Ah so let’s beg the Saudis.
Is that the same mob we despise….or maybe love when convenient?
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I don’t despise them!
This all is doing my head in. Seriously.
“Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times”
describes a cyclical theory of societal change, suggesting hardship builds resilience, which leads to prosperity, fostering complacency and weakness, ultimately causing the next period of hardship.
Anyone got a feeling on where we are in the cycle?
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I’m really not a fan of what Mo has done, that being said. Who has cost us more points this year?
Mo - Playing shit, and correctly being benched.
Konate - Playing shit, and constantly playing.
I’ll take a stab at it. I’d say we are at or near the end of the cycle, at least with Mo and perhaps a couple more. We are, and we will, experience hard times… but some great men will be crafted from it.
I won’t name them all, but one top candidate who will rise to the top is Dominik Szoboszlai. His performance has been good, even in a struggling side. But he has also spoken well publicly, as a leader should.
A new breed is on the cusp of coming to the fore and we are going to be ok. There will be a few wrinkles to work through until we get there, but some important pieces are already in place for the future of this great club.
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The 2 problems with that is he will be off at AFCON for the whole of January, so:
- At what point does he physically make that move?
- Who would be willing to pay £400k p/w for a 33yo?
“With respect, I love everyone. I love (Erling) Haaland, I will talk about him. I am the current top goalscorer in the Premier League (last season’s Golden Boot winner). He is not yet. He is going to win it, hopefully, and that is fine for him. I love him and he knows that. I am the top goalscorer, best player, winning the league in such a style, but I am the one who has to defend himself in front of the media and fans.
“I have been at this club, scoring more than anyone in this generation. Since I came to the Premier League, I don’t think anyone has scored more goals and made more assists than me. If I am somewhere else, everybody would go to the media and defend the players. I am the only one in this situation.
“Can I give an example? It’s silly but I am sorry. I remember a while ago, (former Tottenham Hotspur striker) Harry Kane was not scoring for 10 games and everyone in the media was like: ‘Oh, Harry will score for sure’. But when it comes to Mo, everyone is like: ‘He needs to be on the bench’. I am sorry, Harry!
“After what I have done for the club, it really hurts. After going from home to the club, you don’t know if you are starting. Tomorrow, (Jamie) Carragher (the former Liverpool defender turned TV pundit) is going to go for me again and again and that’s fine.”
Me. Me. Me.
I understand that he’s sensitive to the perception that’s he’s had to take the fall for our run of form. Salah is not the only player to blame, and it’s unfair for anyone to specifically single him out.
But he cannot be blind to his lack of production for nearly a year now. And when you’re the “Egyptian King” earning 400K+ a week, you should expect to be held to a higher standard than anyone else. The bigger the paycheck, the bigger the burden. It is what it is.
Don’t pose for photos with a crown on your head if it’s too heavy for you to wear.
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I’m gonna put this out there. Because I finally watched the interview. His body language isn’t of arrogance, if I trust my instincts on this. His voice keeps trembling, grabbing his chin. He appears to me like his is upset.
Someone mentioned in the Slot thread, of Robbo’s interview after Scotland qualification. He mentioned it again. @Mascot caught it too. Credit where credit is due, I am also looking at what’s happening with these guys, maybe some serious grief counseling going on. All of these guys (sans the summer signing) could be going through some stuff that we just don’t understand.
Jota wedding could have been one of those moments for this group that really bound them together, lifetime friends on/off the pitch.
When was the last time an active LFC player died?
Maybe, they need our support collectively. Some patience, as fans that support our players and (AHEM) legends. Let them sort this out.
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I see two potential options. The Saudis are on record as having a standing offer on the table for Mo. If he wants to go there I think it will be done quickly, given his name and global status. He would be the new jewel in their crown.
If Salah wanted to play at a higher level, arguably someone like Galatasaray might make sense. CL club, decent league, Muslim country. They might push the boat out to make his wages happen.
My best guess would be the Saudis. If Salah is sore right now, they would love to be a healing agent, throwing oodles of cash at him, and other benefits like jets, luxury accommodation, staff at his disposal, ongoing monetary reward for being an ambassador, etc.
Edit
Also at what point could a deal be struck? I think Egypt will give special dispensation to their star player to sort out a deal, if he wants to leave Liverpool. I would imagine most of the groundwork has already been done with the Saudis so it will be quite straightforward.
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Mo Salah is not bigger than the club but Mo Salah is bigger than the head coach who recently came in and who’s credit was built on the goals Mo Salah scored.
Both might have to go but Slot first please.
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Salah has badly overplayed his hand this time. He has grounds to feel aggrieved by Slot and he probably isn’t the only one in the locker room feeling that way, but this was a massive backfire on his part. Before, he had the stats to help his case, this time he’s got nothing, and no Liverpool fan will appreciate him going public once again. Someone should also remind him that the relationship wasn’t a one-way street: he gave a lot to the club, but he also got a lot back and not only from a monetary point of view.
It’s such a shame that his time will come to an ignominious end. If the Saudis make a decent offer, Hughes will send him packing.
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From the outside, it will look straight out the Ronaldo playbook this one, similar situation and timing.
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I want to stay and fight for my place under the new coach.
Mohamed Salah (January 2026)
Doubt we can go on another spending spree in January without Saudi money so the club (Hughes) has to be very careful how they handle the situation in the coming days.
This could turn out to be the likeliest scenario in the end. I wrote in Slot’s thread yesterday that I suspected that certain transfer decisions had been made by the club over the summer with financial interests before sporting ones - Salah extending, albeit on big money, and being sold to Saudis the main one.
We’re a mess on all fronts, no point in sugarcoating it. If I was a betting man, at this point I’d bet on Slot staying a bit longer than Salah because there are no viable alternatives for Slot at the moment (unless Ancelotti really fancies it until the end of the season), while the club need Salah off the books and might get a modest fee to reinvest in January - as I really don’t see Salah reigniting his Liverpool career under a different coach, not at this point.
It was reminding me of that a lot. Maybe Mo just wants to pad his career stats with sitters and penalties? I hope not. I always had him as a greater professional than that.
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The fact that he doesn’t know why he’s on the bench and doesn’t think he has to fight for his place is extremely alarming. For someone who is supposedly the ultimate professional he couldn’t have been less professional in his views. I’d have hoped to hear that he understands his form hasn’t been great but he will fight and show us all that he’s not finished yet instead we got that load of crap that just put more unnecessary pressure on a club and coach already in crisis.
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If you leave one of the biggest players in the world out for three games in a row, and don’t even bring him on in two it’s going get a reaction. It’s either extremely naive from the management or exactly what they wanted to smooth through a January exit….
[John Gibbons, The Anfield Wrap]
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By Melissa Reddy:
This is such an exceptionally sad, depressing turn in Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool story. Feeling like the club have thrown him under the bus, admitting he no longer has a relationship with Arne Slot, that it “seems like someone does not want me” at Anfield, and is strongly hinting at being forced out in the January window is not the treatment, legacy, nor conclusion his history-making contributions deserve.
It just wasn’t meant to be like this.
His hurt is evident, and he’s clearly succumbed to his emotions by revealing all of this publicly, but Liverpool do not need more harm right now. And this is damaging. It will also understandably impede how many will view him. Crisis feels a soft description.
Salah seems particularly vexed by being framed as Liverpool‘s problem when that is counter to the truth and players in worse form keep their places in a system and approaching that is heavily flawed.
He also seems annoyed that his talks in private with the manager and club haven’t answered why his situation has changed so drastically. “I asked but I didn’t see an explanation. I knew I wasn’t going to play.”
Reading between the lines, there‘s a sense he’s being scapegoated and sacrificed to remedy some recruitment errors that have led to an unrecognisable Liverpool on the pitch.
However much Salah is hurting and whatever he is feeling, this doesn’t tally with ‘The Liverpool Way.’
And goodness, he deserves infinitely more than this mess.
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By Henry Winter, Football Writer and broadcaster:
Mo Salah will never walk alone. He’s too adored by Liverpool fans for what he’s achieved over nine years and 420 games, the 250 goals, 113 assists and the eight trophies, including two Premier Leagues and the Champions League. So many unforgettable memories, so many entries in the history books. Salah will never walk alone because he’s too admired by Liverpool fans for the way he’s represented the club so well on the field and off.
The immediate reaction to Salah’s seemingly inevitable journey towards the Anfield exit - not of his volition - is sadness. Sadness, not so much the reality of it happening. Salah was always going to move or be moved on, probably for Saudi, at some point and his form has been dipping for a while. He’s 33. It’s more the manner of Salah’s seeming departure that stirs sadness.
It’s sad to see the situation scarred with such rancour and with such tension with his head coach and, seemingly, the Liverpool hierarchy. Such a special player and man, one of the greatest players in Liverpool’s long, trophy-laden history, deserves a special farewell. Anfield, standing as one, saluting a legend as he leaves. It probably will be in January now.
It’s difficult to see Salah staying after those heartfelt but damaging words at Elland Road last night. Liverpool’s powerbrokers have to back Arne Slot otherwise chaos reigns. Liverpool’s powerbrokers have to back the principle of performance-related selection otherwise positions become sinecures. The mistake Salah made in his comments was about having earned the right to continue starting. Sport doesn’t work that way.
Salah’s many supporters can - with some legitimacy - point to the poor displays of Gakpo and Konate and question why they still start. The problem with Salah is his modest contribution out of possession. That’s fine when the team are winning, and he’s scoring freely, but it’s an issue when they’re struggling as currently. Few Liverpool fans or pundits were surprised when Salah was left on the bench.
Salah doesn’t deserve any special treatment in terms of his place but he does deserve special treatment in how Liverpool work with him now. He’s a club great. He’s also a huge global figure. If Salah is to leave – and he hasn’t asked to – let’s hope it is done with the respect he deserves for what he’s done for a club that prides itself on people never walking alone.
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How long have you been supporting this club?
Player power is not the Liverpool way, the club comes 1st, sacking Arne 1st gives in to player power, Mo is the one to go and for me his outburst pushes me to want Arne to stay and prove him wrong.
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