Liverpool was actually pretty impressive in the defeat to Man City. But Gary Neville spotted something he didn't like about Mohamed Salah, as a big call looms.
09:29, 10 Feb 2026
Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Manchester City at Old Trafford on January 17, 2026 in Manchester, England.
Gary Neville has given a tough verdict on Mohamed Salah.(Image: James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)
Liverpool won't quite know where to start when analyzing the fallout from yet another late, late defeat. But Gary Neville has begun his analysis by looking at Mohamed Salah.
Fans wll be getting a little sick of Arne Slot defending bad results, and there's no getting away from the fact that this is Pep Guardiola's first win in front of fans at Anfield. Even so, on this occasion, many will be able to see the manager's point of view.
The Reds showed resilience in the first half, and then dominated most of the second. Prior to his acrimonious sending-off, Dominik Szoboszlai had scored what looked as though it would be a deserved (and spectacular) winner.
READ MORE: Defender who rejected Liverpool now free agent as Arne Slot needs reinforcementsREAD MORE: Virgil van Dijk disagrees with Arne Slot as Liverpool boss fumes after Man City defeat
And so not for the first time, Liverpool is left wondering how it threw everything away late on. Maybe it's karmic punishment for the string of dramatic victories at the start of the campaign, which looked at the time as though they might be propelling Slot to back-to-back titles.
How distant that prospect feels now. And while the fragility at the back is a big reason for the dramatic drop in standards compared to last season, it is impossible not to overlook Salah as a secondary cause.
Neville has not pulled any punches in comparing Salah from this season to the versions we have seen in the past. He believes we have seen a sustained drop in levels:
"Salah's not showing his best, is he?" Neville mused on the Gary Neville Podcast. "He's nowhere near his best.
"He's been so consistent for so long and there was always going to be a prolonged dip: this is a prolonged dip. There were times out there you didn't recognise him, but he did put in a beautiful ball for one of the chances."
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool is in action during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield in Liverpool, England, on February 8, 2026.
Mohamed Salah has been criticized by Gary Neville.(Image: Steven Halliwell/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
In many ways, it is an odd game after which to make the point. As Neville acknowledged, Salah had one of the standout moments of the match, with a beautiful trivela pass that Hugo Ekitike really had to convert.
But generally speaking, the truth of Neville's words is more or less inescapable. For the first time in nine seasons, Salah looks a shell of his best self.
Naturally, he deserves a massive amount of grace. That's not only in recognition of what he has done before, but also because the entire team is underperforming, and you'd expect he might look beter again in an improved side.
But what's really worrying is that even when he gets into classic Salah positions, with his teammates no longer even a part of the equation, he is not doing the right things. He's scuffing chances, he's making bad decisions; although Neville's verdict is harsh, "unrecognizable" is a fairly apt description.
All of which adds to Slot's woes. The two had an infamous clash at the back end of last year, but the manager cannot simply afford Salah an automatic place in his current form.
Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, looks on prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield on February 08, 2026 in Liverpool, England.
Salah is giving Arne Slot a dilemma.(Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
The fact is that Salah has done little to nothing in defense for years. He's more than earned that privilege, but his reduced output alters the equation significantly.
On the other hand, Salah is still contributing. For instance, would Florian Wirtz be coming into his own in quite the same way if his senior colleague was not constantly drawing extra defenders, giving him space in which to work his magic?
For the moment, a dearth of options is keeping the dilemma at bay. But when Alexander Isak returns, the question will return with a vengeance.
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And after that, the big Liverpool decision looms: keep or sell? Salah will once again be entering the final year of his contract at the end of the season, and this time another extension seems highly improbable.
It would certainly be justifiable to let him see out his deal, giving him the chance to prove that this "prolonged dip" is indeed only a dip, and not a permanent decline. And you would not put it past him for a second to explode back to his best levels. But if Saudi Arabia returns to the table, Richard Hughes will have another huge call on his hands.