Jurgen Klopp’s way of dealing with a Liverpool player’s comments has emerged amid Mo Salah’s public calling out of Arne Slot.
On Saturday night, following a last-gasp 3-3 draw with Leeds United at Elland Road,Salah sent shockwaves amongst the Premier League when he let out his frustrations over his current situation.
The 33-year-old was left out of Liverpool’s starting XI for the third consecutive game and was in the extremely unfamiliar position of being an unused substitute.
After applauding the travelling away fans,Salah gave a rare interview in the mixed zone and used it as an opportunity to get a few things off his chest.
Not holding back as the agitated press officer watched on, Salah said it “seems like the club has thrown me under the bus” and added that “someone wanted me to get all of the blame”.
Salah did not hold back with a scathing interview in the mixed zone. Image: Getty
Salah did not hold back with a scathing interview in the mixed zone. Image: Getty
Salah, who signed a new two-year contract in the summer after firing Liverpool to the Premier League title, claimed that he and manager Arne Slot now “don’t have any relationship”.
The Egyptian has been left out of the travelling squad for the Champions League trip to Inter Milan but it is unclear whether further punishment will follow.
Klopp punished player for social media post
Salah had a strong relationship with Klopp,aside from a furious touchline row against West Ham just before his departure.
However, the German was a strict disciplinarian and in an in-depth interview on The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett, Klopp revealed his unique way of punishing a frustrated player who had compiled a social media post before deleting it.
He proceeded to confront them in front of the entire dressing room to send a message and it had the desired effect.
“We had a situation that a player texted or posted something at night and deleted it, but I still became aware of it,” Klopp explained.
“So, not that I read it but people told me, ‘Oh, last night this and that happened.’ ‘When?’ ‘Three o’clock.’
“What I do in these situations, even deleted, I go in the dressing room, say ‘last night, this and this happened, got deleted, I know what’s there, but maybe you want to tell everybody.”
He continued: “Yeah, that’s nice. The thing is, I don’t go for him to say, ‘How could you write that?’ I just say, ‘Somebody told me, so I know it.
“Not really important, but come on, tell the whole team what you wanted to say…
“I don’t like to bring people into that situation, but I think that’s a deserved punishment for something like that.
“And the effect was, nobody ever did it again.”
Salah, who has scored 250 goals for Liverpool, still has a deal at Anfield until 2027.
Following a fixture with Brighton next weekend, Salah will be unavailable for a considerable period as he poised to join up with Egypt to captain his country at the Africa Cup of Nations.
