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It's been a period, but Mohamed Salah returned assuming the starring role last week with a double in Casablanca that confirmed Egypt's place at the 2026 World Cup. The star stepping on the limelight once more. The Reds need him to remain there.

Reasons for Inconsistent Showings

There exist several causes why unsteady, unimpressive performances have been the common thread defining Liverpool's beginning to their league defense, if they recorded a winning streak or, before Manchester United's visit to Anfield on Sunday, a losing run. The turmoil from multiple summer changes, the coach's hunt for his ideal lineup, the late forward's tragic death; Salah has endured the effect of them all during his uncharacteristically subdued beginning to the campaign.

Sunday's Key Fixture

Sunday's big match could provide the impetus for the cause of a record 16 scores in 17 appearances for the club against United, who are paying their 100th visit to the stadium and have not triumphed at their fierce rivals for over nine years. The attacker will present the manager with another unforeseen dilemma, though, if he continue caught in the upheaval for an extended period.

Recent Form

The team's manager likely recognized the contrast of the player's opening strike against Djibouti in midweek. Struck first time with the outside of his stronger foot into the close post, his eighth score of Egypt's qualifying effort came from an nearly the same spot to his costly miss in the Chelsea match before the international break.

Had that attempt been scored moments after the resumption at Chelsea's ground we would even now be eulogising Florian Wirtz's maiden superb pass in the Premier League. Inquests into Salah's decline and Liverpool's rare defeat streak might as well have been postponed. Rather, the midfielder's search persists while the coach fumes over a third defeat away, two due to last-minute winners and another the result of a controversial spot-kick. Narrow differences, as he emphasized on recently, but they do not camouflage larger problems.

Last Season's Impact

Salah was instrumental in driving Liverpool towards a tying 20th championship the previous term while doubt over his career rumbled in the background. We extracted nearly the best out of Salah this season,” said Slot when his leading striker signed an extension in April. There has been a clear decline on an individual and team level from then. The team, not the details of a deal, are to blame.

Performance Drop

The 33-year-old's contribution in terms of scores and setups is down half on the same point the prior campaign, from a combined eight in the opening seven fixtures of last season to 4 (two goals and two assists) the current campaign. His tally of attempts has dropped from 22 to 12 while shots on target have declined from 15 to five, causing a sharp drop in shooting accuracy (not counting blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6%, figures show.

A single trait that has held more steady is his chance creation. With 12 opportunities made, versus fourteen at the equivalent point of last term, his stats are among the top in the continent and up in the company of young talents and rising stars, his younger counterparts by fifteen and 13 years respectively.

Collective Output

Metrics of collective output will concern the coach more. He had seventy-six contacts in the enemy penalty area in the opening seven fixtures of the prior campaign. This season's total is thirty-nine. The numbers are reflective of the team's issues overall. Just Manchester United and Arsenal have tried more shots on goal than them now, but the team's proportion of shots from within the six-yard area is the poorest in the Premier League, their share from outside the area among the highest. The club's percentage of shots on target – 28.4% – is also among the weakest in the league.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we primarily scored from a moment of magic from one of our front three and in the second half it was mostly from a free-kick or corner,” Slot said. “This season we haven’t had as numerous acts of brilliance and we have not found the net from set pieces. But we are nonetheless the team that from open play produces the most xG chances.”

New Signings

They are not punishing foes in the way the coach envisaged when Wirtz, the French forward and Alexander Isak were acquired in the offseason, although Liverpool remain the division's joint third-highest goalscorers. A draw on Sunday would be sufficient for him to attain the century of points in less games than any manager in Liverpool's history (46). Think what his forward line will do when it does settle. The side remain a team of exceptional talent, capable of igniting and catching any foe for the title, but cohesion is lacking. That cannot be attributed on the new signings by themselves.

Personal and Team Problems

The player is not the sole established player to suffer a dip, with the midfielder regaining to fitness and the defender laboring. But he is at the heart of the upheaval that has of late engulfed the club. This extends to a individual level, with Salah's grief over the death of Diogo Jota clear on that poignant opening night against the Cherries. The influence of his tragedy can neither be quantified nor overlooked.

Tactical Changes

Previously, he