'Mo Salah is an easy scapegoat!' - Egyptian media tears into Arne Slot's Liverpool decision

Mohamed Salah will be leaving Liverpool at the end of the season

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has been accused of making Mohamed Salah a "scapegoat" during the club's recent slump in results. The Egyptian was left out for the Reds' 2-0 loss against Paris Saint-Germain last week and wasn't called upon from the substitutes' bench as Liverpool trailed in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

It is thought that the forward, who is poised to depart Anfield at the end of the campaign, will receive more opportunities in Tuesday's second leg. And his prospects improved on Saturday after Salah marked his return to the starting XI with a goal in Liverpool's 2-0 victory over Fulham.

After the opening-leg defeat in Paris, Slot clarified he didn't introduce Salah because he was concerned about the margin widening further. The move was badly received in Egypt, with some domestic media outlets portraying it as a type of humiliation.

Local journalist Magdy Salama, of Sada El-Balad and Al Qahera News, told Foot Mercato he was convinced the reasoning is more sinister. The reporter in question said he believed Salah "deserved better treatment" and respect from Liverpool's coaching staff.

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He suggested his exclusion at the Parc des Princes was an instance of Salah being made "a scapegoat for the team's poor performances."

When supporters witnessed Salah being left out for arguably Liverpool's most crucial fixture of the season, it inevitably sparked speculation that it was down to poor form. And with confirmation that the player has no future at Anfield beyond this campaign, such calls will only become easier to make going forward.

The same Egyptian journalist pointed to the exits of Luis Diaz and Trent Alexander-Arnold last summer as bigger contributing factors to Liverpool's dip in form. Also, the squad's midfield was identified as a weaker area compared to the previous season.

The scapegoating allegations echo the sentiments Salah himself expressed in an unusually candid outburst in December. Following a frustrating 3-3 stalemate against Leeds, the forward claimed he had been "thrown under the bus" after he was axed for that match as well.

"Now I'm sitting on the bench and I don't know why. It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus," he said at the time. "That is how I am feeling. I think it is very clear that someone wanted me to get all of the blame.

"I got a lot of promises in the summer and so far I am on the bench for three games, so I can't say they keep the promise. I said many times before that I had a good relationship with the manager and all of a sudden we don't have any relationship.

"I don't know why, but it seems to me, how I see it, that someone doesn't want me in the club."

Slot will ultimately decide whether Salah gets the opportunity to make a greater impact against PSG on Tuesday. Liverpool must win the second leg by a minimum of two goals to force extra time at the very least.