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It's been some time, but the Egyptian star reappeared taking on the starring role last week with a double in Casablanca that secured Egypt's place at the 2026 World Cup. The key player claiming the spotlight yet again. Liverpool must have him to stay there.

Factors for Inconsistent Performances

There exist many factors why inconsistent, unimpressive performances have been the common thread running through the team's beginning to their league defense, if they produced seven straight victories or, prior to the Red Devils' arrival to Liverpool's home ground on the weekend, three losses in a row. The turmoil from numerous summer changes, Arne Slot's quest for his best XI, the late forward's passing; the winger has experienced the impact of them all during his atypically subdued start to the season.

The Weekend's Key Fixture

Sunday's key fixture could offer the spark for the origin of a impressive 16 scores in 17 appearances for the club against Manchester United, who are paying their 100th visit to Anfield and have not won at their fierce rivals for more than nine years. The attacker will pose the manager with a further unforeseen dilemma, though, should he continue lost in the upheaval indefinitely.

Recent Performance

Liverpool's head coach likely recognized the irony of Salah's opening strike against the opponent last Wednesday. Swept directly with the outside of his stronger foot into the close post, Salah's eighth score of the national team's World Cup qualifying campaign was from an almost identical location to his big mistake against Chelsea prior to the break for internationals.

If that right-foot effort been converted moments after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would even now be praising Florian Wirtz's maiden sublime setup in the English top flight. Inquests into Salah's decline and Liverpool's unusual losing streak might also have been avoided. Rather, Wirtz's wait continues while the coach stews over a third defeat away, two inflicted by late goals and one the outcome of a disputed penalty. Fine lines, as he repeated on recently, but they cannot hide bigger issues.

Previous Campaign's Influence

Salah was instrumental in pushing Liverpool towards a historic 20th crown the prior campaign while doubt over his long-term plans lingered in the background. “We brought almost the utmost out of Mo that campaign,” said Slot when his leading striker signed a new two‑year contract in April. We have seen a clear decline on an individual and collective level since. The lineup, not the terms of a deal, are accountable.

Statistical Decrease

The 33-year-old's output in terms of goals and assists is down half on the same stage the prior campaign, from a total 8 in the first seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (a pair of goals and two assists) the current campaign. His number of attempts has fallen from twenty-two to twelve while accurate shots have declined from 15 to five, leading to a significant drop in shot accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6 percent, data show.

A particular skill that has held more steady is his creativity. With 12 opportunities made, compared with 14 at the comparable period of the previous season, his stats stay among the finest in the continent and up in the ranks of young talents and Arda Güler, his younger counterparts by 15 and 13 years each.

Collective Output

Measures of collective output will trouble the coach additionally. He had seventy-six touches in the opposition box in the first seven matches of the prior campaign. The current campaign's tally is 39. The stats are reflective of the squad's issues as a whole. Just United and Arsenal have tried more attempts on goal than Liverpool in the current term, but Liverpool's proportion of attempts from inside the six-yard box is the smallest in the division, their share from distance among the top. The club's percentage of shots on target – 28.4% – is also among the lowest in the league.

During the initial phase of the previous campaign we primarily scored from an individual brilliance from an attacker and in the later stage it was mostly from a free-kick or corner,” Slot said. “Now we have not seen as many moments of genius and we have not found the net from dead balls. But we are nonetheless the side that from open play produces the most xG chances.”

New Signings

They aren't hurting opponents in the manner Slot imagined when Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were acquired in the offseason, though the team stay the division's joint third-highest goalscorers. A tie on the weekend would be sufficient for Slot to achieve the century of points in fewer games than any boss in the club's history (forty-six). Consider what his offense will do when it finally gels. Liverpool remain a team of supreme individual quality, able to starting and chasing any opponent for the championship, but cohesion is absent. That cannot be attributed on the new signings alone.

Individual and Collective Problems

The player is not the sole key member to suffer a dip, with Alexis Mac Allister regaining to fitness and the defender laboring. But he ends up at the heart of the turmoil that has of late affected Liverpool. This applies to a individual level, with his sorrow over the passing of Jota clear on that emotional first game against Bournemouth. The influence of Jota's loss can not be quantified nor ignored.

Tactical Changes

Previously, he