Liverpool's Premier League title chances effectively crashed and burned in a 2-2 draw with West Ham United at the London Stadium, where Jurgen Klopp and Mohamed Salah were seen engaging in a touchline spat in the second half.
On the back of an agonising Merseyside derby defeat to Everton at Goodison Park, Klopp's men found themselves a goal down at the break in Saturday's lunchtime kickoff courtesy of a Jarrod Bowen header.
Andrew Robertson's deflected strike and an unfortunate Alphonse Areola own goal saw the visitors turn the tie on its head, but another aerial effort - this time from Michail Antonio - saw Klopp's men drop two more points in excruciating circumstances.
The Reds boss made the bold call to demote Salah and Darwin Nunez to the bench before bringing on the pair in the second half, but the former did not enter the pitch without a war of words with Klopp.
A heated exchange between Mohamed Salah and Jürgen Klopp on the sidelines just before West Ham's equaliser 😳
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) April 27, 2024
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/HuOJwvePWE
Nunez, Gomez play peacemakers in Salah-Klopp fracas
Just before the trio were brought on after a West Ham miss, Klopp approached Salah - perhaps relaying an instruction to the Egypt international - but he was met with a stroppy response from the winger.
Nunez and Gomez - who were hanging back when Salah and Klopp began their heated debate - stepped in to calm his teammate down, but Salah angrily freed himself from Gomez's weak grasp on his arm.
The ex-Chelsea man - who is out of contract in 2025 - was then seen storming straight down the tunnel at full time as Liverpool remained third in the table, one point behind Manchester City - who have two games in hand - and two below Arsenal, who have played one match fewer.
The Reds' penultimate home game of the season next Sunday sees them host top-four chasing Tottenham Hotspur, before travelling to Aston Villa and hosting Wolverhampton Wanderers in their final two fixtures of Klopp's final campaign.
Ben Knapton
