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It's been some time, but Mohamed Salah reappeared assuming the main part last week with a brace in Casablanca that confirmed Egypt's spot at the global tournament. The main man claiming the limelight once more. Liverpool need him to stay there.

Factors for Unsteady Showings

We see several reasons why unsteady, lackluster showings have been the common thread defining the team's opening to their title defence, whether they recorded seven straight victories or, before Manchester United's trip to Liverpool's home ground on Sunday, a losing run. The upheaval from so many summer changes, Arne Slot's quest for his ideal lineup, the late forward's tragic death; Salah has endured the consequences of them all during his uncharacteristically quiet opening to the term.

Sunday's Key Fixture

Sunday's key fixture could offer the catalyst for the origin of a impressive 16 scores in 17 games for the club against Manchester United, who are making their centenary trip to the stadium and have not won at their archrivals for almost a decade. Salah will create Slot with an additional surprise issue, however, should he remain caught in the disruption much longer.

Latest Form

The team's boss likely seen the irony of Salah's first goal against Djibouti recently. Drilled directly with the outside of his stronger foot inside the close post, his eighth strike of the national team's World Cup qualifying campaign originated from an almost identical position to his expensive error in the Chelsea match prior to the national team pause.

Had that right-foot effort been scored shortly after the restart at Stamford Bridge we would still be praising the new signing's maiden superb pass in the league. Discussions into Salah's dip and the team's rare defeat streak might as well have been avoided. Rather, the midfielder's wait persists while Slot fumes over a third consecutive loss on the road, two due to last-minute winners and another the result of a controversial spot-kick. Small margins, as Slot emphasized on recently, but they do not camouflage bigger issues.

Previous Campaign's Contribution

The forward was key in pushing Liverpool towards a record-equalling 20th championship the previous term while uncertainty over his long-term plans persisted in the background. “We brought nearly the maximum out of Mo last term,” said the manager when his top scorer signed an extension in the spring. There has been a clear decline on an personal and collective level since. The lineup, not the terms of a deal, are to blame.

Performance Drop

His contribution in terms of scores and setups is down half on the same stage last season, from a total 8 in the first seven league games of 2024-25 to four (two goals and two assists) this term. His tally of attempts has decreased from 22 to twelve while efforts on goal have fallen from fifteen to five, contributing to a significant drop in shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6 percent, figures show.

A single trait that has stayed stable is Salah's chance creation. With twelve chances created, against fourteen at the same stage of the previous season, his numbers are among the best in the continent and up in the group of Lamine Yamal and Arda Güler, his juniors by fifteen and thirteen years each.

Collective Performance

Metrics of collective output will concern the coach more. He had seventy-six contacts in the opposition box in the initial seven league games of the prior campaign. This term's total is thirty-nine. The stats are symptomatic of the squad's difficulties in general. Only United and the Gunners have taken more shots on goal than them in the current term, but the team's proportion of attempts from within the six-yard area is the lowest in the division, their ratio from distance among the highest. Liverpool's percentage of accurate shots – 28.4 percent – is also among the lowest in the league.

During the initial phase of last season we mainly found the net from a moment of magic from one of our front three and in the second half it was more from a set piece,” Slot said. “Now we lack as many moments of genius and we haven’t scored from dead balls. But we are nonetheless the side that from general play generates the highest expected goals opportunities.”

New Signings

They aren't beating opponents in the manner Slot imagined when Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were signed recently, though Liverpool stay the league's joint third-highest goalscorers. A tie on Sunday would be sufficient for him to achieve the 100-point mark in less games than any boss in Liverpool's past (forty-six). Consider what his offense will do when it clicks. Liverpool remain a team of supreme talent, capable of sparking and reeling in any opponent for the championship, but synergy is missing. This can not be blamed on the new signings by themselves.

Personal and Team Problems

The player is not the sole established player to experience a dip, with the midfielder returning to fitness and the defender laboring. But he finds himself at the heart of the disruption that has lately affected the club. That extends to a personal level, with Salah's sadness over the loss of Diogo Jota obvious on that poignant first game against Bournemouth. The effect of his loss can not be assessed nor dismissed.

Strategic Shifts

In the prior campaign, he