Mohamed Salah's 250th goal for Liverpool was one of the easiest he's ever scored, with Emiliano Martinez presenting the Egyptian with both the ball and an unguarded net. However, it was still a hugely significant strike for both Salah and his side, as it arrived at a time of great difficulty for both. Having lost six of their previous seven games in all competitions, Liverpool desperately needed a win over Aston Villa on Saturday - so scoring first was huge for the home side.
Salah, of course, had netted in his previous outing, against Brentford, and his spectacular finish in London was far more impressive than his open goal on Merseyside. However, the Egyptian's overall display at the Gtech Community Stadium had been atrocious. At Anfield, he looked far more like his old self - and that's what pleased the under-pressure Arne Slot most of all.
"If you score 250 goals, it's already unbelievable – let alone for one club. You don't see this that much in football anymore," the Dutchman said in his post-match press conference. "But I think apart from the goal he scored tonight, he had a very good performance. Because when we had to play long, we played mainly long towards him and he could hold the ball, so because of that the rest of the team could come to him and we could keep playing.
"And what I also liked was that he didn't only do his offensive work really well, but he helped the team out defensively as well."
The challenge now, of course, is for Salah to prove that he's well and truly back when Liverpool face Real Madrid and Manchester City in the coming days...