Speaking after the game, Ekitike described sharing a pitch with Salah as “a blessing”, adding he was “the kind of player who makes us like to watch football”.
But the French forward and Co won’t now share a pitch with their team-mate until January at the earliest, with Salah potentially missing eight games if Egypt go all the way to the final in Morocco on 18 January.
“I suppose everybody will be leaving Anfield with that feeling of what’s going to happen next with Mo Salah,” ex-Blackburn Rovers striker Chris Sutton said on Final Score. “Is he going to stay or is he going to go? But it’s been a good week for Slot.
“I don’t think it was a goodbye. There were a couple of moments where we you thought, ‘was that a wave or not’, but it just looked like he was applauding the fans like he does every week, and as a lot of the other players did.
“It’s going to be interesting to see how this situation pans out. If you’re a Liverpool fan you want to keep your best players so you’ll be hoping it works out.”
A major plus for Liverpool is that, without Salah starting in any of the past five games, they are still unbeaten and have shown they can cope without the Egyptian talisman.
That in itself will give Slot confidence. But, in the long-term, having a fit and firing Salah can only be a positive for his side.
“I spoke to him yesterday and as I usually never say anything about what we talk about, I am not going to make an exception now,” added Slot.
“But I think actions speak louder than what has been said and he was in the squad again and when I had to make my first substitutions, I brought him in and he performed as every fan including me would like him to.”
It is clear Slot is happy to pick Salah again, but also clear there is still no definitive conclusion after a tumultuous week for both parties – and Liverpool.