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It has been some time, but the Egyptian star was back taking on the starring role recently with a brace in Casablanca that confirmed the Egyptian team's spot at the upcoming World Cup. The key player stepping on center stage once more. The Reds must have him to remain there.

Factors for Unsteady Displays

There exist numerous reasons why variable, unconvincing displays have been the recurring theme characterizing the team's opening to their championship defense, if they achieved seven straight victories or, before Manchester United's trip to Anfield on Sunday, three consecutive defeats. The disruption from so many offseason moves, the coach's hunt for his top team, Diogo Jota's passing; the winger has endured the consequences of them all during his uncharacteristically subdued beginning to the term.

Sunday's Showpiece Occasion

The weekend's key fixture could offer the impetus for the source of a record 16 goals in 17 games for the club against United, who are making their 100th visit to the stadium and have not triumphed at their archrivals for more than nine years. Salah will present the manager with an additional surprise issue, though, should he continue lost in the turmoil indefinitely.

Current Performance

Liverpool's manager likely recognized the irony of Salah's first goal against the opponent recently. Struck first time with the exterior of his left foot inside the front post, his eighth strike of Egypt's World Cup qualifying campaign came from an very similar spot to his expensive error versus Chelsea prior to the break for internationals.

If that shot with his right been scored moments after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would still be celebrating the new signing's first superb setup in the English top flight. Inquests into his dip and Liverpool's infrequent losing run might as well have been postponed. Rather, the midfielder's wait persists while the coach stews over a third consecutive loss on the road, two inflicted by late goals and one the result of a debatable penalty. Narrow differences, as he reiterated on recently, but they do not camouflage bigger issues.

Last Season's Impact

The forward was key in propelling Liverpool towards a record-equalling 20th championship the prior campaign while uncertainty over his long-term plans lingered in the backdrop. We extracted almost the maximum out of Salah that campaign,” said Slot when his main attacker signed a new two‑year contract in April. We have seen a clear decrease on an personal and collective level since. The team, not the terms of a deal, are to blame.

Statistical Drop

The 33-year-old's contribution in terms of goals and assists is reduced half on the same stage last season, from a combined eight in the first seven league games of last season to four (a pair of goals and two assists) this season. The count of attempts has decreased from 22 to 12 while shots on target have dropped from fifteen to five, leading to a sharp drop in shot accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6 percent, figures show.

A single trait that has stayed stable is Salah's creativity. With 12 opportunities made, compared with 14 at the equivalent point of last campaign, his stats are among the finest in Europe and comparable in the ranks of young talents and Arda Güler, his juniors by 15 and thirteen years each.

Collective Performance

Indicators of collective performance will trouble the coach further. He had seventy-six touches in the enemy penalty area in the opening seven fixtures of last season. The current campaign's count is 39. The numbers are indicative of the squad's problems as a whole. Only Manchester United and Arsenal have attempted a greater number of attempts on goal than them in the current term, but Liverpool's rate of attempts from within the six-yard box is the poorest in the division, their ratio from long range among the greatest. Liverpool's rate of shots on target – 28.4% – is also among the weakest in the league.

During the initial phase of last season we mostly scored 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 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 live action creates the most expected goals opportunities.”

Summer Arrivals

They aren't hurting opponents in the way the coach envisaged when Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitiké and Alexander Isak were signed recently, although Liverpool remain the division's third-best goalscorers. A draw on the weekend would be sufficient for him to attain the 100-point total in less games than any manager in the club's past (forty-six). Think what his attack will do when it clicks. Liverpool are still a team of supreme skill, equipped to sparking and chasing any opponent for the title, but cohesion is absent. This cannot be blamed on the summer recruits alone.

Personal and Collective Issues

The player is not the sole senior member to suffer a dip, with Alexis Mac Allister returning to match sharpness and Ibrahima Konaté laboring. But he is at the center of the upheaval that has recently affected the club. That applies to a individual level, with Salah's sorrow over the death of Diogo Jota clear on that heartfelt first game against the Cherries. The influence of his death can neither be measured nor ignored.

Tactical Changes

In the prior campaign, he