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It's been a period, but Mohamed Salah reappeared playing the main part in recent days with two goals in Casablanca that secured the Egyptian team's position at the global tournament. The main man stepping on the limelight another time. Liverpool must have him to remain there.

Causes for Inconsistent Performances

There are many factors why inconsistent, unimpressive performances have been the recurring theme defining the team's start to their league defense, if they produced a winning streak or, prior to Manchester United's trip to Anfield on Sunday, three losses in a row. The disruption from numerous offseason moves, the coach's quest for his ideal lineup, Diogo Jota's loss; Salah has experienced the impact of them all during his atypically subdued opening to the term.

Sunday's Showpiece Occasion

Sunday's key fixture could offer the impetus for the cause of a impressive 16 goals in 17 games for the club against United, who are paying their centenary trip to the stadium and have not won at their archrivals for more than nine years. The attacker will pose Slot with a further unforeseen dilemma, however, if he stay lost in the disruption for an extended period.

Recent Performance

The team's boss must have noticed the paradox of the player's opening strike against Djibouti last Wednesday. Struck directly with the outside of his left foot inside the near post, Salah's eighth goal of the national team's qualification run was from an almost identical position to his costly miss in the Chelsea match before the break for internationals.

If that attempt been converted moments after the resumption at Chelsea's ground we would still be eulogising Florian Wirtz's maiden sublime setup in the Premier League. Inquests into his drop and Liverpool's unusual losing run might as well have been postponed. Instead, the midfielder's search continues while the coach stews over a third consecutive defeat away, two due to dying-minute strikes and another the outcome of a debatable penalty. Fine lines, as he repeated on recently, but they do not mask bigger issues.

Last Season's Influence

Salah was key in driving Liverpool towards a historic 20th league title the previous term while speculation over his future persisted in the background. We extracted almost the utmost out of Mo this season,” said Slot when his main attacker signed a fresh deal in April. There has been a noticeable drop-off on an personal and team level from then. The team, not the terms of a contract, are accountable.

Statistical Decline

His output in terms of goals and assists is down 50% on the corresponding point the prior campaign, from a total 8 in the first seven matches of 2024-25 to four (two goals and a couple of assists) this term. His tally of shots has dropped from twenty-two to twelve while efforts on goal have declined from 15 to five, contributing to a sharp fall in conversion rate (excluding blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6 percent, statistics show.

A single trait that has remained consistent is Salah's chance creation. With twelve key passes, compared with 14 at the comparable period of last campaign, his figures stay among the top in the continent and comparable in the ranks of young talents and Arda Güler, his juniors by 15 and thirteen years respectively.

Collective Output

Indicators of collective output will concern Slot further. He had 76 touches in the opposition box in the initial seven matches of the prior campaign. This term's count is 39. The stats are symptomatic of the team's problems in general. Only 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 goal area is the poorest in the division, their share from outside the area among the highest. The club's percentage of accurate shots – 28.4% – is also among the poorest in the league.

“In the first half of last season we mainly found the net from a moment of magic from an attacker and in the second half it was mostly from a free-kick or corner,” the manager said. “Currently we lack as many acts of brilliance and we haven’t scored from set pieces. But we are still the side that from live action produces the highest expected goals opportunities.”

Summer Arrivals

They aren't hurting rivals in the fashion the coach envisaged when Florian Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were signed recently, though Liverpool remain the league's joint third-highest goalscorers. A draw on Sunday would be sufficient for him to reach the century of points in fewer games than any boss in Liverpool's history (46). Think what his attack will do when it does settle. Liverpool remain a team of outstanding individual quality, equipped to sparking and catching any rival for the title, but synergy is absent. This can not be blamed on the recent arrivals only.

Individual and Collective Problems

The player is not the only established player to experience a decline, with the midfielder returning to form and the defender struggling. But he is at the center of the upheaval that has lately engulfed Liverpool. This goes to a individual level, with his sadness over the loss of Diogo Jota evident on that poignant season opener against Bournemouth. The impact of his death can not be quantified nor overlooked.

Tactical Changes

Previously, he