SportsTalk, April 28, The Athletic’s Liverpool and team reporter James Pearce wrote an article today, talking about the fierce argument between Salah and Klopp on the sidelines. things.
During Liverpool’s draw with West Ham last night, Klopp had a heated argument with Salah on the sidelines, so much so that Liverpool players had to step in to calm the situation.
Talking about the matter after the game, Klopp said: “We have talked about it in the locker room, and this matter is over. Is that what Salah thinks? ”
But Salah doesn’t seem to think so. think. Salah has only stopped to speak to the British written press after a game twice in the past seven years, so it is not unusual for Salah to refuse an interview after a game. When facing reporters after the game last night, Salah did not refuse the interview request with a smile as usual and said “Not today, thank you.” Instead, he walked past and said: “If I speak today, it will cause an uproar. ”
Sarah’s tone was quite firm. When asked by a reporter, “A huge uproar?”, Salah replied: “Of course. ”
After Klopp tried to douse the flames, Salah poured gasoline on them. He could have taken the opportunity to downplay the row or apologize publicly for disrespecting Klopp, but he failed to do so.
TA said that the conflict between the two sides originated from Salah. He was annoyed with sitting on the bench for a long time and was preparing Reluctant to shake Klopp’s hand when he came on. At first, Klopp focused on the game, and then he walked over and exchanged a few words with Salah. What happened next was completely unacceptable – Salah, who is usually mild-tempered, faced off against Klopp. Klopp lost his temper. He raised his arms and pointed in Klopp’s direction. Nunez quickly came to mediate and calmed his teammates.
After the final whistle, Salah was the first Liverpool player to leave the fieldplayers. After briefly applauding the away fans, he ruffled his hair and disappeared down the tunnel. On this day, the frustration that had gradually accumulated in Salah’s heart exploded.
Since moving to Liverpool from Roma in the summer of 2017, Salah’s endurance has been as good as his goal-scoring ability. In his first six seasons at Liverpool, he missed only 10 league games. But he has missed more games this season. He suffered a hamstring injury in the African Cup of Nations on January 18 and was absent until the game against Brentford on February 17. He then injured his leg again and was out for another three weeks, ultimately missing the League Cup final.
After his comeback, he only scored 5 goals in 13 appearances, 2 of which were penalty kicks. During this time, Liverpool were knocked out of the FA Cup and Europa League and dropped out of the title race.
In three of the past six games, Salah has been on the bench. You only have to look at his reaction when he was substituted during the game to understand how painful it was for him not to be in the starting lineup.
The cruel reality is that Salah has no right to complain about being ignored recently. He did not press as hard as he should when the opponent had the ball, his touches repeatedly let him down, he wasted many opportunities in the final third and he looked like a player lacking rhythm and confidence.
In the process of preparing to succeed Klopp, solving the future problem of Salah is the most pressing issue for new head coach Slott One of the tasks. It’s too early to call Salah’s recent slump as evidence of his decline, but Salah will turn 32 in June and enter the final year of his contract. If Liverpool pay him such a weekly salary again, Offering a player over £350,000 a lucrative contract extension would be a huge gamble.
Saudi Arabia pursued Salah last year, with an offer of up to 150 million pounds but was still rejected by Liverpool. This was mainly because Liverpool could not find Salah. to the replacement. If Saudi Arabia makes a similar offer again this summer, Liverpool will definitely have the urge to cash out the players.
This depends largely onSalah himself, is he ready to say goodbye to European football and head to Saudi Arabia? There is a view that he would rather stay at Liverpool until his contract expires and then leave as a free agent, because then he can receive a huge signing fee.
Of course, maybe a proper break this summer and a fresh start under Slaughter will reinvigorate him. But regardless, Salah needs to reflect on what happened at the London Stadium because he let himself down. If he had something to say, he should say it behind closed doors. Klopp made Salah a global icon at Liverpool and the outgoing manager deserves better from his players.
