Mohamed Salah’s reaction to Declan Rice’s statement that Arsenal have “come second three years in a row” during his interview at the PFA awards presentation has gone viral. On Tuesday night, the Egyptian King was crowned Men’s Player of the Year for the third time in a row, while four of his Liverpool teammates made the Premier League Team of the Year list.
Arsenal were also well represented on the night, with Rice joining centre-backs Gabriel and William Saliba. In other news, the Arsenal women’s team had a successful season, winning individual awards following their Champions League victory. See the following:
But for Liverpool fans, one moment that stood out was Salah’s reaction to Rice’s comment about Mikel Arteta’s side becoming runners-up three years in a row. While it appeared like Arsenal would finally put an end to Manchester City’s dominance in previous years, the Arne Slot revolution had other plans last season, and Salah couldn’t disguise his excitement.
Salah’s Reaction To The Rice Interview Goes Viral
“It’s been really tough, coming second three years in a row,” Rice stated in 2008. “But I’ve said it before, in life you’ve got to go through some small losses in order to win, and we’re going to keep going, we’re going to keep pushing, and hopefully something can come for us.”
As Rice cited the three runner-up finishes, Salah lowered his head and looked to turn slightly to the left, where the champions’ captain, Virgil van Dijk, stood. See his reaction below.
The footage, which appears to show Salah having a delayed reaction, has sparked a strong reaction on social media. While some allege the 33-year-old couldn’t control his emotions, others quickly dismissed such allegations, reminding them of how generous last season’s Golden Boot winner is in all circumstances.
“Mo is trying so hard to be professional and not bust out laughing,” one X user said, before another answered, “Mo would never do that. He understands how difficult it is to win! Stop generating unneeded hatred toward him for a few likes.” A third person said “there must be some inside jokes” between Van Dijk and Salah, while a fourth added:
“I can’t lie, Salah needs to calm down; he’s a big man and a professional. Getting this excited is insane. [Kevin] De Bruyne and Rodri were not doing this.”
However, even more users came to Salah’s defense, with one user explaining: “Probably because they can relate doubt it’s malicious,” and another adding: “Immediately = about 10 seconds later.”
In his own interview, Salah predicted that Arsenal would win the Premier League this season, citing the fact that the majority of their players have been together for much longer as the primary reason.
“I think you have a great team this season,” he told me. “You have a very good chance.” I believe you are favourites now since your guys have been together for five years.”
xz
