Arne Slot Makes Bold Statement with Another Massive Mohamed Salah Decision

Mohamed Salah finds himself on the substitutes' bench for consecutive Premier League matches for the first time since joining Liverpool.

Arne Slot made the remarkable decision to exclude the Egyptian star from Sunday's away fixture against West Ham United, marking the first occasion the Dutch manager has selected a Premier League starting lineup without Salah.

The forward had an exceptional season during the Reds' championship-winning campaign in Slot's inaugural term as manager in 2024–25, achieving a record-tying 47 league goal contributions. Nevertheless, Salah has struggled during the team's decline in their second Premier League title defense, managing only six contributions across 12 matches prior to being dropped at the weekend.

The 33-year-old is believed to have been displeased with his exclusion, though Slot clarified that the decisive choice was made for workload management purposes. Liverpool are currently navigating four fixtures within a 10-day period, but his continued absence from the starting eleven for Wednesday's match might indicate that Slot is exploring a different approach, having depended heavily on Salah throughout the previous season.

Discussing his selection for Sunderland's midweek visit, Slot informed Sky Sports: "I'm fielding the same team, it's about balancing consistency with rotation. It's evident that we require the entire squad since several starters won't be capable of completing another full 90 minutes. Now more than ever, we need beyond just 11 players.

"Every player has an opportunity to feature, Mo is certainly among them. It's beneficial having players like Mo ready on the bench," he continued.

Liverpool's 2–0 triumph over Nuno Espírito Santo's Hammers during the weekend, where Florian Wirtz delivered an impressive performance and Alexander Isak scored, has persuaded the manager to maintain his approach. Andy Robertson replacing Milos Kerkez represents the sole modification, with Joe Gomez and Dominik Szoboszlai set to feature on the right wing against the Black Cats.

Wednesday's home team will naturally have to manage without Salah during his participation in the Africa Cup of Nations, which commences on December 21. The 33-year-old could potentially miss up to seven matches due to this international duty, with Egypt considered among the tournament favorites in Morocco.