Besiktas Makes Final Offer for Mohamed Salah

Besiktas have made their move for Mohamed Salah – and made it clear they will not budge an inch further.

Sporting director Önder Özent confirmed the Istanbul club have tabled a contract proposal to the free agent, who left Liverpool at the end of last season, and framed it as a straight choice for the Egyptian star: accept it, or walk away.

“Besiktas’ offer, made on its own terms, is on the table,” Özent told reporters, via Turkish outlet Fanatik. “If a response to this offer comes, it can be evaluated. But Besiktas will not make another offer.”

No brinkmanship. No late sweeteners. The Turkish giants believe they have gone as far as they are prepared to go.

A straight line in the sand

Salah, 32, is weighing up his next step after a glittering spell at Anfield, and Özent revealed that Besiktas are not alone at the negotiating table.

“They’ve said they’re in talks with another club as well; perhaps they’ll reach an agreement there,” he said. “Our final offer to Salah is the last word – one that doesn’t compromise Besiktas’ club identity.”

That phrase – club identity – has become the anchor of Besiktas’ stance. The board want the prestige of landing one of the modern game’s elite forwards, but not at the cost of tearing up internal rules on spending and payments.

Talks stall over commission demands

Özent painted a picture of early meetings that went smoothly, only for the tone to change once money entered the conversation.

“We met with Salah three times without delving into the financial aspects of the negotiations,” he explained. “Everything was going smoothly up to that point. Once the financial discussions began, the smooth progress seen on the first day started to slow down as of July 21.”

The sticking point? Commission.

According to Özent, requests from intermediaries dragged the process to a near standstill, both in terms of information flow and financial demands.

“Requests began to emerge that would bring both the flow of information and the financial side to a standstill. I can assume that a respected athlete like Salah was unaware of this,” he said.

Besiktas believe those demands clash directly with their internal regulations and with Turkish law on commission rates.

“The club has a policy, and it cannot deviate from that policy,” Özent stressed. “Our president identified the line he would not cross very clearly and stood his ground. Management is a legal business; there is a legally established commission rate, and exceeding that would constitute an illegal situation.”

President walks away – for now

At that point, Besiktas chose principle over popularity. Rather than bending to secure a marquee signing, the hierarchy stepped back.

“When it comes to Beşiktaş, avoiding such a situation is a requirement of being a Besiktas supporter,” Özent said. “The president, by not making a populist decision, has ‘stepped away from the table for now.’”

The offer remains in front of Salah’s camp. Besiktas will wait, but they will not renegotiate. The next move belongs to the former Liverpool forward – and to the unnamed rival club trying to tempt him elsewhere.