The Mo Salah saga took an even more dramatic turn this midweek, with the Egyptian winger’s omission from the travel squad to Italy, for tonight’s Champions League clash at Inter Milan. The difficult decision was made by Sporting Director Richard Hughes, in conjunction with LFC’s ownership group and also manager Arne Slot.
Salah, one of the most decorated and accomplished players in club history, has been benched for the past three games.
UCL Matchday 6 FYIs
Liverpool FC at Inter Milan
Kickoff: 8pm BST, Tues. Dec. 9, San Siro Stadium, Milan, Italy
LFC Starting XI Prediction, Match Preview: go here
UCL Standings, Form: Inter Milan 4th, 10 pts WWWWL Liverpool 13th 9 pts, WLWWL
In response to this, Salah gave a very explosive interview in the press, where he called out both Slot and the club itself. The money quote from that interview is the following:
“It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That is how I am feeling. I think it is very clear that someone wanted me to get all of the blame.
As you can see from his Instagram posting below, Salah is not being left out of the squad due to fitness reasons.
View this post on Instagram
Reds Team News
Salah isn’t the only winger who wasn’t in the travel party. Both Cody Gakpo and Federico Chiesa did not travel to Italy, and that leaves Slot with fewer selection options in the final third.
And then of course, Jeremie Frimpong, Giovanni Leoni and Stefan Bajcetic all remain out as longer-term injuries.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, RG.org and Ratings.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.