A scene involving Mohamed Salah on Saturday showed that Liverpool FC are in a bit of a mess shortly before Jürgen Klopp’s departure. Is the goalscorer also leaving the Reds?
One look at the line-up sheets on Saturday lunchtime was enough to give you an idea of Mohamed Salah’s mood. The Liverpool FC goalscorer was surprisingly left on the bench for the Premier League away game at West Ham United, despite the Reds not having an English week ahead of them and desperately needing a win. When he was finally substituted, Salah’s state of mind was revealed.
In the 79th minute, when he, like attacker Darwin and defender Joe Gomez, was ready to come on as a substitute after Liverpool had just conceded the equalizer to make it 2-2, Salah and Jürgen Klopp suddenly got into an argument. The Egyptian gesticulated repeatedly in the direction of his coach and had to be calmed down by Darwin, from whom he immediately tried to break away
Salah: “If I speak today, there will be fire “
Klopp may have been annoyed by Salah’s half-hearted handshake, which he had received before the outbreak of the open dispute. But he did not want to reveal after the game what triggered the argument or what it was about. “We’ve already spoken about it in the changing room, but for me it’s done,” Klopp explained tersely at his press conference. “That’s all.” Salah, on the other hand, left the media representatives standing with the words “If I talk today, there will be fire”, which did not quite match Klopp’s answer to the question of whether the matter was also settled for his player: “That was my impression, yes. “
Klopp’s intention was clear: to play down an incident that fits in all too well with the image the Reds are projecting a few weeks before their coach’s departure. Three days after the 2-0 defeat at Everton FC, which hit Klopp hard, the 2-2 draw at West Ham was the next and probably final setback in the championship race. Arsenal can move onto five points on Sunday, Manchester City – with one game left to play – onto four points.
Van Dijk’s incendiary speech had already made a deep impression
The incendiary speech made by captain Virgil van Dijk after the derby on Wednesday, in which he questioned the attitude of his team-mates, was already deeply revealing. The Reds showed improvement at West Ham, but once again missed too many chances and proved that they are in a crisis of form in the decisive phase of the season.
Salah, once again his team’s top scorer with 17 goals, has not scored in four league games and has repeatedly looked dissatisfied of late. There has already been some speculation as to whether the 31-year-old, whose contract is only valid until 2025, could leave Anfield in the summer like Klopp. Since Saturday, they have been getting louder
