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It has been suggested that Mohamed Salah's tendency to air his grievances in public contributed to Liverpool's decision not to hand him the vice-captaincy in the summer.
Trent Alexander-Arnold's transfer to Real Madrid earlier this year opened up the vice-captaincy role in the Liverpool squad, which ultimately went to Andy Robertson. Robertson and Salah both joined Liverpool in 2017, making them the longest-serving players in the squad after Joe Gomez, and both men have been key for the Reds over the last eight years.
Sources cited by Caught Offside suggest that the nature of Salah's post-game outburst at Leeds is why he was overlooked for the vice-captaincy in favor of Robertson.
The Athletic, meanwhile, reported that Salah's decision to speak out came as no surprise to his Liverpool teammates, who are used to him speaking in the media when he is not happy.
Jamie Carragher recently called on Salah to front up to the media during the team's on-field struggles, and referenced how the player was happy to speak last year when he was seeking a contract extension at Anfield.
"On the back of all these Liverpool defeats, it's always Van Dijk who comes out and speaks," Carragher said last month.
"The captain should do that, but there should be other players in that dressing room and speaking for the club.
"A year ago this weekend, Mo Salah wasn't shy in speaking about his own situation and the club not offering him a contract. I only ever hear Salah speak when he gets man of the match or when he needs a new contract.
"I would like to see Salah as one of the leaders and legends of Liverpool come out and speak for the team."
Explaining his decision to hand Robertson the vice-captaincy at Liverpool earlier this year, Slot said: "He's played here so many years, won the league twice.
"It was Virgil, Trent, Robbo, Mo last season [in the pecking order], and Trent left, so there are logical reasons for that.
"Apart from that, why is he the second captain? Because he's a very good player, he plays many games, he knows what it takes, but also he knows the culture of the club and the dressing room.
"Apart from all the quality he's shown on the pitch, he also plays a big role in the culture we have here at this club which - I've said this many times last season - is the biggest gift I could get from Jurgen.
"And that's also something we definitely have to keep for my successor to have, if I'm ever leaving this club."
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