Arne Slot makes bizarre joke about Xabi Alonso replacing him 'in six months' at Liverpool & lifts lid on current relationship with Mohamed Salah

Alonso has been tentatively mooted as a future Liverpool manager ever since he began earning his stripes as a coach with the Real Sociedad B team. He has since impressed with Bayer Leverkusen, helping the German side win an incredible domestic double in 2024 before moving to Madrid a year later.

However, the legendary Spanish midfielder struggled to win over the Blancos squad and he left earlier this month after his former side fell to Barcelona in the final of the Supercopa de Espana.

Alonso has been linked with some roles in the Premier League, but he is not expected to fully consider consider any proposals until June.

After winning the Premier League title in his first season at Anfield, Slot has been tested much more during his second campaign in charge. A huge summer outlay which included the signings of Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike, Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong has not yet paid dividends, with the Reds currently sitting fourth in England's top flight, 14 points behind leaders Arsenal.

The Merseysiders are also 11th in the Champions League table but can seriously strengthen their position in Europe by beating Marseille on Wednesday night. Ahead of the game, however, Slot was asked if he had spoken with the recently sacked Alonso and gave a tongue-in-cheek response.

He said: "Yes, he called me and said 'What do you think about the team because I am going to take over in six months, can you tell me a little bit more?' Or maybe earlier, maybe he takes over tomorrow.

"That is the weirdest question I ever got."

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One boost for Slot is the return of legendary winger Mohamed Salah, who represented Egypt at the recent Africa Cup of Nations. The pair had a public falling out when Salah claimed he had been "thrown under the bus" after being regularly left out of starting XIs, but Slot seemed to hint the 33-year-old would feature from the first whistle on Wednesday night.

Asked about their current relationship, the Dutchman said: "As normal as it's always been, with one exception and that was Inter. Let's see for the lineup tomorrow if you still think there's an issue. I spoke to him today and I'm happy to have him back.

"There's been a moment in the season where I decided not to play Mo and one moment where I decided not to take him to the game. 

"For all the other games he's been in the squad and was the first substitution against Brighton so at that moment of time, there's never been an issue for me."

He added: "He went to AFCON and did what he usually does and scored goals. 

"In his absence I think we have done quite OK in terms of hardly conceding any chances and starting to create more and more...then it is really helpful to have Mohamed Salah. 

"There has only been one [player still alive] who scored more for this club but I don't think I can play Ian Rush still."

Liverpool are enjoying an 11-game unbeaten run but have dropped points in the Premier League with some disappointing draws, the most recent of which came on Saturday when Burnley hit back to claim a point.

Another draw wouldn't be as disastrous on Wednesday, especially considering how dangerous Roberto De Zerbi's Marseille can be, but victory could see them move as high as fourth in the Champions League table and take the pressure off their final league phase match against Qarabag next week.