Mo Salah or Arne Slot: Who leaves Liverpool first? ‘Similar situation to Ronaldo’

Mohamed Salah’s stunning outburst after Liverpool’s draw with Leeds United has raised serious questions over his future at Anfield, at a time when there are major doubts over head coach Arne Slot as well.

Salah sensationally accused Liverpool of throwing him under the bus after being left on the bench for the whole game on Saturday, which was the second time that has happened from their past three Premier League games. In case you’ve missed it, you can revisit every word Salah said here.

Having spoken out against his under-pressure manager and the club, Salah could be heading for the Liverpool exit in January – and he knows it.

But the heat is on Slot as well for Liverpool’s stuttering form, so the question is: will either Salah or his manager make it past January at the club?

Our writers debate who will leave Liverpool first…

James Marshment

Tough question and a lot will depend on Liverpool’s form between now and and the end of the month.

But if forced to answer, I’m going to say Salah, because Saturday did really feel like the beginning of the end for him at Anfield. And no matter even if you thought his comments were accurate, it is Liverpool FC, not Mo Salah FC and no one individual can ever be considered bigger than the club.

But given the severity of those comments, I would not be shocked if a January exit was sanctioned. Liverpool appear to have been moving away from Salah anyway by benching the star in recent matches and, given he’s far too expensive to keep on the bench, would anyone be shocked were he to leave?

If this is to be the end, though, it’ll be a sad way to bow out, because, writing in the here and now, it looks like he’s tarnished his legacy a little by throwing his toys out the pram in such a public manner.

I just think there are more savoury ways to have done it and top clubs should not be forced to wash their dirty linen in public.

It’s a similar situation to Ronaldo with that Piers Morgan interview, and even though Ten Hag was later a goner, Man Utd showed this sort of approach cannot triumph.

James Holland

Slot will outlast Salah at Liverpool, despite the rage this would cause among the Anfield faithful.

Slot bringing Salah back into his team after the forward’s devastating comments would seriously weaken his authority, giving the player exactly what he wants. It is very hard to see that happening unless Salah publicly apologises.

Slot still has the backing of FSG, who trust he can turn the team’s poor form around. The Dutchman has credit in the bank after winning the Premier League title last season, and this means it will actually be Salah who leaves next year.

Cristiano Ronaldo called out Erik ten Hag in November 2022, and just eight days later his contract was terminated by Manchester United. Ronaldo is a United legend, just like Salah is at Liverpool, so there is precedent for this scenario.

Steve Pearson

Probably Salah, but it should be Slot.

99 percent of other clubs would have sacked Slot weeks ago. Liverpool aren’t a club who move like the pack, and while that is commendable more often than not, in this instance it’s counter-productive.

Whether you think Slot is right or wrong to drop Salah is largely immaterial to the omnishambles that is Liverpool’s season.

Players who drop 3/10 performances week after week like Konate and Gakpo are curiously undroppable. Liverpool have shipped 10 goals from set pieces in just the Premier League this season, get counter-attacked at will, and look lost when attempting to break down a low block.

These deficiencies have been there for all to see this season, and were evident even during Liverpool’s winning streak at the beginning of the campaign.

Yet has Slot done anything to remedy these issues? No, and nor will he, because he’s out of his depth. At this point, he’s closer to Roy Hodgson than Jurgen Klopp.

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Samuel Bannister

Before Liverpool get the chance to sell Salah in January, they have another four games. Imagine if they were to lose all of them – would that make Slot’s position untenable?

Further still, Salah will be away at AFCON and if Egypt go far, Slot could have even more games to risk losing.

But for now, he retains the backing of the board and, in turn, the authority in this situation.

Salah’s time at AFCON may provide some kind of cooling off period in which he reassesses what he said, but it seems hard to imagine him being reintegrated without some acknowledgement of what’s gone down.

And thus, he could pay the price in January and, in what it has to be said would be a remarkable turn of events after his contract saga, end up leaving the club.

However, I wouldn’t be surprised if, in more than a month from now, Liverpool have had to sack Slot for reasons beyond the Salah saga.

Nathan Egerton

While Liverpool will be wary of succumbing to player power, I feel like Slot’s time in the dugout will soon come to an end.

The manager had a lot of credit in the bank following their Premier League title-winning campaign last season but their form has nosedived in 2025/26.

The Reds have just four wins from the last 15 games in all competitions and the responsibility for those results lies at the feet of Slot, not Salah.

Salah is also set to go to the Africa Cup of Nations next week and could potentially be away until January 18th if Egypt reach the final.

The winger will likely want to focus on his country and avoid any transfer talk until after he has played at the tournament.

A month is a long time in football and if Liverpool continue their poor run of form, Slot won’t be the manager when Salah returns to Merseyside.

Fraser Fletcher

Most likely right now is Mo Salah. Liverpool are backing Slot and a move in January is looking more likely. At his age, Liverpool will take a big fee and reinvest it.

Graeme Bailey

No doubt about that: Arne Slot will still be at Liverpool when Mo Salah is making waves elsewhere.

It is an unfortunate situation for everyone concerned; Liverpool hate this sort of thing and they will look to put it to bed ASAP.

The initial plan with Salah was to assess his future in the summer, but that has now changed. Do we see Salah at Liverpool beyond January? At this point, I don’t.

GO FURTHER: Liverpool fans pick who to ‘sacrifice’ as Mo Salah outburst sees Arne Slot sack talk ramp up