Paul Merson has blasted Mohamed Salah ahead of Liverpool's Premier League clash with Brighton on Saturday afternoon after 'ridiculous' footage of him arriving at Anfield emerged.
The Egypt forward was named on the bench by Arne Slot for a fourth consecutive game, having been dropped from the Champions League squad entirely in midweek following his outburst towards the club and manager.
The player and coach held talks on Friday which led to his return to the squad, ahead of him departing for the African Cup of Nations next week, but Salah was less than pleased when he was named on the bench once again for the clash with the Seagulls.
Paul Merson Rages at Mohamed Salah
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Liverpool were filmed arriving at the stadium ahead of their game, and Salah was predictably the centre of attention as he got off the team bus.
The 33-year-old forward was visibly unhappy, with no smiles visible, and a disappointed look on his face for the cameras. And while appearing on Soccer Saturday, live on Sky Sports, Merson reacted to the footage with anger, labelling it "ridiculous".
"Look, oh my god, has he missed his mortgage payment or something? Seriously, that is ridiculous.
"Now, you don't want him around the club. You don't want him around like that. You've got to have a meeting with him and go, 'right, Mo, you're one of the best players. All these kids look up to you. Everybody around here looks up to you. Don't walk around like that, or don't come in.'
"I mean, that's for me. What he said, I backed him. I backed him in what he said.
Clinton Morrison defended Salah, saying he's still unhappy about being on the bench and shouldn't be smiling considering his outburst. But Merson doubled down.
"That's not just a normal walk. If you're a manager, you've got to say [something]. There are a lot of kids there who look up to him. They don't want to set that example.
"You know, I always say, when I played, I always went. If I played in lesser games, like reserves, I always played. Someone said to me once, 'go and play like it's the first time someone's watching you play football.'
"Do you know what I mean? Look, he's like walking in there. I mean, he's got the best job in the world. He's walking around like I did coming out of the betting shop when I done my money."
Salah Issue Far From Over
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While Salah's return to the squad has put a pause on the talk of an imminent exit from Liverpool, it's clear that there is still an issue at hand that hasn't been fully resolved.
Salah will now head to AFCON for up to a month, and the club can deal with his absence behind the scenes, knowing that he isn't going to be kicking up a fuss in the changing room or the training ground.
But the situation will need to be resolved before he returns, whether that is by finding a solution with him over his playing time going forward or finding him a new club.
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