Liverpool supporters have been trying to keep their feet on the ground in the wake of an impressive first half of the campaign
But those with their head in the sand regards one particular subject will now have to face the reality. Following Monday’s Premier League visit of Newcastle United, the Reds face the prospect of being without Mohamed Salah for up to six weeks during a pivotal part of the season.
And the imminent departure of the winger to represent Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations – a tournament that starts on January 13 with the final on February 11 – has prompted questions over who will score the goals to keep Liverpool challenging on four fronts by the time Salah returns.
Certainly, with 16 goals in all competitions, the 31-year-old remains the most prolific member of the Reds squad, having recently surpassed 200 goals for the club and within one of the 150 mark in the Premier League alone.
In Liverpool’s last 10 games, they have netted 22 times. Salah has been the top scorer in that period, with four, one ahead of Cody Gakpo. But perhaps most intriguingly is the Reds have had 13 different goalscorers in that time, as well as an own goal from Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno. And the total number of players to have bagged this campaign is 15, already one more than the whole of the previous season.
They haven’t been completely reliant on Salah’s goals. However, his overall game is what Liverpool will miss most. In that same 10-game period, only Trent Alexander-Arnold with five has managed more than Salah’s four assists. And that total of eight goal contributions outlines the true impact of the Egyptian, who has become a more rounded player with age.
“In my head, I feel better because I’m even more experienced,” says Salah. “I know how to handle many things in the game now such as pressure and expectation and I try to make everybody around me a better player as well. When you are young, you just focus on yourself more but when you grow up, you feel like you have to make your team-mates better and I’m trying my best to do that. That’s also helped the team to win games and helped us to win competitions, which is very important.”
Gakpo agrees. “I have learned a lot from Mo already,” says the Holland international. “He is a real professional. He is always the first in the gym and the last out. Maybe that sounds a little bit cliched but it’s true. Even if you get in really early, Mo is always there first! You see how he moves and how he does things on the pitch but also outside of the pitch and what he eats too.
“I think Mo is also a person who is trying to also help the younger players to develop and I appreciate that a lot form him. I have spoken to him a lot of times about smart things he does, how it has helped him and maybe how it can help me as well to become a better player.”
Gakpo, of course, will be one of those expected to fill the goalscoring breach, and continue ticking over his tally of seven for the season. And it made the return to scoring for both Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota – the latter back after a month out – at Burnley on Boxing Day particularly timely. Including Luis Diaz, the other four senior Reds forwards have 29 goals between them – no other Premier League attack has been so prolific this term.
In the last Africa Cup of Nations two years ago, Liverpool found a way to cope without Salah with Kaide Gordon, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Takumi Minamino all playing on – and scoring from – the right wing. Any of the remaining forwards could do a similar job, although Harvey Elliott has notably spent more time wide on the flank of late. Jurgen Klopp and his coaching team will have been preparing some time for Salah’s exit.
One obvious concern, as was also seen following the winter World Cup last season, will be the impact of playing in a major international tournament. In 2021/22, Salah had scored 23 times in 26 games before heading for the AFCON. After the disappointment of losing the final to Sadio Mane’s Senegal, Salah on his return netted only eight in 25 matches while Mane blossomed.
That, though, is a potential worry for later. Liverpool, like any team, will miss Salah. But it won’t just be for his goals.
