Liverpool boss Arne Slot to speak to Mohamed Salah to determine ‘outcome’
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Liverpool manager Arne Slot and Mohamed Salah are not seeing eye to eye at the moment, and it remains to be seen what the future lies for the Egyptian forward.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON – All eyes are on Mohamed Salah’s uncertain future at Liverpool, as Arne Slot tries to shut out the noise and prepare his men to face Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Dec 13.
The Egyptian superstar has hinted that the match at Anfield could be his last for the English champions, taking aim at manager Slot and the club hierarchy in an explosive interview as he felt that he was being made a scapegoat for the team’s poor form.
On Dec 12, Slot was – as expected – bombarded with questions about Salah from the media in his pre-match press conference, but the Dutchman refused to reveal anything.
“I will have a conversation with Mo... and the outcome determines how (we proceed),” he said.
“What I need is a conversation with him, and the next time I speak about Mo should be with him and not in here (at the press conference). There’s not much more I can say. I speak to him today, and the outcome determines how things will look tomorrow.
“You can try in multiple ways, but I just said the next time I speak about him should be with him. I think there’s been a lot of conversations since last week between his reps and ours.”
The Reds are currently languishing in 10th place with 23 points from 15 matches, a far cry from last season’s romp to the title, and this off-pitch issue is a major distraction.
But it is difficult to see a way back for Salah, who has five goals in 19 appearances in all competitions this season, unless he apologises to Slot and the club.
Specifically, the forward had accused Liverpool of throwing him “under the bus” and said he had no relationship with the Dutch manager after he was left on the bench for last week’s 3-3 draw at Leeds United – the third match in a row that he did not start.
The 33-year-old did not travel for the midweek Champions League match at Inter Milan, which Liverpool won 1-0, posting a picture of himself alone in a gym on social media.
“I think we decided as a club and I was part of that not to take him to Inter,” Slot added.
“Do I want him to stay? Another way of asking, but the next time I speak about Mo will be with him. I see no reason why I don’t want him to stay.”
Salah, who is preparing to join the Egypt squad for the Africa Cup of Nations, has invited his family to the Brighton game amid the saga.
“I will be in Anfield to say goodbye to the fans and go the Africa Cup,” he told reporters. “I don’t know what is going to happen when I am there.”
But as things stand, Salah, who has been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League, may not get the chance to say his farewells.
It is impossible to predict how the whole incident will end, but there is a chance that the man who is third in Liverpool’s all-time list of goalscorers – with 250 goals in 420 appearances – will never wear the shirt again.
On facing Brighton, Slot said: “We’ve shown we are difficult to beat and create chances against in the last four games, the team has put a lot of effort in.
“A bit unlucky with the results, but showed great resilience, four games in 10 days without many players available. So that is a big compliment to them.
“Brighton threat? I said it, and it’s so clear and obvious that if you see the league, it is much more direct. There is the league, and then there is Liverpool for how teams play against.
“That is one thing, and we’ve seen certain game plans against us more and more as well.”
On the injury front, striker Alexander Isak picked up a slight knock in the match against Inter, and Slot said that the medical team will check on his fitness before they decide if he can feature. AFP, REUTERS