New arrival Mohamed Salah's qualities will give Liverpool what they need, says Craig Bellamy

Former Liverpool forward Craig Bellamy is confident new Reds forward Mohamed Salah will prove to be a success at Anfield and says the Egypt international provides Jurgen Klopp's side with two things they lacked last season: seering pace and the willingness to get in behind opponents.

Salah's €41.9m (£36.9m) transfer to Anfield from Roma was finalised on Thursday (22 June) after almost a month of negotiations. The 25-year-old almost moved to Merseyside from Basel in January 2014 but ended up signing for Chelsea, though he soon found himself on the move again after failing to receive sufficient game-time at Stamford Bridge.

Bellamy, who enjoyed two brief spells at Anfield during his career, thinks Salah has found his feet again after stalling at Chelsea and is excited to see the lightning-quick winger replicate his Roma form and utilise his strengths at Anfield.

"I remember watching him when he was at Basel and he looked a very good player," the BT Sport pundit told Liverpool's official website. "He deservedly got his move to Chelsea, it didn't quite work out for him [there]... but his spell at Roma was very, very good. He has pace to burn and looks to go in behind, which is what Liverpool need, and hopefully he'll work out to be a very good signing."

With the arrival of Salah, Liverpool have significantly strengthened what was already one of the most fearsome forwardlines in the Premier League. Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane all impressed under Klopp last season, and Bellamy thinks Salah's talents will blend excellently with those of his new teammates.

"What I like about him is that he's always looking to get beyond and get behind the full-back and that's really what they need," Bellamy added. "[Philippe] Coutinho, [Roberto] Firmino, they come towards the ball a lot, which is great because they're excellent players and they make things happen, but you need runners.

"[Sadio] Mane made such a big difference because he was always looking to go in behind, so for me it's an intelligent signing, a signing of the type of player they really need at this moment."

Salah became Liverpool's second signing of the summer after they prised England Under-20 international Dominic Solanke away from Chelsea, and the Reds are expected to press on with more signings in order to equip themselves appropriately for the Champions League.

A deal for Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk now seems unlikely, but Liverpool have been given hope in their chase for RB Leipzig midfielder Naby Keita. The Bundesliga outfit have seemingly softened their stance over their coveted star, with the Guardian reporting that he will be allowed to leave the club if they receive an offer worth €79.7m (£70m).