MOHAMED SALAH LIVERPOOL CRISIS: WHY TRENT ALEXANDER-ARNOLD’S EXIT DESTROYED THE EGYPTIAN KING’S FORM
Mohamed Salah is struggling at Liverpool. Former striker Dean Saunders explains how losing Trent Alexander-Arnold ruined Salah's game.
Everyone's wondering why Mohamed Salah is struggling at Liverpool, especially after he kind of blew up at the team. Some people think it's because Trent Alexander-Arnold left last summer. Dean Saunders said that the Egyptian King isn't having an easy time this season (2025-26), and that's why he spoke out.
Salah started on the bench after a good start.
After signing a new two-year deal in April, Salah began the season okay. He scored three goals in five games across the Premier League and Champions League, while the English champs started perfectly.
Things went downhill fast for everyone, though. Salah went six games without a goal and is currently on another dry spell of the same length. Plus, the 33-year-old hasn't been playing as much as he wants lately.
Salah is back in the team after a rant against Liverpool.
He's been a sub in the last four Premier League games. In one of those games, Liverpool drew 3-3 with Leeds. After that, Salah accused the team of throwing him under the bus and said his relationship with the coach, Arne Slot, was falling apart.
The team decided not to take Salah to the game against Inter Milan. He came back for the Brighton game and even got an assist after coming on in the 26th minute.
Now he's off to the Africa Cup of Nations, and people are wondering if he'll be transferred in January, especially with those Saudi Pro League clubs sniffing around again.
Why is Salah struggling? What's Alexander-Arnold got to do with it?
Saunders, a former Liverpool striker, was asked why Salah is having trouble after scoring 250 goals for the team. He told GOAL, "Who would have thought it could go this wrong?" He’s going to miss Trent because Trent’s disguised passing got him in. Trent would even look at him sometimes and find him. Full-backs knew where Salah was, but Trent played inside him and passed the ball outside and said, ‘If you need me, if you need to give it back to me, when you give it back, I’ve got the magic wand to find anybody in the box.’ Clubs made sure they got someone out to Trent because they knew he could hurt them, and that left Mo Salah one-on-one with the full-back. They are leaving the fullback on the ball because they can’t hurt them as Trent did. They have had five right-backs play.
I’m sticking up for him a little bit here. He’s lost [Diogo] Jota and [Darwin] Nunez and [Luis] Diaz. Diaz used to go outside the fullback and cross it. [Cody] Gakpo never goes outside the full-back. He’s lost Andy Robertson. He’s got a bit of an argument on why he’s not playing well, which is fair enough. But I would say to him, ‘When’s the last time you beat the fullback? When was the last time you cut inside and hit one in the top corner? When was the last goal you scored? When’s the last time you looked like Mo Salah, the one we know? So look in the mirror and sort your own game out.’
I understand what he’s saying, but to then come out with what he did after it was obvious that Slot had gone for a clean sheet at West Ham. He’s obviously gone with ‘We need a clean sheet; I’m going to sacrifice attacking,’ and he played [Dominik] Szoboszlai in Mo’s position. And the game at Inter—that was the best back four he could put out—Joe Gomez, [Virgil] van Dijk, [Ibrahima] Konate, and Andy Robertson. He must understand what the manager is trying to do by leaving him out, but in his head, he thinks, ‘I’m the best player in the world; how can you do this to me?’ He shouldn’t have said what he said, and he needs to apologise. If he apologises, things can be swept under the carpet.”
What's next for Salah?
Slot said he'd talk to Salah before the Brighton game. They seem to have worked things out since Salah came off the bench when Gomez got hurt during the game against Brighton, but we'll have to wait and see what happens next.
ARNE SLOT’S REALISTIC STANCE ON ALEXANDER ISAK’S RETURN DOMINATES LIVERPOOL FAN FORUMS
Liverpool boss Arne Slot insists Alexander Isak needs a six-week lead-up to reach the levels seen in last season's final.
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Arne Slot has confirmed that Alexander Isak will be back in time for Liverpool’s Champions League quarter-final clash against Paris Saint-Germain. However, he urged patience about when fans might see the £125 million forward in top form again, as Isak has been out since late 2025 due to a broken leg.
Isak suffered the injury during Liverpool’s win over Tottenham in December, caught by defender Micky van de Ven shortly after scoring in the second half. Now, the Swedish striker is gradually easing back with light training but won’t be joining the national squad during the break, still working through the final stages of rehab before returning to competitive play.
Slot mentioned the team might consider a closed-door friendly to help Isak regain match fitness, but clarified that he hasn’t rejoined regular team training yet. While Slot welcomes the striker’s return eagerly, he also recognises the likelihood that supporters might have to wait until next season to see Isak performing at his best.
“Alex will be available for PSG, yes,” Slot said on Friday. “But when we talk about being ready, if you’re expecting the player who starred against us a year ago in the Carabao Cup final, who was exceptional on that day, I have doubts after such a long layoff. I do expect to get minutes from him, but it’s hard to say what exactly because he hasn’t trained with the team even once yet.
“He’s not able to train with the team yet. Usually, rehab comes before team training starts, and only after that do you play games. It’s not like you go from one training to playing 45 or 90 minutes straight away.
“If we organise a friendly during the international break, it would probably have to be a very light setup, maybe something like three versus three. We have the under-21s, but Alex isn’t ready to play yet. If he were, he would be with Sweden. The fans will certainly see the best version of him next season. We’re aiming to get close to that this season, but it’s a process.
“I’m as excited as the fans to have him back because, honestly, in about 90 per cent of our matches, we’ve created more chances than the opposition. Having one of the world’s best strikers out there usually means picking up more points. So the excitement about his return, given how good he was at Newcastle, is understandable.
“I don’t want to diminish his impact; he can make a difference this season. But if you ask whether next season is more realistic for him to reach his best than right now, I’d say yes. Also, he probably won’t be available against Man City, but for the next couple of months, we’ll definitely try to use him.”
Slot also touched on the possibility of Isak playing in an under-21 game. “That’s something I can’t answer yet. We think about those options with players returning from injury. If he must get match practice, we would arrange a friendly. But it’s not as simple as 'one game back, and then he’s back to his peak'; it takes time.
“There’s also pre-season coming up, which might be the right moment for him to build up gradually. Players typically have around six to seven weeks to ramp up before the season, and it’s rare to see anyone at their best in the very first pre-season game.”
ARNE SLOT CONFIRMS SALAH & GOMEZ FITNESS DOUBT AHEAD OF HIGH STAKES BRIGHTON TRIP
Arne Slot confirms Mohamed Salah will miss the Brighton game with a muscle injury while dismissing Liverpool contract talks.
Liverpool’s head coach, Arne Slot, recently spoke with the media ahead of their match against Brighton, sharing updates on Mohamed Salah, his own contract situation, and what to expect from the upcoming game on the south coast.
Regarding Salah’s injury, Slot described it as unusual and obviously means Salah won’t be available for the match. However, the timing isn’t terrible since there’s an international break coming up. Sadly, that also means Salah can’t join the Egypt squad during that period. Slot expressed hope that Salah, known for taking excellent care of his body, might recover faster than usual. Historically, the player has bounced back sooner than others might in similar cases. The team will reassess after the two weeks of the break to see if he can return.
Joe Gomez was on the bench but didn’t get to play because he wasn’t feeling right, even before the game started. Slot mentioned trying to hold off during the game in case he was needed in extra time, but ultimately, Gomez wasn’t ready to start or come on.
When the topic shifted to whether Slot was considering a new contract, he seemed surprised and quickly redirected the conversation back to the team’s immediate challenges. He pointed out that the team has been winning more often in recent months than some realise and that his current focus is firmly on Brighton and the rest of the season, especially as Liverpool has reached the Champions League quarter-final but needs to improve their league standing. Slot emphasised the season will be a fight to the end and confirmed discussions about contracts, particularly his own, weren’t happening.
Looking ahead to the Brighton game, Slot expects it to be an intense and attractive match because Brighton always tries to play an active, possession-based style. This makes preparation tougher since Liverpool only has about 62 hours of rest after a physically demanding midweek match. He raised concerns about some key players, like Jeremie Frimpong, who’s prone to injuries when matches come quickly, and now with Gomez out, there are tough decisions to make. Slot described Brighton as a team that doesn’t shy away from intensity and is ready to match Liverpool’s pace, making the upcoming fixture exciting but challenging.
On Liverpool’s struggles to score in the first half, Slot acknowledged the issue but wasn’t satisfied with just dividing the problem into halves. He said the team creates plenty of chances and should be scoring more, given the quality of their offence overall. More importantly, he stressed the team must be prepared mentally and physically from the start. That means handling the emotional and physical strain of recent tough matches and facing a Brighton side that will come at them aggressively in a midday kick-off.
Speaking of the 12:30 pm kick-off times, Slot doesn’t mind them much. He noted that training often happens around that time anyway, so the actual kickoff isn’t strange for the players. However, backing up from a demanding schedule with limited rest between fixtures is not ideal, especially when looking for peak performance. He implied that while the time itself isn’t a problem, having such a tight turnaround after intense games isn’t something a manager would choose if they could avoid it.
Finally, on the question of whether Dominik Szoboszlai might be played at right-back again, Slot was quite clear: Szoboszlai is fundamentally a midfielder. When he’s deployed elsewhere, it’s usually because of squad limitations rather than a tactical experiment. If there are fit and available fullbacks, Szoboszlai will play in midfield where he belongs. Slot also pointed out the risks involved in playing him out of position, especially if a natural full-back is fit enough to take the spot. He acknowledged Szoboszlai’s versatility but emphasised that the best Liverpool team is with him in midfield. In cases where many players are unavailable, the decision to move Szoboszlai to full-back is a pragmatic one, though not the ideal setup.
In sum, Slot’s remarks highlight how injuries continue to shape Liverpool’s options, the realistic challenges of fixture congestion, and a focus on steady progress rather than contract talks or distractions. The upcoming match against Brighton promises to test the squad’s physical and mental resilience, but Slot seems determined to navigate those hurdles with clear priorities.
