From Superstar To Controversy: The Unraveling Of Mohamed Salah At Liverpool.

From global icon to a figure at the centre of a storm, Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool story has entered its most fragile and contentious chapter, transforming a once-unquestioned hero into the focal point of one of the club’s most divisive modern crises. What began as a fairytale of goals, trophies and individual records has, in late 2025, turned into a tense standoff involving public criticism, broken trust, tactical clashes and an uncertain future under Arne Slot. For Liverpool and for Salah, this is the uncomfortable unraveling of a once-perfect marriage.​

The making of an Anfield superstar

When Liverpool signed Mohamed Salah from Roma in 2017, few predicted just how dramatically he would redefine the club’s attacking identity and global appeal. He exploded in his first season, setting a new record for most goals in a 38‑game Premier League campaign and instantly becoming the face of Jürgen Klopp’s high‑octane “heavy metal” football. The “Egyptian King” worship at Anfield was not a marketing slogan; it was a reflection of genuine transformation.​

Over subsequent seasons, Salah evolved from a wide forward with blistering pace into one of the most reliable match‑winners in world football. His combination of consistency, durability and big‑game scoring turned him into Liverpool’s talisman, ensuring his name would be etched alongside the club’s greatest attacking legends.​

Numbers that defined an era

The statistics behind Salah’s Liverpool career tell a story of sustained excellence rather than a one‑season wonder. In Premier League play alone, he has produced close to 190 league goals and around 90 assists for the club, placing him among the most productive forwards in the competition’s history. Across all competitions, his output has been similarly elite, particularly in title‑deciding and knockout fixtures.​

One of his standout campaigns came in 2024/25, when he delivered 29 league goals and 18 assists, giving him 47 goal involvements – the highest total ever recorded by a player in a 38‑game league season for Liverpool. Even as he entered his early thirties, his numbers remained at a level most forwards never reach in their prime, feeding the argument that he remained indispensable to Liverpool’s ambitions.​

Trophies, nights and legacy

Salah’s influence cannot be measured only in goals; it is also woven through the club’s modern trophy cabinet. He was central to Liverpool ending their 30‑year wait for a league title and lifting the Premier League with a 99‑point season, while also driving them to Champions League glory and multiple domestic finals. Time and again, he delivered in the moments that define eras, whether through clinical finishing, relentless pressing or the pure fear he instilled in defenders.​

That success reshaped Liverpool’s global image, especially across Africa and the Middle East. Salah made Liverpool a cultural phenomenon in markets where the club had never held such dominance, strengthening sponsorship power, shirt sales and worldwide fandom in a way that few players in the club’s history have ever managed.​

The first cracks: fatigue, transitions and Saudi temptation

As with many dynasties, the first cracks appeared not in one explosive moment, but through accumulated strain. Squad fatigue, tactical evolution after the peak Klopp years, and the natural aging curve of key players slowly chipped away at Liverpool’s intensity. At the same time, Saudi Pro League clubs began to reshape the global market, targeting established superstars with eye‑watering financial packages.​

In the summer of 2023, Liverpool famously rejected a bid of around £150 million from Al Ittihad for Salah, signaling publicly that the player was simply too important to lose. That decision became a defining fork in the road: rather than a clean end to the story at the peak of his value, club and player were locked together in an extended, delicate endgame. The question shifted from “how long can he dominate?” to “how long can both sides delay the inevitable transition?”​

New contract, old tensions

The narrative took another twist when Salah secured a contract extension that kept him among the highest‑paid players in world football, reportedly earning in the region of £400,000 per week plus performance bonuses. On the surface, it looked like a straightforward commitment: Liverpool retained their star, Salah got recognition befitting his status. Underneath, negotiations were fraught, with concerns on Salah’s side over the club’s willingness to fully back him and doubts at board level about committing huge wages to a player moving into his mid‑thirties.​

Those tensions never fully vanished; they merely went quiet while Salah continued to perform. As long as he delivered elite numbers and Liverpool competed for titles, any unease stayed in the background, overshadowed by the glow of shared success.​

Arne Slot and a new tactical reality

The real fault line emerged with the managerial transition to Arne Slot and a different tactical blueprint at Anfield. Slot’s approach placed greater emphasis on structured buildup, wider rotation in the front line, and a pressing scheme that asked more of younger, high‑energy forwards. For a 33‑year‑old Salah, still productive but no longer untouchable athletically, the environment suddenly felt less tailored around his strengths.​

Reports indicated that Salah believed the club’s transfer decisions and tactical shift no longer suited his game, hinting that the system was built with an eye to a future beyond him. Liverpool, for their part, maintained that selection calls were made to arrest poor form rather than to make a political statement against their long‑time star.

The benching and the broken aura

The symbolism of Salah being dropped from the starting XI could not be ignored. After years of near‑automatic selection, he found himself on the bench for multiple matches, including key fixtures during a rough spell for Liverpool’s 2025/26 campaign. For supporters, it represented the end of the “untouchable” era; for Salah, it felt like a public downgrading of his status.​

Behind the scenes, reports suggested that his frustration was mounting as he was asked to accept a more limited role at a time when he believed he had been promised continued prominence. On the pitch, his 2025/26 numbers dipped compared to previous seasons, with a modest tally of four league goals and two assists from his early appearances, still useful but no longer carrying the team in the same way.​

The explosive interview: “thrown under the bus”

The turning point in the unraveling came with Salah’s public outburst after a 3‑3 draw, in which he accused Liverpool of “throwing him under the bus” and openly spoke of feeling unwanted. He stated that his relationship with Arne Slot had broken down and suggested that “someone doesn’t want me in the club,” language that made the private tension impossible to contain. For a player who had long maintained a relatively controlled media presence, this seven‑minute interview felt like a deliberate detonation.​

Salah also hinted that an upcoming home match against Brighton might be his last outing at Anfield before heading to the Africa Cup of Nations, further fueling speculation that he was preparing to say goodbye. It was not just frustration; it was an unmistakable signal to fans, pundits and prospective suitors that the relationship with Liverpool had entered its endgame.​

Club response: backing the manager, weighing the legend

Liverpool’s internal stance has been to support Slot and portray the decisions around Salah’s playing time as purely tactical. From their perspective, the team had been in a dismal run of form, and no one, not even a club legend, could be guaranteed selection if performances dipped or the balance of the side demanded change. Publicly, figures around the club insisted that there was no orchestrated effort to force Salah out, instead framing his recent benching as a short‑term solution to a broader team crisis.​

Yet reality at elite level is rarely so simple. Once a superstar goes public with accusations of betrayal, it becomes extremely difficult for the club to restore trust without a dramatic reset. Inside Anfield’s hierarchy, conversations have reportedly shifted from “how do we protect Salah’s status?” to “how do we manage his exit in a way that benefits the team, the finances and the dressing room?”​

Saudi Arabia waits in the wings

While Liverpool and Salah clash over style, status and promises, Saudi Pro League clubs have circled with growing confidence. Reports suggest that Saudi authorities are willing to provide significant financial backing to secure Salah’s signature, seeing him as a transformative figure who could further elevate the league’s profile in Muslim‑majority markets and beyond. Crucially, it is no longer vague interest: briefings indicate preparations in the Gulf are at a stage where, if Salah signals openness to leaving, negotiations could move quickly.​

For Liverpool, the calculus is complex. On one hand, cashing in on a 33‑year‑old with enormous wages and a declining aura of invincibility could provide major funds for a rebuild and remove a potential flashpoint in the dressing room. On the other, selling a legend mid‑season—especially on the back of a public dispute—risks alienating segments of the fanbase and undermining the sense of continuity that has been central to the club’s modern identity.​

From symbol of unity to source of division

Perhaps the most striking element of Salah’s current situation is how far it stands from what he once represented at Anfield. For years, he was the unifying symbol of Liverpool’s resurgence: adored by the Kop, respected by teammates, and central to the tactical plan and marketing strategy alike. Now, he has become a figure around whom fault lines are drawn—between manager and star, between club hierarchy and fan sentiment, and even among supporters debating whether loyalty or pragmatism should prevail.​

Pundits are similarly split. Some argue that a player of Salah’s stature has earned the right to speak openly when he feels mistreated, especially after carrying the club through multiple eras of transition. Others counter that going public in such dramatic fashion undermines the manager’s authority and risks destabilising a squad already in poor form, turning individual frustration into a wider structural problem.​

A decline in output or just a change in context?

One of the critical debates surrounding Salah’s “unraveling” is whether his perceived drop is truly about performance or more about context. Statistically, his goal involvement rate has dipped from its astonishing 2024/25 peak, but he still contributes at a level many forwards would envy, especially considering Liverpool’s broader struggles in the current campaign. Age inevitably plays a role, yet his underlying numbers suggest there is more than enough quality left for him to remain decisive at elite level.​

However, systems matter. A tactical model that no longer revolves around Salah’s movements, touches and finishing instincts naturally lowers his influence, even if his personal level remains relatively high. This shift—from being the axis around which the attack spins to becoming one part of a more evenly distributed front line—has arguably been as painful for his ego as any statistical decline.​

The human side: promises, pride and perception

Beyond tactics and business models, the rift between Salah and Liverpool has a deeply human dimension. Reports of “promises” made in the summer—whether about role, minutes, or the club’s direction—highlight the emotional bond and expectation built over years of shared success. When a player believes that pact has been broken, especially after sacrificing a potentially huge move earlier in his career, resentment is almost inevitable.​

For Salah, being asked to accept a reduced role after everything he has given to the club hits directly at pride and identity. For Liverpool, being publicly accused of betrayal after awarding a record contract and previously turning down vast offers from abroad feels like an unfair rewriting of history. The result is a clash not just of interests, but of narratives—each side convinced that their version of loyalty is the authentic one.​

A club planning for life after Salah

Parallel to the drama, Liverpool have quietly begun shaping a future in which Salah is no longer the automatic reference point in attack. Recruitment links suggest interest in younger wide forwards and versatile attackers who can play across the front line, indicating that the club’s sporting department is preparing for a post‑Salah configuration sooner rather than later. Slot’s tactical ideas, if backed, will inevitably require fresh profiles who match his pressing and positional demands.​

This is not betrayal; it is the cycle of elite football. Even legends are eventually replaced, and the most successful clubs manage that shift proactively rather than reactively. Yet the emotional weight of phasing out a player like Salah ensures that no matter how logical the planning appears on spreadsheets, the execution will feel brutal to many supporters and perhaps to the player himself.​

What comes next: January crossroads and legacy questions

As the January window approaches, the sense is that Liverpool and Salah stand at a decisive crossroads. Keeping him would require some form of reconciliation: a clearer role under Slot, more open communication, and a mutually agreed narrative that lowers the temperature around his interview. Letting him go would involve identifying the right bid—likely from Saudi Arabia—protecting the club’s competitive ambitions, and managing the messaging to fans who see him as more than just an asset.​

Whatever happens, Salah’s legacy at Liverpool will remain enormous: the records, the trophies, the nights under the lights at Anfield are not erased by one stormy winter. Yet the manner of his departure will shape how that legacy is felt—whether it is remembered as the graceful exit of a modern great or as a bitter, public unraveling that left scars on both sides of a once‑perfect partnership.​

From fairytale to cautionary tale

The story of Mohamed Salah at Liverpool now reads like a modern football parable: how a player who gave a club some of its greatest modern memories can still find himself engulfed in controversy as the game, the system and the business move on. From record‑breaking seasons and global adoration to accusations of being thrown “under the bus” and talk of broken relationships, the contrast could hardly be starker. In that contrast lies a warning for all clubs and superstars—about communication, timing, and the delicate art of knowing when a glorious chapter should end.​

For Liverpool fans and for Salah himself, this unraveling is painful precisely because of how much has been shared. Whether the final page is written in Saudi Arabia, at Anfield, or somewhere else entirely, the journey from superstar to controversy will remain one of the defining sagas of the Premier League era—and a reminder that even the brightest stories in football rarely finish without conflict.

~~~ By Dribble Diaries