Mohamed Salah vs. Jamie Carragher: Liverpool create history after Inter Milan Champions League win amid criticism of winger

Liverpool's win against Inter Milan was the first away match in the Champions League they won without Mohamed Salah featuring since November 2009, when Jamie Carragher played his last ever Champions League game for the club.

The Reds emerged as controversial 1-0 winners against Inter at the San Siro on Tuesday, a game in which talisman Salah was omitted from the squad.

After explosive remarks criticising Arne Slot, the club's hierarchy and pundits, the Egyptian was left in England, a decision that former Liverpool player Jamie Carragher agreed with.

The Englishman was highly critical of the winger, and insinuated that his own desire for Liverpool to win had rarely been greater following Salah's comments.

Dominik Szoboszlai granted the pundit's wish with a late penalty to give the Merseysiders three points against Inter, and that was the first time that they had won an away match in the Champions League without an appearance from Salah since November 2009.

That game was a 1-0 victory against Debrecen, which was also the last time that Carragher played in the Champions League for the Reds.

Are Liverpool a better team without Mohamed Salah?

Liverpool's win against Inter Milan extended the team's undefeated streak to four games, their longest streak since they won their opening seven games of the season.

Some have linked the club's recent uptick in form to the omission of Salah, who did not start any of those fixtures, with observers saying the Egyptian's lack of output this season has not justified his limited defensive involvement.

It would be understandable if Salah's attacking output dropped because Slot had shifted the team's style to get the most out of new signings Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, who were both signed for over £100m each in the summer.

However, the pair have managed a combined two goals and four assists in 34 games this season, with both struggling to make an impact.

Their attacking failings point to a flaw in Slot's setup, and while the team have improved defensively in recent games, they have been poor in the final third.

Sacrificing one area of the pitch for another is not a sustainable route to success, and perhaps it would be better for the Reds boss to find a way of platforming the player that guided the club to the Premier League title last term.

Jamie Carragher: Was pundit right to criticise Mohamed Salah?

Many commentators have admitted that the nature of Salah's outburst was at the very least ill-advised, as any grievance with Slot and the club could have been aired privately.

It should be noted that the 33-year-old did claim that the Dutch boss did not provide him an explanation as to why he was not playing, while also insinuating that the club were trying to force him out ahead of the January transfer window.

Carragher was praised in some corners for his takedown of the winger on Monday, but he was also criticised by others for bringing up the player's record with Egypt.

Whether the pundit was right in his analysis of Salah is up for debate, but the situation is evidently an emotionally charged one.