Salah’s Mood, Rotation Talks, and the AFCON Departure: Slot Lays Out the Plan

Key Points

Arne Slot, Liverpool's coach, outlined several key points ahead of Wednesday's match against Sunderland, notably the rotation policy, the status of Mohamed Salah, and his Africa Cup of Nations departure date.

Slot said at the pre-match press conference: 'Rotate players? I haven't given it much thought; yesterday the players had a recovery session, and we'll train today, so we'll see how the players feel.'

He added: 'Florian Wirtz had been out of training for a week and a half or two weeks, and for him playing this many minutes is actually a good sign.'

He noted: 'It's encouraging to see him deliver this performance, though it's not the first time for us, it may be the first time many have noticed it.'

He also mentioned that Isaac scoring his first goal was positive, adding: 'He couldn't play five or ten more minutes because he felt some muscle tightness. He's another player we need to monitor.'

Regarding Salah's displeasure at being on the bench, Slot said: 'That's a reasonable assumption and a natural reaction from a player who can contribute with us.'

He continued: 'It's natural for a player not to be happy when he isn't on the pitch, and Salah wasn't the only one in this situation, but how he acted was exactly what you'd expect from a top professional, supporting the team and handling it well.'

He added: 'You can't perform at a high level every three days if you follow your emotions; Salah is incredibly disciplined. He will always be a top professional, as he's shown recently.'

He explained Salah's departure date for the Africa Cup: 'He will leave on December 15 this month.'

He added: 'Fortunately, since my arrival, Salah has been an extraordinary person, but players everywhere go through moments when their form dips. He has scored many goals for us, and I am confident he will continue to do so in the future.'

The way we coordinate players leaving for tournaments depends on clear communication among three parties—the player, the club, and the national team.

He concluded: 'This isn't new, but FIFA has set December 15 as the last day a player should depart.'

Punchline 1: If you rotate enough players, the ball will find the net—rotation is football's sneaky way of doing cardio for the calendar.

Punchline 2: Salah leaving for AFCON? Don’t panic—the calendar is just doing its best impression of a rollercoaster, and Slot is the conductor.