Klopp hails talisman Salah’s impact on Reds
Egyptian striker’s scoring rate and pace prove too hot for Premier League foes
Liverpool – Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp has hailed striker Mohamed Salah’s early impact this season and said the player could shatter goal-scoring records if only he could maintain his blistering start to the campaign.
Salah, who signed for a reported £34-million (R627-million) from Roma in the off season, struck twice as Liverpool beat Southampton 3-0 in the English Premier League on Saturday and has scored 14 goals from 18 games in all competitions so far.
No player has scored more than 34 goals in a season, with Alan Shearer, for Blackburn Rovers, and Andy Cole, for Newcastle United, hitting the figure in the 1990s. Tottenham’s Harry Kane was top scorer last season with 29.
“If Salah continued at this rate, he would finish the season on something like 70 goals, which isn’t really likely,” Klopp said. He calls his fifth-placed team’s run of three straight wins in the league the “Mo Salah period”. Klopp said the Egyptian forward was a lot stronger in his second stint in England after an unproductive 12 months at defending champions Chelsea two-and-a-half years ago.
“Physically, he’s top fit. All the other boys liked him from the first day without him performing already. They knew they had a really good player in the squad.”
Liverpool take on Sevilla in the Champions League tonight and can qualify for the knockout phase with a game to spare. They host third-placed Chelsea in the league on Saturday.