- Former PGMOL chief hits out at Mohamed Salah
- Calls for one-match ban for diving
- Liverpool legend went down in box during Palace win
Keith Hackett has called for Mohamed Salah to be banned for a Premier League match after the incident in Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Crystal Palace at Anfield.
Arne Slot’s side were locked goalless against Crystal Palace when Mohamed Salah went down inside the box on a counter in the 23rd minute. Referee Andy Madley awarded the Reds a penalty before VAR intervened, urging the referee to change his decision and announce:
“After review, Crystal Palace number 11 gets a touch on the ball. My final decision is a drop ball to the goalkeeper – no penalty.”
Replays suggested that Brennan Johnson had got a touch of the ball before making contact with Salah.
Mohamed Salah dived against Crystal Palace, says Hackett
Hackett spoke to Football Insider and claimed that Mohamed Salah dived in the match against Crystal Palace. He added that the Liverpool star should be handed a one-match ban for simulation, as the referees need to stamp out the acting in the game. He said:
“It’s a dive. It’s an act of simulation, and it’s an easy yellow card for him to award. He’s seeing the incident for a second time, recognising the dive, and he has been deceived. This is an even stronger case than usual for a yellow card because he pointed to the penalty spot. Unless referees start to get to grips with acts of simulation, it’ll continue to grow.”
“It’s on the increase, and it’s creating a problem for the referees. He’s gotten away with it, though. Kids will follow him, and that’s my concern. If the referee doesn’t act, the authorities need to. There should be a review taking place, confirm that it’s an act of simulation, and there should be a one-match ban.”
The Reds eventually found their clinical edge, netting twice in a dominant first-half display to take control of the contest. While the Eagles searched for a way back, the points were finally wrapped up deep into second-half stoppage time when Florian Wirtz struck to add a third, sealing a vital 3-1 victory and sparking relief at Anfield.
Mohamed Salah might have played his last Liverpool game
Mohamed Salah had his penalty overturned in the first half, and things got worse for the Egyptian in the second half. He picked up a hamstring injury within 15 minutes of the restart and was forced off injured.
Arne Slot refused to comment on the issue right after the match, saying that it was too early to suggest how long the winger was going to be out. However, the Egyptian national team director, Ibrahim Hassan, has announced that the 33-year-old will be out for four weeks.
As the dust settles on a bittersweet afternoon at Anfield, Liverpool find themselves in a precarious position. While the climb into the top five offers a massive boost to the club’s Champions League ambitions, the potential loss of their greatest modern goalscorer casts a long shadow over the achievement.
The contrast in Salah’s afternoon from the controversy of the rescinded penalty to the heartbreak of his second-half injury perfectly encapsulates the high-stakes drama currently surrounding the club.
Whether Keith Hackett’s calls for a retrospective ban gain traction or not may ultimately be a moot point if the Egyptian’s hamstring injury proves as severe as the early reports from his national team suggest.
With only a handful of games remaining in the season, the focus now shifts from the VAR monitor to the treatment table. If the 3-1 victory over Crystal Palace does indeed prove to be Mohamed Salah’s final act in a Liverpool shirt, it remains a cruel, unscripted end to a legendary Anfield career.
For now, the Kop can only wait and hope that their “Egyptian King” has one more recovery left in him for a final, deserved farewell.
