Mohamed Salah experienced a very mixed start to the Premier League campaign.

On the pitch, he enjoyed a fantastic performance against West Ham and picked up where he left off last season with yet another goal to his name.

However, off the pitch, Salah gathered some rather unwanted publicity upon his departure from Anfield.

Footage emerged over the weekend showing Salah using his mobile phone while driving after Liverpool ran away 3-0 victors over the Hammers. 

A video was uploaded on Monday which included the Egyptian winger being distracted in slow-moving traffic and apparently ignoring young Liverpool supporters at the same time.

Salah-mobile phone incident

Rob Wylie was the man who filmed the original footage and received great attention online when Salah's behaviour was acknowledged by the Merseyside police.

As the video spread across Twitter, they tweeted: "We have been made aware of a video believed to show a footballer (Salah) using a mobile phone whilst driving. This has been passed to the relevant department. Thanks for letting us know."

Since the initial reaction, however, new footage has emerged from the incident that appears to show Wylie moving over to Salah's car with a blue bag and a replica Anfield sign hanging out.

Liverpool fan sheds new light

The man in question is an autograph hunter and has sold Anfield Road signs adorned with autographs in the past.

All that considered, it seems Salah was so reluctant to engage with the supporter because he knew - like other players - who Wylie was and what he does.

That's certainly the opinion of Chris Dawes who was the only other adult at the scene and he cast the situation in a completely different light.

“I believe a lot of players are aware of who (Mr Wylie) is, and therefore do not cooperate. In this instance, Mo Salah was not texting on his phone, he was pretending to be on his phone, while his car was stationery." Dawes explained.

“I believe this was to make it seem like he was busy as he is too polite to tell Rob Wylie to leave him alone.”

So, according to Dawes, not only was Salah not actually texting on his phone but he was looking at the device out of politeness.

Of course, Salah shouldn't have been looking at his mobile phone under any circumstances in a moving vehicle yet this extra information certainly changes a lot.

Salah is a very unassuming person so the motive of politeness certainly seems likely and Wylie is clearly believed to carry a reputation amongst the players.

Liverpool have since responded to the situation officially, with a club spokesperson noting: “The club, after discussion with the player, have made Merseyside Police aware of the footage and the circumstances surrounding it’s capture.

“We have spoken to the player also and will deal with any follow-up internally.

“Neither the club or player will be making any further comment on this matter.”