Arne Slot breaks silence on Salah exit as jaw-dropping Liverpool player cull to see top stars leave | OneFootball

Arne Slot has broken his silence on Mohamed Salah’s announcement that he will be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season, while it’s being reported that as many as seven Anfield stars will be offloaded in the summer.

Salah revealed last week that he would be walking away from the club he has been at since 2017, despite having a year still to run on his existing contract on Merseyside.

The Egyptian will rightly go down as one of Liverpool‘s best-ever players, having scored 255 goals in 435 appearances for the club, although his relationship with Slot has been fractured – particularly this season.

However, the Reds boss, whose own job is currently under severe pressure, has now spoken about the legacy Salah will leave behind at Anfield.

Slot talks up ‘legend’ Salah

The Dutchman, speaking ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final clash with Manchester City, believes Salah will “leave the club a legend”, as all memory of his now infamous rant in December is seemingly wiped away.

It has been a difficult campaign for the 33-year-old, the low point of which came at the end of last year when he said Slot had “thrown him under the bus” by benching him when results took a slide.

However, things looked to have been patched up between the pair heading into the closing stages of the campaign, with Slot telling the club’s website that “the first day I was impressed by his professionalism”.

The Dutchman continued: “He had nothing to prove but for himself he had a lot to prove because Mo always thinks he has to prove something every three days.

“That hunger never stops and that is something that I find most special about him. To show that hunger every three days, that professionalism, that commitment to the club, to the team, wanting to score again, always wanting to play – when you take him out three minutes before the end he’s like: ‘Maybe I could have scored one extra!’ – that is what stands out for me.

“Hopefully, he can make his legacy even more special in the upcoming weeks and months where we still play for something special but he will always leave this club as a legend.”

Salah’s early announcement means he will at least be able to receive a proper farewell, and Slot said the legendary forward warranted that. However, he wants the Liverpool fans to get behind all their players ahead of what will be an intense week for the team as they prepare to face City and then PSG in the Champions League quarter-finals.

He added: “Mo definitely deserves that the fans give him a great farewell. If they want to do it game after game after game, I’m completely fine with that, because it usually helps players if they get the help from the fans – but it would be perfect if it’s not only about Mo.

“There’s every right that it should be about Mo for everything that he does for this club but we are playing for something special and I think every player needs the support of our fans in the upcoming period.”

Massive Liverpool summer cull

As many as seven Liverpool players could reluctantly leave the club this summer amid a major shake-up after a hugely disappointing campaign that continues to spark doubt over Arne Slot’s long-term job prospects at Anfield.

It has already been confirmed that Mohamed Salah will leave Liverpool on a free transfer this summer, while Ibrahima Konate is also out of contract and looks increasingly likely to move on.

After spending around £450m on new additions last summer, another huge outlay is required in the next transfer window, with the Reds needing to sign at least one centre-back and a winger to replace Konate and Salah.

And The Sun are reporting that the Reds are planning to raise funds via a major summer ‘clearout’, with seven players either ‘destined to be let go or sold to make way for new arrivals’.

They claim that the players on the chopping block are: Cody Gakpo, Alexis Mac Allister, Joe Gomez, Federico Chiesa, Andy Robertson, Curtis Jones and Konate.

The exits of Chiesa and Robertson are no surprise at all and have been tipped for months, especially after the latter’s failed winter window switch to Tottenham.

There is a strong feeling that Gakpo’s future is tied to what happens with Slot at the end of the season, with the Netherlands international a real favourite of his fellow countryman, despite not convincing that he is worthy of a regular starting spot on Merseyside.

Mac Allister is a player who continues to be heavily linked with Spanish giants Real Madrid. Indeed, a recent report suggested that the Argentine has informed the club of his desire to move on.

Finally, Curtis Jones has failed to command a regular starting role and has been heavily linked with the likes of Inter Milan, Newcastle and Tottenham, while Joe Gomez was a favourite of Jurgen Klopp’s but his injury-ravaged time at Anfield is close to a close.

Major Arne Slot future update

A top source on all things Liverpool has provided a major update on Arne Slot‘s Liverpool future, with it connected to a revelation about the club’s summer transfer business.

There has been persistent speculation that the Reds could dispense with Slot and hire Xabi Alonso at season’s end if UCL qualification is missed. Liverpool currently sit in what’s likely to be the fifth and final spot to achieve that aim, but have the likes of Chelsea, Brentford and Everton not far behind.

However, a recent report from The Times’ Paul Joyce claimed Liverpool harbour doubts over Alonso’s preferred playing style, which favours a back three.

Furthermore, Joyce revealed Slot is understood to have informed friends he not only expects to be at Liverpool next year, but he’s confident he’ll oversee a bounce-back campaign on Merseyside.

Now, a fresh update from one of The Athletic’s Liverpool experts, James Pearce, has revealed Liverpool’s thinking around Slot.

Despite acknowledging Liverpool’s many failings this term, Pearce revealed the hierarchy still believe Slot is the right man for the job, and that with a carefully constructed summer transfer window, he’ll have the Reds back challenging for top honours again next season.

Pearce wrote: “The decision-makers still retain faith in him and believe, with the right additions this summer, Slot can turn things around in the same way that [Jurgen] Klopp did after a disappointing fifth-placed finish in 2022-23.”

Aston Villa sensation Morgan Rogers has reportedly made a significant exit decision, with four Premier League clubs, including Liverpool, ‘targeting a mega-money transfer’.

Meanwhile, Manchester United are reportedly ready to leapfrog the likes of Liverpool in the race to sign Nico Schlotterbeck after their interest in the Germany star was confirmed.