James Pearce has dismissed claims that Mo Salah’s recent drop in form is the result of him signing an extraordinary new contract with Liverpool.
The Egyptian king was set to enter the final 12 months of his contract with the Reds earlier this summer and there was anxiety surrounding the situation for many involved with the club, especially with Sadio Mane leaving for Bayern Munich, but the former AS Roma man instead signed a new long-term contract.
Our No. 11 was silent once again during the Merseyside derby and has just two goals and two assists so far this season.
“For most of a chaotic derby, which somehow ended goalless, Salah remained parked on the right and largely on the periphery,” Pearce wrote while analyzing Salah’s start to the season for The Athletic. “This was not an isolated thing. It has been a recurring theme for the first month of the season.
“That is not a criticism of Salah and the idea that the 30-year-old has somehow calmed down thanks to an extraordinary salary increase is ridiculous. This is not Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or Mesut Ozil revised.
READ MORE: (Images) Liverpool murals that were defaced by some Everton supporters have been restored
“It’s more that Liverpool, who have only taken nine points out of a possible 18, are just not working effectively as a unit. The balance is not right and, tactically, they are not getting the best out of their most powerful attacking weapon.”
Pearce is right to point out that Salah has been on the ‘fringes’
Jurgen Klopp has dismissed claims that the Egypt international is now operating from a wider position, but it is clear for all to see that he has not made much of an impact from his usual central position so far this term.
VOTE for Empire of the Kop as Best Club Content Creator (Premier League) here: Football Content Awards Or on Twitter with the FCA’s one-click Twitter link with: Vote for @Empireofthekop on @The_FCAs for #BestClubContentCreator (Premier League) League)
It is not just Salah who has struggled to really get going this season, however, it is Klopp’s team as a whole.
The 30-year-old has often grabbed games by the back of the neck, but the spark doesn’t seem to be there at the moment.
We’re not worried and don’t think for a minute that Mo has ‘relaxed’ as a result of his new contract, but we need him to start shooting again soon.
We only have two wins from our first six games and at the moment it looks like we will be fighting for a top four spot rather than the Premier League title.
#Ep58 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Qualifying Liverpool’s UCL group, making a new signing… and more!
