“I find it sad” – Gary Lineker reacts to Salah’s comments on Liverpool | OneFootball

Lineker sounds alarm as Salah situation threatens to overshadow Liverpool run

Liverpool head into Saturday’s Premier League meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion with an awkward backdrop: the team have a result to build on, but the conversation keeps circling back to Mohamed Salah.

A narrow 1-0 win over Inter Milan in the Champions League was meant to be a marker of progress under Arne Slot. Instead, it has been followed by uncertainty over whether Salah will feature at all this weekend after he was left out of the squad entirely in midweek.

Into that noise has stepped Gary Lineker, who has voiced concern that a difficult patch could tilt into something more damaging, both for the player and for Liverpool.

Photo: IMAGO

Lineker flags legacy risk for Salah

On The Rest Is Football podcast, Lineker framed the current mood around Salah as “a little bit sad”, pointing out that criticism has gathered pace and that he “understand[s] why” people are reacting strongly.

More pointedly, Lineker’s main worry is reputational: “I just hope his legacy is not spoiled here,” he said, before suggesting the situation may have been fuelled by emotion at a bad moment, with the forward “caught out” after not being brought on.

Lineker also referenced Salah sharing a solitary gym post on Instagram, interpreting it as a hint that the player may be reflecting on how the episode has landed. The thrust of Lineker’s argument was simple: if there is a way to de-escalate this quickly, Liverpool should take it, because endings matter in football almost as much as the prime years.

That is where Lineker used the word “awful”, stressing he would hate for a stint as successful as Salah’s to conclude on sour terms after nearly a decade of contribution.

Brighton selection dilemma for Slot

Lineker expects Salah to miss the Brighton game, and that possibility sharpens Slot’s immediate decision-making.

Bring him straight back and some will argue the manager looks as if he has blinked first. Leave him out again and the story grows legs: every team-sheet becomes an event, every substitution plan becomes a referendum on authority.

Brighton are not the sort of opponent you want to face while distracted. They press, they move the ball quickly, and they will happily test Liverpool’s concentration if the stadium is tense and the narrative is louder than the football.

For Slot, this is less about “winning” a stand-off and more about stabilising a run of matches. Liverpool have targets domestically and in Europe. Dropping points because the week became consumed by one headline would be the most expensive outcome of all.

Contract status and transfer talk around Salah

Salah remains under contract at Anfield until 2027. Liverpool, according to the framing around the club, would prefer he stays. Yet the wider market does not pause: Saudi Pro League interest is routinely referenced in the background, and the debate has shifted from “will he leave?” to “how does this end?”

There is also the practical complication Lineker mentioned: the African Cup of Nations. International tournaments can act as a natural reset, but they can also freeze a situation in place if there is no resolution beforehand.

On valuation, public estimates vary wildly. Transfermarkt’s €30m figure has been cited, but it does not account for Liverpool’s negotiating position, nor the reality that elite-level output (and global profile) can distort price tags in either direction. The more relevant point is that any potential fee would be shaped by leverage: contract length, willingness to sell, willingness to go, and the number of credible bidders.

Next steps to avoid messy ending

If there is a path that suits all parties, it likely starts with tone. Lineker suggested a simple acknowledgment could calm the temperature: an apology for a moment of emotion, a line under the episode, and a refocus on the games ahead.

From Liverpool’s side, clarity helps. Whether Salah starts, sits, or stays home, the club’s priority will be to stop the situation drip-feeding into every press conference and every match build-up.

Brighton, for now, is the immediate test. But the wider question is bigger: can Liverpool keep their season moving forward while ensuring one of the club’s modern icons does not drift into an ending that feels avoidable?