Arne Slot said he would speak to out-of-favour star forward Mohamed Salah before deciding on his availability for Saturday’s English Premier League (EPL) clash with Brighton & Hove Albion.
The Egypt international accused Liverpool of throwing him ‘under the bus’ after he was left on the bench for last week’s 3-3 draw at Leeds — the third match in a row that he did not start. Salah also said he had no relationship with the Dutch manager. As a result, Slot left him out of the squad that beat Inter Milan 1-0 in a mid-week UEFA Champions League clash.
However, on Friday, Slot extended an olive branch to the 33-year-old, saying he would like him to stay at the club. “I think the next time I speak about Mo should be with him and not in here [in the media room]. I have no reasons for not wanting him to stay, and that is a little bit of an answer to your question. This club has won a lot of games with him,” said the Reds coach, amid rumors linking Salah to a move to Saudi Arabia in January.
Liverpool are currently 10th in the EPL table, but are unbeaten in their last four games, which makes Slot confident ahead of Saturday’s encounter against a tricky opponent. “We have shown we have been a team in the last four games that is difficult to beat and create chances against. The team has worked really hard, put a lot of effort in, been a bit unlucky in the results, but showed great resilience,” said Slot.
Brighton and Hove Albion are currently ranked eighth in the EPL table, two spots above Liverpool. Fabian Hurzeler’s punchy outfit can also take confidence from the fact they beat Liverpool 3-2 last season.
301
No of EPL games played by Salah since joining Liverpool in 2017; only Jordan Pickford has played more in this period
188
No of EPL goals scored by Mohamed Salah since 2017; the most in the league during this period
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