🔗 Share this article

It's been a while, but Liverpool's forward reappeared playing the main part in recent days with two goals in Morocco that confirmed Egypt's place at the global tournament. The main man taking the spotlight yet again. Liverpool must have him to stay there.

Factors for Unsteady Displays

We see several factors why unsteady, unconvincing performances have been the common thread defining Liverpool's beginning to their league defense, whether they produced a winning streak or, before Manchester United's trip to Liverpool's home ground on Sunday, a losing run. The turmoil from numerous summer changes, Arne Slot's search for his top team, the late forward's tragic death; Salah has endured the consequences of them all during his atypically subdued beginning to the term.

The Weekend's Key Fixture

The weekend's key fixture could deliver the spark for the source of a impressive 16 goals in 17 appearances for the club against United, who are making their 100th visit to the stadium and have not triumphed at their biggest foes for almost a decade. The attacker will present the manager with an additional unexpected problem, however, should he continue lost in the disruption indefinitely.

Current Form

The team's head coach likely recognized the irony of Salah's initial score against Djibouti last Wednesday. Struck first time with the exterior of his stronger foot inside the close post, his eighth goal of Egypt's qualification run originated from an almost identical spot to his expensive error against Chelsea before the break for internationals.

If that right-foot effort been finished shortly after the resumption at Stamford Bridge we would even now be praising the new signing's first superb setup in the league. Analyses into Salah's drop and Liverpool's unusual losing streak might as well have been avoided. Instead, Wirtz's wait persists while Slot fumes over a third consecutive defeat away, two caused by dying-minute strikes and another the outcome of a disputed penalty. Fine lines, as he repeated on recently, but they do not camouflage underlying concerns.

Previous Campaign's Influence

Salah was crucial in propelling the side towards a record-equalling 20th championship the previous term while doubt over his future lingered in the background. “We brought nearly the best out of Salah that campaign,” said the manager when his leading striker signed a fresh deal in the spring. We have seen a noticeable decline on an personal and collective level from then. The team, not the terms of a contract, are responsible.

Performance Decrease

His contribution in terms of scores and assists is down 50% on the same point the previous term, from a total eight in the first seven league games of 2024-25 to 4 (a pair of goals and two assists) the current campaign. The count of shots has dropped from twenty-two to 12 while accurate shots have fallen from fifteen to five, leading to a steep drop in shooting accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6 percent, figures show.

One attribute that has remained consistent is Salah's playmaking. With twelve key passes, versus 14 at the same stage of last term, his numbers stay among the best in the continent and comparable in the group of young talents and Arda Güler, his younger counterparts by fifteen and 13 years respectively.

Team Performance

Indicators of team performance will concern Slot more. Salah had seventy-six touches in the opposition box in the initial seven matches of the prior campaign. This term's tally is 39. The numbers are symptomatic of the team's problems overall. Only United and Arsenal have attempted more attempts on goal than them now, but the team's proportion of attempts from within the six-yard box is the lowest in the Premier League, their percentage from long range among the highest. Liverpool's rate of shots on target – 28.4% – is also among the lowest in the league.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we mainly found the net from a moment of magic from an attacker and in the second half it was more from a dead ball,” the manager said. “Currently we have not seen as many sparks of quality and we haven’t scored from set pieces. But we are nonetheless the team that from live action produces the most expected goals opportunities.”

Summer Arrivals

They are not hurting rivals in the fashion Slot envisaged when Wirtz, the French forward and Alexander Isak were acquired recently, while the team are the division's third-best goalscorers. A tie on the weekend would be sufficient for him to reach the 100-point mark in fewer games than any manager in the club's history (forty-six). Imagine what his attack will do when it clicks. The side are still a team of supreme skill, able to sparking and reeling in any rival for the championship, but synergy is lacking. This cannot be blamed on the recent arrivals by themselves.

Individual and Team Problems

Salah is not the sole established member to experience a decline, with Alexis Mac Allister working his way back to fitness and Ibrahima Konaté struggling. But he ends up at the core of the disruption that has lately engulfed Liverpool. That applies to a personal level, with Salah's grief over the death of Jota obvious on that poignant first game against Bournemouth. The impact of his tragedy can not be assessed nor overlooked.

Tactical Changes

Last season, he