Mo Salah vs Arne Slot. One has to go.

Man management is where great managers separate themselves from good tacticians. Systems can be tweaked, formations can change, and injuries can be managed — but people are not chess pieces. And that is exactly where Arne Slot has got it wrong.

Benching a player is not the issue. Benching Mohamed Salah — Liverpool’s biggest star, leader, and match-winner — for three consecutive games without clear communication is.

Mohamed Salah is not just another winger in the squad. He is the face of Liverpool’s attack, the player opponents plan entire defensive structures around, and the one footballers in the dressing room instinctively look toward in difficult moments. When a manager makes a decision involving someone of that stature, it demands clarity, honesty, and trust. Silence creates uncertainty — and uncertainty spreads faster in a dressing room than tactics ever will.

If this was a tactical decision, why wasn’t it explained?
If this was a form issue, why wasn’t it addressed publicly and privately?
And if it was about managing minutes or fitness, why was Salah’s absence prolonged without any visible attempt at reintegration?

Elite players don’t need special treatment — they need respectful communication. Salah has earned that over the years through relentless consistency, professionalism, and loyalty. Leaving him on the bench repeatedly without transparency doesn’t just frustrate the player; it sends a message to the entire squad that status, history, and contribution can be sidelined without explanation.

And that’s dangerous.

Liverpool have looked like a team lacking belief in key moments. Attacks have slowed. Fear has crept in. Confidence has dipped. Those things don’t happen in isolation. Players sense tension. They read body language. They feel when something isn’t right — especially when a leader on the pitch is suddenly missing.

This situation also risks damaging something far more valuable than any single result: trust. Once players begin to question whether honesty exists between staff and squad, performances suffer. Intensity drops. Margins disappear. And Liverpool are not a team built to survive on small margins.

Great managers — Klopp, Guardiola, Ancelotti — understand that difficult decisions become acceptable when they are communicated well. You can bench anyone, as long as you explain why. What you cannot do is create confusion around a star player and expect harmony to follow.

Arne Slot may be building something new, and that deserves patience. But adaptation works both ways. Managing personalities at a club like Liverpool is as important as pressing triggers or build-up patterns. Mohamed Salah isn’t just a footballer — he’s a symbol of standards, ambition, and belief.

And right now, benching that symbol without explanation feels like a misstep that Liverpool can’t afford.

This isn’t about Salah’s ego.
It’s about leadership.
It’s about communication.
And it’s about understanding that football, at its core, is still a human game.

If Arne Slot wants Liverpool to move forward, fixing this situation is just as important as fixing what happens on the pitch.
#mosah #arneslot #liverpool #lfc #anfield