Salah recalled to Liverpool squad as debate around future continues

Mohammed Salah has been recalled to the Liverpool squad for the clash with Brighton on Saturday following positive talks with head coach Arne Slot. 

The Reds striker has returned to the fold before he departs for the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Monday, potentially making this his last Liverpool appearance until the 18th January, were Egypt to reach the final. 

Salah was temporarily exiled from the Liverpool squad after his explosive post-match interview in the wake of the Reds’ 3-3 draw with Leeds at Elland Road, where he claimed the club had “thrown him under the bus” for their form this season. 

Slot spearheaded the decision to reintegrate Salah, with the Dutchman keen to serve the team’s best interests as they grapple with a number of injuries to their forward line. 

Salah’s future remains unresolved

While Salah has rejoined the squad, issues between the head coach and the Egyptian remain. 

Their talks on Friday are seen as a positive first step toward repairing their broken relationship, with Salah’s time spent at AFCON being viewed as a valuable period of separation for both parties. 

During the winger’s absence, Liverpool and Salah’s agent, Ramy Abbas, will continue to work toward a resolution. 

Salah was frustrated by his lack of minutes in recent weeks, having been relegated to the bench for three consecutive matches and featuring only once – a half-time appearance against Sunderland – which led to his outburst at Elland Road where he publicly acknowledged a breakdown in his relationship with Slot. 

During his pre-match press conference earlier on Friday, Slot was naturally quizzed on how he had approached the reconciliation process.

“We have spoken a lot in the last week,” he said.

“There were a lot of conversations between his representatives and ours, our representatives and him, between him and me, and today I will speak to him again… and the outcome of that conversation determines how it will look tomorrow.”

When the Dutchman was asked if he wanted Salah to remain at the club, he responded that he had “no reasons to not want Mohammed Salah to stay” at Liverpool.

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A farewell at Anfield?

Although Slot may want the club’s all-time leading Premier League goal scorer to stay at Anfield, Salah’s own comments indicate that he may have well taken that decision out of the manager’s hands. 

The 33-year-old brought his future into doubt during that now infamous interview, suggesting that the Brighton game could be his Anfield farewell and that he had invited his mother to attend the match.

The doubt surrounding his future has only intensified since, with rumours of interest from the Saudi Pro League and the MLS growing day by day. 

It is possible that Salah was engaging in a degree of media politicking, using Liverpool’s poor form to apply pressure on Slot and strengthen his own position at the club. 

However, it may also be that he senses a broader shift underway on Merseyside.

At 33, and despite a record-breaking Premier League campaign last season, the reality is that Salah is far more likely to decline than improve from this point onward – and that downturn may already be evident. 

He has managed just five goals in 18 appearances this season, with his underlying numbers painting a similarly concerning picture, making this comfortably his least effective campaign in a Liverpool shirt.

Crucially, Liverpool’s recent recruitment strategy suggests the club is planning for life beyond Salah. 

Significant investment has been made in younger attacking stars such as Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, and Alexander Isak, signalling a reduced willingness to structure the team around an ageing superstar rather than its future.

The summer transfer window effectively put the writing on the wall.

Slot’s new Salah-less system

Liverpool are building for a fast-approaching post-Salah era, and that reality now appears to have dawned on one of the club’s greatest ever players.

For a figure as fiercely individual and self-assured as Salah, accepting that he is no longer the future of the club may be an uncomfortable truth. 

Liverpool’s 1-0 win away at Inter Milan was defined as much by the media frenzy surrounding Salah’s exclusion from the squad as it was Slot’s tactical shifts for the game.

With limited wide options available, Slot abandoned Liverpool’s usual structure in favour of a narrow diamond formation, deploying a 4-3-1-2 and pairing Alexander Isak with Hugo Ekitike in a front two. 

This tactical tweak saw Liverpool deliver a tighter defensive display, allowing them to control the centre of the pitch and limited Inter’s influence through the middle.

While the system shift blunted their full attacking potential, it was a necessary shift to stabilise a side that has been in danger of completely unravelling. 

Gakpo out, Isak doubtful

With Cody Gakpo injured for several weeks and Salah away at AFCON, Slot is likely to persist with the diamond at least until January, when Liverpool may need to enter the transfer market for reinforcements to prevent their campaign from fizzling out. 

Isak’s knock sustained against the Nerazurri makes him a doubt for the Brighton clash, potentially opening the door for the returning Frederico Chiesa to make his first Premier League start of the season. 

Salah’s eventual return could also see him start in a central striking role alongside Ekitike – a position he grew accustomed to during the first half of the 2018-19 season under Jurgen Klopp.

Slot will hope the Brighton fixture offers another opportunity to further test and refine his new system.

Yet the match may ultimately be remembered less for tactical experimentation and more for the possibility that it marks the final appearance of Mohammed Salah in a Liverpool shirt. 

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