Why Mohamed Salah will not play for Liverpool vs Burnley despite AFCON semi final exit

Mohamed Salah's wait for Afcon glory goes on after Egypt was beaten by Senegal in the semi-final, but the Liverpool forward won't be returning to Merseyside just yet

Mohamed Salah suffered Afcon heartache once again(Image: Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto)

Mohamed Salah may have tasted defeat in Egypt's Afcon semi-final against Senegal on Wednesday, but that does not mean he will be returning to Liverpool imminently.

That's because the Reds superstar will be forced to stick around in Morocco for the third-place play-off agains Nigeria on Saturday.

Salah was powerless to prevent Egypt from losing to Senegal, as former Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane scored the only goal of the game to book a spot in the final against Morocco.

Mane told the BBC: "It is not easy for him (Salah) - but still best of luck. He did everything to carry his team until now. Unfortunately one of us had to [lose]. I'm happy [to be] in the final."

Salah's participation in the third-place play-off will see him miss Liverpool's Premier League meeting with Burnley this weekend, while it remains unclear whether he will be available for next Wednesday's Champions League trip to Marseille.

What's the latest on Salah at Liverpool?

Salah's ill-advised chat with reporters at Elland Road seems a long time ago now, but it was only last month that he accused the Reds of throwing him under the bus this season, while also saying that he no longer had a relationship with Liverpool head coach Arne Slot.

A few days after that outburst, Salah was dropped from the Liverpool squad altogether for a Champions League trip to Inter Milan, but he found himself back in the squad for the following game against Brighton.

Slot said that it was an easy decision to restore the 33-year-old to the squad, suggesting that the pair had patched things up.

The legendary forward produced one of his brightest performances of a difficult season after coming on in the first half for the injured Joe Gomez.

However, although the situation has seemingly improved, we will not know just how sustainable it is until Salah returns to club duty.

The Egyptian is not afraid of voicing his discontent, and if he continues to largely be used as a substitute by Slot, there is a good chance that the storm will return.

Salah is contracted to Liverpool until 2027, but the prospect of a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia could loom large in 2026 if Salah fails to regain his place in the team as a regular starter.