🔗 Share this article

It has been some time, but the Egyptian star was back taking on the lead part last week with two goals in Casablanca that sealed the Egyptian team's spot at the global tournament. The key player taking center stage yet again. The Reds need him to stay there.

Causes for Unsteady Displays

There are many causes why unsteady, unconvincing performances have been the frequent pattern running through the team's opening to their title defence, whether they achieved seven straight victories or, prior to the Red Devils' arrival to Anfield on Sunday, a losing run. The upheaval from so many new signings, the coach's hunt for his ideal lineup, the late forward's tragic death; the winger has felt the consequences of them all during his atypically subdued beginning to the term.

Sunday's Showpiece Occasion

Sunday's showpiece occasion could provide the impetus for the cause of a record 16 scores in 17 games for the club against Manchester United, who are paying their centenary trip to the stadium and have not triumphed at their fierce rivals for more than nine years. Salah will pose the manager with an additional unforeseen dilemma, yet, should he continue caught in the turmoil for an extended period.

Latest Form

The team's head coach must have noticed the contrast of the player's opening strike against the opponent last Wednesday. Struck immediately with the outside of his left foot inside the close post, his eighth strike of Egypt's qualification run came from an almost identical spot to his costly miss versus Chelsea before the break for internationals.

Had that shot with his right been scored moments after the restart at Stamford Bridge we would even now be eulogising Florian Wirtz's maiden sublime setup in the Premier League. Discussions into his drop and Liverpool's rare defeat streak might as well have been delayed. Instead, the midfielder's wait continues while the coach stews over a third defeat away, a couple inflicted by late goals and one the result of a disputed penalty. Narrow differences, as Slot emphasized on Friday, but they do not mask bigger issues.

Last Season's Impact

The forward was key in propelling Liverpool towards a tying 20th championship last season while speculation over his future lingered in the backdrop. “We brought almost the maximum out of Mo last term,” said the manager when his main attacker signed a fresh deal in the spring. There has been a noticeable decline on an individual and collective level from then. The team, not the details of a deal, are responsible.

Statistical Decline

The 33-year-old's contribution in terms of scores and setups is lower half on the corresponding point the previous term, from a total 8 in the initial seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (a pair of goals and two assists) the current campaign. His number of attempts has fallen from twenty-two to twelve while shots on target have fallen from fifteen to five, leading to a sharp fall in shooting accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6%, statistics show.

A single trait that has remained consistent is Salah's chance creation. With 12 key passes, versus 14 at the comparable period of the previous season, his figures remain among the top in the continent and comparable in the ranks of Lamine Yamal and Arda Güler, his juniors by 15 and 13 years each.

Collective Display

Indicators of collective display will worry the coach additionally. Salah had 76 touches in the enemy penalty area in the opening seven fixtures of the prior campaign. The current campaign's total is thirty-nine. The numbers are symptomatic of the squad's issues in general. Just United and the Gunners have tried a greater number of attempts on goal than them this season, but Liverpool's percentage of shots from inside the six-yard area is the smallest in the division, their percentage from long range among the greatest. The club's rate of efforts on goal – 28.4% – is as well among the lowest in the league.

During the initial phase of the previous campaign we primarily scored from an individual brilliance from an attacker and in the later stage it was mostly from a set piece,” the manager said. “Now we lack as many acts of brilliance and we have not found the net from set pieces. But we are nonetheless the side that from open play generates the most quality opportunities.”

Summer Arrivals

They aren't beating opponents in the manner Slot imagined when Wirtz, Hugo Ekitiké and the Swedish striker were brought on board in the offseason, though Liverpool remain the division's joint third-highest goalscorers. A tie on the weekend would be sufficient for him to attain the 100-point mark in fewer games than any manager in the club's past (46). Consider what his offense will do when it does settle. Liverpool are still a team of supreme individual quality, capable of sparking and reeling in any rival for the championship, but unity is absent. This cannot be pinned on the recent arrivals by themselves.

Personal and Collective Issues

The player is not the sole established member to experience a drop-off, with the midfielder working his way back to form and the defender laboring. But he ends up at the core of the turmoil that has lately affected the club. That goes to a personal level, with his grief over the passing of Jota obvious on that heartfelt season opener against Bournemouth. The effect of Jota's death can neither be measured nor ignored.

Strategic Shifts

In the prior campaign, he