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It's been a period, but Liverpool's forward was back playing the starring role last week with a brace in Morocco that confirmed Egypt's spot at the 2026 World Cup. The star taking the limelight yet again. The Reds need him to keep that position.

Factors for Inconsistent Showings

We see many reasons why inconsistent, unimpressive performances have been the recurring theme characterizing the team's opening to their title defence, if they produced seven straight victories or, before Manchester United's visit to Liverpool's home ground on the weekend, three consecutive defeats. The upheaval from numerous new signings, Arne Slot's quest for his ideal lineup, the late forward's tragic death; Salah has experienced the impact of them all during his atypically low-key beginning to the season.

Sunday's Big Match

Sunday's key fixture could offer the impetus for the cause of a record 16 goals in 17 appearances for Liverpool against Manchester United, who are making their 100th visit to Anfield and have not triumphed at their biggest foes for more than nine years. Salah will present the manager with a further unforeseen dilemma, however, if he continue lost in the upheaval indefinitely.

Current Form

Liverpool's head coach must have recognized the contrast of the player's opening strike against the opponent recently. Swept first time with the outside of his stronger foot into the close post, his eighth goal of the national team's qualifying effort originated from an very similar location to his expensive error versus Chelsea prior to the national team pause.

Had that attempt been converted moments after the resumption at Chelsea's ground we would still be praising Florian Wirtz's maiden superb assist in the Premier League. Discussions into his decline and the team's rare losing run might as well have been postponed. Rather, the midfielder's search continues while the coach broods over a third consecutive away defeat, a couple inflicted by last-minute winners and one the outcome of a disputed penalty. Fine lines, as he repeated on recently, but they do not camouflage larger problems.

Previous Campaign's Influence

The forward was key in propelling the side towards a record-equalling 20th league title last season while speculation over his career persisted in the backdrop. We achieved nearly the best out of Salah that campaign,” said the manager when his main attacker signed a new two‑year contract in April. There has been a noticeable drop-off on an personal and collective level from then. The team, not the details of a contract, are to blame.

Performance Drop

His output in terms of scores and setups is down 50% on the corresponding point the previous term, from a total 8 in the opening seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (two goals and a couple of assists) this term. His number of shots has dropped from twenty-two to 12 while efforts on goal have declined from fifteen to five, leading to a sharp fall in shooting accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6%, figures show.

One attribute that has remained consistent is his playmaking. With 12 key passes, compared with fourteen at the comparable period of the previous season, his figures are among the best in Europe and up in the group of Lamine Yamal and rising stars, his juniors by fifteen and 13 years respectively.

Collective Display

Metrics of collective output will trouble Slot more. He had 76 contacts in the enemy box in the first seven league games of last season. This season's tally is thirty-nine. The numbers are symptomatic of the squad's problems as a whole. Only Manchester United and Arsenal have tried a greater number of attempts on goal than Liverpool this season, but the team's percentage of shots from within the goal area is the poorest in the top flight, their ratio from outside the area among the top. The club's percentage of efforts on goal – 28.4 percent – is also among the lowest in the competition.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we mostly scored from a special moment from an attacker and in the later stage it was mostly from a dead ball,” the manager said. “Currently we have not seen as numerous acts of brilliance and we have not found the net from dead balls. But we are still the side that from general play generates the highest expected goals opportunities.”

New Signings

They are not hurting opponents in the way the coach planned when Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were signed recently, although Liverpool stay the league's equal third-top goalscorers. A draw on the weekend would be enough for Slot to reach the 100-point mark in less games than any boss in Liverpool's history (forty-six). Think what his offense will do when it does settle. Liverpool are still a team of outstanding individual quality, equipped to igniting and catching any opponent for the title, but synergy is missing. That cannot be blamed on the summer recruits alone.

Personal and Collective Issues

The player is not the only established member to experience a dip, with Alexis Mac Allister regaining to fitness and the defender toiling. But he is at the core of the turmoil that has recently engulfed the club. This applies to a personal level, with his sorrow over the passing of Diogo Jota evident on that poignant opening night against Bournemouth. The effect of Jota's tragedy can neither be measured nor ignored.

Tactical Shifts

In the prior campaign, he