Mohamed Salah’s future at Liverpool hangs by a thread after his explosive outburst against the club and manager Arne Slot, with reports from prominent Merseyside outlets now suggesting the Egyptian forward could be omitted from the squad for Tuesday’s crucial UEFA Champions League showdown against Inter Milan at San Siro. The 33-year-old, who signed a two-year extension just last April, vented his anger in a seven-minute post-match rant following Liverpool’s chaotic 3-3 draw with Leeds United on Saturday, claiming he’s been “thrown under the bus” and has no relationship left with Slot. “I said many times I had a good relationship with the manager… after the sudden we don’t have any relationship. I don’t know why,” Salah told reporters at Elland Road, adding that “someone doesn’t want me in the club.”
This bombshell interview has ignited fierce debate among Liverpool fans and pundits, with some calling it a calculated move ahead of the January transfer window, where Saudi clubs like Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal are circling again with big-money offers. Salah hinted that next Saturday’s home game against Brighton might be his Anfield farewell, saying, “In football you never know. I don’t accept this situation. I have done so much for this club.” According to club insiders, hierarchy members held talks on Sunday but opted against a public clapback, leaving Slot to handle the heat at Monday’s presser in Milan.
Salah’s frustration boiled over after being benched for the third straight Premier League match the first time in his Anfield career despite his status as the club’s third-highest all-time scorer with 248 goals. He didn’t even get subbed on against Leeds, watching as the Reds blew a 2-0 lead with a wild second-half goal fest. Slot, the Dutch tactician who took over from Jurgen Klopp in the summer, informed Salah of his omission in a one-on-one chat the day before, but the forward felt scapegoated for Liverpool’s rocky title defense. “I’m sitting on the bench for three games in a row, and they are blaming me for everything,” he fumed, insisting he earned his spot through eight seasons of “superhuman” output.
The timing of this crisis could not be worse for Liverpool’s Champions League ambitions. The team is in a tense battle to qualify from the revamped league phase and likely needs a positive result against a strong Inter side to bolster their knockout hopes. Kickoff at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza is set for 8pm GMT on December 9, with the Reds flying out Monday afternoon after training at their AXA base. Sources close to the playing squad say Salah turned up for Sunday’s session in good spirits, but the final decision on his travel will rest on a combination of tactical needs, fitness checks, and the direct fallout from his interview. Slot has backed his star publicly, calling him “not happy” but professional after earlier benches, yet the Dutchman faces a man-management nightmare with the squad’s £450m summer spend yielding just two wins in 10 league games.
Born June 15, 1992, in Nagrig, Egypt, Salah’s journey to Liverpool stardom started humbly at Al-Mokawoloon before a €1.8m move to Basel in 2012, where he dazzled in the Champions League. Chelsea snapped him up in 2014 for £11m but loaned him out twice, leading to a £36.5m return to Serie A with Roma in 2015, where he notched 34 goals in 83 games. Klopp lured him to Anfield in June 2017 for a club-record £36.9m, and Salah exploded: 44 goals in his debut season, earning PFA Player of the Year.
Under Klopp, Salah became a Liverpool icon, bagging the 2019 Champions League, 2020 Premier League, and 2022 domestic cups, plus four Golden Boots and two Playmaker awards. His 2024-25 haul of 29 goals and 18 assists clinched another title, tying records set by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole. But this season, the magic has fizzled: just five goals across all comps by early December, down from 13 at this stage last year, with duel wins dipping to 28% and dribble success at 23.4%. Injuries nagged him early, and Slot’s high-pressing system demands more relentless work from wingers, a shift that has exposed Salah’s age-related dips in speed and recovery.
Slot’s arrival marked a decisive shift from Klopp’s gegenpress to a more controlled possession game, with Liverpool splashing on talents like Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak to refresh the attack. Salah inked his extension amid Saudi links, but the honeymoon soured fast. He started strong with a stoppage-time winner on the opening day against Bournemouth—his record 10th Premier League goal on a debut fixture—but form slumped amid the team’s three-game losing streak before the Leeds draw. This loss of form makes his potential absence against a rampant Inter Milan side all the more consequential for Slot. Pundits like Jamie Carragher have criticized Salah for only speaking out when it suits him, while Wayne Rooney slammed the rant as “destroying” his legacy.
Internally, dressing room factions simmer, with the club’s leadership caught between backing their under-fire coach and managing a squad blending old guards like Virgil van Dijk with expensive new blood. Salah’s camp points to broken promises on his role, while the club eyes replacements like Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo, whose £50m tag might accelerate if January bids roll in. For Egypt, with 61 international goals, Salah’s Africa Cup of Nations stint mid-December could now serve as a goodbye wave, as he hinted: “I thought I’m going to renew here and end my career here, but this is not according to the plan.”
The San Siro clash now looms as a critical juncture. Liverpool will face an Inter side topping Serie A with 30 points from 14 games under new boss, and the Reds’ defense—leaky with eight goals conceded in five UCL ties faces a severe threat from Lautaro Martinez. The Nerazzurri hold a mixed head-to-head edge, winning two of six meetings, including a 1-0 last-16 leg in 2022, though Liverpool advanced 2-1 on aggregate. All prior clashes stayed under three goals, often featuring clean sheets on one side.
