Mohamed Salah posted a scathing message on Instagram over the weekend, which was liked by several of his Liverpool team-mates, but Arne Slott’s comments have called their actions into question.
Arne Slott pours water on any fallout following Mo Salah’s social media post (Image: This Is Anfield)
Arne Slott insists he has no idea Liverpool players liked Mohamed Salah’s social media posts criticizing the team’s form, instead seeing the players’ level of effort in recent weeks as evidence of their dedication.
The Reds had no choice but to lick their wounds after suffering their 12th defeat in the final Premier League game against Aston Villa. The Midlands team continued to break through Liverpool’s back line in the second half and won 4-2.
Salah, who will play his final game this Sunday, recently announced he would be leaving Anfield after a challenging season. It was the worst season of his Liverpool career and he had to cope with being on the bench.
The Egyptian made a scathing statement on social media after coming on as a substitute in the defeat at Villa Park. He said: “It was extremely painful for us to suffer yet another defeat this season and it was not something our fans deserved. I want to see Liverpool get back to being the heavy metal attacking team that our opponents fear, and the team that wins trophies.”
The post, which was liked by many players, was seen by some as a criticism of Salah and his philosophy after he called for a return to the “heavy metal football” pioneered by Jurgen Klopp, but Slott didn’t think it was hurting him.
read more: Liverpool decide on future of new manager Arne Slottread more: Liverpool lead transfer race for Yann Diomande as RB Leipzig’s star attraction
He said: “I’m not really sure what exactly it means to like a post, yes or no. All I know is, it’s my world, but I look at how they’re training and I don’t see anything different compared to the rest of the season.”
Asked how he would remember Salah, Slott added: “Last season he said 100 per cent that the most special thing I won was the Premier League title last season. Now I can safely say that was the most special thing I won in my life. So I remember that and I remember how important he was to the club that season and how every goal he scored was important to me as a result.”
The Egyptian player did not hesitate to lament the current state of the club (Image: Getty Images)
Salah was integral to Slot’s title win in his debut season, but there were differences between the two this year. A significant drop in performance levels ultimately led the Liverpool manager to bench the Egyptian star, but the manager was furious in December.
“I have said many times that I have a good relationship with the manager, but all of a sudden we no longer have a relationship. I don’t know why, but from my point of view it seems like someone doesn’t want me at the club,” he said.
“It seems like the club threw me under the bus. That’s how I feel. I think it’s clear that someone was trying to put all the blame on me.”
Join our new WhatsApp community! Click this link to receive daily Mirror Football content. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can always check out. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+ and Ultimate TV packages
Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundles to include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, plus 135 channels and complete coverage of the Premier League and EFL from Sky.
Sky has over 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more, with at least 215 of them live from the top flight, along with F1, darts and golf.
