🔗 Share this article

It's been some time, but Liverpool's forward was back playing the starring role in recent days with two goals in Casablanca that sealed the Egyptian team's place at the 2026 World Cup. The main man taking the spotlight once more. The Merseyside club must have him to keep that position.

Reasons for Unsteady Performances

There exist numerous factors why unsteady, unimpressive showings have been the recurring theme defining the team's opening to their title defence, whether they recorded seven straight victories or, prior to the Red Devils' visit to Anfield on Sunday, three consecutive defeats. The disruption from so many new signings, the coach's hunt for his best XI, Diogo Jota's passing; the winger has experienced the consequences of them all during his uncharacteristically subdued beginning to the campaign.

Sunday's Big Match

The weekend's showpiece occasion could offer the impetus for the source of a impressive 16 strikes in 17 games for Liverpool against Manchester United, who are making their centenary trip to Anfield and have not succeeded at their biggest foes for over nine years. The attacker will pose the manager with a further unexpected problem, however, if he continue caught in the disruption much longer.

Current Form

Liverpool's manager must have noticed the irony of the player's opening strike against Djibouti last Wednesday. Swept first time with the outside of his left foot into the near post, Salah's eighth goal of Egypt's qualifying effort originated from an nearly the same position to his big mistake versus Chelsea prior to the national team pause.

Had that shot with his right been converted moments after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would even now be praising the new signing's maiden excellent pass in the league. Inquests into Salah's drop and Liverpool's rare defeat streak might also have been postponed. Instead, Wirtz's search persists while the coach fumes over a third consecutive defeat away, two caused by dying-minute strikes and another the outcome of a debatable penalty. Narrow differences, as he reiterated on Friday, but they do not camouflage larger problems.

Previous Campaign's Influence

Salah was key in pushing Liverpool towards a record-equalling 20th league title the previous term while speculation over his future lingered in the backdrop. We achieved almost the maximum out of Mo that campaign,” said Slot when his leading striker signed an extension in April. We have seen a clear decrease on an personal and collective level since. The squad, not the details of a deal, are responsible.

Performance Decrease

The 33-year-old's output in terms of goals and assists is lower 50% on the same point last season, from a combined 8 in the opening seven league games of 2024-25 to four (a pair of goals and two assists) the current campaign. His number of shots has fallen from 22 to twelve while shots on target have dropped from fifteen to 5, leading to a sharp decline in shot accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6 percent, figures show.

A particular skill that has remained consistent is his chance creation. With 12 key passes, versus 14 at the comparable period of the previous season, his stats stay among the best in the continent and comparable in the company of young talents and Arda Güler, his younger counterparts by fifteen and 13 years respectively.

Team Display

Measures of collective output will concern the coach more. He had 76 contacts in the enemy box in the first seven fixtures of last season. This season's tally is 39. These figures are symptomatic of the squad's problems overall. Just Manchester United and the Gunners have taken a greater number of attempts on goal than Liverpool in the current term, but the team's proportion of attempts from inside the six-yard box is the lowest in the Premier League, their share from long range among the greatest. Liverpool's percentage of efforts on goal – 28.4% – is also among the weakest in the league.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we primarily found the net from a special moment from one of our front three and in the later stage it was more from a set piece,” the manager said. “Now we haven’t had as many sparks of quality and we have not found the net from set pieces. But we are still the team that from general play generates the most expected goals opportunities.”

New Signings

They aren't punishing rivals in the manner Slot planned when Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitiké and Alexander Isak were brought on board this summer, though the team remain the division's equal third-top goalscorers. A tie on Sunday would be enough for Slot to achieve the century of points in less games than any coach in the club's history (46). Think what his forward line will do when it does settle. The side remain a team of supreme skill, capable of igniting and catching any rival for the title, but cohesion is missing. That cannot be pinned on the summer recruits only.

Individual and Collective Issues

The player is not the sole key player to suffer a drop-off, with Alexis Mac Allister regaining to form and Ibrahima Konaté laboring. But he is at the center of the turmoil that has recently enveloped Liverpool. This goes to a individual level, with Salah's sadness over the passing of Jota obvious on that heartfelt opening night against the Cherries. The effect of Jota's loss can neither be quantified nor overlooked.

Strategic Adjustments

In the prior campaign, he