Arne Slot responds after Mohamed Salah's concerning Liverpool contract statement
Mohamed Salah sparked major concerns after hinting he could leave Liverpool in a recent social media post - but manager Arne Slot is remaining calm about the looming decision
by Chris McKenna · The MirrorArne Slot insists he is not concerned about Mo Salah's post on social media as he insists the Liverpool star could continue to shine well into his 30s like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Salah, 32, cast more doubt over his future at the club with a post on X following the Reds’ 2-1 win over Brighton on Saturday. The Egyptian star said: “No matter what happens, I will never forget what scoring at Anfield feels like."
That sparked concern that Salah, who is out of contract at the end of the current season, could be starting his farewell to Anfield.
But ahead of Tuesday night’s Champions League clash with Bayer Leverkusen, head coach Slot said: “You interpreted it in a way that maybe other people don’t.
"I don’t look at Instagram posts of my players, I only talk to them which you can’t, which is the advantage I have. Mo is in a very good place at the moment. As long as he has been at Liverpool, he has been in a very good place, but this season again as well.
“I am hoping he will make a post after tomorrow and on Saturday again. What he said with that, that is not important. For me what is important is how he plays and what he tells me when we have conversations. That is what matters and not how you guys interpret one of his posts.
"I haven’t spoken to him about that. We have spoken about Leverkusen because that team deserves all of our attention for the quality they have.
"He is out of contract at the end of the season - Virgil said something in the press - and now he has a post which you interpreted in a certain way. This will probably continue for as long as their futures are not clear. In the meantime, let’s hope they bring in performances like Mo and Virgil [van Dijk] had at the weekend.”
Salah has scored nine and created seven goals so far this season as he shows little sign of slowing down despite heading towards his mid 30s. Slot believes Salah is showing no signs of slowing down as he brought up Ronaldo, who at 39 is still playing in Saudi Arabia, and Messi, who is starring in MLS at 37.
The Dutchman added: “There is no reason at the moment to think that he is dropping in terms of level. That's not what you see when you look at his numbers or what you see when he plays.
"I don’t know how to say this in English, but I cannot tell you how the future will look like. Some players Cristiano Ronaldo, what age is he at the moment? Messi is still incredible. Incredible.
“But there are also players like me who weren't as good any more at 33, not that I was so good at 26. I regressed worse than Ronaldo and Messi. I don't know what the future brings but I do know Mo is in a very good place at the moment.”
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