Rodrygo once said something about Mohamed Salah which means he should not be welcome at Liverpool

The fierce rivalry between Liverpool and Real Madrid, intensified by Real Madrid's victories in the 2018 and 2022 Champions League finals causing significant pain for Liverpool fans, forms the backdrop. The hypothetical scenario of Trent Alexander-Arnold, a key player in both losses, moving to Real Madrid on a free transfer would exacerbate tensions.

Real Madrid winger Rodrygo's comments about Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, made after the 2022 final win, are a major point of contention. Rodrygo revealed on the Podpah Podcast that Salah's pre-match talk of "revenge" for the 2018 final (where Salah was injured early) motivated Real Madrid players. Rodrygo stated they used to say "come Salah" in training, adding, "When a guy provokes, sometimes you just want to win so you can make fun of them," and their mindset was "we have to win to then make fun of Salah."

These public admissions, even if intended as fun or mind games, have made Rodrygo deeply disliked by Liverpool's fiercely loyal fans, who never forget such swipes, especially at Salah. Consequently, despite Rodrygo being linked with a move away from Real Madrid and potentially to Liverpool this summer, his past comments create significant tension and make winning over Liverpool fans extremely difficult. The piece also notes that while exchanges between players of these rival clubs are understandable, Rodrygo implicated Luka Modric in finding humor in a comment directed at Salah after the 2022 final.