beINSPORTS presenter Richard Keys has blasted Mohamed Salah following a torrid run of form.
The Egyptian has started every game for Liverpool this season but was substituted for the first time in the Premier League after a poor showing at the weekend.
Salah has hit at least 19 league goals in each of his five prior seasons on Merseyside, but he has looked a shadow of that player this term.
He has failed to find the net domestically since August, and after being taken off for just the 14th time by Jurgen Klopp in the top flight, Keys has been left to wonder whether he may be reduced to the bench.
Writing in his blog, he said:
“What on earth has happened to Liverpool? It’s deeper than a sulking Salah being way off the mark. He couldn’t kick a steady a*** right now. Why? I could understand a slow start if he’d got better. But he hasn’t. And we haven’t seen anything from him since the Africa Cup of Nations. Nothing. Klopp took him off Sunday – I wonder if he’ll consider not starting him in the next league game?”
TIF Thoughts on Salah and Liverpool…
Should Klopp drop Salah?
Yes!
No!
Considering Luis Diaz is set for a prolonged spell on the sidelines, Salah’s place in the side is likely assured – but something clearly isn’t right with the Reds’ talisman.
Graeme Souness has previously claimed that he is potentially in the armchair having signed a bumper contract keeping him at the club until 2025.
It is certainly an interesting theory, while according to FBref, the underlying numbers would seem to suggest that his impact has waned.
His goals-per-90-minutes ratio in the league has dropped from 0.75 to 0.26, and it is perhaps no surprise that what is arguably Salah’s worst spell in a Liverpool shirt directly correlates with the club’s worst Premier League start for a decade.