Liverpool have to face in-form Inter Milan of all teams in the Champions League. Yann Sommer and Manuel Akanji are only too keen to dig the hole a little deeper for the Reds.
09.12.2025, 04:00
09.12.2025, 07:31
SDA
There is only one topic on the football-mad island at the moment: the deep fall of champions Liverpool and the dismantling of club icon Mohamed Salah. There is even a live ticker on the BBC website on Monday. Will the Egyptian, the fourth-highest scorer (190 goals) in the history of the Premier League and responsible for two league titles and a Champions League triumph for the Reds, take part in training ahead of Tuesday's clash with Inter Milan?
Flashback: Six months ago, there was peace, joy and pancakes at Liverpool. In the very first year under Klopp's successor, Arne Slot, they beat the long overpowering Manchester City and stormed to the 20th league title in the club's illustrious history. The linchpin: an outstanding Mo Salah, whose contract was extended by two years in April.
Salah's rant
After the 33-year-old Egyptian sat on the bench for 90 minutes for the second time in a row in the 3:3 draw against promoted Leeds on Saturday, Salah was furious. In the mixed zone, the filigree technician launched into a brute roundhouse kick.
"They threw me under the bus," he ranted. "Others aren't playing at their best at the moment either, but they want to put all the responsibility on me." And about his relationship with Dutch coach Slot, he said tellingly: "There is no relationship." However, he also came in for criticism himself, particularly for his statement that he should not have to fight for a regular place.
Incidentally, the answer to the question posed at the beginning is: Yes, Salah was there and trained normally. However, he will not be on the pitch in Milan as he is not in Slot's squad. He will probably never wear the red jersey again. In any case, he will say goodbye to the fans after the last home game before the Africa Cup, which begins in just under two weeks. It is quite possible that Liverpool will then be looking to earn tens of millions by selling him to Saudi Arabia.
Destroying the fabric
They spent plenty of it in the summer, around 500 million, and most of it on attacking players. The result is that the previously functioning structure no longer fits together. They are now only in 9th place in the championship and in mid-table (13th) in the league phase of the Champions League. It is doubtful whether Inter Milan is the right opponent to rebuild the team.
With four wins and one defeat, the Italians are on course, even though they recently suffered their first defeat against Atlético Madrid (1:2). Another win against Liverpool would bring the Nerazzurri, with former Swiss international goalkeeper Yann Sommer and defender Manuel Akanji, very close to qualifying directly for the round of 16 - and above all plunge the English champions even deeper into crisis.
Frankfurt's fear of a debacle
Bayern Munich enter the sixth and third-last round at home against Sporting Lisbon in exactly the same position as Inter. FC Barcelona's situation ahead of their return to the renovated Camp Nou is much more piquant. Three points are a must against Eintracht Frankfurt, especially as the Germans have recently proved to be a veritable shooting gallery.
After the recent 6-0 debacle in Leipzig, Frankfurt are fearful of another heavy defeat, of which they have already suffered several in the Champions League with a 5-1 loss at Atlético Madrid, a 5-1 defeat to Liverpool and a 3-0 loss to Atalanta Bergamo. Not ideal conditions for an exploit in Catalonia.
