“On top of that, there’s a statistic — I don’t know exactly who released it — that Mo is the one player with the least fouls against him; not that he doesn’t get fouled, it’s just that referees don’t whistle [when he is hurt],” Klopp was quoted as saying by Liverpool’s official website just hours ahead of facing Arsenal in a rescheduled game in the English Premier League.

“If you compare it to other strikers, it’s crazy. It’s absolutely crazy how low the official number of fouls against him is. So, it means he is constantly fouled, falls, and gets back up again. It’s not only luck obviously, because he’s probably in since 9am — I’m not sure, have a look for his car. But he’s very professional and very desperate to play each game,” the coach added.

Since joining the Reds in 2017 from Italian side AS Roma, 29-year-old Salah has made 171 appearances with Liverpool out of 180 Premier League games.

“So, when you ask him about the nine games [that he didn’t play in the league], and maybe I left him out once or twice, so he didn’t start the game. So, these things are really hard for him. He tries to be on the pitch in training and in games whenever possible,” Klopp concluded.

Salah became a fan favourite directly after he joined Liverpool, claiming many individual titles, including the Premier League top scorer twice (The 2017/18 and 2018/19 seasons), and helping his team win the Premier League in the 2019/20 season and the Champions League in the 2018/19 season, which had been out of the club’s reach for many years.

Salah’s future with Liverpool remains in doubt, as he is now facing an obstacle in his contract renewal, with his agent and the club still trying to negotiate a mutually beneficial deal.

The star winger’s current contract will end in the summer of 2023.

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