‘Super smart’ Salah outwits his hosts as Liverpool find form
Klopp full of praise as Egyptian striker ends barren run in style with double
JURGEN KLOPP saluted Mohamed Salah for the “super smart” strike which ended his barren run and put Liverpool on their way to victory at West Ham.
Salah had gone six Premier League matches without a goal, equalling his longest goal drought for the Reds.
But there was to be no seventh successive blank as Salah returned to form with two exquisite second-half finishes in a valuable win at the London Stadium.
Salah made the breakthrough in the 57th minute after substitute Curtis Jones found him lurking on the right of the area. The Egyptian striker wrapped his left foot around the ball, sending it looping over Hammers goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski and curling into the back of the net.
Eleven minutes later Liverpool, and Salah, struck again with a lightning counter from a West Ham corner. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s 60-yard pass found Xherdan Shaqiri, who sprayed the ball back into the path of Salah to control and tuck away.
Reds boss Klopp said: “He scored against Tottenham but it was disallowed, but it was a good sign for him that a couple of things are clicking. Tonight he played a super game, his passing was good and the controlling of the game was good.
“The first goal is a super smart goal. I think Fabianski couldn’t see the ball, it was crowded and he just lifted it.
“The second goal, what a counter attack! Two passes until Mo got the ball, first touch world class and a nice finish. Top game and top goals.”
It was West Ham who possessed the in-form striker going into the match and Michail Antonio must have been relishing the prospect of running at Liverpool’s latest makeshift defensive pairing of Jordan Henderson and Nat Phillips.
But Antonio spurned a glorious chance to make it three goals in four games, curling the ball inches wide moments before Salah struck.
Georginio Wijnaldum added a third for the champions before Craig Dawson’s late consolation.
It was not just Liverpool’s defence that was patched up. With Sadio Mane out with a muscle injury and Roberto Firmino starting on the bench, Divock Origi and Shaqiri joined Salah in attack.
West Ham dealt with all three during a first half in which Liverpool had 70 per cent possession but precious little to show for it.
Salah did well to hold the ball up in the West Ham area before laying it off to Shaqiri, whose drive was bravely
blocked by Dawson.
As half time approached Thiago found Origi bearing down on goal but the forward could only poke the ball wide, before Fabianski held Salah’s low drive from the edge of the area – Liverpool’s first shot on target.
For West Ham, Said Benrahma had an early chance to open his account from Aaron
Cresswell’s cut-back but his shot was blocked, as was the follow-up from Pablo Fornals.
Then Benrahma lofted a cross towards the far post but Antonio could only place his header into the arms of Reds keeper Alisson Becker.
After the break Salah looked primed to score when Origi got to the byline and pulled the ball back, but Cresswell came up with a crucial block.
Antonio’s big chance arrived in the 55th minute when
Jarrod Bowen crossed from the right, the 30-year-old taking a touch to steady himself before curling his shot inches wide.
Instead it was Salah who made the breakthrough. Liverpool grabbed a third when substitutes Firmino and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain combined to set up Wijnaldum for a tap-in, before Dawson struck from a corner with three minutes to go.
A win would have taken West Ham above Liverpool into fourth, but they found out they have a long way to go before they can seriously think about breaking into the top four.
Boss David Moyes said: “I thought we competed as well as we could, but we didn’t play as well as we could. We tried to compete but they were just too strong for us today.
“Liverpool are not one of the teams we are challenging. Their consistency will be much greater. They played better than us so we’ve got no complaints.”