HISTORY MAKER: MO SALAH BREAKS WAYNE ROONEY'S SINGLE-CLUB GOAL INVOLVEMENT RECORD
Mohamed Salah silenced his critics by setting a new Premier League record (277 goal involvements) in a 2-0 win vs Brighton, providing an assist after his public rift with Arne Slot.
After some tense talks, Mohamed Salah returned to Liverpool's lineup against Brighton and helped secure a 2-0 victory at Anfield.
Salah wasn't happy about being benched during their 3-3 draw with Leeds United the previous weekend, feeling that Slot had unfairly blamed him.
As a result, the club left him out of the Champions League squad against Inter Milan, a game Slot’s team won 1-0.
On Friday, when asked if Salah had played his last game for the club, Slot responded, “I’m going to talk with Mo this morning. What happens in that talk will decide what happens tomorrow.
“I need to talk to him first. The next time I talk about Mo, it should be with him, not here. There’s not much else to say. I’ll speak with him today, and how that goes will determine things for tomorrow.
“You can try asking in different ways, but I should talk to him first. We’ve talked a lot this past week since the Sunderland game. His people and our people have talked, and he and I have talked.
“I’ll talk to him again today.”
His Return to the Field
After all those discussions, Slot decided to put Salah on the bench against Brighton. Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, and Florian Wirtz started just behind Hugo Ekitike.
Liverpool had a dream start at Anfield when Ekitike scored just 46 seconds into the game, making it the quickest goal in the Premier League this season.
But in the 26th minute, Joe Gomez had to leave the game due to an injury, forcing Slot to make a change.
Even with three defenders available on the bench, the coach decided to bring on Salah for Gomez, moving Szoboszlai to right-back.
The Liverpool fans gave Salah a big cheer, and he quickly made his presence felt, almost setting up Alexis Mac Allister just a minute after coming on.
Liverpool went up 2-0 in the 60th minute when Salah took a corner and found Ekitike, who headed the ball past the Brighton goalie.
“He gave me a great ball; I just had to be in the right spot,” Ekitike said after the game. “I was, and it was an easy finish.”
With that assist, Salah reached 277 goal involvements in 302 Premier League games for Liverpool—the most for any player at a single club, passing Wayne Rooney (276) at Manchester United.
He now has 280 Premier League goal involvements overall, with his first three coming for Chelsea in 2013/14. He’s now behind only Rooney (311) and Alan Shearer (324) in that statistic.
The 33-year-old seemed motivated to prove a point against Brighton after being dropped by Slot. Also, Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher had recently said that Salah's best days were behind him.
He played well, getting 45 touches, completing 27 of 32 passes (84%), successfully dribbling once, taking three shots, creating five chances, and, of course, providing that assist.
Arne Slot’s Thoughts
“I thought he was dangerous,” Slot told reporters after the game. “The first time he touched the ball, he almost made an assist to [Alexis] Mac Allister, who passed it across, and maybe could have shot himself.
“He was always involved in our attacks. It was good to see, but not surprising because he’s done it many times for Liverpool.”
When asked if Salah had shown that he wants to stay at Liverpool, Slot said, “I think you already know the answer.
“What we talked about stays between us. You saw what happened—he was in the squad and was the first player I subbed in.
“I never tell you guys what I talk about with Virgil [van Dijk] or Mo [Salah] or any other player.”
What’s Next?
Last weekend, Salah mentioned that he had invited his family to the Brighton game, hinting that it might be his last for Liverpool.
He patted the Liverpool badge and clapped to all areas of the crowd at full-time, but this week he avoided making any big statements, declining interview requests after the game.
The 33-year-old is scheduled to join his national team on Monday before the Africa Cup of Nations. Egypt's first game is on Monday, December 22nd, and they hope to make it to the final on Sunday, January 18th.
Sources say that the club will soon have more talks about his long-term future, which is still uncertain.
Several Saudi Pro League clubs are watching his situation closely, but his return against Brighton suggests that things between Salah and Slot can be resolved.
ALISSON "OPEN" TO LIVERPOOL EXIT AS JUVENTUS PREPARE MASSIVE SWAP DEAL OFFER
With Alisson Becker open to a Juventus move, Liverpool is scouring the market for a replacement ahead of a major summer rebuild.
Liverpool isn’t just sitting around; it’s actively searching for someone to take Alisson Becker’s spot since Juventus looks serious about making a bid for their veteran keeper. Even though Alisson’s got a year left on his deal after the club triggered an extension back in March, he might leave this summer.
He’s been Liverpool’s go-to guy in goal since he arrived from Roma in 2018; he’s played 332 games, cost £67 million, and for years, he was untouchable. But injuries have piled up during the 2025/26 season, and it’s starting to look like his time at Anfield could be coming to an end.
Juventus are now right in the mix. Apparently, Alisson isn’t against the idea of leaving Liverpool, and Juventus could even throw their own goalkeeper, Michele Di Gregorio, into the deal for the Brazilian.
Juve are ready to offer Alisson a contract running through the summer of 2028, with an extra year as an option. Sky Sports says Liverpool already knows what’s happening and is getting their ducks in a row before a massive transfer window.
The club’s facing a big summer. Salah and Robertson are going, and now they might need a new keeper too. Giorgi Mamardashvili has stepped up when Alisson was out, playing 18 games across all competitions, but he’s injured himself, leaving Slot with just Freddie Woodman as his only fit option.
Recently, Slot was asked if losing Alisson at the same time as Robertson and Salah would be too much. He said, “The club makes decisions it thinks are right. If this happens, there's a reason behind it, maybe another good reason why we did what we did.”
He pointed out that Liverpool doesn’t make transfers on a whim. Decisions are thought through, with the club’s interests always at heart.
Regarding keeping Alisson for his experience, Slot admitted that’s one argument, but there are others and, ultimately, the club will decide what’s best. Alisson’s contract still has a year left.
When pressed about Juventus, Slot replied, “Ali’s main focus is clear; he wants to get back in goal for Liverpool as soon as possible and then play for Brazil. That’s his short- and mid-term future.”
LIVERPOOL WARNED TO OFFER CURTIS JONES NEW CONTRACT BEFORE 14-MONTH DEADLINE
Analysis: Curtis Jones’ elite passing stats and why Jermaine Pennant believes Liverpool cannot afford to lose the versatile midfielder.
Liverpool really needs to sort out a new contract for Curtis Jones before they make the same mistake it did with Luis Diaz. That’s what the Inside Liverpool panel thinks, especially now that Diaz is lighting up Bayern Munich and making Liverpool’s transfer moves look pretty questionable.
Bayern’s front three, with Diaz in the mix, have racked up 100 goals across all competitions this season – the first time any non-Spanish team has done that. Diaz himself has bagged 26 goals in 46 matches and just scored against PSG in the Champions League semi-final.
Looking back, Liverpool probably wish they hadn’t let Diaz walk for £65 million last summer. Since then, fans at Anfield haven’t seen anyone who brings what he did: that relentless pressing, always looming as a threat on the counter. Sure, they’ve brought in Rio Ngumoha, a teenager, just 17, but Arne Slot, the coach, knows you can’t just expect him to fill those shoes right away.
On talkSPORT’s Inside Liverpool, Jermaine Pennant, who has played for the club, said that Liverpool has to bring in another proven attacker over the summer. Pennant’s point: Diaz was great whether he played in the middle or on the left, and Liverpool needs someone with that kind of flexibility. You don’t want to sign a backup like Hugo Ekitike and then end up overcrowding with too many strikers when the main guy returns.
Now, Jones could end up in the same boat this summer. There’s a lot of uncertainty around his future, and when you look at the numbers, he’s only got 14 months left on his contract. Several clubs in England and Europe are watching, and he’s only started 15 games for Liverpool this season.
Even though he hasn’t played much, Jones is impressing; he’s second only to Rodri in midfielder passes per 90 minutes in the Premier League. He’s also ranked second behind Moises Caicedo for passing accuracy, and right behind Rayan Cherki for carries. Pennant said the club can’t afford to let him go: Jones is so versatile; you can play him anywhere in midfield or even right back. He knows the club, loves it, and helps connect the squad.
Jones has been one of the top performers recently. Pennant thinks Liverpool should offer him a new deal, especially since the squad is thinning out and they’ve already lost Trent Alexander-Arnold. In the end, it’s up to Jones if he wants to stay or move for more game time, but Liverpool has to make the offer while they still can.
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