Danny Murphy claims that Liverpool forward Mo Salah still has the edge over Bukayo Saka despite his poor form this season.
The talkSPORT pundit points to the Egyptian international’s finishing ability as the reason he would pick him over the Arsenal winger:
“I’d probably just still go with Salah because he can score goals from anywhere. You know, he’s just got this knack of scoring unbelievable goals more regularly.”
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Salah scored his 250th goal for Liverpool prior to the international break, which shows what an unbelievable player he has been for the Reds over the years.
Comparing the Liverpool icon to Saka
If we look at the numbers, there is a very clear winner. Since moving to Anfield in 2017, Salah has averaged a goal or assist every 1.14 games.
Saka may has played 140 fewer games for Arsenal, but he averages a goal involvement every 1.88 matches, which is a figure that pales in comparison to the Reds legend.
Murphy insists Salah has to do more
The 33-year-old’s performances this campaign have been well below his usual standards, but in addition to being less of a threat in the final third, Murphy has pointed to his defensive contributions as another major issue.
Speaking about Salah’s failure to track back against Manchester City, Murphy said head coach Arne Slot has to ask for more from him:
“Giving Salah the license to not defend against a left-back who loves going forward and isn’t even a left-back in [Nico] O’Reilly, who has been brilliant recently, I couldn’t believe what I was watching, to be honest.”
“I don’t know how he (Slot) can keep watching the same thing and not change it. And it’s not like Salah can’t do the running; he hasn’t asked him to see if he can.”
“He doesn’t have to do it every single time, but he has spent so long not doing it. Last season, Salah came out and said he was enjoying it more because he doesn’t have to defend as much as he did with Klopp. But it’s just time and time again, and I don’t think he needs to be dropped because he’s such a threat, but I think you’ve got to tell him to defend.”
Read more about the Liverpool First Team Squad for 2025/26 here