The atmosphere at the Parc des Princes was heavy for Salah, who found himself watching from the sidelines. After Arne Slot made the bold call to bench the prolific winger for the high-stakes European clash, Liverpool struggled to find their rhythm, and ultimately suffered a 2-0 defeat at the Parc des Princes.
Following the final whistle, Salah was seen participating in a cool-down on the pitch while his team-mates headed for the dressing room. Despite his obvious disappointment, the winger made a brief appearance near the TNT Sports pitchside set to acknowledge former Liverpool captains Steven Gerrard and Steve McManaman, as well as host Laura Woods. However, Salah was clear regarding the potential to talk on camera, with the Egyptian clearly in no mood to provide any soundbites. He politely but firmly refused to be interviewed and Gerrard, working as a pundit for the match, was quick to defend the forward.
"[He’ll be] frustrated," Gerrard told TNT Sports. "He’ll be sitting there thinking he’d back himself to influence this game and improve proceedings, certainly from an attacking point of view. He’ll be a little bit sad and frustrated. But credit to him because he’s just stayed behind there and done some extra running. In his mind, he’s already got his mind on Fulham and he’s doing extra work, which shows the pro and the mentality that you’re dealing with," the club's legendary former captain added.
