If Arne Slot‘s composed demeanour has masked any behind-the-scenes drama involving Mohamed Salah, the decision to omit the Liverpool star from the squad that triumphed over Inter Milan this week was telling. As the Reds manager briefly noted in his pre-match press conference on Monday night, his kindness should not be mistaken for weakness.
The choice to exclude Salah from the team that travelled to Milan was made by the club, but it was a decision that the head coach fully endorsed. Salah’s contentious interview at Leeds United, where he claimed the club had ‘thrown him under the bus’, led to his removal from the squad that clinched a crucial victory over the Nerazzurri on Tuesday.
For a head coach striving to find the right balance during a period when Salah will be representing Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations following Saturday’s match against Brighton, it’s encouraging that his team secured maximum points at San Siro.
As of Friday evening, it remained uncertain whether Salah would play against the Seagulls, with discussions between player and coach at the training base set to determine the next steps.
Regardless of what lies ahead for Salah, whether in the short or long term, Slot is adamant that his authority cannot be undermined as it was by the Egyptian superstar’s candid interview.
“What I meant [by being kind, not weak] was I am not afraid to take decisions that I think I have to take,” the Liverpool manager explained.
“Can players sense weakness? Yes. But you don’t have to show strength or weakness when it doesn’t help the team.
“It would not be smart to be like: ‘Oh, I am so strong and I am not afraid to take big decisions’, if that doesn’t help the team.
“It is not my idea to show I can take, even if it was a strong decision or a hard or difficult one, but definitely I have been in dressing rooms and they are constantly checking the decisions you make.
“And I have to make 40-50 a day I think, if not more. But players, like pundits and journalists, hardly ever know everything that happens.
“I have heard a lot about this whole situation. One of the things the pundits have said is that we might not know everything and who knows if that is true.”
Slot continued: “I know how much I spoke to him. It’s up to others to decide, if they knew, if that was enough. If it would have been 250 hours was 250 hours enough?”.
“I know how much the two of us spoke, not only in the week before West Ham or before Sunderland or before Leeds but also in recent weeks and months.”