Jamie Carragher has labelled Mohamed Salah’s bombshell interview “a disgrace” but said he hopes the forward has not played his final game for Liverpool.
Salah was omitted from selection after saying he no longer has a relationship with Liverpool boss Arne Slot and accusing the club of “throwing him under the bus” after being benched for a third game in a row. Carragher, who was name-checked by Salah, said the intervention looked pre-meditated and suggested it may have been intended to force Slot out after Liverpool twice blew a lead in the 3-3 draw at Leeds.
“I thought it was a disgrace what he did after the game,” the Sky Sports pundit said on Monday Night Football. “Some people have painted it as an emotional outburst, I don’t think it was. Whenever Mo Salah stops in a mixed zone, which he’s done four times in eight years at Liverpool, it’s choreographed with him and his agent to cause maximum damage and strengthen his own position.”
Carragher added that Salah chose a moment when Liverpool and their supporters were low after the late goal at Elland Road: “He’s chosen this weekend to do this now and he’s waited, I think, for a bad result for Liverpool… he’s chosen that time to go for the manager and maybe try and get him sacked.”
Despite his criticism, Carragher said he does not want Salah’s Liverpool career to end this way. Salah has not travelled to Milan for Tuesday’s Champions League tie with Inter and hinted that the Premier League home game against Brighton could be his last for the club before he departs for AFCON on December 15, potentially not returning until the January transfer window opens.
“The club have made the right decision in terms of [Salah] not going abroad now,” Carragher said. “Whether he will play for Liverpool again, I don’t know. I hope he does, because he is one of the greatest players we’ve ever had. But if you continue like that and make statements like that if he doesn’t play, who knows?”
Salah had warned Carragher would “go for me again and again” after speaking out. Carragher pushed back, asking rhetorically if he had ever criticised Salah on the pitch and saying observations such as Salah’s legs looking off after a match were not personal attacks. “I’ve never criticised him for not working back… because he’s an absolute legend of the club,” he said. “I think some of the criticism this season of Mo Salah has been excessive. I’ve said that publicly. But I will go after Mo Salah when he tries to throw my club under the bus off the pitch and just thinks about himself. I certainly will do that.”
Carragher also urged Salah to be less self-focused and to help new team-mates Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak, who have had difficult starts at Liverpool. “Mo Salah’s talking about how many goals he’s scored… he’s always speaking about himself,” Carragher said. He reminded Salah that before Liverpool he had not been a major trophy winner at club level and has not won the Africa Cup of Nations with Egypt, arguing that even the best players need support from team-mates, managers and fans.
Arne Slot said he was “surprised” by Salah’s claim that their relationship had broken down and confirmed the only communication since the interview was to inform Salah he would not travel to Italy. Slot said he believed there was always a possibility of reconciliation but: “I have no clue, I cannot answer that question in this moment in time,” when asked if Salah had played his final game for Liverpool. Slot added that whether Salah could be involved against Brighton would be decided after the Inter game.
Sky Sports analysis described the situation as a seismic choice for Liverpool. Zinny Boswell wrote that Salah has forced the club into a decision and created a “me vs him” dynamic by naming only Slot in his interview. The piece noted Salah’s stated desire simply to play again and said next Saturday’s match against Brighton, his last before AFCON, could feasibly be his Anfield farewell.
What’s next for Salah?
– Tuesday December 9: Liverpool face Inter in Milan in the Champions League. Salah was omitted from the travelling squad.
– Saturday December 13: Liverpool host Brighton at Anfield.
– Monday December 15: Salah due to travel to AFCON with Egypt.
– Thursday January 1: Transfer window opens.
