Liverpool are in talks with Mohamed Salah over the forward making an immediate return to Arne Slot’s squad for their Champions League trip to Marseille next week.
Salah is due back at Liverpool after Egypt’s involvement in the Africa Cup of Nations ends on Saturday. Egypt face Nigeria in a third-place play-off in Casablanca after suffering another loss to a Sadio Mané-inspired Senegal in the semi-finals. The 33-year-old Salah travelled to Morocco with uncertainty surrounding his future having accused the club of throwing him “under the bus” after a poor run of results and claiming he no longer had a relationship with Slot. Liverpool are unbeaten in the 11 matches since Slot first dropped Salah at West Ham.
With Alexander Isak sidelined with a leg fracture and Slot’s options limited on the right of his attack, Liverpool’s head coach hopes Salah can be involved in Wednesday’s fixture in the south of France. “That is something we are talking about together now,” Slot said. “He is back next week. We are in talks with him about what is expected of him over there, what is expected over here. But first of all he needs to play another big game for Egypt on Saturday.
“I am happy that he comes back. Mo has been so important for this club, for me, so I am happy that he is back. Even if I had 15 attackers I still would have been happy if he came back but that is not our current situation.”
Slot would not be drawn on whether the issues between Salah and himself – or Salah and Liverpool – have been ironed out during his five weeks on international duty. “What happens between Mo and me, on the phone or over here, stays between the two of us and I don’t think it is necessary for me to share all the private conversations I have,” Slot said.
Meanwhile, Slot has insisted Liverpool will not panic buy this month but could act if their injury situation worsens or the right opportunity arises. The Premier League champions saw a £35m deal for Crystal Palace captain Marc Guéhi collapse last deadline day and have since lost two defenders, Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni, to season-ending knee injuries. Despite those injuries Liverpool did not revive their interest in Guéhi, who is close to joining Manchester City for £20m as they saw no value in a January deal for a player who is out of contract in the summer. Slot suggested defensive reinforcements are not an urgent priority.
“I am surprised people are so focused on our last line. Do you think we have more options in the front?,” Slot said. “Everyone is aligned and everyone knows what the challenges are. That is not to say there is no possibility for us to act because as you know this club has always waited for the right moment and never from a position of panic. We always do the right things at the right moment.
“At this moment there are only the three players who are out with long-term injuries. We have shown last season and in the summer window how we act. It is a meticulous process and it is not done in two weeks. But if there is an opportunity in the market or things get even worse then we can have a different situation.”
