Mohamed Salah said he cried “more than I did my whole life” in his final appearance for Liverpool after a nine-year spell at the club in which he broke a bunch of scoring records.
Salah was given a standing ovation and kissed the turf after being substituted in the 74th minute of the 1-1 draw with Brentford at Anfield in the Premier League on Sunday.
After the match, the Egypt winger received a guard of honor from his Liverpool teammates and staff that he walked through in tears.
“I cried a lot, more than I did my whole life, but it’s very tough to leave a place like this,” Salah said. “I also cried a bit in the training ground.
“I’m not really an emotional guy — you guys don’t see that in the media that much. You always see me tough, aggressive. But inside, I’m like a baby.”
Salah will leave Liverpool having played 442 matches, scored 257 goals and made 120 assists. His assist for Curtis Jones against Brentford was his 93rd in the Premier League, breaking a Liverpool record he shared with club great Steven Gerrard.
Salah was the superstar name in Liverpool’s greatest team in a generation, winning two Premier Leagues — one under Jurgen Klopp and another under current manager Arne Slot — and the Champions League once in a total of eight titles since joining from Roma in 2017.
Salah is third in Liverpool’s all-time scorers’ list, behind Ian Rush and Roger Hunt, and has won the Golden Boot — as the Premier League’s top scorer — four times. His 193 Premier League goals is the most by a Liverpool player and more than any other overseas player.
“We lived our youth here, sharing everything from the beginning until the end,” Salah said in a post-match interview alongside Andy Robertson, who also is leaving after this season. “We wouldn’t even dream of what we have, but we did it for this club.
“We put it back where it belongs.”
And his message to the players that follow him?
“Look, the club is now fighting for everything and the fans will not accept less than that,” Salah said.
“They don’t care that much about the result, as long as it’s sweat and you give your blood here, they will love you forever.”
Salah, who will play at the upcoming World Cup with Egypt, has not yet signed for another team.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Steve Douglas, The Associated Press
