Liverpool fans did a double take when the team sheet dropped.
For the second Premier League game running, Mohamed Salah started on the bench — something that simply never happens with a player who has been the face of Liverpool for nearly a decade.
Against West Ham, he didn’t play a single minute.
Against Sunderland, he finally got on at half-time… but failed to spark the magic as Liverpool stumbled to a 1–1 draw.
Rotation?
Disagreement?
Decline?
Everyone had an opinion — so Arne Slot stepped in to explain.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Slot insisted the decision was tactical, not political:
“It’s a balance between continuity and freshness… It’s obvious we need the full squad. A few who start aren’t able to play 90 minutes again.”
He made sure to praise Salah’s attitude as well:
“Mo trains really good and is positive towards his team-mates. He’s an example when he plays, and now he’s an example when he doesn’t.”
Translation?
Salah is handling the situation like a pro — but Liverpool’s season is demanding rotation, even for club icons.
For context:
Salah has 250 goals in 420 games for Liverpool
He has played almost every match for eight straight seasons
At 33, he’s entering the “managed minutes” era
Slot is trying to rebuild consistency after Liverpool’s title run last year
Still… for a player of Salah’s stature, back-to-back benchings set off alarms across the sports market.
Former Liverpool midfielder Jamie Redknapp didn’t sugarcoat things.
To him, this feels like the beginning of the end:
“I’ll be gobsmacked if he sees out the last two years of his contract.”
Redknapp even called this moment a breaking point in the relationship:
Salah won’t want to be a rotational option
He didn’t sign a new contract to sit on the bench
He may start considering moves — Europe, MLS, or Saudi Arabia
Redknapp summed it up with brutal clarity:
“No one is indispensable. Time waits for no one.”
If Slot continues using him as a “half-time hero,” the pressure will only grow.
And with Liverpool performing surprisingly well without him in some matches, the debate gets louder:
Is this a tactical phase?
Or the slow fading out of a club legend?
Either way, the Salah story is far from over — and the best sport blog in the market (yes, that’s us 😎) will keep following every detail.
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