Coach Jürgen Klopp had a verbal altercation with his star player Mohamed Salah during Liverpool FC’s disappointing 2-2 draw at West Ham United.
TV images showed how Klopp approached the Egyptian when he was substituted in the 79th minute and spoke to him. Salah reacted angrily, spreading his arms several times and raising his index finger in a gesture towards Klopp. His teammates Darwin Nunez and Joe Gomez tried to calm him down. But Salah’s anger – possibly because he was not included in the starting eleven and because he was substituted late – was still great even after the final whistle.
If he talked about it now, “it would burn,” said a pissed-off Salah. For Klopp, however, the incident was no longer an issue after a conversation with the 31-year-old. “We talked in the dressing room, for me it’s done,” said the coach at the press conference: “That’s all.”
Liverpool cannot take advantage of their clear superiority
Liverpool suffered their next and possibly decisive setback with the draw in the race for the English football championship. A few days after losing 2-0 in the city derby at Everton FC, the Reds missed out on a much-needed victory despite their clear superiority. “It’s clearly not enough for us, but we can’t change it anymore,” said the German coach. This means Klopp’s team remains third in the table with 75 points, but has already played one game more than leaders Arsenal FC (77 points) and two more than defending champions Manchester City (76).
Andy Robertson (48th minute) and an own goal from goalkeeper Alphonse Aréola (65th) scored the visitors’ goals in London. Jarrod Bowen (43rd) and Michail Antonio (77th) were successful for Hammers coach David Moyes’ team. On Sunday, Arsenal can pull away further with a win in the derby against north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur (3 p.m.), shortly afterwards Manchester City will play at Nottingham Forest (5.30 p.m./both Sky).
