Steve Nicol has urged Arne Slot not to recall Mohamed Salah to his Liverpool starting XI against Sunderland
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool on the substitutes bench during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Liverpool at London Stadium
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool on the substitutes bench during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Liverpool at London Stadium
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Steve Nicol has warned Arne Slot that he would be making a ‘big mistake’ if he restored Mohamed Salah to his Liverpool starting XI against Sunderland. The Egyptian was left an an unused substitute as the Reds returned to winning ways with a 2-0 victory over West Ham United on Sunday.
The 33-year-old had been an ever-present in Slot’s starting line-up in the Premier League last season as Liverpool stormed to the title.
As a result, the trip to the capital marked the first time he had been named on the bench in the English top-flight since he infamously clashed with former manager Jurgen Klopp on the sidelines ahead of coming on at West Ham back in April 2024.
The Reds returned to winning ways in their latest trip to the London Stadium as Salah watched on from the bench, bouncing back from heavy successive losses to Man City, Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven, as goals from Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo clinched a much-needed victory.
Having now lost nine of their last 13 games in all competitions, the win saw Liverpool move up to eighth in the table.
Salah was the Reds’ star player last season as they won the Premier League title, sweeping up in the individual awards and also clinching both the Golden Boot and Playmaker prizes after returning 29 goals and 18 assists in the English top-flight.
However, with Liverpool struggling this season, he has been left unable to match such returns. The forward boasts four goals and two assists from 12 Premier League outings so far during the campaign, and has faced increasing scrutiny for his below-par displays.
Dominik Szoboszlai started in his place on the right-wing against West Ham as Florian Wirtz returned from injury to line up at number 10.
And having been impressed by the Reds’ improved display in the capital, Liverpool legend Nicol urged Slot to leave Salah on the bench when Sunderland visit Anfield on Wednesday night.
Former Liverpool player Steve Nicol
Former Liverpool player Steve Nicol
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“He has to (leave him on the bench). He has to,” he said on ESPN. “Absolutely (they’re better without him).
“You need to start from the back, you need the base to be right, to be solid and you need to stop giving goals away. You can’t expect to score three or four goals every week to win a game.
“If he goes back (into the side) and breaks that shape up… at least they were solid defensively, because of Szoboszlai.
“Okay, he wasn’t standing wide the way Mo does and just stands there and waits for the ball. He’s getting involved, he’s getting back inside, he’s helping his full-back.
“The whole shape defensively was miles better. They’re not going to get better if they just all of a sudden go back to what they were doing and teams start streaming through them again.
“You’ve got to look after the base, the solid structure that they had. Yes, it’s against West Ham, but it was a solid structure.
“There was no real drama, no running all over the place, no holes. That’s what you’ve got to go from.
“If he (Slot) changes it and brings Mo Salah back against Sunderland, to me that’s a big mistake.”
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Slot explained his decision to bench Salah both before and after his side’s win over West Ham, before hinting whether he would recall the forward against Sunderland.
"We play a lot of games. In 10 days we played four,” the Dutchman told Match of the Day. “These players are such quality players.
“Mo has been so important for the club and will be so important for the club so let's see what happens on Wednesday [against Sunderland]."