Mohamed Salah accuses the club of “throwing him under the bus” | OneFootball

Mohamed Salah’s (33) has publically attacked Liverpool head coach Arne Slot, intensifying the pressure on the struggling Premier League champions, opening a rift that now threatens to overshadow the club’s season.

Salah delivered an unusually blunt assessment of his fractured relationship with Slot following Liverpool’s dramatic 3-3 draw at Leeds, accusing the club of “throwing [him] under the bus” and claiming “someone doesn’t want me in the club.” While he stopped short of issuing an ultimatum, the Egyptian’s comments represent the clearest and most direct challenge yet to Slot’s authority.

The outburst came after Salah was named on the bench for a third successive league match, watching from the sidelines as Liverpool relinquished a 2-0 lead to drop further ground in the title race, with Salah claiming that he had “earned” his position in the starting 11 after his success at the club. With form waning and the team’s defensive resilience evaporating, Slot already faced scrutiny; Salah’s intervention has now placed the Dutchman under the most intense spotlight of his short tenure.

Salah’s influence at Liverpool is undisputed. Since joining in 2017, he has scored 250 goals and helped deliver two Premier League titles and the Champions League. But this season the forward has struggled to impose himself, with only five goals in 16 starts, a sharp contrast to the 34 he scored during last year’s title-winning campaign. Slot’s decision to leave him out increasingly reflected a pragmatic response to declining output rather than a statement of hierarchy.

Even so, Salah’s claim that he has been made a scapegoat exposes an internal tension rarely seen at a club that prides itself on unity and discretion. Liverpool, who spent close to £450m in the summer, are faltering and face further challenges with Salah due to join Egypt for the Africa Cup of Nations later this month.

How Slot and the club respond will shape what happens next. Dismissing criticism from an ageing star seems unlikely, but nor is it easy to imagine a reconciliation after such public condemnation. As Liverpool prepare to host Brighton at Anfield, the dynamic between manager and forward will draw as much attention as events on the pitch.

GFN | Finn Entwistle