Mo Salah ignites Liverpool 'chaos' with press conference grenade that left his minder in shock
It is going to take army to repair the fractured relationship between Mo Salah and Liverpool after a press conference that went immediately viral for the club media manager's horrified reaction as the Egyptian star spoke.
A third game on the bench was all it took for the cracks between Salah and the club to be made public, with the 33-year-old delivering a scathing outburst to the media after Liverpool drew relegation battling Leeds 3-3.
Arne Slot made clear that his superstar is sitting on the bench to help guide the team in a new direction, but Salah believes he is being set up to blame for the club's decline.
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Salah made it clear the only person who should be blamed for the club's is Slot.
"I have done so much for this club ... now I am sitting on the bench and I don't know why," he said.
Liverpool's media manager (top left) could not hide his shock as Mo Salah spoke. Twitter
"It is like the club has thrown me under the bus. I think it's very clear that someone wants me to get all the blame ... that is how I am feeling."
Those words sent Liverpool's press officer into a state of panic.
The viral video showed the press officer, who stood just behind Salah's right shoulder in the mixed media zone at Elland Road, listening to the interview before he suddenly sighed and brought his head into his hands just second after Salah's first bold claim.
As many would expect, the emotions only became more telling as the 33-year-old star continued speaking, leaving the press officer dashing to open his phone.
Salah couldn't be halted as the Liverpool staffer frantically typed on his phone, presumably to alert other team officials and the club's hierarchy of Salah's words.
Mohamed Salah has scored four goals in 13 appearances in the Premier League this season. Getty
The moment has received mixed reaction from the football world, with many calling out Salah for making a game that he did not play all about him.
Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen understood where Salah was coming from.
"I totally understand how Mo Salah is feeling ... that is just the mindset of a champion," Owen told NBC Sports.
"He has got the mentality of a Cristiano Ronaldo. These players are match winners. They will win you the league, the Champions League ... you don't want to mess with them. You don't drop them. They are tuned differently compared to the normal squad player."
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However, Owen called out Salah's choice of words, and the timing of them, given he is not the only player to have ever been dropped to the bench in the league.
In fact, the Englishman noted that Salah's teammate Andrew Robertson is going through a similar situation, with Slot looking in favour of Milos Kerkez to start at left-back.
Yet, Robertson has not fronted the media to express his discontent.
Andrew Robertson takes to the field for Liverpool. Liverpool FC via Getty Images
It is not the first time that Salah has made a bold statement while representing Liverpool. In December last year, he was branded "selfish" after revealing he had not been offered an extension with the club and felt he was on the outer.
Slot did not table a deal until April 2025, which Salah put pen to paper on.
"He doesn't tend to do media, it is only when he is going to drop a bombshell like this one," Owen continued.
"You simply can not in a team game come out and say things like that. It is an unwritten rule, it is forbidden, you shouldn't do it. Now he has created chaos within the club."
It is yet another chaotic twist to what appears to be a heavily self-inflicted period of trouble for Liverpool - and pressure is mounting on Slot to find results.
Exactly how the relationship between the club and its biggest star will be fixed remains unclear. Increasingly it appears that Salah knows his time at Anfield is coming to an end.
Adding to the complexity of the situation, Salah will soon travel to represent Egypt in the Africa Cup of Nations.
