Moment Mo Salah ‘holds himself back’ in awkward TNT Sports encounter after most brutal Arne Slot snub yet at PSG
LIVERPOOL fans suspect Mo Salah “held himself back” from dishing out a TV tirade after his latest painful snub.
The four-time Premier League Golden Boot winner was left out of the starting XI for the first leg of Liverpool‘s Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain.
And Arne Slot didn’t even bring him off the bench.
To add insult to injury, Salah was told to increase the intensity of his warm-up only to be overlooked for five other subs – including 18-year-old Trey Nyoni – in a game the Reds lost 2-0.
Salah whipped up a storm after being dropped for a trip to Leeds in December, telling media he had been “thrown under the bus” and that he had no relationship with Slot.
This time, after going through his warm-down on the Parc des Princes pitch, he opted for silence.
Salah smiled as he shook hands with Steven Gerrard, Steve McManaman and Laura Woods live on TNT Sports.
The Egyptian, 33, made it clear that he did not want to give an interview and walked back to the dressing room.
But some fans are convinced that he would have loved to let rip at Slot.
One wrote on X: “Salah held himself back there. He really wanted to say his piece on TNT but he knows there’s no point now.”
Another replied: “Salah clearly didn’t want to say what he thought of Slot to Gerrard and McManaman there.”
A third posted: “One sad figure… Slot has managed to demoralise everyone at Liverpool.”
A fourth commented: “This is sad, man. I feel so bad for him.”
Another chimed in with: “Bro was ready for flames.”
And one user said: “Man he’s so professional, I’d be asking for Slot’s head.”
Salah will leave Liverpool this summer after he and the club agreed to end his mega-money contract a year early.
But his spectacular Anfield career is fizzling out.
With only 10 goals in all competitions this term, Salah is on course to record by far his lowest single-season goals tally in a Liverpool shirt.
Club legend Gerrard was at least impressed with how he handled himself after the PSG game.
He said: “[He’ll be] frustrated. He’ll be sitting there thinking he’d back himself to influence this game and improve proceedings, certainly from an attacking point of view.
“He’ll be a little bit sad and frustrated. But credit to him because he’s just stayed behind there and done some extra running.
“In his mind he’s already got his mind on Fulham [on Saturday] and he’s doing extra work which shows the pro and the mentality that you’re dealing with.”
The legendary Reds forward was an unused substitute as Arne Slot’s side were well-beaten in the French capital on Wednesday night.
Liverpool face an uphill battle to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League ahead of next Tuesday’s second leg at Anfield.
Goals from Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia secured a comfortable victory for the defending champions on home soil.
Salah will be hoping to feature after he was left out of the starting line-up. Slot brought on four players during the Parc des Princes clash but none of them were Salah.
Instead, Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak (back from a long-term injury) were preferred by Slot as he made attacking changes during the second half.
Salah hailed for ‘unnoticed’ behaviour
Although he did not play, Salah was out on the pitch following the final whistle.
The 33-year-old, who will leave Liverpool at the end of the season, completed his running after the match as he took part in the post-match cooldown exercises.
This did not go unnoticed by talkSPORT’s Stuart Pearce, though, who spotted Salah putting in the work.
Pearce explained: “I’m also watching down here Mo Salah doing his running as well.
“He’s at the front of the running and sometimes this gets unnoticed.
“People say oh his attitude stunk when he come off. He done this, he done that.
“If ever there’s a time where a players attitude is going to stink, it’s Mo Salah with six or seven games to go on his Liverpool career not being brought on when they need a goal.
“He’s got every opportunity for his attitude to stink and he’s out there doing the running with the team the box to box work that they do after games.
“So you’ve got to commend him for that. I know it’s his job. I understand that.”
Meanwhile, Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard also hailed Salah’s mentality for doing his warmdown.
Gerrard told TNT Sports: “Credit to him, he’s just stayed behind and done extra running.
“If there wasn’t a midweek game Wednesday probably would be your big session so in his mind he’s already thinking of Fulham on Saturday which shows the pro and mentality that you’re dealing with.”
Salah will depart the club this summer after nine years at Anfield having agreed an early exit with Liverpool.
The defeat to PSG represented just the second time he has not featured for the Reds in this season’s Champions League.
He previously missed their win over Inter Milan in December after he was excluded from the squad by Slot due to an explosive post-match interview where he accused the Liverpool boss of wanting him out of the club.
Across his nine appearances in the competition this term, Salah has three goals and two assists.
His absence on Wednesday may have been in part down to the system employed by Slot.
The Dutch manager switched to a 3-5-2 formation, with Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong operating as wing-backs.
As a result, Salah’s usual right-wing position was not used as Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz instead formed a two-man attack.
