Ex-Liverpool star claims Salah would still have left even if he knew Slot was leaving

Salah's final seasons at Liverpool were a mix of highs and lows. After a stellar 2024-25 campaign where he scored 34 goals, won the Premier League title, and secured his third PFA Player of the Year award, he was rewarded with a new contract. 

However, just months later, his form dipped, leading to time on the bench and a public outburst at the coaching staff, during which he felt he was being made a scapegoat for the team's struggles.

That incident seemed to signal the end of his time on Merseyside. It was later announced that Salah would be released from his contract in 2026, allowing him to leave as a free agent. 

Speaking exclusively to GOAL, Danny Murphy weighed in on whether Salah might have stayed if he knew Slot was on his way out. 

"I think the biggest impact on him leaving is his form," Murphy said. "There's always a chance if you have a much better relationship with a manager that you maybe would stay and try and recapture that form in the second season."

Murphy suggested that Salah himself may have felt it was the right time to move on. "I think he probably feels—we've all been there—where you can't quite hit the levels you once did, so maybe it's time to bow out before it gets worse."

While acknowledging the tension with the manager, Murphy argued that any coach would have faced the same dilemma. "The Slot factor is definitely there. We're being naive if we don't think it is," he admitted. 

"But I'm not sure what manager really wouldn't have been in the same predicament as Slot and having to drop him. If anything, I'd suggest that Slot left him in too long when he was struggling."

He added, "There was a cry from the fans to give him a breather and take him out of the firing line because he was struggling so much. 

“So I'm not sure really, irrelevant of whether you get on with a manager, that any manager would have left him in. Therefore the problems would have started anyway."

After 257 goals in 442 appearances, his status as a Liverpool legend is secure, but many wonder if his story at the club could have had a different ending.