Liverpool head coach Arne Slot laughed off Mohamed Salah’s suggestions he could have played his last Anfield match against Manchester City by joking his leading scorer was expecting them to be relegated as a result of the 115 Premier League charges they are facing.
Salah, who is out of contract at the end of the season, said after scoring in Sunday’s 2-0 win over Pep Guardiola’s side: “Honestly it’s in my head. Until now this is the last City game I will play for Liverpool (at home) so I was just going to enjoy it.”
It is a theme he has mentioned before as time ticks down on the remainder of his deal with no hint of a successful resolution in sight.
Slot has become an expert in side-stepping all questions on the expiring contracts of Salah, captain Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold and on this occasion chose to make a joke out of it.
“Maybe Mo knows more about the 115 accusations that are done so he expects them not to be in the Premier League next season,” he said.
“I do expect them to be in the Premier League.
“The boring answer is always the same. This is not the place for me to talk about Mo’s contract.
“Maybe I’ve said already too much about the joke I’ve just made. So that will probably get the headlines. But it was a joke, I repeat, it was a joke.”
The outcome of a hearing into the charges of breaching financial regulations – which City strenuously deny – is expected in the new year.