Hours after Liverpool lost 4-2 to Aston Villa last Friday, Salah took to his social media to unleash a damning tirade on the side’s drop in standards this season, with the post appearing to aim a brutal dig at Arne Slot and his management of the team.
In his post, Salah, who announced he will be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season, demanded a return to the “heavy metal attacking team that opponents fear,” which has not been a hallmark of Slot’s time in charge.
This comes months after Salah first appeared to show signs of falling out with Slot shortly before jetting to Morocco to link up with Egypt for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
Shortly after the post went live, up to nine Liverpool players ended up “liking” it, bringing a sense of mutiny swirling around Kirkby.
Was Salah right to do as he did? Striver.Football analyses why the Egyptian King is completely right and where he is fundamentally wrong.
Where Mohamed Salah Is Right About Liverpool Under Arne Slot
The Lost Identity and Sluggish Playstyle
Salah claims Liverpool have lost the fierce identity that made them champions. He is right.
Slot’s tactical blueprint this season has lacked the rapid, vertical devastation that once defined Anfield especially during the peak years of Jurgen Klopp’s time at the club.
Instead of suffocating teams, Liverpool has often slumped into slow, predictable possession patterns.
Watching the Reds get dismantled at Villa Park would have been a painful thing to take for Liverpool fans. Seeing Dominik Szoboszlai, one of the few bright spots this year slip to give Ollie Watkins a goal, highlighted a team utterly lacking a coherent defensive structure or a feared attacking edge.
"Winning Some Games Here and There" is Not Liverpool
The Reds have struggled to scale the heights they reached last season under Slot, and Salah’s biting line -“Winning some games here and there is not what Liverpool should be about” - cuts straight to the bone of Slot's underwhelming second season.
After a spectacular 2024-25 Premier League title-winning debut campaign, Slot’s team has endured a staggering drop-off, registering 12 Premier League defeats this term.
Coming off a summer where the hierarchy backed Slot heavily by signing elite talents like Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, and Alexander Isak, a chaotic drop into a tense battle for top-five Champions League qualification against Brentford is an unacceptable regression.
Salah is right to demand the highest standards.
Where Mohamed Salah is WRONG About Liverpool Under Arne Slot
"Heavy Metal" Football is Not the Only Liverpool Way
Seven of Salah’s nine seasons at Liverpool saw him work under the legendary Klopp, who was famed for his “heavy metal” approach to football games. This genuinely injected fear into the opposition, and saw the club clinch four major trophies under the German.
However, Liverpool has won its 20 league titles and multiple European Cups using different Methodologies.
They enjoyed a particularly successful period during the 20th century using the patient pass-and-move "Boot Room" eras of Bob Paisley. During the mid-to late 2000s, they won the UEFA Champions League under the rigid organization of Rafa Benítez.
Insisting that future managers and players must adapt exclusively to Klopp's high-octane press ignores the reality that tactical evolution is required to stay at the top.
The Biological Reality of a 34-Year-Old Star
By the time the 2026/2027 season kicks off, Salah will be 34. He is demanding a return to an ultra-intense pressing system, yet he himself may no longer possess the physical engine to lead.
In fact, he enjoyed one of his most productive seasons at the club during Slot’s first season in charge, with Slot setting up the system in such a way Salah did not have a lot of defensive responsibilities. Furthermore, Slot adopted a more patient build up approach, and it proved successful during this very first year.
Let us not forget the final weeks of the 2023-24 season, when Klopp famously benched Salah at West Ham as the title challenge collapsed, leading to a fiery touchline altercation.
Even under Klopp, an aging Salah was beginning to clash with the physical demands of a high-press system. Demanding a tactical regime change when you already have one foot out the door after tearing up your contract is highly contradictory.
Liverpool’s Problems Go Beyond Salah and Slot
The civil war between Salah and Slot is a symptom of a much wider structural crisis at Liverpool. Slot insists his job is safe for next season, but the fact nine players sided with Sala shows he may lack dressing room backing.
According to The Athletic, Michael Edwards and Richard Hughes, who serve as directors, are rumored to be just a year away from their deals ending despite pulling the strings, which has left a power vacuum.
The Bottom Line
Salah’s public rebellion has laid bare the cracks in Slot's authority. While the Egyptian is entirely justified in pointing out that Liverpool’s standards have collapsed into mediocrity, his public campaign feels like an unfair, politically charged parting shot.
If Liverpool fails to beat Brentford next weekend to secure Champions League football, the atmosphere at Anfield for Salah’s farewell will be deeply uncomfortable.
