Revealed: Klopp vs Salah Spat Sparked By ‘Interaction’ Rule

Jurgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, and Mohamed Salah got into a touchline altercation after the Egyptian player disregarded his manager’s “interaction” policy.

The superstar forward, Mohamed Salah, got into a heated argument with his boss during Saturday’s Premier League match against West Ham, raising concerns about the harmony in the Anfield camp. In that match, the Reds’ talisman winger was brought on as a 79th-minute replacement, right after Michail Antonio gave the home team an equaliser in a 2-2 draw.

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Salah, the top goal scorer for Liverpool, did not shake hands with Klopp as he proceeded down the tunnel, and it is believed that this lack of communication was the catalyst for their fight. The tension between the two continued until the final whistle. According to a source cited by The Sun: “This has happened occasionally with Jurgen and other players. He is very big on interaction with his subs before they go on and felt it didn’t happen at first with Mo. Mo was obviously annoyed at being left out of the team and wasn’t in the best of moods while Jurgen wasn’t happy with his behaviour. The players were given a couple of days off after the match and are meeting up again on Tuesday. It is hoped that by then tensions will have calmed down.”

Klopp attempted to brush the issue under the carpet afterwards, telling reporters after the match: “We spoke about it in the dressing room, but it’s done for me. That’s it.” Salah, though, said there would be “fire today if I speak” as the rumour mill continued to turn.

Salah was linked to a summer departure from Liverpool due to claims of Saudi Arabia’s interest, and Klopp has announced his resignation at the end of the current campaign. With three games remaining after a draw against West Ham, the Reds sit five points behind Arsenal in the Premier League standings and could miss out on adding to their trophy collection before then.