Arne Slot has played down speculation that Mohamed Salah may have featured in his last match for Liverpool, stating he believes the situation has been put to rest after the Egyptian's outspoken remarks about the manager and the club following last weekend's draw with Leeds.
The attacker returned to the Reds' matchday squad for the 2-0 win over Brighton, having been omitted from the midweek victory against Inter Milan. Though he started among the substitutes once more, he made a strong impact after coming on during the opening period to replace the injured Joe Gomez, in what marks his final outing before leaving Liverpool to represent Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Salah provided the assist for Hugo Ekitike's strike as Liverpool secured a 2-0 victory over the Seagulls, his last contribution before departing for international duty.
The 33-year-old was brought back into the Liverpool squad after constructive discussions with Slot on Friday.
While the Dutchman declined to disclose the details of their conversation, he appeared keen to draw a line under the episode as he commended Salah following his display in the Brighton win.
"No, for me there is no issue to resolve," Slot said. "For me, he is the same as any other player.
"You talk to your players if you are happy or unhappy with things but there is nothing for me to talk about after what happened against Leeds after the game.
"The reason he wasn't in Milan was his interview. Everybody has a different opinion about that, should he be once, twice, three times, four times, four months, 12 years.
"Every manager makes different decisions about that. He wasn't involved in the game against Milan and I spoke to him yesterday. As I usually never say anything about what we talk about, I am not going to make an exception now.
"What has been said between the two of us in that conversation stays between us. What you see is what you get to know. He was in the squad and my first substitution.
"And all the other things have been said in that conversation, I never speak about. When I speak to Virgil or Mo or any other player, I never tell you guys what we talk about.
"But actions speak louder than what has been said. He was in the squad again and when I had to make my first substitution, I brought him in and he performed as every fan wanted him to, including me, would like him to perform today."
Following the victory, Salah was amongst the final Liverpool players to depart the turf, acknowledging supporters in all sections of Anfield.
However, Slot rejected any notion that the Egyptian's gesture signalled a potential January departure.
"I think he wasn't the only player who walked around the pitch, thanking the fans because I think our fans deserved a thank you from us," he explained. "I think our players worked incredibly hard today to keep a clean sheet.
"Mo is going to go to AFCON now. I hope he is going to do very well and in the meantime we have to play here without him, with not that many players available at the moment.
"He is a Liverpool player and the moment he is there, I like to use him when we need him.
"Today he didn't start, as he didn't a few times before, but in the one and a half seasons before he started almost every game.
"Today when he came in, he had the performance like you would want him to give. He was close to another assist. I think he was shocked to see Virgil next to him in that long sprint.
"He was close to scoring when Fede assisted him, he was a threat and that is very important. When you play with attackers, you hope they are a threat to the other team."