his decline had begun.

A return of 103 goals in 236 games is still an excellent record, but one which perhaps does not reflect the idea of Ronaldo as we know today—a record-breaking superstar.

Salah, meanwhile, was an emerging wonderkid when he first joined Chelsea in 2014 and seen as a backup target for Liverpool three years later upon his return from Roma. In the eyes of many, the Egyptian had already hit an uninspiring peak.

His first season back yielded 32 goals, more than Ronaldo ever managed in the Premier League, as Salah quickly roared into the elite, holding that position for the vast majority of his nine years at Liverpool.

“Ronaldo’s time at Manchester United, both initially and upon his return, was either side of his absolute, Real Madrid-peak years,” Carragher explained.

“Salah edges ahead of him when judging strictly on Premier League performance and impact. In an all-time Premier League XI, Salah is an automatic inclusion in the front three alongside Henry and Ronaldo.”

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