Jurgen Klopp reveals only time Mo Salah ‘was a problem’ at Liverpool amid Arne Slot feud | OneFootball

Legendary Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has revealed the only time that Mohamed Salah was a ‘problem’ during his tenure, amid a much-publicised falling-out with current manager Arne Slot that has led to huge question marks over his immediate future at the club.

Salah made headlines for all the wrong reasons last weekend when insisting Liverpool have ‘thrown him under the bus’ over their struggles this season. That was just one of several eye-catching declarations made by the forward, who was left out of Liverpool’s squad for their Champions League victory over Inter Milan on Tuesday night.

However, Klopp, appears to know exactly how Salah ticks, with only Roberto Firmino having played more times for the German than the Anfield great.

Salah is of the belief that he is the standard bearer on Merseyside and fully expects to start and play every minute of every game, something that has not been happening of late under Slot. Indeed, Saah was dropped to the bench for the last three Liverpool outings before being left out of the squad completely at Inter.

TEAMtalk can also report that the forward will almost certainly be missing again when Brighton visit Anfield this weekend, especially with no apology from the player forthcoming.

Salah’s total belief in himself and the fact that he has been mostly watching on while Liverpool have struggled is what led to his outburst, and Klopp admits that he has felt the brunt of that side of the attacker on occasion too.

“I wouldn’t say he is easy to manage, but he is also not difficult to manage,” Klopp told BBC Sport as part of an hour-long look at the Egyptian’s story.

“You [only] have problems with Mo Salah if he is not playing or you take him off.”

You do not have to look too far back to find evidence of a Klopp, Salah spat, with the trip to West Ham in May 2024 seeing the two trade words when the forward was to be introduced from the bench.

“There’s going to be a fire today if I speak,” Salah told reporters as he declined media requests after that game.

Speaking further on Salah, the admiration Klopp holds for the Egyptian is clear, with his relentless mindset ensuring the pair enjoyed success together.

The German added: “We pushed each other, just to make sure that we would never stop. And we never did stop. That moment lifting the Premier League bonded us for life.

“He will be remembered as one of the greatest of all time.”

What next for Mo Salah?

During Amazon’s broadcast of Liverpool’s trip to Inter, Slot was pressed by fellow Dutchman, Clarence Seedorf, over what the future holds for Salah next.

Anfield chief Slot suggested Salah is the one who must reach out first and admit fault, something we now know is unlikely to happen.

“Okay, you say everyone makes mistakes in life, so the first thing should be: does the player think he’s made a mistake as well?” Slot said in response to Seedorf’s probing.

Seedorf responded: “How are you going to know if you don’t talk with him?”

Slot hit back by adding: “I haven’t said that I’m not going to talk to him, I just said the focus should be on the players.

“The next question is: should the initiative come from me or from Mo? That’s another question to answer.”

One particular destination that is keeping a close eye on proceedings is the Saudi Pro League, with leading clubs prepared to spare no expense to bring the Liverpool legend on board next month.