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Liverpool picked up a big win against Marseille in the Champions League in their latest outing
Liverpool ran out 3-0 winners against Marseille away on Wednesday night. Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo were on the scoresheet for the Reds, whilst Geronimo Rulli scored an own goal after some brilliant play from Jeremie Frimpong down the right.
Arne Slot’s side are back in Premier League action this weekend as they look to keep their momentum going.
The Merseyside giants face a potentially tricky trip to Dorset to play AFC Bournemouth. Slot’s men are sat in fourth place in the table after 22 fixtures above Manchester United. They are inside the top four along with Arsenal, Manchester City and Aston Villa.
Liverpool still have Mohamed Salah problem in attack
Liverpool handed Mohamed Salah his first start since 4th November against Real Madrid. The winger didn’t have a shot on target against Marseille and missed a big chance in the second half. He is still getting back up to speed with the Reds and hasn’t reached his best form yet this season.
Salah’s long-term future at Anfield has been up in the air over recent times. It appears he has made amends with Slot now though and he will be eager to find his shooting boots once again. He faces strong competition to get into the starting XI against the likes of Gakpo, Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike, when everyone is fit.
Despite his troubles in front of goal, Slot was still satisfied by his most recent performance at the Stade Velodrome. He said afterwards, as per a report by BBC Sport: "It says a lot about how big a professional he [Salah] is that he can be away for more than a month with a different team and be so fit to play 90 minutes for us after one day of training. He was so close to a goal. It would usually be a goal from him, but it didn't harm us because we scored three."
What next for Mohamed Salah and Liverpool?
Liverpool will be hoping to see the best from Salah over the coming weeks following his return to the fold against Marseille. He has scored only five goals in this campaign, four of which have come in the league, in 21 outings in all competitions. The Egypt international, who has 115 caps to his name, is under contract until June 2027 meaning he still has over 12 months left to run down still.
On his day, not many are better than the 33-year-old but he hasn’t been able to reach the heights many are used to seeing him at over recent months. He still has time on his side though and now all the talk over his uncertain situation has seemingly been put to bed, there is no reason why he can’t find some form again. After all, he has scored 250 goals in 422 matches for his current club to date and will go down as one of their greatest ever players.
Liverpool head coach Slot will have a decision to make about whether to give Salah the nod from the off again against Bournemouth on Sunday. That will be a tough encounter for his side and they will need to be at their best to get something. They will be in confident mood after their triumph in Marseille and spirits will be high.
The Reds have the chance to bring in some new faces before the end of the January transfer window to freshen things up. They also have the opportunity to let some players head out the exit door before the deadline on Monday 2nd February. That would help free up space and funds in their squad to pave the way for reinforcements.
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