Arne Slot has been blunt about Liverpool’s position in the Premier League as the club prepares to face Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield. Sitting 10th, 10 points behind leaders Arsenal, Liverpool have lost six of their 15 matches and carry a level goal difference after conceding 24 times. The 3–3 draw with Leeds United was the latest example of surrendered leads and costly dropped points.

There has also been off-field drama. Mohamed Salah’s future was described as up in the air after a public outburst in which the 33-year-old alleged he’s been “thrown under the bus” for the club’s failings, adding that his relationship with Slot is non-existent.

Slot used his pre-game programme notes to underline where the responsibility lies and what must change. “We know also that had we managed certain moments better our points return could—and almost certainly should—have been better,” he said. “This is where we need to improve. We need to show more consistency from one game to the next and we need to manage key moments better.

“At times this season we have shown our quality and our potential—beating Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, defeating Arsenal and Aston Villa are among the first to spring to mind—but our aim has to be to win more regularly.

“We want and need to improve our position in the Premier League. I would be the first to admit that 10th place is not good enough for a club like Liverpool.”

Slot did not accept superior competition as an excuse. “Yes, the league is even more competitive than ever this season and a lot of teams are close in terms of points, but this does not justify where we are right now. We have to take responsibility for changing this.

“This is why I was so pleased with how we performed at San Siro, because everyone involved on and off the pitch took responsibility for helping Liverpool show a better face.”

Virgil van Dijk, in his own programme notes, reflected on the collapse at Leeds and praised the response in Europe. “Of course we were disappointed with the way in which the Leeds game finished last weekend,” Van Dijk admitted. “We felt we had the game under control, so to surrender the lead as we did—twice—was extremely frustrating. We made mistakes and we were punished.

“That has happened too often this season, of course, but I have to say, I thought the boys showed great character to regroup and go again only three days later. The win over Inter Milan was both an important one and, in my opinion, a well-deserved one too.

“We know the pedigree that team has, reaching two of the last three Champions League finals, so to beat them in their own stadium, and to keep them as quiet as we did in an attacking sense, is extremely pleasing. To win any game in the Champions League, particularly away from home, you need to be able to deal with pressure.

“You have to defend as a team, concentrate for 90+ minutes and have the courage and confidence to play your own football as well. I thought we showed all of those qualities on the night, and in the end we got our reward with Dom [Szoboszlai]’s late penalty.”

Mohamed Salah has been recalled to Liverpool’s squad for Saturday’s trip to Brighton & Hove Albion after what have been described by several outlets as “positive” discussions with manager Arne Slot.

The situation had produced intense speculation following Salah’s claim that he no longer had a working relationship with Slot. Slot told his Friday news conference that he would discuss the evolving situation with Salah in person, with the two thrashing out whether he’d be included in Liverpool’s squad for the visit of Brighton.

Reports say the pair held constructive talks and the decision was taken to include the forward in the group for the fixture. If he does play on Saturday, it could be his final appearance in a Liverpool shirt for up to six weeks. The 33-year-old will join up with Egypt on Monday, Dec. 15, potentially missing seven games if the Pharaohs make the AFCON final.

Inclusion in the matchday squad, however, does not guarantee a start. Slot made a tactical change in midweek, opting against a traditional winger against Inter and experimenting with different attacking combinations. The reigning PFA Player of the Year was overlooked by his manager against West Ham United, Sunderland and Leeds, a sequence that contributed to last weekend’s public outburst.

Against Inter the former Feyenoord boss started Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitiké up top for just the second time this season. The pairing produced limited chemistry but did yield a positive result, and Slot may again weigh form when selecting his XI. Given Isak’s poor form, Slot could keep the Swede on the bench at the weekend and allow Ekitiké to lead the line, opening the door for Salah to return on the right.

Rewarding the Liverpool legend with a start after his recent antics might not be an outcome Slot desires. All eyes will be on the 47-year-old when he drops his XI on Saturday afternoon.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has confirmed he does not want Mohamed Salah to leave the club but has not yet decided whether the forward will be involved against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday. Slot said a conversation planned for the morning would determine the immediate outcome.

“I will have a conversation with Mo this morning and the outcome determines how things will look tomorrow.

“What I need is a conversation with him and the next time I speak about Mo should be with him and not in here. There’s not much more to say about it. I will speak to him today and the outcome of that conversation determines how things will look tomorrow.”

Brighton visit is Liverpool’s final match before Salah departs for the Africa Cup of Nations, which runs into the January transfer window. With winter speculation that Salah could leave the club, it is possible he may have already played his final game for Liverpool if he is not reinstated to Slot’s squad for Saturday.

Slot said there had been extensive discussions behind the scenes and pushed back on suggestions that defensive demands lay at the heart of the issue. “I just said the next time I speak about him should be with him,” the Reds boss continued. “I think there’s been a lot of conversations between his representatives and ours, our representatives and him, between him and me after the Sunderland game.”

On the decision to omit Salah from the Inter Milan trip, Slot underlined that the club’s hierarchy were involved but left matchday selections to him. “I think we decided as a club, and I was part of that decision, not to take him to the Inter Milan game,” he continued. “I am always in contact with them, but when it comes to the decision-making of the lineup or the squad, they always leave that open to me, but that’s not to say I don’t talk to them. Mainly Richard [Hughes, sporting director], by the way, not Michael [Edwards, chief executive].

“I talk to him about so many things, but the decision to play a player or to have him in the squad, as I’ve experienced it to now—and I think this will never change—is entirely up to me.”

Slot laughed at repeated probing over the situation but made clear he wants Salah to remain. “The next time I talk about Mo should be with him,” he insisted. “I have no reasons not to want him to stay, if that’s a bit of an answer.”

“This club has won a lot, a lot, a lot of games with him, so that’s an answer to your question I think,” Slot concluded.