Liverpool have set their sights on Real Sociedad winger Takefusa Kubo as a potential replacement for Mohamed Salah, according to Fichajes.
Kubo has rediscovered consistency with Real Sociedad after struggling to secure a place in the first teams at Barcelona and Real Madrid.
He also spent time with Villarreal and Mallorca before eventually completing a permanent move to Sociedad from Madrid in 2022, where he has maintained steady form.
Kubo has since featured in 157 matches for the club, scoring 25 goals and providing 21 assists in all competitions. At the international level, he is also a regular for the Japan national football team, earning 48 caps since making his senior debut for the Samurai Blue in 2019.
Having played over 300 top-flight games in his career, he could prove useful to some top clubs, with Liverpool now showing interest.
This is according to Fichajes, which claims that Liverpool have been keeping close tabs on Kubo and are set to accelerate efforts to sign him due to Mohamed Salah’s imminent departure.
The report adds that the Merseyside club have earmarked the right winger as ‘the most attractive’ option to replace the Egyptian, citing his dynamism, take-on prowess, and creativity as the right profile for their attack.
Liverpool are also willing to submit a formal offer of around £69m for the possible transfer of the Japanese international to Anfield next summer, according to the Spanish outlet.
Kubo to Liverpool
Salah has had a significant influence at Liverpool since joining the club from AS Roma in 2017, playing a key role in their recent surge.
Individually, he has achieved significant milestones, including the Best FIFA Men’s Player in 2018, two Premier League Player of the Year awards (2018, 2025), four Premier League Golden Boots (2017-18, 2018-19, 2021-22, 2024-25), and two African Footballer of the Year awards.
He recently surpassed Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney (276) by becoming the player with the most goal contributions for a single club (278).
Hence, filling his boots would be a daunting task — even more so for a player like Kubo, who has never reached double figures for either goals or assists since moving to Europe.
Despite this season being marked as a poor season by his standards, Salah’s 17 goal contributions this season are just one less than Kubo’s best-ever season, where he contributed 18 (nine goals and nine assists) in the 2022-23 season.
Hence, a move for a more prolific and reliable option like Yan Diomande would make sense, as he has recorded more output and showcased the potential to develop.
