Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has accused Mohamed Salah of being “selfish” regarding the timing of recent comments about his contract situation at Anfield.
Salah is out of contract at the end of the season and told reporters after Liverpool’s thrilling 3-2 win over Southampton on Sunday that he is yet to be offered a new deal by the club. The still hugely influential Egyptian’s future was already the subject of major uncertainty, with his comments only adding fuel to the that fire.
Carragher, who spent his entire 17-year professional career with Liverpool, took issue with Salah, who has rarely spoken to the media after games since joining the club, saying what he did in the days before the Reds are due to face Real Madrid and Manchester City.
“Right now there’s obviously a big difference in the valuation. What Mo Salah and his agent value themselves at, whether that’s financially or in terms of length of contract, to what Liverpool do,” Carragher said on Monday Night Football, before suggesting that the 32-year-old was thinking more about himself than the club.
“So the reason Liverpool wouldn’t have offered a contract yet is because Mo Salah will turn it down, so they’re still in talks,” the retired defender explained.
“I’m desperate for them to meet in the middle, but I must say I am very disappointed with Mo Salah. That interview after the game and it comes out. Liverpool have got Real Madrid midweek and they’ve got Manchester City at the weekend, that’s the story for Liverpool right now.
“Mo Salah, we’re all quite aware, certainly the local reporters are in Liverpool, that in the seven years he’s been at the football club he’s stopped in the mixed zone twice, which is his right, which is absolutely fine. But he decided to stop for the third time away at Southampton on the back of winning Liverpool the game and putting [those comments] out.
“The most important thing for Liverpool this season is not the future of Mo Salah, it’s not the future of Virgil van Dijk and it’s not the future of Trent Alexander-Arnold. The most important thing is Liverpool winning the Premier League. That is more important than any of those players, and if he continues to put comments out or his agent keeps putting cryptic tweets out, that’s selfish, that’s thinking about themselves and not the football club.”
Following the backlash for criticising Salah, Carragher doubled down with a post on X, formerly Twitter, and hit back at the ‘fan boys’ defending the Liverpool player.
“Mo Salah only answered a question, is the new nonsense all his fan boys are spouting!!!” he posted. “Wait until you see how many questions Arne Slot gets asked about Salah’s comments, the talk should be about two of Europe’s giants coming up against each other not contracts!”