Salah Benched! Slot Drops Star For Galatasaray Clash in Biggest UCL Shock Lineup in 3 Years

In partnership with

Foot Africa

·30 September 2025

Salah Benched! Slot Drops Star For Galatasaray Clash in Biggest UCL Shock Lineup in 3 Years

Official Lineup: Mohamed Salah Left Out of Liverpool’s Starting XI vs Galatasaray

Salah Benched! Slot Drops Star For Galatasaray Clash in Biggest UCL Shock Lineup in 3 Years

Video OneFootball

Liverpool coach Arne slot stunned fans by leaving Mohamed Salah out of the starting XI for tonight's Champions league clash against Galatasaray, Tuesday 30 September 2025.

Historic context

This's the 1st time in nearly 3 years that Salah begins decisive European tie on the bench.

The last occasion dates back to 12 October 2022 when he came on against Rangers in the group stage and scored the fastest hat trick in Champions league history (6 minutes 12 seconds) inspiring 7 - 1 victory.

Before that, Salah was rested in less decisive fixtures such as Benfica (April 2022) and Midtjylland (December 2020).

Salah, Şampiyonlar Ligi'nde en son 2022 yılında Rangers maçında yedek kaldı. İkinci yarıda oyuna girdi. 6 dakikada hat trick yaptı. (The Athletic)
– Selasa, 30 September 2025

Why bench Salah?

Analysts believe Slot’s decision could be driven by fixture congestion, with a key Premier League clash looming.
Others see it as tactical ploy to surprise Galatasaray & unleash Salah later as game changer (similar to his legendary night against Rangers).