Virgil Van Dijk's Response to Mo Salah Question Causes Major Stir
Virgil van Dijk gave some interesting responses when asked about Mo Salah's Liverpool future.
Salah came off the bench for Liverpool to help the Anfield side to a 2-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, setting up Hugo Ekitike for the second of the Frenchman's brace in the Premier League encounter.
The 33-year-old is one of the greatest players in the club's history after scoring 250 goals in 421 appearances for Liverpool, winning two Premier League titles and the Champions League during his time on Merseyside.
Salah put pen to paper on a lucrative new two-year deal over the summer, but major questions have been raised about his future after the attacker gave a bombshell interview after he was an unused substitute in last week's 3-3 draw against Leeds United at Elland Road.
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Salah claimed he had been 'thrown under the bus' as he addressed his lack of recent minutes and not automatically starting anymore for Liverpool, even going so far to say he no longer had a relationship with boss Arne Slot.
He said: "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's 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 in 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."
After the game, a smiling Salah turned down the request for a follow-up interview with reporters as he walked through the mixed zone and said: "Two weeks in a row? No, no, no."
Salah will now head off on international duty for Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) which starts next weekend and runs until the middle of January.
Liverpool skipper van Dijk has been a team-mate of Salah since his move to Anfield from Southampton in January 2018 and has spoken on the attacker's future.
The defender expressed the squad's desire for Salah to return to Liverpool and be an important player for the rest of the season, but admitted ultimately nobody knows what will happen ahead of the January transfer window - with fans beginning to seriously question the Egyptian's short and long-term future.
Van Dijk said: "We all hope that Salah is coming back and being important for us for the rest of the season.
"But on the other side of it we all know football and we have no idea what's going to happen.
"I hope he stays because he's one of my leaders, very important for us."
He added: "I've told Mo Salah I want him to stay. The rest I'm not going to tell you.
"I would love to have him around because he is one of the leaders, but the matter of fact is that he is going to AFCON."
Topics: Arne Slot, Liverpool, Mohamed Salah, Virgil Van Dijk, Transfers, Premier League
John McDougall