Arne Slot’s tenure at Liverpool drew to a close just over a week ago. Central to his departure was the club’s disappointing form throughout his second season, having claimed the Premier League title during his first year at the helm.
A further source of friction during Slot’s time at Anfield was his worsening relationship with a number of key senior players. New Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola will make rebuilding the bond between the squad and supporters a top priority, after Anfield became all too familiar with booing under his predecessor.
He will also have his work cut out ensuring he forges the strongest possible rapport with his new dressing room. From Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold to Darwin Nunez, Mirror Football takes a closer look at Slot’s strained relationships with those three former Liverpool players.
Perhaps the most high-profile flashpoint of Slot’s reign was his troubled dynamic with Salah. The Egyptian legend caused uproar after claiming he had been thrown “under the bus” following three consecutive omissions from the starting line-up in December 2025.
Having been dropped to the bench for an away match at Leeds, Salah alleged he had been made a scapegoat for Liverpool’s woeful Premier League performances, even going so far as to say the player and manager ‘don’t have any relationship’.
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“I can’t believe I’m sitting on the bench for 90 minutes,” the Egypt international said after the game. “The third time on the bench, I think for the first time in my career. I’m very, very disappointed. I have done so much for this club down the years and especially last season. Now I’m sitting on the bench and I don’t know why.
“It seems like the club has thrown me under the bus. That is how I am feeling. I think it is very clear that someone wanted me to get all of the blame. 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.
View 4 ImagesMohamed Salah and Arne Slot’s relationship was a topic of discussion earlier this season(Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
“This club, I always support it. My kids will always support it. I love the club so much I will always do…. After what I have done for the club it really hurts. You can imagine, really. After going from home to the club and you don’t know if you are starting. I know the club too well, I have been here many years.”
Salah’s outspoken mood didn’t stop there, as he publicly criticised the club’s standards via social media following Liverpool’s 4-2 defeat to Aston Villa in May.
“I want to see Liverpool go back to being the heavy metal attacking team that opponents fear, and back to being a team that wins trophies,” he wrote.
“That is the football I know how to play and that is the identity that needs to be recovered and kept for good. It cannot be negotiable and everyone that joins this club should adapt to it. Winning some games here and there is not what Liverpool should be about. All teams win games.”
Another player who came close to drawing Slot’s ire was former full-back Alexander-Arnold. The academy graduate left Anfield last summer, making the switch to Real Madrid.
Their minor falling-out, which took place during an early-season clash with Brentford in 2024, had practically no bearing on Alexander-Arnold’s ultimate departure. Even so, it demonstrated how the Dutch boss was prepared to stamp his authority so soon after assuming the role.
The full-back appeared unhappy after being withdrawn for Conor Bradley with 18 minutes remaining as Liverpool enjoyed a 2-0 lead.
It represented the second occasion during the opening weeks of Slot’s Anfield reign that Alexander-Arnold objected to being brought off, with the defender visibly frustrated after being substituted against Ipswich Town in Slot’s first Premier League fixture in charge of the Reds.
View 4 ImagesAlexander-Arnold was taken off in Arne Slot’s first Premier League game in charge of Liverpool(Image: AP)
“He didn’t look that happy after being taken off? I can understand that,” Slot said following the Brentford match. “Every player wants to play 90 minutes, but I don’t think the players that were on the bench from the start were really happy with the choice I made.
“Trent came back from the national team. At the beginning of the tournament he played quite a lot, then he didn’t, then had some time off. It’s only his third game, and we have to take care of him because we need him for the whole season, not only for the first two games.
“What’s good for me is that I have a very good backup available as well with Conor so that means we are taking care of Trent. He played a good game, that’s also what I saw.”
The former striker was given a sharp dressing-down from Slot over his effort levels. As Liverpool cruised towards claiming the Premier League crown last season, Nunez produced a series of lacklustre performances, most notably against Aston Villa in February 2025.
“I can accept every miss, especially from a player who scored two very important goals away at Brentford [on January 18] and that scored for us in the home game against Villa [in November 2024],” Slot said. “I would prefer him to score but the word ‘chance’ says it all. It is a chance and not 100% that it goes in.
“I can accept misses but what is harder for me to accept is his behaviour after the chance. It got too much in his head, he was not the usual Darwin who works his a** off and makes sure he helps the team. He was too disappointed he missed that chance.
“I will tell him that you can miss a chance but you cannot miss out on work rate. That is the life of a striker: he will miss chances and score some. It is part of the job of a No 9; you miss when people expect you to score. It is not part of the job of a No 9 to slow down in work rate. And that is something we will talk about.”
View 4 ImagesDarwin Nunez came under fire from Slot for his work rate(Image: Getty Images)
Shortly after, Nunez posted a message on social media that was quickly deleted. It read: “Two three weeks ago, Darwin was the best, Darwin gave us the three points, but yesterday I was unlucky enough to miss a goal and I am once again the ‘worst’ and the failure.”
He then sought to clarify his stance, writing: “I wasn’t the best three weeks ago, nor am I the worst now. If I fall, I get up. You will never see me lower my arms. I’m going to leave everything until the last day I have to be here in Liverpool. Resilience!”
Despite his defiant words, it was not enough to salvage his time at Liverpool. The Uruguayan attacker, who first joined Anfield in June 2022, left for Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Hilal in a £46million deal in August 2025.
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