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It has been a period, but Mohamed Salah returned playing the starring role last week with two goals in Casablanca that confirmed the Egyptian team's spot at the upcoming World Cup. The main man taking the spotlight once more. Liverpool must have him to remain there.

Factors for Inconsistent Performances

There are several causes why variable, unconvincing displays have been the recurring theme defining the team's opening to their title defence, whether they recorded seven straight victories or, prior to Manchester United's arrival to Anfield on Sunday, three losses in a row. The turmoil from so many offseason moves, Arne Slot's quest for his best XI, Diogo Jota's loss; the winger has felt the impact of them all during his uncharacteristically low-key start to the campaign.

Sunday's Big Match

The weekend's key fixture could deliver the impetus for the cause of a impressive 16 goals in 17 games for the club against Manchester United, who are paying their 100th appearance to the stadium and have not won at their archrivals for more than nine years. The attacker will pose Slot with a further unexpected problem, though, if he continue caught in the disruption for an extended period.

Current Display

Liverpool's boss must have noticed the irony of the player's opening strike against the opponent recently. Drilled first time with the exterior of his stronger foot into the close post, Salah's eighth goal of the national team's qualification run came from an very similar position to his expensive error versus Chelsea prior to the break for internationals.

Had that attempt been finished moments after the restart at Stamford Bridge we would still be celebrating Florian Wirtz's first sublime pass in the Premier League. Inquests into Salah's drop and Liverpool's infrequent defeat streak might also have been postponed. Instead, the midfielder's wait continues while Slot broods over a third defeat away, a couple due to late goals and one the outcome of a debatable penalty. Small margins, as he repeated on recently, but they do not camouflage larger problems.

Previous Campaign's Influence

Salah was crucial in propelling Liverpool towards a historic 20th crown last season while doubt over his career persisted in the background. We achieved almost the utmost out of Mo that campaign,” said the manager when his leading striker signed an extension in April. There has been a noticeable decrease on an individual and collective level since. The lineup, not the terms of a contract, are to blame.

Statistical Decline

His production in terms of goals and setups is down half on the same point last season, from a total 8 in the initial seven fixtures of 2024-25 to 4 (a pair of goals and two assists) this term. His number of shots has fallen from 22 to 12 while shots on target have fallen from 15 to 5, contributing to a significant fall in shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6%, statistics show.

One attribute that has stayed stable is Salah's creativity. With twelve chances created, versus fourteen at the comparable period of last term, his figures are among the finest in Europe and comparable in the group of young talents and rising stars, his younger counterparts by fifteen and thirteen years respectively.

Collective Display

Metrics of team output will concern Slot further. Salah had seventy-six touches in the enemy penalty area in the opening seven matches of last season. This season's tally is 39. The numbers are reflective of the team's difficulties overall. Just United and Arsenal have tried a greater number of shots on goal than them now, but Liverpool's percentage of shots from inside the six-yard box is the lowest in the Premier League, their ratio from outside the area among the highest. Liverpool's percentage of efforts on goal – 28.4 percent – is also among the poorest in the competition.

“In the first half of last season we primarily scored from a special moment from one of our front three and in the second half it was more from a free-kick or corner,” the manager said. “Currently we have not seen as many sparks of quality and we haven’t scored from set pieces. But we are still the side that from open play creates the most expected goals opportunities.”

Recent Additions

They aren't hurting foes in the manner the coach envisaged when Florian Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were acquired in the offseason, though the team stay the division's third-best goalscorers. A draw on the weekend would be enough for him to achieve the 100-point mark in less games than any manager in the club's past (46). Imagine what his offense will do when it does settle. The side are still a squad of outstanding talent, able to igniting and catching any foe for the championship, but synergy is absent. That cannot be attributed on the new signings by themselves.

Individual and Team Challenges

Salah is not the sole key player to experience a dip, with Alexis Mac Allister working his way back to match sharpness and the defender toiling. But he finds himself at the center of the turmoil that has recently engulfed the club. That applies to a individual level, with Salah's sadness over the death of Diogo Jota evident on that heartfelt opening night against the Cherries. The influence of his tragedy can not be measured nor ignored.

Tactical Adjustments

In the prior campaign, he