After the match against Brighton ended, Mohamed Salah pointed to the Liverpool logo on his shirt and waved to the fans with a happy face. No one knows if it will be a farewell as there are rumors that the Egyptian striker will leave Anfield in the winter transfer window.
After the match, when asked if there was any news that Salah would return to Anfield (not leaving the team) after AFCON or not? Arne Slot is confident that this striker will not move to another club. That statement may just be the Dutch strategist's point of view, but it shows that the coaching staff at the moment really want Salah to stay after the scandal is resolved.
Although the conflict can be temporarily resolved, there are two undeniable things: Salah does not want to be on the bench and Arne Slot no longer considers the 33-year-old striker a main player. The fact that fans want Salah to stay is just one of many factors the "Egyptian King" is considering.
Salah's participation in the AFCON will cause Liverpool to miss him in the first half of January 2026. That is also the time when both sides will consider whether they want to continue to be together or how long they will be together. In mid-season, Salah extended his contract until June 2027.
Returning to the Brighton win, Salah had a good assist for Hugo Ekitike to score the second goal. That was the 277th time the Egyptian striker has been involved in a goal for Liverpool (188 goals, 89 assists). During the match, Salah was given the opportunity to score or assist many more times but all were unsuccessful. However, that was also a good performance by the 33-year-old star in the current context.
The win over Brighton was also the time when fans saw a version of Salah working harder in defense, even in cases without the ball. However, this may not last long as Salah's fitness foundation has declined significantly compared to previous years. The fact that he played so actively against Brighton was partly due to Salah being on the bench for the previous 4 matches, even not being named in the squad for some matches.
Salah will no longer be as aggressive on the pitch as before, the problem now is how he and the coaching staff will behave to harmonize both sides, no longer the focus of a huge scandal like last week.
Liverpool fans still want Salah to contribute more even though the frequency may be reduced, even until the end of the current contract (expired in 2027). However, if the "Egyptian King" still wants to continue playing more football, he will be forced to leave Anfield. If this decision is made, the time after the 2026 World Cup will be the most appropriate time.
