Mohamed Salah confirmed his decision to leave Liverpool as a free agent in March, with the club happy to allow him to leave his contract early
Graeme Souness
Graeme Souness
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Graeme Souness has blasted Mohamed Salah for the way he has behaved all season and for the way he left Liverpool. Salah brought the curtain down on his trophy-laden nine-year spell at Liverpool by starting in the 1-1 draw with Brentford on Sunday.
But this season has been the most frustrating and unhappiest of his tenure at Anfield, as he decided to draw up battle lines following the 3-3 draw with Leeds United in December. The forward claimed he had been "thrown under the bus" after being benched following a run of poor results for the team, and he also said his relationship with head coach Arne Slot had broken down.
Salah, who was dropped for a Champions League game against Inter Milan following his outburst at Elland Road, then took to social media following the defeat to Aston Villa earlier this month, criticising Liverpool’s direction under Slot.
And Souness not only believes the Egyptian should have left the club more "gracefully", but he also accused Salah of trying to take Slot down with him.
He told Sky Sports: "I think Salah is a major problem. I'm a bit disappointed in him with the way he's left. It's all about him, the way he has left. It has been all about him.
“He should have gone gracefully and he's not done that. I was at the Community Shield at the start of the season and saw him play at Wembley against Crystal Palace and he was not very good in that game, and that is the sort of season he has had.
"He should have accepted his situation and not come out with the selfish words he came out with after the Leeds United game.
Arne Slot is facing quite the Mohamed Salah decision for Liverpool vs Brentford
Mohamed Salah and Arne Slot (Image: (Photo by Richard Sellers/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images))
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“Accept your best days are behind you. Don't come out and blame everyone else. He's tried to drag the manager down with him. I find that so disappointing.
"He is a great player and will go down in history as a great player. But I just think he's let himself down in the way he's conducted himself leaving Liverpool."
Speaking after his final game for the Reds on Sunday, Salah admitted: “I think I’ve cried more than in my whole life. I’m not really an emotional guy.
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“We lived our youth here, sharing everything from the beginning to the end. We put this club back where it belongs.
“It’s tricky to leave Liverpool. It’s life. I look back and wonder if I would have wanted more than I achieved. Not really. We won it all.
“We see the love from the fans and this is the most important thing for me. I will be far away from here. I will be emotional every time. I hope the team stays in the position, fighting for everything.”
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