Mohamed Salah has delivered a thinly veiled broadside at Arne Slot on social media following Liverpool’s 4-2 defeat to Aston Villa on Friday, calling for a return to the aggressive, attacking identity the club had under Jurgen Klopp and warning that everyone at the club, including the manager, must adapt to it.
The post, published on X at 3:46pm on 16 May, comes with Salah preparing to leave Liverpool at the end of the season after nine years at the club. It arrives at a precarious moment in their campaign, with Liverpool four points above sixth-placed Bournemouth, who have a game in hand, heading into the final day against Brentford at Anfield.
Salah’s full statement read: “I have witnessed this club go from doubters to believers, and from believers to champions. It took hard work and I always did everything I could to help the club get there. Nothing makes me prouder than that.
“Us crumbling to yet another defeat this season was very painful and not what our fans deserve. I want to see Liverpool go back to being the heavy metal attacking team that opponents fear and back to being a team that wins trophies.
“That is the football I know how to play and that is the identity that needs to be recovered and kept for good. It cannot be negotiable and everyone that joins this club should adapt to it.
“Winning some games here and there is not what Liverpool should be about. All teams win games.
“Liverpool will always be a club that means a great deal to me and to my family. I want to see it succeed for long after I have moved on. As I’ve always said, qualifying to next season’s Champions League is the bare minimum and I will do everything I can to make that happen.”
Salah did not start the defeat at Villa Park, coming on as a substitute for Cody Gakpo in the 74th minute with Liverpool already behind. The 33-year-old had missed the previous two Premier League matches with a thigh injury.
His relationship with Slot has been strained for much of the season. The two fell out publicly earlier in the campaign, and while they appeared to resolve their differences, Salah has never been guaranteed a regular starting place under the Dutchman. Slot won the Premier League title in his first season at Anfield in 2025 but has overseen a difficult follow-up campaign in which Liverpool have failed to secure Champions League football with one game remaining.
Brighton could also leapfrog Liverpool into fifth if they win both their remaining fixtures against Leeds United and Manchester United, though they would additionally need Liverpool to lose on the final day.
Salah confirmed in March that he would leave Liverpool at the end of the season, ending a nine-year spell in which he scored 257 goals in 441 appearances across all competitions, placing him third on the club’s all-time scoring list behind Ian Rush (346) and Roger Hunt (285).
He joined from Roma in 2017 and, under Klopp, helped Liverpool win the Premier League, the Champions League, the Club World Cup, the UEFA Super Cup, the FA Cup and two League Cups. He added a second league title under Slot in 2025. This season, however, he has managed only 12 goals and nine assists in 40 appearances after registering 34 goals and 23 assists the previous year.
