Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain Laughs Off 'Selfish' Mohamed Salah Chat After Sadio Mane Incident

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has come to the defence of his teammate Mohamed Salah, insisting that the Egyptian winger is not selfish for failing to pass to his teammates.

Salah's reluctance to pass the ball drew a furious reaction from fellow winger Sadio Mane last month, who showed his displeasure when he was substituted during Liverpool's 3-0 win against Burnley.

PAUL ELLIS/GettyImages

However, Oxlade-Chamberlain played down the row, claiming that Salah's perceived selfishness is not an issue, as it helps him score goals – which is good for the team.

Speaking to BBC's Match of the Day, the England international said: "No, Mo Salah isn't selfish because he's a goal scorer. He's gotta do that. We can't expect him to pass us the ball all the time and him to score loads of goals. The way he plays wins us games, so he's got to do what he's got to do. He scores, we win the game. I'm happy. Mo, do what you want!"

There was some concern that Mane's reaction could signal a breakdown in his relationship with Salah, with former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher admitting in his Telegraph column that he believes that Mane's anger would have built up over a period of time rather than being a one-off reaction – but added that Jurgen Klopp has handled the situation.

OZAN KOSE/GettyImages

"There is no way Mane lost his head solely because he did not receive a few passes against Burnley," he said. "His frustration will have been gathering for months, ensuring it only needed a trigger to bring it into the open. 

"Jurgen Klopp is not a manager who allows his players to dwell on any negative issue so I strongly suspect he will have discussed it with both players. So long as these disagreements are isolated and issues swiftly resolved they do not cause a problem."