Liverpool: Mohamed Salah slammed from all quarters
Mohamed Salah has come in for heavy criticism. The Liverpool star is being hammered from all sides over his attitude.
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On Saturday 27 April, Liverpool drew 2-2 away at West Ham. While the poor result probably spells the end of the Reds' title hopes, what grabbed the most attention was the altercation between Jürgen Klopp and Mohamed Salah. As he was about to come on in the second half, the Egyptian had a heated exchange with his manager. Two of his team-mates had to hold him back to stop the situation boiling over. And to make matters worse, after the game, the number 11 told the media: "If I speak today, there will be fire". That was hardly going to calm things down.
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On Sunday, Mohamed Salah took plenty of stick in the English media. First, The Guardian columnist Jacob Steinberg said: "It was quite a scene. Rather than restraining himself, the Egyptian had to be restrained by two of his team-mates. He was no model of diplomacy. It would have been far better if Salah had shown the same kind of spark on the pitch, during a spell in which Liverpool's season went up in smoke, as he did on the touchline. He is not easy to replace, but selling him might help Arne Slot, who will soon be confirmed as Klopp's successor, so that next season he does not have to worry about managing a player whose ego seems to have become uncontrollable", he declared. Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher also took the Pharaoh to task. "Mo was daft with his comment in the mixed zone, but let's let them sort it out and enjoy the last few weeks together. They have helped each other enormously in everything that has been achieved at the club!"
Salah urged to leave
The various pundits regret the row all the more because Jürgen Klopp is leaving the club at the end of the season. "The relationship between Mo Salah and Jurgen Klopp is at its lowest ebb at the worst possible time… And this falling-out will spoil an emotional farewell for Liverpool", laments Lewis Steele of the Daily Mail.
Finally, Ryan Taylor of the Daily Mirror simply calls on the Reds to get rid of Mohamed Salah, citing the risk of the dressing room imploding. "His sulky body language and furious facial expression on the bench already said a lot. He has been off the pace during the title race. Liverpool must now wonder whether they made the right decision in rejecting a monstrous offer of 150 million pounds sterling for the player."
The full sequence of the clash between Klopp and Salah, who has been itching to get on from the touchline since the start… which would suggest the Egyptian was simply unhappy not to start and/or not to come on sooner pic.twitter.com/3Sz39pyoiU
— Bruno Constant (@Bruno_Constant) April 27, 2024