Arne Slot was not afraid to read the riot act to these three Liverpool players since arriving at the club in the summer of 2024
Arne Slot has had his issues with three Liverpool stars past and present(Image: Getty Images)
Arne Slot may find himself in a precarious position at Liverpool this season, but if there’s one attribute that can never be taken away, it’s his strict approach to his players. Slot shocked the footballing world by winning the Reds their 20th top-flight title last year.
Succeeding the legendary Jurgen Kopp wasn’t supposed to be so straightforward. While Slot has succumbed to second-year troubles at Anfield, he has continued to steer the ship in his own way, sometimes at the expense of some of Liverpool’s star players.
From a club icon and generational talent to an enigmatic forward, the ECHO takes a look at three players who have gotten on the wrong side of Liverpool’s Dutch coach.
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Mohamed Salah
Perhaps the most high-profile falling out involving Slot has been with Salah. The Egyptian icon, who is set to leave the club at the end of the season, sensationally caused a stir after he claimed he had been thrown “under the bus” after being left out of the starting line-up for three consecutive games in December 2025.
After being left on the bench for an away tie at Leeds, Salah said he had been made a scapegoat for Liverpool’s wretched Premier League form, stating he was “hurt” by Slot’s actions.
“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.
Mohamed Salah and Arne Slot’s relationship was a topic of discussion earlier this season(Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
“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.
“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.”
Slot and Salah patched up their differences shortly after, with the winger since coming back into the fold after he was omitted from the squad for his comments. He’s since confirmed his impending exit.
Trent Alexander-Arnold
Another player who risked the wrath of Slot was former full-back Alexander-Arnold. The academy graduate left the Reds last summer for Real Madrid.
Their slight misunderstanding, which took place in an early-season clash with Brentford in 2024, had little to no bearing on Alexander-Arnold’s ultimate departure. However, it still demonstrated how the Dutch coach was unafraid to throw his weight around so soon after landing the job.
Alexander-Arnold was taken off in his Arne Slot’s first Premier League game in charge of Liverpool(Image: AP)
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The full back appeared upset after being withdrawn for Conor Bradley with 18 minutes remaining as Liverpool took a 2-0 lead. It was the second occurrence in the early stages of Slot’s Anfield reign that Alexander-Arnold took umbrage at being taken off, with the defender visibly unhappy after being hooked against Ipswich Town in Slot’s first Premier League game in charge of the Reds.
“He didn’t look that happy after being taken off? I can understand that,” Slot said after the Brentford tie. “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.”
Darwin Nunez
Former striker Nunez was given a dressing down by Slot over his work rate. As Liverpool were sailing to the Premier League title last season, Nunez was guilty of several subpar 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.”
Darwin 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 said: “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 later clarified, posting instead: “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!”
However, it was not enough to salvage his career on Merseyside. The Uruguayan star, who joined Liverpool in June 2022, left for Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal for £46million last summer.
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