Mohamed Salah endured an afternoon to forget against Manchester City, after Liverpool were beaten 4-0 by Pep Guardiola's side in the FA Cup quarter-final
Patrick Austen-Hardy Senior Sports Journalist
15:29, 04 Apr 2026Updated 15:29, 04 Apr 2026
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - APRIL 04: Mohamed Salah of Liverpool reacts during the Emirates FA Cup Quarter Final match between Manchester City and Liverpool at Etihad Stadium on April 04, 2026 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
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Mohamed Salah struggled against Manchester City(Image: Michael Regan, Getty Images)
Ally McCoist has branded Mohamed Salah's display against Manchester City as "sad" after Liverpool were demolished in the FA Cup quarter-final. Almost a fortnight since declaring he was departing the Reds, Salah was fielded against the Cityzens on the blue half of Manchester.
With fewer than a dozen fixtures remaining in his Liverpool stint, many expected he would deliver a standout showing against Pep Guardiola's outfit. Yet in front of goal, he appeared just as timid as he had prior to his announcement.
He dithered and blazed an attempt when through on goal in the opening period and watched another close range effort get pushed aside by James Trafford. With Liverpool behind 4-0 following Erling Haaland's hat-trick and Antoine Semenyo's delightful chip, Salah was handed a chance from twelve yards.
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Mohamed Salah of Liverpool misses a chance during the Emirates FA Cup Quarter Final match between Manchester City and Liverpool at Etihad Stadium on April 04, 2026 in Manchester, England
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Salah was stifled by City throughout the match(Image: 2026 Getty Images)
The Egyptian's penalty lacked both precision and venom and Trafford read it correctly and denied his strike with ease. After the England keeper convincingly thwarted the former Chelsea attacker from netting a consolation, McCoist admitted he felt uneasy.
Speaking on TNT Sports, he said: "I didn't fancy him. I didn't fancy him at all. It's a shame because he looks a shadow of the man that has lit up this league and lit up this country.
"It's a shame he's going out this way. He doesn't look like a confident man or a confident player at this moment in time."
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Last season, Salah was awarded a fresh Liverpool deal after netting 29 goals and providing 18 assists across 38 Premier League outings. He hasn't been nearly as devastating in what will prove to be his final campaign at the helm.
Salah has managed ten goals and nine assists across all competitions, which falls short of his typical output. His season was also overshadowed by an acrimonious public row with Liverpool manager Arne Slot, which occurred just prior to the Africa Cup of Nations getting underway.
Ahead of the encounter with City, Slot confessed he harbours no remorse about any of his choices leading up to that confrontation. He said: "Yes. I look back at this season thinking that I made a few decisions that could have been better but I'm not talking about this specific thing with Mo.
Liverpool's Egyptian striker #11 Mohamed Salah leaves the pitch, substituted during the English FA Cup quarter final football match between Manchester City and Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on April 4, 2026
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Salah was taken off and replaced by Federico Chiesa in the 78th minute(Image: AFP or licensors)
"I don't regret many things I did during a little longer than one-and-a-half years together. Again, the assumption that if he's not playing that he wants to leave – that's the assumption being made – then he would have left one-and-a-half years ago.
"I can remember West Ham away when he wasn't playing. I wasn't there. He didn't decide to leave (Salah had a fallout with Jurgen Klopp).
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"The assumption is if you don't play these games and all of a sudden want to leave, it is an assumption and maybe it is true or maybe it isn't. But history has shown that he did not do that previously and had a great season after that."
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