Mohamed Salah Back in Starting XI, Arne Slot Throws Praise, Cold War Over?
JAKARTA - Mohamed Salah started for Liverpool in a 3-0 Champions League win against Marseille on Thursday, January 22, 2026, early morning WIB, after returning from the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
The Egyptian star had a turbulent month at Liverpool before departing for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco. He did not start for the Reds after a 1-4 home defeat against PSV Eindhoven eight weeks ago.
However, now it seems that the cold war with Manager Arne Slot has subsided. After the match against Marseille, the Dutch coach even praised Salah's professionalism.
He also said Salah's familiarity with his teammates made his return to the starting lineup seamless.
"It helps because he's been with us for so long so he knows his teammates. He knows how we want to play."
"This shows how professional he is, after being absent for a month in the team, he is very fit to play 90 minutes against Marseille."
"He almost scored, a good pass from Cody (Gakpo) and usually it would be a goal for him. Tonight it was not, but that does not hurt us because we scored three goals."
"I think overall, I saw a lot of very good individual performances like I saw against Arsenal, like I saw against Burnley and like I saw tonight (against Marseille)," Arne Slot said in a post-match press conference.
Liverpool are unbeaten in 12 games after the defeat to PSV - although they have not been impressive in four consecutive draws in the Premier League - including four times when Salah was on the bench, then seven times when he was with the Egyptian National Team. He also did not take part in Liverpool's trip to Inter Milan on December 9, 2025.
"The different thing for the first time this season compared to all the other games is when we had a big chance to score 2-0 which hit the post, 10 seconds later they (the opponent) had a big chance."
"Usually this season the ball goes in and we all complain, but now the ball is bouncing, and we've extended the lead to 2-0 and 3-0."
"The performance is still the same, but people's perspective on us may be very different," Arne Slot said of his team's overall performance at the Stade Veledrome.
Meanwhile, Salah was involved in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations tournament until last weekend when Egypt lost in the third-place match against Nigeria on penalties.
Arne Slot did hint on Tuesday, January 20, 2026, that Salah would immediately enter the team once he returned from national duty.
"Let's see the line-up tomorrow if you still think there is a problem," said Arne Slot in a press conference before the match against Marseille, who confirmed that he had made peace with Salah.
Salah said in December 2025 that he felt betrayed by Liverpool for being dropped from the team after a series of defeats.
The statement also made Arne Slot furious and a cold war began. Speculation then circulated widely that the 33-year-old's illustrious career was over and he could be transferred in the January 2026 transfer window, possibly to the Saudi Arabian league.