The apparent source of Mohamed Salah's rage is reportedly one of his Liverpool team-mates
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool looks on form the bench prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool and Sunderland
Mohamed Salah's future at Liverpool looks ominous
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Florian Wirtz has been blamed as the man behind Mohamed Salah's rage, according to reports. The Egyptian great sent shockwaves through the footballing world when slamming Liverpool and manager Arne Slot after last Saturday's 3-3 draw against Leeds United.
Salah, 33, accused the Reds of making him a scapegoat for their disappointing Premier League title defence and claimed his good relationship with Slot has perished. The winger was omitted from Liverpool's squad in their 1-0 Champions League win against Inter Milan on Tuesday as a result of his comments.
Regarded as one of the role models and leaders of the Liverpool dressing room, a BILD report sensationally claims that Wirtz's status as the future of the team is the root of Salah's hostility.
The report also branded the forward as the enemy inside the Reds dressing room. Salah's demotion to the bench in the last three league games, with the German starting in all of them, has reportedly not sat well with the competitive Egyptian.
Liverpool are said to have long been aware that Salah possesses the biggest ego at the club but given his extraordinary record of goals and assists, it was accepted. The report added, however, that should the winger's level of end product slip, the support he enjoys from the club will no longer exist.
The report further suggests that his scathing comments towards the club shows a lack of care towards his team-mates, illustrated by his silence amid the criticism Wirtz has been subjected to in what has been a slow start to his Anfield career.
Despite it only being eight months since Salah inked a new two-year deal to extend his association with Liverpool until 2027, it remains to be seen whether the club icon has played his last game in red.
Liverpool's £450million outlay in the summer transfer window seemed to be one that would help Salah maintain longevity with more attacking help provided to the club's all-time Premier League scorer.
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Mohamed Salah of Liverpool speaks with Florian Wirtz
Jamie Carragher admonished Mohamed Salah for not passing to Florian Wirtz in the 5-1 win against Eintracht Frankfurt
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However, the struggles of Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak since their big-money moves to Merseyside has meant Liverpool have lost much of the forward line fluidity that saw them comprehensively win the league title just mere months ago.
During Jamie Carragher's eight-minute rant on Monday Night Football regarding Salah's post-Leeds comments, the Sky Sports pundit said Salah "let himself down" when deciding against assisting Wirtz in what would have been an open goal tap-in for the 22-year-old in the 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in October.
Carragher explained: "Where he really let himself down, in my eyes, was this season in Frankfurt and in another game. Where there's a guy who signed for Liverpool who needs a goal more than anyone, Florian Wirtz.
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool looks on as Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, is seen during a Liverpool Training Session
The Egyptian claimed he has no relationship with Arne Slot
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"Instead of being a great player for the club, be a great ambassador for the club and roll that ball to him for an easy tap-in and go over and give him a hug and say, 'You're the guy that's going to take this Liverpool team forward. I don't need anymore goals'."
Among his comments at Elland Road, Salah admitted he does not what his future holds for him upon his return from the Africa Cup of Nations in January. "I could not believe I was sitting on the bench for 90 minutes," the 33-year-old said.
"That’s the third time. It’s the first time in my career I think. I am very disappointed, I have done so much for this club over years, especially last season, It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That’s how I feel [about] it. Someone wants me to get all the blame.
Jamie Carragher folding his arms
The Liverpool legend slammed Salah's reaction to his demotion to the bench
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"The club promised me a lot in summer. Now I’m on bench so I can say they haven’t kept those promises. I used to have a good relationship (with Slot). Now we don’t have any relationship and I don't know why.
"Seems like someone does not want me in the club. I called my mum and dad and told them to come to the Brighton game. It doesn't matter if I play or not. I'm going to enjoy it.
"I am just going to be at Anfield and say goodbye to the fans before the African Cup of Nations, because I don’t know what is going to happen when I am there. It’s not acceptable to me to be fair. If I was somewhere else,every club would protect its players. Now it’s: ‘Throw Mo under the bus because he is a problem in a team.'"