Damning Statistic Exposes Mohamed Salah's Alarming Decline Under Arne Slot

For the third time under Arne Slot, Mohamed Salah sat out an entire 90 minutes on the bench during Wednesday's 2–0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain.

Watching Liverpool's iconic figure, widely regarded as one of the greatest players in Premier League history, go completely unused in such a high-stakes match was a notable shock. Slot may have claimed he was simply managing Salah's workload, but that explanation has done little to silence growing suspicions of friction behind closed doors.

In fact, it was an earlier spell out of the starting eleven this season that first sparked rumors about Salah's future. After being dropped for three consecutive matches—two of which didn't even earn him a substitute appearance—Salah publicly launched a scathing criticism of Slot, a rift from which neither party has since recovered.

It marks a stunning decline for Salah who, in his own defense, is simply not accustomed to being sidelined. Under former manager Jürgen Klopp, he was an unused substitute on just three occasions—a figure he has already equaled under Slot.

How Salah's Treatment Under Klopp Compares to Slot

All three instances of Salah going unused under Klopp occurred during the 2019–20 season. Despite a campaign heavily disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Salah still managed 23 goals and 13 assists across all competitions as Liverpool finally claimed the Premier League title.

Although he had previously entered games as a substitute, Salah's first unused bench appearance came in November 2019 during an away trip to Crystal Palace. The decision was purely fitness-driven, as Salah had missed international duty the previous week with an ankle problem. "Yesterday was the first session where everything was fine, but it was a bit late then, to be honest," Klopp explained at the time.

Just weeks later, Salah was again left unused for a Merseyside derby against Everton as Klopp fielded a surprisingly rotated side. "We think the game will be really intense and for this you need kind of fresh legs and we try to bring them in," he said ahead of a 5–2 win fueled by squad players such as Divock Origi, Xherdan Shaqiri and Adam Lallana.

Coincidentally, Salah's final benching under Klopp also came against Everton, in June 2020. Once again, injury was the reason, with Klopp stating that protecting his unfit star was simply "the right thing to do."

From 2017 to 2024, those were the only three occasions Salah was an unused substitute. Two were directly tied to injury, while the third was part of a broader squad rotation strategy. It was crystal clear that if Salah was fit to play under Klopp, he would be on the pitch.

Following the recent confirmation of Salah's departure, Klopp admitted he didn't always see things the same way as the winger, whose temperament could become an issue when things weren't going well on the field. Fortunately for Klopp, such difficult spells were rare across their 349 appearances together.

The same cannot be said for Salah's relationship with Slot.

Despite logging just 87 appearances under the new manager, Salah has already been an unused substitute on three separate occasions.

When Slot first dropped Salah to the bench against West Ham United in November 2025, he again cited fitness as the reason. "Four games in 10 days with only 14, 15 outfield players available for us, then you have to decide once in a while to make a certain lineup and you try to pick the best lineup for every single game."

The difference this time, however, was that few supporters bought the explanation. Salah had struggled during a difficult start to the season that saw Liverpool lose six of seven matches, and Slot made the bold—perhaps even courageous—call to look elsewhere. It marked the first time Salah had not featured under the new head coach.

Slot shifted the conversation when he kept Salah on the bench for the following fixture against Sunderland, citing squad "balance" before introducing the Egyptian in the second half. When Liverpool then traveled to Elland Road to face Leeds United the following week, the sight of Salah once again on the bench sent speculation spiraling.

"It's never an easy decision because we all know what a great player he is," Slot acknowledged. "But it is also up to me to pick the team that I think we need today. That's why I made the decision."

That proved to be one omission too many for Salah, whose explosive post-match outburst set off a chain of events that ultimately led to his exit this summer. Slot has since stated he has no problem being seen as the "bad guy" behind Salah's departure.

A third stint on the bench against PSG prompted Slot to acknowledge the defensive limitations that had originally led to Salah's demotion earlier in the campaign. "We are in survival mode," the manager admitted, conceding that asking the 33-year-old to track back and defend his own box would have served no one's interests.

Barring an unlikely Liverpool comeback against PSG, Salah has just eight matches left as a Red. He will be hoping to feature in all eight, but under Slot, that is anything but certain.