El-Hadji Diouf is not fondly remembered on Merseyside. But the striker who once managed to go through an entire Liverpool campaign without scoring is somehow succeeding in making himself even less popular after hanging up his boots, with some questionable comments about Mohamed Salah.
Diouf was at Anfield for an ill-fated stint from 2002 to 2004, before going out on loan to Bolton in 2004/05, a move which was later made permanent. He ended his Liverpool career with more controversies than goals, having been fined and banned for spitting at a Celtic supporter in the UEFA Cup.
Even the dressing room didn't rate him. Diouf has admitted that Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher were both left unimpressed, with the latter ultimately making very public comments to that effect.
"He has one of the worst strike rates of any forward in Liverpool history," Carragher is quoted as saying. "He's the only number nine ever to go through a whole season without scoring.
"In fact he's probably the only number nine of any club to do that. He was always the last one to get picked in training."
Nevertheless, Diouf's reputation is somewhat intact beyond the L postcode. In particular, he is respected within African football, having made 70 appearances for Senegal (scoring 24 goals).
In this capacity, he has recently weighed in on who should win African Player of the Year. He has snubbed Salah in the process.
"This year is definitely Hakimi," Diouf told ESPN UK on TikTok. "I love Salah so much, he did very good things this year but I think the best player in Africa this season [is Hakimi].
"He has won everything and it was magical. He was one of the biggest guys for PSG as a second captain, so I think Hakimi deserves it."
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool controls the ball under pressure from Achraf Hakimi of Paris Saint-Germain during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Round of 16 Second Leg match between Liverpool FC and Paris Saint-Germain at Anfield on March 11, 2025 in Liverpool, England.
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool controls the ball under pressure from Achraf Hakimi of Paris Saint-Germain during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Round of 16 Second Leg. (Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
In fairness, this is far from Diouf's worst offense. It is a defensible opinion.
But two-time winner Salah will be annoyed that this narrative about winning the Champions Leage is once again being pedalled. It has already put a huge dent in his Ballon d'Or hopes, and now the African Player of the Year crown could seemingly be at risk as well.
There is already an individual prize for winning the Champions League. It is a Champions League winner's medal.
And yet all of the individual awards have been infected by the mindset that only European champions can be in the running. Diouf is just the latest to espouse this view.
Liverpool's penalty shootout defeat to PSG does not justify ignoring the rest of Salah's remarkable season. He tied the record for goal involvements in a single Premier League season, moving level with players who had hit the mark during a 42-game campaign.
He was also the figurehead as Arne Slot strolled to a debut title in the hardest league in the world. That 38-game consistency is, if anything, more impressive than the comparative randomness of squeezing through a series of Champions League ties.
You would think that Diouf, of all people, should remember how hard it is to produce the goods in the Premier League for Liverpool. In favoring Hakimi over Salah, he has ensured his popularity at Anfield will sink to even lower depths.