Steven Gerrard reveals advice he gave Mohamed Salah about his Liverpool exit | OneFootball

Steven Gerrard has revealed he advised Mohamed Salah against departing Liverpool "under a cloud" following the Egyptian forward's public disagreement with manager Arne Slot.

Salah confirmed last week that he will leave Anfield this summer, having agreed to terminate his contract a year ahead of schedule.

The 33-year-old has endured a challenging season, and in a December post-match interview he claimed to have been "thrown under the bus" by Slot after being relegated to the bench amid a period of poor results.

Salah has scored 255 goals in 435 appearances for the club, but former Liverpool captain Gerrard believes Salah's departure at the end of the campaign is in "everyone’s best interests."

"I spoke to him around that interview at the time and sort of said to him, ‘don’t do what you’ve done and go under a cloud’," Gerrard disclosed on The Overlap podcast.

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Mohamed Salah fell out with Arne Slot earlier this season (PA Wire)

He clarified his relationship with Salah, stating, "I spoke to him direct. He texts me now and again, or I text him – more to do with if I’m going somewhere with Lio (Gerrard’s son), just so Lio can see him, really, but I’m not like close to him."

Gerrard continued, explaining his advice: "But it gave me the opportunity to say to him, ‘look, you’ve been here eight, nine years, you’ve been king here, you’ve got this legacy, just go on your terms, the right way’."

He noted Salah's emotional state at the time, adding, "he was still a little bit emotional from the incident. He was in and out of the team at the time, he was upset. I just thought it would be a shame if he left in January and he just left (without a goodbye)."

Liverpool's head coach, Slot, stated on Wednesday that Salah will "leave the club a legend," acknowledging his contributions since joining from Roma in 2017, which include two Premier League titles and the Champions League.

Gerrard believes the forward will ultimately come to regret his explosive interview, which occurred after he was an unused substitute in a 3-3 draw at Leeds on 6 December.

When asked if he was surprised by the news of Salah’s imminent departure, the 45-year-old responded, "No, not at all. I think it’s in everyone’s best interests now. I think the timing’s right."

He elaborated on the underlying issues: "He’s obviously had a disagreement with the manager. I don’t know at what level. He’s obviously done the interview, which I think he’ll regret further down the line. But that told that there was an issue there."

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Gerrard thinks the timing is right for Slot and Salah to go their separate ways as the winger prepares to leave Liverpool (Reuters)

Salah, who is set to become a free agent, has been linked with potential moves to the Saudi Pro League or Major League Soccer. However, Gerrard would not be surprised if he chose to remain in Europe.

"Knowing him, the relationship I’ve got with him, he’ll still have himself down as one of the best players in the world," the former England midfielder remarked. "I think that’s the reason why the fallout’s come about. He was probably struggling with the transition of a manager saying, ‘you’re not starting today’, (and he is thinking) ‘you what? Listen, I’m still one of the best players in the world’."

Gerrard concluded by describing Salah's exceptional mindset: "I think that’s his mentality, and there are good players, top players, and then those ones at the top that are a little bit freakish in terms of their mentality and how they think. He’s one of them, where he’s just: I’m the best, I’m the best, I’m the best."