National media reaction after Mohamed Salah returned to the Liverpool squad and helped them to a 2-0 victory over Brighton
The Anfield Civil War is over, long live the Egyptian King. Mohamed Salah returned to the Liverpool squad against Brighton & Hove Albion as the Reds extended their unbeaten run to five matches.
And while he again had to make do with a place on the bench, the forward certainly impressed after being brought on midway through the first half as he helped fire Liverpool to a 2-0 win as Hugo Ekitike’s well-taken brace clinched all three points against the Seagulls.
Speculation about his future will continue following his explosive comments about Arne Slot and the club last weekend. But the Dutchman would insist he considers the matter resolved following amicable talks between the pair on Friday.
Regardless, the Reds will now be without Salah for a number of weeks as he departs for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Inevitably, the Egyptian was always going to be a major talking point after returning to the Liverpool side. And while the ECHO was in attendance and provided our usual level of coverage at Anfield, here’s how the national media viewed the latest positive result for the Reds as Slot’s men continue to play their way back into form…
Whether Saturday proves to be Salah’s final game for Liverpool or not, Richard Jolly of the Independent pointed out how the Anfield crowd had no desire to pick sides on what proved to be a unifying afternoon for the Reds.
He wrote: “First came the serenade to Mohamed Salah and then, seconds later, the chorus of Arne Slot’s name. Anfield did not need to choose between Liverpool’s greatest player of the last decade and title-winning manager. They could have both. For one more afternoon. Perhaps for much longer.
“Seven days after Salah had claimed they had no relationship any more, it was repaired sufficiently to allow his return… a rapprochement meant Liverpool could celebrate a happy ending to a fraught week.
“Brighton were beaten, Liverpool’s unbeaten run without Salah starting stretching to five games. Hugo Ekitike scored a double for a second successive Saturday but it seems his lot in life is to be forever overshadowed. So he was again; not by Salah’s words after the game but by his presence in it. A few days after it seemed he may have played his last game for Liverpool, he played his next. It assumed a far greater importance than merely being his last before he heads off to the African Cup of Nations.
“So there was a restorative feel to it. Anfield may have been swathed in forgiveness. There was an air of unity when the Kop saluted first Salah and then Slot. There was an immediate reason, too: Salah had helped put the game beyond Brighton, the supporters singing his name before he took the corner that Ekitike headed in.”
While Salah might have hinted last weekend that Saturday’s clash with Brighton could be his last appearance for Liverpool, Andy Hunter of the Guardian wrote how Anfield has no desire for that to be the case.
He wrote: “There were tears in Mohamed Salah’s eyes when he applauded the Kop after the final whistle and his family were present, as requested, for what the forward had suggested could be his goodbye to Liverpool. But Anfield was not in the mood to let go. Say it ain’t so, Mo.
“Did victory over toothless Brighton on Saturday really represent the end of a phenomenal Liverpool career? Only Salah knows the answer to that. Beyond question was the 33-year-old’s determination to make an impact after his 26th-minute introduction, Arne Slot’s willingness to put the team above the individual and Anfield’s appreciation for one of its greatest talents.
“Salah’s name reverberated from the Kop when he entered the fray, when he delivered the corner that produced Hugo Ekitiké’s second goal and after victory was secured. Slot’s name was chanted frequently too. The message was clear: this is not the time and place for division. There is a season to save.”
The Daily Mail’s Ian Herbert would also suggest there is perhaps more to Salah’s Liverpool story despite the events of the past week, though pointed out the Egyptian’s thunder on this occasion was stolen by one team-mate.
He wrote: “He said he was bringing his mother for a look around the place where he has traced the track of so many wonderful years and when he stood apart from others during the warmup, gazing wistfully around in a valedictory way, you sensed he was conveying another of those messages he lands so well.
“But Anfield has a way of altering the course of events, shaping its own history, giving more back to those it loves most. And so it was that a first-half injury to a wing-back gave Mo Salah his stage back and an hour in which to suggest that he’s not quite done with Anfield yet.
“What ensued after his arrival for Joe Gomez, four minutes before the half-hour mark, was by no means the Salah vintage. Nothing to be remembered in its own right, long after he’s gone. He raced the length of the pitch like the wind, to be on hand to receive a ball Federico Chiesa was advancing with in injury time, but instead struck the Italian’s slightly overhit pass over the bar. His own pass on another counter-attacking thrust at the death was desperately poor.
“In a sign of how quickly the balance shifts and the world moves on in football, the 33-year-old’s stage was actually stolen by one of those who are being asked to pick up the mantle now: Hugo Ekitike, who scored twice and was a relentless, irrepressible, unpredictable presence – destined to discover what Salah has found here. But this was no less a reaffirmation of the vows and evidence that Salah will surely be here to help Liverpool put their current travails away.”
Sam Wallace of the Daily Telegraph wrote how Salah, at times, looked like his old self but is still not reaching his previous heights as Slot’s Liverpool continue to find their way.
He wrote: “He was last off the pitch at the end, his adapted song from the band James hastily played on the public address system at Anfield and if this was not farewell for Mohamed Salah then it certainly looked pregnant with significance.
“The great No 11, whose Saturday night outburst prompted a week of Anfield tumult, is off to play for Egypt in the Africa Cup of Nations and whether he comes back to Merseyside is very much up for debate. After the reconciliation with Arne Slot he started the game on the bench and looked quietly furious about it. Only an injury to Joe Gomez thrust him into the first-half action, and try as he might, the man with 250 goals for Liverpool could not score the 251st.
“There were moments when the old Salah jinking in from the right on his left foot threatened to re-emerge, but the truth was that it was another performance where he did not hit the great heights of his past. The match-winner was Hugo Ekitike, who scored twice and won the game for Liverpool. Slot’s team are still not at their best, but against a Brighton side who could not take their chances, it was enough.”
And finally, as was a recurring theme, The Times’ Jonathan Northcroft was left wondering if this really would prove to be Salah’s final Liverpool appearance. If so, he at least departs leaving the supporters wanting more.
He wrote: “If this was goodbye it was graceful, humble. A riposte to the character attacks, an elegant muting of the noise. Mo Salah has been Liverpool’s superstar, their match-winner, the kind of hero who gets a contract extension announcement accompanied by pictures of him on a golden throne. But, if this was the last time, the Egyptian King went out with an act of service…
“Being Salah, he broke more records, the assist moving him top of the all-time table for Premier League goal involvements (277) for a single club. He couldn’t add to it. In stoppage time, when a brilliant pass from Andrew Robertson released Federico Chiesa, Salah arrived onto Chiesa’s pass five yards out but the ball came sharply and he skied his effort, collapsing on his back and smiling at himself: one last goal, that would have been too perfect.
“Of course, this being Salah, also nothing is certain. He has always been enigmatic and maybe this will prove to be no farewell at all… but the scene at full-time suggested the player remains unsure what his future holds…
“From the corner came Salah’s assist. Maybe his last, maybe not. But if the art of goodbyes is to leave them wanting more he achieved that. There was love and regret in the Kop’s tone when they sang his song.”
