By Wellington Jopelo
Liverpool manager Arne Slot says he must first sit down with Mohamed Salah today before deciding if the forward will feature in the weekend game against Brighton. Slot made it clear that the conversation will determine whether Salah is included in the squad.
This follows a tense week for the club after Salah publicly complained that he had been “thrown under the bus” and claimed he had no relationship with Slot. His frustration grew after starting three straight league matches on the bench, including the 3-3 draw against Leeds.
The forward also skipped the Champions League trip to Inter Milan, instead posting a photo of himself working out alone at the club’s training complex.
Slot told reporters that he does not want to discuss the situation further until he speaks directly with Salah. “I will have a conversation with Mo this morning, the outcome of that conversation determines how things will look tomorrow,” he said. He added, “I think the next time I speak about Mo should be with him and not in here.”
He explained that there have already been several discussions involving Salah, his representatives and the club. “After the Sunderland game there were a lot of conversations between his representatives and ours, between him and me,” Slot said, referring to an earlier match in which Salah was also benched.
The Liverpool boss refused to be drawn into additional questions but did hint at his position. “I have no reasons not wanting him to stay, and that is a little bit of an answer to your question,” he told journalists.
Salah is expected to leave for national duty with Egypt for the Africa Cup of Nations after the Brighton match. The 33-year-old remains one of Liverpool’s biggest stars, sitting third on the club’s all-time scoring list and having won both the Premier League and the Champions League during his time at Anfield.
His current season, however, has been difficult. He has managed only four goals in 13 league matches, and Liverpool’s form has slumped as the team sits 10th in the table despite winning the league title last season.