Mo Salah had problems with two Liverpool team-mates after Mane ‘tension’ | Football | Sport

Departing Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah has never shied away from speaking his mind about his team-mates throughout the years. Indeed, the Reds icon has openly addressed sharing the pitch with former winger Sadio Mane and new arrival Hugo Ekitike, for vastly contrasting reasons. Salah stunned the footballing world last month when he revealed he would be departing Liverpool in the summer after nine years at the club. The Egyptian sits third on the Reds’ all-time top scorers list and was the talisman upon whom much of the club’s recent glory depended.

A considerable portion of that success was built upon Salah’s lethal attacking partnership with Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino under Jurgen Klopp. While the Premier League and Champions League-winning trio were enormously effective on the pitch, questions frequently arose over the relationship between Salah and Senegal star Mane. Salah has acknowledged that a “tension” existed between the two, with the pair famously clashing during an away fixture at Burnley after Salah failed to pass to Mane. The duo have also come to blows while representing their nations at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Speaking to French publication L’Equipe, Salah admitted that he and Mane were not friends. “Yes, there was tension with Sadio,” Salah said, adding: “Mind you, we were professional until the end, I don’t think it affected the team.

“It’s human to want more, I understand that, he’s a competitor. Off the pitch, we weren’t very close, but we always respected each other.” Salah also responded to reports that Mane believed the winger possessed a selfishness when in possession. “I don’t care. People can think what they want, it’s their right,” he said.

“But I invite everyone to note that the person who provided Mane with the most assists is me. We can look at the facts, but it’s obviously easier to throw out phrases like that; it makes the headlines, I know how it works.

“As long as it remains within the limits of respect, that’s fine with me. But that doesn’t mean that this opinion is true. At the end of the day, I know what I did, and my conscience is clear.”

Earlier this campaign, the 33-year-old also spoke candidly about adapting to life alongside a new attacking unit. Salah acknowledged he was yet to establish an understanding with his new colleagues, having lined up alongside Arne Slot‘s new attacking acquisitions Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.

Speaking on the Men In Blazers podcast, the forward highlighted a particular challenge with Ekitike, and his other new team-mates, conceding he would need time to build chemistry with them.

“So far, I didn’t figure the connections out yet,” said Salah. “Like with Darwin [Nunez] or Lucho [Luis Diaz] or the guys they used to play in front, or Diogo [Jota]. I knew where to start with Diogo or Darwin. I know where to find them. I knew their game very well but with Hugo he’s still new.

“Sometimes I need the ball in the field. Sometimes we need [it] in the space. We try to figure that out, through the training sessions or like the videos. The manager shows us. So I will figure it out soon because also it’s going to help my game to grow as well.”

While Liverpool have continued to falter in the Premier League this season, Ekitike, 23, appears to have forged a strong understanding with his fellow forwards, netting 17 goals and contributing 6 assists thus far.

Salah will depart Anfield in the summer, despite having penned a new two-year contract at the end of last season. Nevertheless, it remains uncertain where the Premier League icon will ply his trade once he leaves Liverpool behind.