Arne Slot could snub Mohamed Salah vs Brentford as Liverpool boss responds to attack
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The Dutchman responded to an attack on him from Mohamed Salah about Liverpool's playing style by acknowledging the Reds must develop their approach to remain competitive with the Premier League's top sides next season.Salah, who is set to depart on a free transfer this summer, sparked controversy at the weekend after publishing a social media post advocating for a revival of the "heavy metal football" that became synonymous with Slot's predecessor Jurgen Klopp. Read our Privacy PolicyHowever, when questioned about whether the statement - which implied Slot's preferred approach wasn't suited to Liverpool's needs - had undermined his authority, Slot responded on Friday: "You are doing a lot of assumptions; first of all you say that he wants to play that style and then say it is not my style."I think Mo was really happy with the style we played last year as it led to us winning the league.
Football has changed, football has evolved, but we both want what is best for Liverpool and that is for us to compete for trophies, which we haven't done this season and which we did last season."He and the team – and I was included in that – brought the league title back after five years and we would like to challenge for that again next season and continue to evolve the team. That is my take on it."Salah made his return from a minor hamstring injury as a substitute at Villa Park and could be pushing for a starting berth on Sunday.Asked to confirm that a fit-again Salah will play against Brentford, Slot replied only: "I never say anything about team selection, so it would be a surprise to you if I did that right now, I think."Mohamed Salah waves goodbye to Liverpool on Sunday (Image: Getty)Slot added: "We both want what's best for the club, we both want the club to be successful and that's the main aim and I have to find a way to evolve this team now and definitely in the summer and in the upcoming season to be successful again, and to play a brand of football that I like and if I like it then the fans will like it was well because I haven't liked a lot of the way we played this season as well."There were far too many games where we dominated ball possession but it didn't lead to anything special or any moments."But again, that's also the way the league has evolved because in general we don't see the 3, 4, 5-0 games anymore.
It's a close game every single time, not only with us but any single game."But we try to evolve the team in a way that we can compete but definitely also play the brand of football, the style of football the fans, I, and hopefully Mo if he's somewhere else at that moment in time will like as well."Salah's remarks followed a disappointing 4-2 loss at Aston Villa last Friday, though Bournemouth's 1-1 stalemate at home to Manchester City in midweek means Liverpool require just a single point to secure a top-five finish and Champions League qualification. Twelve senior first-team squad members liked the Egyptian's post on social media, sparking speculation that Slot may not command the full backing of the dressing room.However, he said: "I don't know if it had an impact on the group but what I have seen is that the team trained really well this week and we hope to continue really well in the upcoming two days so we're as best prepared as possible."But we are also aware we didn't have the same level this season.