Mohamed Salah was demoted to the bench during Liverpool FC’s match against West Ham United. The winger has been criticized for his modest display in recent weeks and will start the game instead of coming on as a substitute. Alisson Becker is also back in goal after overcoming illness, while Florian Wirths is also set to return to the Reds’ starting XI.
Liverpool will be desperate to beat the Hammers as they see their Premier League title defense come under fire. They have lost nine of their last 12 games in all competitions, and manager Arne Slott has taken drastic action in an attempt to halt the slump. He explained his decision to drop Salah before kick-off at the London Stadium and downplayed the importance of such a call-up.
“We have a lot of other players on the bench besides Mo, so I can understand why you are asking questions about him,” the Reds manager said.
“We play four games in 10 days and we have a lot of good players, so we chose a different lineup today.
“There were times when Alex (Alexander Isak) and Florian (Wurtz) were on the bench, so I’m always thinking about the players. I understand that, but the starting players are also important. That’s the eleven I chose today.”
This came after Wayne Rooney called for Salah’s release from Liverpool after accusing the Egyptian of failing to fulfill his defensive duties.
“Salah is not helping them defensively,” Rooney said. “If you’re one of the guys they signed and you’re sitting on the bench and you see him not running…
“I understand that he is a legend at the club and what he has done for the club, but if you are on the bench and your team-mates are not running away, what message does that send to you?”
“He starts every game. If I were Arne Slott, I would try to make big decisions that affect the rest of the team.”
Slot has plenty of attacking options on the bench, with Salah joined by Hugo Ekitike, Federico Chiesa and Rio Ngmoja.
Curtis Jones and Wataru Endo are also included as substitutes as Liverpool look to reverse their run, having lost nine of their last 12 games.
