Liverpool attacker Mohamed Salah made a cryptic "fire" comment after his touchline row with Jurgen Klopp in the Reds' 2-2 draw with West Ham United.
The Merseyside giants are now rank outsiders for the Premier League title thanks to another sub-par display at the London Stadium, where Jarrod Bowen gave West Ham the lead with a diving header.
Andrew Robertson's deflected strike and an Alphonse Areola own goal turned the contest on its head for Klopp's side, but their aerial weaknesses reared their ugly heads again in the second period, as Michail Antonio nodded in the Irons' leveller.
Klopp made five alterations to his starting lineup for the trip to the London Stadium, where Salah was among the players cut from the first XI, although he inevitably came onto the field in the second half.
However, the 31-year-old was seen exchanging a curt handshake with Klopp before his introduction, and as the German then embraced Darwin Nunez and Joe Gomez, Salah moved away from his coach and teammates towards the touchline, anticipating his introduction.
Salah: 'There will be fire if I speak'
After a West Ham chance went begging, Klopp then approached the Egypt international, who took issue with whatever his manager said and engaged in a verbal spat with the German for several seconds.
Nunez and Gomez eventually stepped in to calm Salah down, both having to physically intercept their enraged teammate, but Salah quickly ripped his arm from Gomez's grasp.
Walking through the mixed zone at the end of the game, the ex-Chelsea man - who had stormed down the tunnel at full time - did not stop to talk to journalists but made headlines with a one-word statement.
With a smile on his face, the Liverpool man simply said: "There's gonna be a fire today if I speak," before replying "of course" when a reporter replied "a fire?".
Salah has been found wanting in the Liverpool attack recently and is now without a goal or assist in four Premier League games, but he was defended by Klopp after a poor miss against Atalanta BC in the Europa League.
Klopp breaks silence on Salah bust-up
The departing German was asked about his touchline fracas with Salah in his post-game press conference, but he was loath to open up on the incident and insisted that the row was now water under the bridge.
"We spoke about it in the dressing room and that is done for me," Klopp told reporters, before responding "That was my impression," when asked if Salah had also moved on from the exchange.
Liverpool's disappointing draw at West Ham came the day after the Reds reportedly reached an agreement with Feyenoord over a compensation package for head coach Arne Slot, who will step into Klopp's shoes this summer.
Salah's future is the subject of much debate too, as his contract only runs until the summer of 2025, and Saudi Pro League sides are expected to come forward with lucrative offers for the winger in the upcoming transfer window.
Still third in the table but at risk of falling seven points behind Manchester City and five below Arsenal should their title rivals win their games in hand, Liverpool's hopes of glory could officially be extinguished with defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on May 5. body check tags ::
