Latest on Mo Salah future as Liverpool face January transfer decision after "brave" Arne Slot move

Arne Slot's decision to include Mohamed Salah in the Liverpool squad last weekend was a brave decision and was a positive step towards an agreeable resolution, Reds expert David Lynch has insisted.

The Merseysiders beat Brighton & Hove Albion 2-0 at Anfield on Saturday, with Salah named on the bench following his exclusion against Inter Milan four days prior due to his extraordinary criticisms of Slot and the club's hierarchy.

Many fans and pundits thought that another exclusion on Saturday would indicate that the rift between the manager and the winger was irreparable, but there are hopes that the two can come to terms and avoid an exit in January following the Brighton game.

Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch praised Slot's decision to include Salah against the Seagulls as a positive first step forward, saying: "Credit to everyone involved - the player the manager and the sporting director - for sitting around a table and managing to get him in the squad in the first place.

"That was the first step that they needed to take and it was a really positive step forward. There's a bit of luck too, as while you don't want anyone to get injured, it was good fortune with the way his introduction came about, and the way he got on the pitch so early.

"The manager took the brave decision to bring on an attacker once he saw that Gomez had to go off. He immediately thought 'he's going to be my sub, I'm going to go for Mo Salah'. He then of course comes on and creates a goal."

Slot brought Salah on in the 26th minute due to Joe Gomez's injury, and while he could have brought on the likes of Alexander Isak or Andrew Robertson, he trusted the 33-year-old winger to make a difference.

Will Mohamed Salah stay at Liverpool despite Saudi Pro League interest?

Saudi Pro League clubs have often looked to lure high-level players away from European divisions with offers of lucrative contracts, and Salah has long been rumoured to be a target for sides in the region.

The Egyptian will have a year left on his deal at the end of the season, but selling him in the middle of the campaign when he only signed an extension at Anfield in April would be surprising.

Lynch was cautiously optimistic that the forward would see out the rest of 2025-26 with Liverpool, but still expects a sale in the summer, telling Sports Mole: "Virgil van Dijk in the mix zone after said that he wasn't entirely sure whether Salah would stay.

"It shows you that there's an element that you can't completely predict, but it feels like a lot more of a positive situation now than it was after Leeds, especially as tensions have seemingly calmed.

"The important thing is to get to the end of the season, get him the other side of AFCON, and he might have to leave in the summer, but it's the best way to go rather than sneaking out the back door in January. It's a lot more positive."

Selling Salah in January would deny him the chance of having a deserved Anfield farewell, whereas waiting to sell him until the end of the campaign would likely make the Egyptian's exit easier to deal with for fans.

Can Mohamed Salah still be important to Arne Slot in Champions League?

While Liverpool are 10 points behind first-placed Arsenal in the hunt for the Premier League title, it should be noted that the club have beaten Arsenal, Inter Milan, Aston Villa and Real Madrid this season without conceding a goal.

Salah performed excellently against both Villa and Real, and with the team still in the Champions League, perhaps he could be useful for the club in Europe.

Lynch argued that the 33-year-old still could contribute significantly in the coming months, when he told Sports Mole: "He provided a goal against Brighton, and he can be really useful to this manager even if their relationship is never going to be perfect again.

"When he came on against Brighton, it allowed the player to prove a point, to show that he can still perform at a really good level when he is part of a stable Liverpool side.

"Arne Slot will no doubt be feeling better about it, and future decisions about [including him in the squad] might be easier, so it gives you a bit of hope moving forward."

Salah currently ranks as Liverpool's highest scorer in Champions League history (46), and his involvement in the latter stages of the competition could be vital to the Reds' chances of progressing deep in the tournament.

> Click here to listen to the full discussion on Mohamed Salah's future at Liverpool