Arne Slot is creating a problem for himself when it comes to Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah - and it could undermine the team's entire season unless he gets him back onside and scoring
Jeremy joined the Daily Star in 2010 as Manchester football correspondent and for more than a decade has served as our Chief Sports Writer. He provides expert coverage on Manchester United and Manchester City, the Premier League as a whole, and the England football team. Jeremy has covered football, rugby and cricket World Cups, as well as Wimbledon, the golf majors and the Olympics.
Mo Salah
Mo Salah looked like a spare part in Frankfurt(Image: Getty Images)
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Mo Salah was left looking like a tourist. Someone who had been taken on a mini break to Frankfurt - but left feeling like a spare part on a trip for which he was there to make up the numbers.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot deserves huge praise for dropping Salah for his side’s clash with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League. It’s what Salah deserved. But Slot’s show of strength was reduced to one of utter weakness before the second half had even kicked off.
Liverpool were cruising, having overcome the shock of going behind to storm into a 3-1 lead. The game was won. In fact, Slot was so confident of getting the three points he decided to take off Alexander Isak, sparing him from missing even more chances and send on Federico Chiesa instead of Salah.
Never mind Chiesa, but if one Liverpool player needs some confidence and momentum bleeding into him, it is Salah not the Italian.
Salah’s face resembled a thunderstorm when Chiesa was sent on ahead of him. The ‘Egyptian King’ was eventually invited to leave his throne with 16 minutes remaining, replacing Hugo Ekitike. By which stage Liverpool had scored five goals to render the contest irrelevant.
Wataru Endo of Liverpool and Mohamed Salah
Wataru Endo of Liverpool and Mohamed Salah (Image: 2025 Rene Nijhuis/MB Media)
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Salah trotted onto the pitch like someone who’d won the booby prize in a raffle. A footballing legend reduced to a cameo role in a production that had already been completed.
Slot has puffed out his chest and produced a show of strength. But watch this space. Because Salah knows he deserves much more respect than what Slot is now showing him.
And it feels like a dangerous game for Slot to be playing.
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