Mohamed Salah has given an explosive interview in which he shared his thoughts on his Liverpool future and head coach Arne Slot, among other topics.

His comments come as Liverpool’s title defence falls apart at the seams and they only add further pressure on Slot’s shoulders as he attempts to remould the team following their lavish spending in the summer.

Liverpool’s all-time top scorer in the Premier League has been left out of the starting XI in their last three Premier League matches, including the dramatic 3-3 draw with Leeds United on Saturday. Salah was not introduced from the substitutes’ bench by the Liverpool boss at Elland Road.

After games against Inter Milan and Brighton, the Egypt international will leave his club issues behind as he sets off to the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco on Dec. 15. If Egypt make it to the final then he will miss seven matches and return in late January.

It’s a remarkable turnaround for a player who ended speculation over his future by signing a new two-year contract extension in April as Liverpool eased to the Premier League title.

What did Salah say?

Salah spoke to reporters in the mixed zone at Elland Road after Liverpool’s draw with Leeds.

“I could not believe I am sitting on the bench for 90 minutes,” he said. “That’s the third time. It’s the first time in my career, I think. Very disappointed, done so much for this club over years, especially last season, It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That’s how I feel it.

“Someone wants me to get all the blame. [The] club promised me a lot in summer. Now I’m on bench so can say they haven’t kept those promises. I used to have a good relationship [with Slot]. Now we don’t have any relationship and I don’t know why. [It] seems like someone does not want me in the club.”

Read full story from ESPN’s Beth Lindop at Elland Road

Falling out of Arne Slot’s starting XI

Nov. 30: West Ham 0-2 Liverpool

Arne Slot insisted that Mohamed Salah is still “so important” for Liverpool despite dropping the forward for the victory against West Ham in east London.

He was left on the bench for the first time under Slot in the Premier League, and goals from Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo gave Liverpool a much-needed win.

Salah was cast out amid a poor run of form for both the club and the player — Liverpool having lost six of seven in the league prior to the game and Salah only managing four goals.

Dec. 3: Liverpool 1-1 Sunderland

Salah was left out of Liverpool’s starting lineup for the second straight Premier League match.

The Egypt international came on at the start of the second half as Liverpool rallied from a goal down to draw 1-1.

Slot acknowledged that Salah was unhappy at being dropped the previous weekend against West Ham but said he “handled himself really well” and was a “top professional.”

Dec. 6: Leeds United 3-3 Liverpool

Salah was named among the substitutes for the third straight game by head coach Arne Slot as Leeds piled more misery on Liverpool.

A quickfire brace from Hugo Ekitike had seemingly set Liverpool on their way for a much-needed win only for Leeds to fight back and bring the scores level. Dominik Szoboszlai then put The Reds back in front before Au Tanaka pegged them back again in the 96th minute.

Having not been introduced from the bench, Salah applauded the travelling Liverpool fans at the full-time whistle before heading down the tunnel and later giving an incendiary interview about his relationship with Slot and his Liverpool future.

Downturn in form

Salah’s output for Liverpool in the Premier League this season has been markedly reduced compared to the outstanding campaign he put together during the team’s run to the title in 2024-25.

While he has been out of Slot’s preferred team in recent weeks, Salah has only played 110 minutes fewer than he had done at this point in 2024-25.

He has scored four goals in 13 matches so far this term — seven fewer than he had managed by Dec. 6 last season. Unsurprisingly, Salah’s expected goals (xG) figure is way down: 3.88 this season compared to 10.46 last. He has also contributed six fewer assists.

Interestingly, though, Salah has created more chances for teammates (28 vs. 26) than he had done at this stage in the last campaign, and played eight more key passes (26 vs. 18).

Redknapp: I don’t foresee that he’ll see out his contract

Former Liverpool midfielder and Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp said that he thinks this could be the beginning of the end for Salah’s Liverpool career.

“I understand the face like thunder, he wants to play. He’s an iconic footballer, a Premier League great. And he’s probably thinking: ‘why am I not starting?’

“The facts are that his form hasn’t been good enough. I don’t foresee a situation where Liverpool — becuase I think they’ll have so much respect for him that they would be actively trying to move him [on]. I think if it were to happen … if something were to happen as quickly as January, it will come more from him.

“He’s going to go away I think next week [to AFCON with Egypt], a week on Monday. Anything can happen in football.

“I don’t necessarily think [Salah will leave] in January. I think we’ve got to just let this settle. But I don’t foresee that he’ll see out his two years of his contract. I think it might be more in the summer if he were to go.”

Information from ESPN’s Global Sports Research contributed to this report