Over the weekend, something very unusual happened. When Arne Slot’s 11 selected players started the match against West Ham in London, the club’s biggest and highest paid star player was present, but on the bench. He stayed there until Liverpool had finally secured a win in the Premier League. Now Arne Slot talks about Mo Salah’s reaction.
Slot, of course, was asked after the game why he benched the “King of Anfield”.
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-Salah has had an incredible career at this club and will also have a very good future at this club because he is a very special player. Sometimes you have to decide on a particular formation, and you try to choose the best formation for each and every match. And today, with the way they lined up – with a full-back who is constantly very tall, and a winger who is constantly going onto the pitch – I thought it could help the team,” Slot explains according to Sky Sports.
Did Salah take the explanation as easily?
Arne Slot says a few days after the game that Salah was anything but happy.
“He wasn’t happy about not starting, but he wasn’t the only one. It was a normal reaction for a player who is good enough to perform for us… But the way he behaved is as expected of such a professional player. He supported his teammates and handled it well,” Slot said, according to the BBC.
If there’s one thing Mo Salah won’t be bothered with for long, it’s to wear out the bench, the season after he gave Liverpool and Slot the Premier League title with a wild 29 goals and 18 assists.
We hear Slot add that “Salah will continue to be important for the club”, but also remember what the Liverpool manager said at the beginning of October, that “the last thing I worry about is that Salah won’t score”. 5 poor goals in 18 games from the goal guarantor Salah, probably worries Liverpool supporters.
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Before long, the Egyptian national team star will travel on duty to the Africa Cup of Nations starting on 21 December, which will take place in January. To us, it sounds like Arne Slot has already started a plan without Salah as a key player.
