The decision to leave Salah out entirely was particularly jarring given that Slot utilised five other substitutes, including Alexander Isak, who only recently returned from a broken leg that sidelined him for nearly four months, and 18-year-old Trey Nyoni. However, the manager stood by his logic, claiming that forcing Salah to perform defensive duties in a besieged Liverpool box would have been a waste of the forward’s talents and fitness ahead of a busy domestic schedule.
“I think in the last part of the game, it was more about surviving for us than there was ever a chance that we could score,” Slot said when questioned about the decision. “Yeah, you never know, because last season we scored five minutes before the end, Harvey Elliott, when I took Mo off. But I think this was 20-25 minutes where we were only defending.
“And Mo has so much quality, but for Mo to be 20-25 minutes defending inside his own box, I think it’s better for him to save his energy for a lot of games that are coming up in the upcoming weeks.”