Arne Slot Enggan Jamin Mohamed Salah Tampil Melawan Brentford

Manajer Liverpool Arne Slot enggan memberikan kepastian terkait keterlibatan Mohamed Salah dalam pertandingan penutup musim melawan Brentford di Stadion Anfield pada Minggu mendatang.

Laga tersebut dijadwalkan menjadi penampilan pamungkas Salah di kandang sebelum meninggalkan klub dengan status bebas transfer pada musim panas ini, setelah mengabdi selama sembilan tahun.

Keputusan pemilihan pemain tetap dirahasiakan oleh sang manajer menjelang pertandingan krusial yang menentukan langkah The Reds ke kompetisi Eropa musim depan.

"I never say anything about team selection," kata Slot saat ditanya mengenai keterlibatan Salah melawan Brentford.

Penegasan mengenai fokus tim saat ini dialihkan oleh Slot kepada target kolektif klub untuk mengamankan tiket kualifikasi Liga Champions.

"I don't think it is that important what I feel about it. What is important is that we qualify for the Champions League on Sunday and I prepare Mo and the whole team in the best possible way for the game," ujar Slot ketika dimintai respons atas unggahan media sosial penyerangnya.

Kekecewaan sempat diutarakan sang manajer setelah hasil buruk pada pertandingan sebelumnya yang membuat kepastian tiket Eropa harus tertunda hingga laga pamungkas.

"I was very disappointed after our loss against Villa because a win would have given us qualification for the Champions League which we didn't get. Now there's one game to go which is a vital one for us as a club," tutur Slot.

Hubungan internal dan keselarasan visi di dalam skuad ditegaskan kembali oleh Slot demi mencapai kesuksesan bersama di masa mendatang.

"We both want what's best for the club, we both want the club to be successful, and that's the main aim," ucap Slot.

Rencana jangka panjang untuk memodifikasi gaya permainan tim juga diungkapkan oleh juru taktik asal Belanda tersebut demi memuaskan para pendukung.

"I have to find a way to evolve this team now and definitely in the summer and in the upcoming season to be successful again, and to play a brand of football that I like. And if I like it then the fans will like it as well because I haven't liked a lot of the way we played this season," kata Slot.

Fleksibilitas taktik dalam sepak bola modern ditekankan oleh Slot sebagai bagian dari proses adaptasi skuad Liverpool demi mengulang prestasi masa lalu.

"But we try to evolve the team in a way that we can compete but definitely also play the brand of football, the style of football the fans, I, and hopefully Mo if he's somewhere else at that moment in time, will like as well," ujar Slot.

Asumsi publik mengenai ketidakcocokan filosofi bermainnya dengan pandangan para pemain senior dibantah secara langsung oleh Slot.

"You are doing a lot of assumptions. First of all you say that he wants to play that style and then say it is not my style," tegas Slot.

Keberhasilan meraih trofi pada musim sebelumnya dinilai Slot sebagai bukti bahwa seluruh elemen tim sebenarnya menikmati skema permainan yang diterapkan.

"I think Mo was really happy with the style we played last year as it led to us winning the league. Football has changed, football has evolved, but we both want what is best for Liverpool and that is for us to compete for trophies, which we haven't done this season and which we did last season," tutur Slot.

Kontribusi besar Salah dalam mengakhiri dahaga gelar liga domestik klub diakui oleh Slot sebagai pencapaian bersama yang patut diapresiasi.

"He and the team – and I was included in that – brought the league title back after five years and we would like to challenge for that again next season and continue to evolve the team. That is my take on it," kata Slot.

Sikap para pemain lain di jagat maya yang mendukung pernyataan kritis Salah ditanggapi dengan santai oleh Slot karena ia lebih fokus pada realitas di lapangan.

"Social media came when I was a little bit older, so as people know I'm not really involved. I don't really know what it exactly means if you 'like' a post," jelas Slot.

Rutinitas dan profesionalisme para pemain dalam sesi latihan diakui sang manajer tidak mengalami perubahan di tengah spekulasi yang beredar.

"What I know, and that is my world, is to see how they train and I have not seen anything different compared to the rest of the season," ujar Slot kepada BBC Sport.

Polemik ini bermula dari pernyataan terbuka yang diunggah oleh penyerang asal Mesir tersebut setelah hasil mengecewakan yang dialami timnya.

"I have witnessed this club go from doubters to believers, and from believers to champions. It took hard work and I always did everything I could to help the club get there. Nothing makes me prouder than that," tulis Salah dalam akun media sosialnya yang dilansir GOAL.

Kritik tajam disampaikan oleh Salah mengenai penurunan performa tim yang dinilainya menjauh dari identitas asli klub.

"Us crumbling to yet another defeat this season was very painful and not what our fans deserve. 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," kata Salah.

Mantan penyerang Liverpool Michael Owen memberikan pandangannya kepada GOAL terkait dampak psikologis dari pernyataan berkala yang dikeluarkan oleh bintang utama tim tersebut.

"Both. Understandable? Yes. Do I agree with them? Yeah. But would I say it? No," respons Owen ketika ditanya apakah tindakan Salah dapat dimaklumi atau justru merugikan.

Meskipun membenarkan esensi dari kritik tersebut, Owen menilai penyampaian argumen secara terbuka bukan langkah yang bijaksana di tengah kompetisi yang berjalan.

"That's the whole point. I don't think it was a wise thing for him to say, even though he's probably right. But listen, of course Liverpool fans want to see better footballers. Of course they want to see better results. And yeah, of course they don't want to be a team that win one and lose one," urai Owen.

Keheningan Salah yang jarang berbicara kepada media membuat setiap pernyataannya memiliki dampak yang sangat besar bagi stabilitas klub.

"There was nothing that he said that was wrong, it was just that he said it. That was the thing," tambah Owen.

Efek domino dari komentar negatif tersebut dinilai Owen berpotensi menciptakan ketegangan yang tidak perlu antara pemain dan manajemen.

"I think the problem with Mo Salah is obviously he rarely speaks. But when he does speak, he's dropping hand grenades. If he spoke all the time, then it might not come as a massive shock. But whatever he's going to say, it's huge, huge news. And obviously if it's always disparaging, let's say towards the club or towards a manager or whatever, then it just goes nuclear in many ways," papar Owen.

Konfrontasi opini publik ini dianggap tidak memberikan kontribusi positif bagi kesiapan tim dalam menghadapi sisa kompetisi musim ini.

"So yeah, I agree with everything he said, but I don't agree with him saying it because what help is it doing to anybody? It's just not," pungkas Owen.

Saat ini Liverpool berada di peringkat kelima klasemen sementara dan membutuhkan minimal satu poin untuk mengamankan posisi di zona Liga Champions musim depan.