The Egyptian superstar did not feature in Arne Slot's line-up for the win at West Ham and could well find himself on the substitutes bench for a prolonged period of time
Mo Salah in the London Stadium dugout
Mo Salah was an unused substitute as Liverpool claimed a much-needed win at West Ham
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Jamie Carragher has suggested we only ever hear from Mohamed Salah “when he gets man of the match or when he needs a new contract.” And as neither of those are a factor at the moment, Salah is unlikely to be holding court any time soon.
But we can assume he does not like being left on the bench and we can also assume he feels some of the criticism of his performances this season has been over the top. On the latter point, he would be right.
Salah has not been great this season but he is not the only Liverpool player in that category. He is the norm rather than the exception.
It says a lot about the struggles of Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak that their performances against West Ham were generally seen as their best since joining Liverpool. They were good against West Ham but hardly sensational. They had set a low bar.
Salah has been relatively unproductive, although he was the most threatening Liverpool player in their last Premier League defeat, the 3-0 home loss to Nottingham Forest. But it was his lacklustre showing against PSV Eindhoven - characterised by not bothering to track back ahead of the Dutch side’s second goal in the 4-1 rout - that forced Arne Slot to act.
Alexander Isak and Arne Slot during Liverpool's win at West Ham
Arne Slot's faith in Alexander Isak was rewarded with the Swede's first Premier League goal in a Liverpool shirt
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After an improved team effort at the London Stadium - with a line-up that looked as balanced as it has for some considerable time - it is hard to see Salah being restored to the starting line-up for the game against Sunderland at Anfield. But while Slot’s assertion that Salah “will have a very good future at this club because he’s such a special player” is the type of thing the Liverpool manager would feel obliged to say, it is spot on.
The bottom line is that Salah was finally looking like a 33-year-old player who needed a rest. Not a rest from the grind of this season - a rest from the grind of a remarkably robust career.
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot insists the last thing he is worried about is Mohamed Salah ending his goal drought.
Arne Slot says Mo Salah still has 'a very good future' at Liverpool
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He did not need a rest from the 18 club appearances this season - he needed a rest from the 419 club appearances over eight full seasons and around a third of this campaign. Salah has been worth his weight in gold to Liverpool, not just because of his goals and his assists but because of his availability.
This is a man who has 109 caps for Egypt. And that means Salah, who does not turn 34 until next June, has made almost 800 appearances for club and country..
During that time for club and country, injury or illness has made him unavailable for selection for only 38 matches - and three of those were down to Covid. It is a remarkable record and it is a workload that means a break will do no harm.
Mo Salah looks dejected againstNottingham Forest
Mo Salah has cut an isolated figure in his recent Liverpool appearances
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When he returns from international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations, It will be interesting to see how Salah is played in the second half of Liverpool’s season. Their chances of defending their Premier League title are not finished but they are slim. One of Slot’s few regrets last season was that he had not rotated his squad enough ahead of the Champions League exit to Paris St Germain in March.
The most important stage for Salah this season could yet be the European one. But wherever it is, Salah will be back on centre-stage, that is for sure. He is still too good not to be.
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