Salah took to social media following Liverpool’s 4-2 defeat at Villa Park last night, before the future of Xabi Alonso was confirmed by journalists.
By Alex Ridout
After an embarrassing 4-2 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa, Liverpool fans would’ve hoped for a weekend free of any more talk about football.
Unfortunately for Reds faithful, not even a day later, two massive bombshells dropped that could potentially change the course of their club’s next season and beyond.
The first of these was revealed at 3:46pm as phones started pinging with shock.
Through social media platforms, Mohamed Salah released a lengthy statement about his side’s recent performances and the general direction the club is currently going.
The key takeaways from the Egyptian’s social post were his insistence on what the standards are at Anfield, and what they should be.
Via his social accounts, Salah said: “Winning some games here and there is not what Liverpool should be about.
“All teams win games.”
He also emphasised the style of football that he believes should be on show, with his desire to see “Liverpool go back to being the heavy metal attacking team that opponents fear”, via his X account.
Colleagues Dominik Szoboszlai, Harvey Elliott, Andy Robertson, Hugo Ekitike, Milos Kerkez, Curtis Jones, Jeremie Frimpong, Wataru Endo and Giovanni Leoni have all already liked the post, really showing the unrest in the dressing room, which is something Liverpool haven’t had to deal with in quite some time.
Many will also take a deeper look into the comments made by the winger, after a season that has seen Salah have a constant squabble with manager Arne Slot, and perhaps we have only witnessed the half of it.
Embed from Getty ImagesFans will remember the explosive interview that the 33-year-old gave before going off to the African Cup of Nations with Egypt, where he described that he felt like he had been “thrown under the bus” by some at the club.
It hasn’t been a happy season for Salah on Merseyside in his final campaign at the club he cares about so much, and despite the performances on the pitch not being to the level that he has produced for the previous eight years, there are factors into why this might be the case.
Whatever way you look at the situation, it’s clear that the Liverpool dressing room isn’t a happy place at the moment, and Salah’s carefully constructed cry for improvement may be a subtle nudge in the sides of the hierarchy to make change, and that starts with the manager.
With an emphasis on bringing back the famous “heavy metal” football so clear in Salah’s words, it’s a wonder what the Liverpool manager thinks of this, as his style of play is known to be more reserved, which could be one of the potential reasons for the Reds’ major fall off.
However, if the Liverpool goal scorer’s main aim was to slightly shove Slot closer to the door out of the AXA, then it may have come just too late, with the second major news of the day taking a massive name off the available managers list for the summer.
Liverpool’s relationship with Xabi Alonso has spanned decades, and with the troubles that last season’s champions have faced across the season, many fans had hoped that the former midfielder would be making his way back to Anfield after being sacked by Real Madrid earlier in the 2025/26 season.
Embed from Getty ImagesBut at 6:12pm, fans who either wanted Slot’s departure from Merseyside, or Alonso’s arrival at Liverpool were hit with a harsh truth, as the reliable David Ornstein announced that the Spaniard had agreed to join Chelsea.
With an official announcement imminent, it seems all systems go for the ex-Bayer Leverkusen manager to travel to the capital, as a lot of hearts drop in the Liverpool area.
The chemistry with Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong was something that the Spaniard could’ve immediately provided, whilst also having an instant connection with the fans, which is something the current manager is sorely lacking.
Embed from Getty ImagesMany rumours online initially suggested that the 44-year-old wanted to prioritise a move back to Anfield, indicating that either Fenway Sports Group (FSG) didn’t feel he was the right man to take their club forward, or they are happy to allow Slot to maintain control into next season.
A decision that, by the atmosphere and reaction after the Chelsea match last weekend, could potentially be very unpopular with the club’s faithful.
Many say that when you lose the home support, you’re fighting a losing battle.
Embed from Getty ImagesIt felt like Slot lost the stands last Saturday, and it might be too much of a mountain to climb for the Dutchman to get them back on board, so letting Alonso go to a league rival unchallenged might end up being a massive missed opportunity for the hierarchy at Liverpool.
The most likely avenue for the Reds to go down now seems to be keeping Slot for the next season, and we will just have to wait and see if this decision comes back to haunt them as much as some have predicted.
Featured image of Mohamed Salah during a preseason game: Alex Ridout
Alex Ridout Sports Journalist 