Salah’s sublime strike sets up Pool’s fourth win in succession as Klopp hails his heroes

THERE is only one place to start. To begin anywhere else would be risible, given the glorious way Mohamed Salah changed the course of this game.

In the 31 minutes before Salah’s opening goal, the action had been largely forgettable. There were some signs of promise but for all that Liverpool pressed, Southampton held firm. The indication was that the locals would be in for one of those restless, frustrating afternoons.

But then, Dusan Tadic dithered on the edge of his own area after Virgil van Dijk had headed clear a corner. Roberto Firmino picked his pocket, Ragnar Klavan found Gini Wijnaldum and he, in turn, rolled a pass to Salah, who was loitering, 24 yards out.

‘It wasn’t even a chance,’ Jurgen Klopp said, to emphasise the improbability of the position.

Liverpool’s manager was right. A forest of bodies in front of him, an improbable angle but, still, the Egyptian took aim and swept a quite magnificent shot beyond Fraser Forster, one that was destined for the top corner as soon as it left his boot.

It was a special moment conjured by an increasingly special player. There was a consensus when Liverpool smashed their transfer record in June that they had wildly overspent on a player whose previous experience of the Premier League four years ago had been instantly forgettable at Chelsea.

Five months on, it seems the £38million they paid to AS Roma is resembling a bargain. Once again Salah was Liverpool’s key man and, as it turned out, he carved a niche for himself in the club’s record books too in the space of 10 thrilling first-half minutes.

Such has been the rapid start he has made to life at Liverpool, Salah has scored nine times in his first 12 Premier League appearances for the club, a figure better than those modern striking doyens Robbie Fowler, Fernando Torres and Luis Suarez. The tally for all competitions is 14 in 18 matches.

In common with those three, Salah has the ability to transform matches and it looks increasingly like he is turning the course of Liverpool’s campaign, too. Klopp’s side are clicking into gear and Southampton simply could not contain them.

‘You need these moments,’ said Klopp. ‘We have not had them too often this season. We all know what it has been like after 50, 60 minutes here this season (without a goal). You need these goals and thank God we scored them. That makes all the difference.’

This was Liverpool’s fourth consecutive win in all competitions, a fine response to the calamity they endured against Spurs four weeks ago, but what impressed most about this latest success was the manner in which they shut Southampton down once Salah had waved his magic wand.

His second goal was not as spectacular but it gave Liverpool an advantage they were never likely to relinquish and it was dispatched with the confidence of someone who is at the peak of his powers, lifted over Forster after Philippe Coutinho had split Southampton’s defence in two.

‘Fantastic play,’ Klopp beamed. ‘What a pass. I’m pretty sure Phil has played a few passes like this in his life but it is not often you get it in the box and someone is not offside. That is quite rare I would say. So, yeah. Nice goal!’

Mauricio Pellegrino, Southampton’s manager, regularly stood on the touchline with his arms folded tightly, trying to stop the red tide that was washing over them but had no way of halting the scintillating runs of Salah (left), Sadio Mane and Firmino.

‘The second goal made the real difference,’ said Pellegrino, who finds himself in the spotlight after a run of one win in seven games. ‘We changed some players, changed our style but we never created a chance to get back into the game. It is not good news for us. This is a difficult moment.’

Klopp was able to take off Salah and Mane with a quarter of the game remaining, to save their legs for Tuesday’s assignment in Seville when they will look to reach the Champions League’s knockout phase.

Southampton’s sole intention after Coutinho had put a realistic look on the scoreline was not conceding any more but it was as much to do with Liverpool easing off as it was the visitors digging in. In the final 20 minutes Liverpool’s thoughts had turned to Spain. Europe is what invigorates Liverpool but they are making progress domestically again and are only a point behind Tottenham. They also have the division’s leading marksman in Salah.

He left the field to a thunderous ovation and was wrapped in a bear hug by Klopp.