🔗 Share this article

It's been some time, but the Egyptian star was back taking on the starring role recently with a brace in Casablanca that confirmed the Egyptian team's position at the global tournament. The main man taking the limelight another time. Liverpool must have him to stay there.

Causes for Unsteady Performances

There are several reasons why inconsistent, lackluster performances have been the recurring theme running through Liverpool's start to their title defence, whether they achieved seven wins in a row or, prior to Manchester United's trip to Liverpool's home ground on the weekend, three consecutive defeats. The upheaval from numerous offseason moves, the coach's hunt for his top team, Diogo Jota's tragic death; the winger has experienced the impact of them all during his uncharacteristically subdued opening to the term.

Sunday's Key Fixture

The weekend's showpiece occasion could provide the spark for the source of a impressive 16 goals in 17 games for the club against United, who are making their 100th visit to Anfield and have not succeeded at their fierce rivals for almost a decade. The attacker will create the manager with an additional unforeseen dilemma, yet, if he remain lost in the upheaval for an extended period.

Current Display

Liverpool's boss likely noticed the irony of Salah's first goal against the opponent recently. Drilled directly with the exterior of his stronger foot into the near post, his eighth goal of Egypt's qualifying effort originated from an nearly the same location to his costly miss against Chelsea before the national team pause.

If that attempt been converted moments after the restart at Stamford Bridge we would still be celebrating the new signing's maiden excellent pass in the English top flight. Discussions into Salah's dip and the team's unusual losing streak might as well have been avoided. Instead, the midfielder's search goes on while Slot fumes over a third away defeat, two due to dying-minute strikes and one the result of a debatable penalty. Small margins, as Slot reiterated on Friday, but they do not camouflage bigger issues.

Last Season's Influence

Salah was instrumental in pushing Liverpool towards a tying 20th crown the previous term while speculation over his long-term plans persisted in the background. We achieved nearly the best out of Salah last term,” said Slot when his top scorer signed a new two‑year contract in the spring. There has been a noticeable decline on an individual and team level since. The team, not the details of a deal, are responsible.

Performance Drop

The 33-year-old's production in terms of scores and setups is down half on the same point the prior campaign, from a combined 8 in the initial seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (a pair of goals and two assists) this season. His number of shots has dropped from twenty-two to 12 while accurate shots have fallen from fifteen to 5, causing a significant drop in shooting accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6%, figures show.

A particular skill that has stayed stable is Salah's creativity. With twelve chances created, versus fourteen at the same stage of last term, his numbers are among the finest in the continent and comparable in the ranks of young talents and Arda Güler, his juniors by 15 and thirteen years respectively.

Team Output

Metrics of team display will trouble Slot further. He had 76 contacts in the opposition penalty area in the opening seven fixtures of the previous term. This term's count is thirty-nine. These figures are indicative of the squad's difficulties overall. Only Manchester United and the Gunners have attempted more shots on goal than Liverpool in the current term, but the team's rate of attempts from within the six-yard box is the smallest in the division, their percentage from outside the area among the highest. The club's proportion of shots on target – 28.4 percent – is also among the poorest in the league.

During the initial phase of last season we mainly scored from a moment of magic from an attacker and in the later stage it was more from a set piece,” Slot said. “Currently we have not seen as many sparks of quality and we haven’t scored from dead balls. But we are nonetheless the team that from open play creates the highest quality opportunities.”

New Signings

They are not beating opponents in the fashion Slot planned when Wirtz, the French forward and Alexander Isak were acquired in the offseason, though Liverpool stay the league's joint third-highest goalscorers. A draw on Sunday would be sufficient for him to reach the 100-point mark in fewer games than any coach in Liverpool's history (forty-six). Consider what his attack will do when it does settle. Liverpool are still a team of outstanding skill, capable of sparking and chasing any opponent for the title, but unity is missing. That cannot be attributed on the new signings only.

Personal and Team Problems

The player is not the only senior member to suffer a decline, with the midfielder regaining to match sharpness and the defender laboring. But he is at the core of the disruption that has lately enveloped the club. That goes to a personal level, with Salah's sadness over the loss of Jota clear on that emotional season opener against the Cherries. The impact of Jota's death can neither be measured nor dismissed.

Strategic Changes

Last season, he