Liverpool’s star forward Salah dominates Arne Slot’s pre-season fitness regimen

Mohamed Salah, at 32, excelled in Liverpool's pre-season fitness test, surpassing Sepp van den Berg and returning to training in top form.

Chirag

July 18, 2024

At 32 years old, Mohamed Salah still has plenty of stamina, demonstrated by his outstanding performance in the pre-season fitness test. Liverpool’s players faced a challenging six-minute race, and Salah emerged victorious, covering more distance than anyone else, surpassing the previous leader, Sepp van den Berg. Returning to pre-season training in top condition, Salah is setting the standard with his dedication in both the gym and on the field.

Liverpool’s first-team fitness coach, Conall Murtagh, praised Salah’s performance as “phenomenal.”

“It’s crucial to demonstrate your mentality and show the team how it’s done as leaders,” Murtagh added, according to The Athletic.

Andy Robertson, Dominik Szoboszlai, and young goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaros returned to Kirkby on Tuesday after early exits from Euro 2024 with their respective countries. However, Arne Slot will continue without 11 senior players who are still representing their nations at either the Euros or the Copa America.

Liverpool’s pre-season tour of the United States begins next Tuesday, and it’s clear Slot will be missing several key players. Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez are on holiday after England’s Euro 2024 final loss to Spain, while Alexis Mac Allister helped Argentina win the Copa America, and Darwin Nunez played for Uruguay in the third-place playoff—meaning they too are on a break.

Players typically receive a three-week rest after tournaments, so Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Mac Allister, Nunez, and others won’t return until Liverpool is back from the U.S. on August 4. Dutch players Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo, and Ryan Gravenberch, along with France’s Ibrahima Konate, reached the Euros’ last four and are expected back slightly earlier but are unlikely to travel to the U.S. However, Gomez, Gravenberch, and Konate, who did not play in the Euros, might choose to return to training early, with the decision left to them.

Slot will have limited time to work with his entire squad before Liverpool’s Premier League opener against newly promoted Ipswich Town on August 17. Balancing the integration of players who missed significant portions of pre-season with the need to maintain team cohesion will be vital. The Dutch manager faces a challenging start at Anfield, as the circumstances complicate his efforts to implement his tactical ideas effectively.