WHO’S BETTER THAN SALAH? MOBODY!
Klopp leaps to defence of his ace
WOLVES v LIVERPOOL
MO SALAH stands on the verge of writing his name in Anfield scoring legend alongside the greatest Liverpool strikers of all time.
Yet despite outpacing the exploits of even Ian Rush and Roger Hunt, the forward hailed as the Egyptian King finds himself questioned by elements of a Reds fanbase incensed by their team’s collapse this season.
Some have even wondered whether it was right to give the 30-year-old a lucrative new contract, thought to be in excess of £350,000 a week, as his finishing form has dipped this term.
Salah needs one goal today to set a record in Anfield history that many considered was unbreakable and rise to the very top of the list of the all-time greats at the club.
He will make his 200th league appearance for Liverpool at Wolves, and the most goals scored at that stage for the club is 126, recorded by the legendary Gordon
Hodgson. Behind him come World Cup winner Hunt and alltime leading scorer Rush (below), the two widely regarded as the best there ever was.
Salah, though, is on 125, and two goals at Wolves would put him past the three kings of Anfield strikers. According to manager Jurgen Klopp, that makes him untouchable as an all-time great.
“Mo has broken a lot of Liverpool scoring records, so hopefully he can do this one as well,” said Klopp
“He is a world-class athlete, attitude is really not Mo’s problem. He is the first in and last out, and trains so hard. Now he is not scoring, there is criticism of his contract – but I think there are people out there who say, ‘Why did they give Klopp a new contract?’.
“This is the world we live in. When we don’t deliver in moments there is criticism, that is no problem. You have the right to question when we are not delivering.
“But you cannot score the goals Mo has scored if you are not world class.” And Klopp believes it’s laughable to suggest the new, long-term contract is the reason behind his fall-off this season.
He has scored 17 goals in total for Liverpool so far, but only seven in the Premier League. Boss Klopp said: “Even when you are world class, you can’t do that constantly.
“Of course there are moments when he would have scored last year. You think that is something to do with a new contract? It’s just not right!”
A goal would equal Hodgson’s record, and move closer to Robbie Fowler on the all-time scoring charts. Salah currently has 173 goals in total, 10 goals behind the Toxteth legend in sixth, and 13 behind Steven Gerrard in fifth.
The top three are Rush on 346, Hunt 285, and Hodgson 241. But Salah (0.61) has a better goalsper-game record than the top two (Rush 0.52, Hunt 0.57), and is just a fraction behind Hodgson (0.63).
A record today would place him amongst the best three in history, and Klopp added: “We can only stop all these questions by performing to our top, top level – and that is what we will do.”