Klopp concern over struggling star Salah
IT WAS always going to be difficult, if not near-impossible, for Mohamed Salah to emulate the remarkable achievements of last season. And so it is proving. He went on an incredible run in October and November and since December 30 he has scored 20 goals in 16 games at Anfield – and he has scored in Liverpool’s last three home games. But he looks out of sorts. He just doesn’t look at it.
But if you look at his career stats, it looks like last season was a freak event. He scored more home goals than any player in Europe, for example, which shows the level of his performances and his impact on Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool.
We can all see he is not in form at the moment and the little things that were going for him last year – the ricochets, dribbles, instant unstoppable finishes in one-on-ones – are just not happening.
But it is not just the goals that have dropped off. He has not been as effective in open play and in creating chances for others. His overall contribution is not at the same level, which is why he has been substituted by Klopp in numerous games. You don’t get substituted if you are a goal threat.
It is still early days, we are only 10 games in, but if he is still struggling for form, goals and assists by Christmas, then that will be a serious worry.
Despite his demeanour and overall contribution, you wouldn’t bet against Salah making a return to form against Manchester City at Anfield today. He certainly has a great record in this fixture.
With the two wonderful Champions League games still fresh in the memory, plus Liverpool’s 4-3 win and City’s 5-0 thrashing in the Premier League clashes, this promises to be another classic.
Today’s game is between two brilliant teams at the top of their game, with match-winners all over the pitch and strong benches, demonstrated by Daniel Sturridge’s late goal at Chelsea last week.
Aside, of course, from David Silva and Sergio Aguero, who both look as sharp as ever, a couple of Manchester City players have caught the eye.
In Kevin de Bruyne’s absence, Bernardo Silva has dropped deep and been the standout player from the performances I have seen.
Although not in de Bruyne’s class, he has gone to the next level with a full pre-season under his belt with Pep Guardiola. When David Silva eventually goes, he has all the attributes to fill that considerable void full time.
Raheem Sterling has four Premier League goals and has been very good, creating as well as scoring. He is still going to make mistakes and you can never totally rely on him to score when he is in goalscoring positions, but he is still very good at what he does.
With Sterling, you have a player who is fully in-sync with his manager and what he wants. He did struggle for consistency in the early stages of Guardiola’s reign, even though his goalscoring record was not that bad.
In his first season at City, he scored 11 goals but he was always questioned because of the size of his fee but he was still a kid back then. He scored 10 goals in the next season under Guardiola and last season scored 23 with 13 assists so he has contributed in virtually every game.
It is easy to look at Sterling’s faults but so many of his attributes are overlooked. He is still only 23 and maturing. He is not the most natural of finishers, nor is he a technical player who can strike the ball sweetly and can ping a pass effortlessly 40 yards. His game is about cleverness and that has definitely developed with guidance from the City boss.
He is never going to be at the Messi or Hazard level but he is very effective and certainly plays a key role for City. He didn’t have a great World Cup. Things didn’t quite go for him in Russia but he looks more comfortable in a Guardiola side. Maybe the manager’s messages are starting to sink in.
The suggestion is City are not firing on all cylinders yet but realistically, they lost at home to Lyon in the Champions League, drew at Wolves and won every other game. So it has not been a bad start.
Liverpool were a couple of minutes from pulling off a very good goalless draw in Napoli. If they had held out, we would have acknowledged a Klopp side grinding a result out, but it didn’t work out and all that falls on deaf ears. We will see a very different Liverpool at Anfield today.
Based on the games at the end of last season, and the upper hand and dominance Liverpool had in longer spells in all three, I think Liverpool will win. Although I am not 100 per cent convinced.