Is Mo Salah leaving Liverpool? What he said in interview, next club options and potential replacements

Mohamed Salah’s incendiary media interview after Liverpool’s 3-3 draw with Leeds United on Saturday has become one of the biggest talking points of the Premier League season so far – and sparked intense speculation over the Egyptian’s future on Merseyside.

The winger, who signed a new two-year, £400,000 per week contract with Liverpool in April, was dropped from the squad for Tuesday’s win over Inter Milan as a result of his comments, and many pundits believe that he may now leave the club this January. But what did Salah say, where might he go, and who might Liverpool sign to replace him?

What did Mohamed Salah say in his interview?

While it may not have been surprising that Salah objected to be dropped to the bench for the third consecutive match, the harshness of his comments after the Leeds game still came as quite the shock.

“Before I had a good relationship with the manager and all of a sudden we don’t have any relationship,” Salah told the press in the mixed zone. I don’t know why. It seems to me… someone doesn’t want me to be in the club… I don’t know why that always happens to me. I don’t get it. I don’t think I’m the problem. I have done so much for this club… Seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That’s how I feel… I think it’s very clear that someone wants me to get all the blame.”

Perceived by most observers to be an attack on manager Arne Slot, Salah’s interview has been widely condemned by pundits, with Jamie Carragher describing the winger as “a disgrace.”

Salah had lost his place in the starting line-up on the back of a run of poor form, leaving few sympathetic to his stance – and the immediate consequence was that he was left at home when Liverpool travelled to Milan for their midweek Champions League match. Salah did, however, train with the squad on Monday as normal.

Will Mo Salah leave Liverpool – and where might he go?

Following the decision to drop him from the squad entirely, a decision reportedly taken by Liverpool’s chief executive of football Michael Edwards following consultation with Slot, there has been much speculation that Salah will leave Liverpool next month when the transfer window reopens.

As it stands, there has been no official announcement as to whether they expect Salah to leave or whether he will continue to be held out of the matchday squad – while Slot appears to have left the door open for Salah to apologise and continue on as normal.

“"Everyone makes mistakes in life, so the first thing should be does the player feels he made a mistake as well?,” Slot asked in a post-match interview with broadcaster Amazon Prime. It is unclear whether Salah intends to apologise or to push for a transfer away from Merseyside.

Complicating matters is the fact that Salah has been called up to Egypt’s Africa Cup of Nations squad, meaning that he will leave Liverpool for international duty no later than 15 December and could be away for more than a month, with the final in Rabat due to take place on 18 January (full details of how AFCON will impact Premier League teams can be found here).

Salah travelling to Morocco could provide some space for the player to cool off, or could simply delay his departure if he does decide to move on (and, of course, the club decide to let him).

Should Salah wish to leave or Liverpool wish to move on under their own initiative, then Salah will almost certainly have suitors. Several Saudi Arabian teams would almost certainly make lucrative offers and are especially keen to bring perhaps the world’s most high-profile Muslim athlete to the Pro League. There may also be enquiries from the United States – Egyptian-owned MLS side San Diego FC are rumoured to be interested, as are Chicago Fire.

As it stands, there are no indications that other Premier League teams would be interested, nor that other European clubs are liable to make an offer. His high salary and likely transfer value preclude most European teams from the bidding, and his performances over the last six months or so seem to have discouraged those who have the funding for such a move.

Who will Liverpool sign to replace Salah?

Should Salah leave, which appears to be quite likely at the moment, then Liverpool will need an urgent replacement – since Salah was dropped to the bench, Slot has been forced to play Dominik Szoboszlai out of position on the right flank, with out-of-favour Federico Chiesa the only other natural right-sided winger in the squad.

Should Liverpool need a replacement then one of their most likely transfer targets is Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo, who has a release clause worth £65m in his contract which becomes active in January.

Semenyo seems likely to be high on their list and some recent reports suggest that the Ghanian would be keen on a move, but other teams could provide competition, with Manchester City widely rumoured to be preparing an offer of their own.

Other players linked with a move to Liverpool include Real Madrid’s Rodrygo Goes, who has ceased to be a key player at the Bernabeu since Xabi Alonso was appointed as head coach. RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande is also widely believed to be on Liverpool’s radar, but the teenager is viewed as a long-term prospect rather than an immediate solution.

Complicating the picture is the fact that manager Slot remains under pressure himself following a difficult start to the team’s Premier League title defence, and there is at least some chance that Salah returns from AFCON to find the manager with whom he appears to have fallen out has departed. That could change the scene entirely, and may be the most likely path to Salah remaining at Anfield after all.