🔗 Share this article

It has been a while, but Mohamed Salah reappeared playing the main part last week with a double in Casablanca that confirmed the Egyptian team's spot at the global tournament. The star claiming the spotlight once more. Liverpool must have him to keep that position.

Reasons for Variable Displays

We see many reasons why unsteady, unconvincing showings have been the common thread defining Liverpool's start to their title defence, whether they produced a winning streak or, prior to the Red Devils' visit to Liverpool's home ground on the weekend, three consecutive defeats. The disruption from multiple offseason moves, the coach's hunt for his best XI, Diogo Jota's loss; Salah has felt the effect of them all during his unusually quiet start to the term.

The Weekend's Key Fixture

Sunday's key fixture could provide the spark for the origin of a impressive 16 strikes in 17 appearances for Liverpool against Manchester United, who are making their 100th visit to the stadium and have not triumphed at their archrivals for over nine years. The attacker will present the manager with an additional surprise issue, however, should he remain lost in the turmoil much longer.

Recent Form

Liverpool's head coach must have recognized the paradox of Salah's first goal against Djibouti last Wednesday. Drilled directly with the outside of his left foot into the close post, Salah's eighth goal of the national team's qualification run came from an very similar spot to his expensive error in the Chelsea match prior to the international break.

Had that right-foot effort been converted shortly after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would even now be celebrating the new signing's first superb setup in the English top flight. Discussions into his drop and the team's infrequent losing streak might also have been delayed. Instead, Wirtz's wait persists while Slot broods over a third loss on the road, a couple due to last-minute winners and another the result of a controversial spot-kick. Narrow differences, as Slot repeated on Friday, but they do not camouflage larger problems.

Previous Campaign's Contribution

Salah was instrumental in driving Liverpool towards a historic 20th championship the previous term while speculation over his career lingered in the background. “We brought nearly the best out of Salah last term,” said the manager when his top scorer signed a new two‑year contract in April. There has been a clear decline on an personal and team level since. The team, not the terms of a contract, are to blame.

Performance Drop

His production in terms of scores and assists is lower half on the same stage the previous term, from a combined 8 in the initial seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (two goals and two assists) this term. His tally of shots has dropped from 22 to 12 while accurate shots have declined from fifteen to five, causing a steep decline in conversion rate (excluding blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6 percent, data show.

One attribute that has held more steady is his chance creation. With twelve chances created, compared with fourteen at the same stage of last term, his figures remain among the best in the continent and up in the group of young talents and Arda Güler, his younger counterparts by fifteen and 13 years respectively.

Team Output

Metrics of team performance will worry Slot more. He had 76 touches in the opposition penalty area in the initial seven matches of the prior campaign. This season's total is 39. The numbers are symptomatic of the team's difficulties as a whole. Just Manchester United and Arsenal have tried more attempts on goal than them in the current term, but the team's rate of attempts from within the goal area is the smallest in the Premier League, their percentage from distance among the highest. The club's proportion of accurate shots – 28.4% – is as well among the weakest in the league.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we mainly scored from a special moment from a forward and in the later stage it was mostly from a set piece,” the manager said. “Now we lack as many moments of genius and we have not found the net from dead balls. But we are still the team that from open play produces the most expected goals opportunities.”

Recent Additions

They aren't hurting opponents in the way the coach planned when Wirtz, Hugo Ekitiké and the Swedish striker were brought on board in the offseason, while Liverpool remain the division's third-best scorers. A tie on Sunday would be sufficient for Slot to achieve the 100-point total in fewer games than any coach in the club's past (46). Consider what his forward line will do when it does settle. Liverpool are still a team of exceptional individual quality, able to sparking and catching any opponent for the championship, but cohesion is absent. This cannot be pinned on the new signings by themselves.

Personal and Team Issues

Salah is not the only established player to suffer a decline, with the midfielder working his way back to fitness and Ibrahima Konaté struggling. But he ends up at the core of the upheaval that has lately affected the club. This goes to a personal level, with Salah's sorrow over the passing of Jota evident on that emotional first game against Bournemouth. The effect of his tragedy can not be assessed nor dismissed.

Tactical Adjustments

Last season, he