Slot hopes Salah wins Ballon d'Or, and plans a gift for Xabi Alonso

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has revealed that he hopes Mohamed Salah wins the Ballon d'Or after his impressive performance.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot spoke ahead of the final game of the season, a home fixture against Crystal Palace on Sunday, where the Merseyside club will officially lift the Premier League trophy.

The Dutch manager led his team to the Premier League title in his first season after taking over from Jurgen Klopp.

Slot speaks on Salah winning Ballon d'Or

The Dutchman expressed hope that this season could bring the Ballon d'Or to Mohamed Salah. He also joked about giving his first gift to new Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso by leaving Trent Alexander-Arnold out of the squad for the final match.

"I have high hopes for him (Salah and the possibility of winning the Ballon d'Or). He's had many great seasons at Liverpool, but this one obviously stands out with his performance and us winning the league.

"This gives him a real chance. Unfortunately, he's not the only fantastic player, but if he ever has a chance to win it, it's this season. If it doesn't happen, he'll push even harder next year. As a team, we can do better too, because we were competing for four trophies but only won one, although it was the hardest one to win.

"I haven't decided yet whether Trent will play in the last game, but it should be a day for everyone to enjoy. We've waited 35 years for this moment as Liverpool fans. The scenes after the Tottenham game were fantastic.

"I haven't seen a better celebration. I hope we can experience another day like that – the fans, the staff, the players – and one of them is Trent, who deserves to be there too, because he was part of this season and some incredible years.

"Trent's leaving anyway, so why not leave him out? It might be the first gift I can give to Xabi Alonso. I wasn't entirely satisfied with every minute he spent on the training pitch. I think there were times when he could have done more, to put it mildly.

"In the three games since we won the title, we should have done some things better. I'm really happy that we've already secured the league before facing Chelsea, Arsenal and Brighton. They are very tough opponents, and we wouldn't be the first to lose two out of those three games.

"We don't usually concede eight goals in three matches. That's not up to our standards. The work rate, the running, and the distances covered are similar to previous games, so no one can tell me we switched off.

"If you do something even 1% or 2% less, it'll hurt you in this league, especially in those kinds of games. We hope to win on Sunday, but Crystal Palace is a very good team.

"I still don't know if we'll have that serial winner mentality to show every season. We'll see on July 8th when we get back together. Many have won the league, but not many have done it several seasons in a row.

"Not everyone has that mentality. Look at Mohamed Salah, who has had that elite mentality for seven years in a row. He was the best prepared when we arrived for pre-season. That's what it takes to become a serial winner," said Slot, as reported on X

The Dutchman added that Joe Gomez, who suffered an injury back in mid-February, might return to action and get some minutes in this final game of the season.