Things go from bad to worse for Liverpool...
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Liverpool at Etihad Stadium on November 9, 2025 in Manchester,...
(Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
Liverpool’s Premier League defence has not gone as planned, with the Reds currently on their worst form in years.
Despite their record spending in the summer, things have not worked out with the club currently sitting 8th in the league table, with six wins and five defeats.
They sit 18th in the form table with just one win in the last 5 league games and have lost seven out of their last 10 games across all competitions.
Mohamed Salah could be out for longer for Liverpool
To make things worse for Arne Slot, he will be without Mohamed Salah during a congested fixure period.
Salah will be travelling with Egypt to Morocco for the AFCON which starts on 21st December.
However, there have been latest developments which will now see Liverpool be without Salah for a longer period than initially expected.
While the tournament officially starts on 21st December, Egypt are keen to have Salah earlier for a friendly with Nigeria a week before the action starts.
The Liverpool star would therefore likely miss the Reds’ home game against Brighton on December 13 as well as the festive period.
Mohamed Salah of the Egypt national team looks on during the FIFA friendly international team match between the Egypt national team and the...
(Photo by Ahmed Awaad/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Which games will Mohamed Salah miss for Liverpool due to AFCON?
This largely depends on how Egypt perform in the tournament and how far they progress.
The final match of AFCON is on 18th January 2026. The earliest Salah could return for Liverpool is for the game against Fulham on 4th January, if Egypt are to be knocked out in the Group stages, which is quite unrealistic as they are one of the strongest teams of the competition.
If Egypt progress further in the competition, Salah will also miss the games against Arsenal and Burnley.
Games Salah is likely to miss for Liverpool:
Liverpool vs Brighton - 13th December 2025
Tottenham vs Liverpool - 20th December 2025
Liverpool vs Wolves - 27th December 2025
Liverpool vs Leeds - 1st January 2026
Fulham vs Liverpool - 4th January 2026
Arsenal vs Liverpool - 9th January 2026
Liverpool vs Burnley - 17th January 2026
Impact on Liverpool’s Premier League season
Salah’s absence comes during a very busy period with Liverpool playing 14 games between December and January.
Arne Slot will need his new signings Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz to step up, specially during Salah’s absence.
Liverpool are also reportedly looking to sign Antoine Semenyo to provide both short-term relief and long-term boost to the squad.