'I have to think of something special' - the story of Salah's selfie

Mohamed Salah's selfie celebration during Liverpool's Premier League title-clinching win over Tottenham Hotspur has become an iconic moment.

The Egyptian scored the Reds' fourth goal in Sunday's 5-1 victory at Anfield and, after celebrating his strike, borrowed a phone from a staff member before taking a photograph of himself and the cheering Liverpool fans behind him.

But some have asked could it have been a marketing idea, because the phone Salah used is made by one of Liverpool's sponsors.

"At the beginning of the season I always take selfies with players [who score], so for this one I said 'OK, I have to think of something special because it's a picture that's going to be there forever'," Salah told BBC Sport.

Salah, 32, has frequently posted selfies with Reds team-mates on social media, while his recent two-year contract extension announcement included a self-taken photograph.

Initially observers thought Salah had taken the phone off a fan in the crowd, but it was a Liverpool staff member located behind the advertising hoardings in front of the Kop.

The photograph, which Salah and Liverpool posted on their social media accounts, has millions of likes and views.

But it has courted some controversy with observers wondering if it was a natural celebration, or an advert for Google Pixel, an official partner of the club.

In response, others have pointed out they could not know Salah would have scored - and none of the first three goalscorers did this celebration - although it was his 33rd goal of the season so not much of a surprise.

Various Liverpool players have taken part in adverts for Google this season on social media and TV.

Post-match Salah took selfies again - which Google Pixel posted on social media.

Salah could have been booked for delaying the restart of play with the celebration, but referee Thomas Bramall kept his cards in his pocket.

Team-mate Cody Gakpo had earlier been shown a yellow card for celebrating his goal to make it 3-1 by taking off his shirt to reveal an 'I belong to Jesus' T-shirt.

BBC Sport has asked Liverpool and the Football Association (FA) for comment on the Salah selfie story.

The FA has rules around advertising on kits and betting companies - but there do not appear to be specific rules prohibiting something like this incident, even if it was intentional marketing.

Despite all the hype, Salah is far from the first footballer to celebrate a goal with a selfie.

Perhaps the highest-profile one until now was Roma forward Francesco Totti doing so after scoring in a 2015 derby against Lazio.

Then 38, he was handed a phone by one of Roma's coaches before taking the photo in front of the club's fans.

But plenty of other players have done it too.

Mario Balotelli also made headlines for a selfie, filming his goal celebration with his team-mates in Marseille's win over Saint-Etienne in 2019.