Jan Molby’s Honest Verdict on the Mo Salah Situation
Jan Molby does not deal in fluff. When he joined Trev Downey on Molby on the Spot after a brief hiatus, he arrived with clarity, context and the kind of blunt insight only experience can deliver. And when the conversation inevitably turned to Mohamed Salah’s interview and the fallout that followed, Molby did not hesitate to outline exactly how he saw it.
Molby’s First Reaction: “I’m disappointed”
Molby recalled the moment he first learned something had happened. He had been at Elland Road and had already left by the time Salah walked through the mixed zone. On the drive home came a call from a “more reliable journalist.” The message was clear. “There’s an embargo till 9:30,” Molby was told, “Mo’s interview, we’ll take it from there.”
The reaction was immediate. “I’m disappointed, I’m disappointed,” he admitted. And his instinct was to strip everything down to the essentials. “This has nothing to do with whether Arne Slot should go or not… this is all about what he said and why he said it.”
Molby stressed that Salah had started every Premier League match under Slot until the West Ham fixture ten or eleven days before the incident. He felt the forward “maybe could have given it a little bit longer before he lost his head and felt the need to say what he did.”
Liverpool’s Response and What Comes Next
The club’s reaction was swift. Salah was left out of the trip to Milan, a decision Molby interpreted as unambiguous. “I think that was a clear sign that Liverpool are backing the manager.” What happens after that, though, is in the hands of Salah himself. “It’s really up to Mo now. The ball is in his court,” Molby said, adding that “apologising I think would be one of them,” whether in public or private.
Molby also pushed back on the conspiracy theory that Salah’s two–year contract extension last summer was engineered with a January departure in mind. “I never even thought of that,” he said. In his view, Salah signed because he wanted more goals, more records and more time at the club.
Yet he did not shy away from the uncomfortable conclusion. “If that’s how he really feels about being at Liverpool football club, the best solution might be to go do something else.” It was not said harshly, simply realistically.
On Form, Frustration and the Bigger Picture
While Salah’s interview created headlines, Molby believes the broader footballing context cannot be ignored. Liverpool’s performances have dipped. Results have been rescued rather than earned. Creativity has dried up. “We are so boring,” was how Downey described the recent run and Molby did not disagree.
He highlighted that even in the 3-3 draw with Leeds, Liverpool allowed a side “so poor” and “with no ideas” back into a match that should have been finished. Against Milan, he described long stretches as feeling like “the world championship of pointless passing.”
And with so many key players below their usual level, Molby sees a deeper issue. “I less and less believe that he’s the guy to get us out of this,” he admitted of Slot, though he also made clear he would persist with the manager for now.
A Club in Need of Resolution
Molby’s assessment is grounded, calm and rooted in years at the top of the game. His view is simple: Liverpool must deal with what Salah said, understand why he said it and find a way to move forward. Until then, the uncertainty will continue to cloud everything around the team.
