Goodbye - but only for now? Salah signs off as questions remain

Mohamed Salah took everything in at full-time of Liverpool's 2-0 Premier League win over Brighton, applauding all four sides of Anfield while home fans serenaded their 'Egyptian king' with his familiar song.

By the time he reached the tunnel he was the last player on the pitch, giving a little wave towards the main stand, where his family were sat.

A goodbye perhaps? Only for now, it seems.

Salah will join Egypt in Cairo over the coming days as they prepare for the Africa Cup of Nations - but the message after manager Arne Slot's post-match news conference was clear.

A line has been drawn when it comes to team selection.

"There is no issue for me to resolve," said Slot. "For me, he is now the same as any other player. There is nothing for me to talk about after what happened against Leeds."

In his outburst at Elland Road last Saturday - where he claimed to have been "thrown under the bus" by the club and had no relationship with his Dutch boss - Salah said this game against Brighton could well be his farewell.

Having been left out of the squad for the midweek Champions League win at Inter Milan, he came off the bench against the Seagulls as a 26th-minute replacement for the injured Joe Gomez.

And the expectation now is very much that the 33-year-old will return to Liverpool next month after international duty.

Talks are still planned between both parties while Salah is away but, a week on from his emotional interview at Leeds, he was all smiles in the mixed zone at Anfield as he walked past the media and was asked for a chat.

"Two weeks in a row? No, no," joked Salah.

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There was no effort on Salah's part to speak again or publicly apologise, but Slot gave a clear "yes" when asked if he wanted the frontman back after the Africa Cup of Nations. The understanding is their meeting on Friday was positive.

Asked if Salah wanted to stay, the Reds boss added: "That I think you already know the answer. What has been said between us stays between us. He was in the squad and my first substitution."

For the fifth game in a row, Salah wasn't in the starting line-up. But, when defender Gomez was injured, Slot turned to the bench and put on the man who has scored 250 goals for Liverpool in his eight years with the club.

There were no boos. Just applause and appreciation.

Salah didn't add to that goal tally, but did get the assist for Hugo Ekitike's second on the hour mark.

That took him to 277 goal involvements in 302 Premier League appearances for Liverpool - the most by any player for a single club in the competition, overtaking Wayne Rooney (276) at Manchester United.

A remarkable statistic in itself and a measure of how much he has done for the Reds.

Back in the squad and involved in much of Liverpool's positive attacking play, former Wales defender Ashley Williams described his performance against Brighton as "like the old Salah".

"Salah has done extremely well," ex-Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock added on Final Score. "He has had a couple of opportunities where he should and could have done better. This week will have given his confidence a knock, he will been apprehensive coming into the game. He needs to build up his confidence."

Speaking after the game, Ekitike described sharing a pitch with Salah as "a blessing", adding he was "the kind of player who makes us like to watch football".

But the French forward and Co won't now share a pitch with their team-mate until January at the earliest, with Salah potentially missing eight games if Egypt go all the way to the final in Morocco on 18 January.

"I suppose everybody will be leaving Anfield with that feeling of what's going to happen next with Mo Salah," ex-Blackburn Rovers striker Chris Sutton said on Final Score. "Is he going to stay or is he going to go? But it's been a good week for Slot.

"I don't think it was a goodbye. There were a couple of moments where we you thought, 'was that a wave or not', but it just looked like he was applauding the fans like he does every week, and as a lot of the other players did.

"It's going to be interesting to see how this situation pans out. If you're a Liverpool fan you want to keep your best players so you'll be hoping it works out."

A major plus for Liverpool is that, without Salah starting in any of the past five games, they are still unbeaten and have shown they can cope without the Egyptian talisman.

That in itself will give Slot confidence. But, in the long-term, having a fit and firing Salah can only be a positive for his side.

"I spoke to him yesterday and as I usually never say anything about what we talk about, I am not going to make an exception now," added Slot.

"But I think actions speak louder than what has been said and he was in the squad again and when I had to make my first substitutions, I brought him in and he performed as every fan including me would like him to."

It is clear Slot is happy to pick Salah again, but also clear there is still no definitive conclusion after a tumultuous week for both parties - and Liverpool.