Against Sunderland, Liverpool showed they can indeed play the intense side of the game and secure all three points. The Reds showed some style in the FA Cup against Brighton, showing off their old smoothness as they won 3-0.
Although Arne Slott’s side have improved recently, it has been a tough season for the Premier League champions as they find themselves in a dogfight.
This is a fight not for the title won in canter last season, but for next season’s Champions League football. Needless to say, the consequences of missing out on Europe’s elite competition are severe.
So many issues are influencing decline. Flashy new hires have had a hard time fitting in, but are now making headway in that regard.
Aging superstars also struggle to regain their former form, and perhaps no one epitomizes this more than Mohamed Salah.
Commentary on Mohamed Salah’s departure from Liverpool
It’s no exaggeration to say that Salah played some pretty good football last season and essentially led Liverpool to the Premier League title. This season has been Salah’s, and he has established himself as one of the best players in the history of the division.
However, Salah may have used up a lot of his remaining fuel and the 33-year-old Father Time is not on his side as an elite footballer. His performances this season have reflected this, and FSG are beginning to realize that they may need to sign an elite replacement this summer, especially with Federico Chiesa being fooled by flattery.
When Salah signed a record-setting deal in April 2025, extending his contract until 2027, it was hard to understand that he was one year away from being sold, but his fall has been so great that if a suitor from the Saudi Professional League comes calling with his checkbook out, it seems wise to cash it.
Salah – PL form below the slot | ||
|---|---|---|
match statistics | 24/25 | 25/26 |
Match (start) | 38(38) | 18(16) |
the goal | 29 | 4 |
assist | 18 | 6 |
touch* | 49.1 | 48.3 |
Number of shots (on target)* | 3.4 (1.6) | 2.7(0.7) |
missed a big opportunity | twenty four | 9 |
Exact path* | 22.4 (74%) | 21.6 (76%) |
A big opportunity has arisen | 27 | 9 |
Key pass* | 2.4 | 2.3 |
Successful. dribble* | 1.5 (45%) | 0.7 (25%) |
Ball recovery rate* | 2.7 | 2.8 |
Win a duel* | 3.3 (41%) | 2.2 (30%) |
Salah’s decline was further exacerbated by his lack of clinical ability. But still, the King of Egypt has arrived at one of the final crossroads in his Premier League journey.
However, he is not the only player at Anfield who is set to leave at the end of the season.
Why Liverpool must part ways with Salah 2.0
Liverpool have a lot of veterans in their squad. Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker are not players who will be active in the spring, but both have continued to perform well and are unlikely to be thinking about leaving anytime soon.
However, the same cannot be said for Andy Robertson, who is out of contract this summer and has fallen down the rankings.
Robertson joins Salah, with both having joined in the summer of 2017. Both deals were met with confusion from some of Liverpool’s rivals, who did not understand Jurgen Klopp’s vision.
But Klopp saw what others didn’t, and the £10m Scottish player from Hull City went on to become one of the greatest full-backs of his generation, once described as a .duracell bunnyLiverpool writer Rhian Prescott praised his tireless running and tenacity in the left channel.
But while the now 31-year-old Tartan Army captain played a huge role in Slott’s title campaign, there is no doubt that he is less mobile than before and stands out as a weak link with mistakes starting to creep into his game.
The Duracell Rabbit has seen his batteries drain and he remains a top defender, but with Milos Kerkes now going from strength to strength after his £40m move from Bournemouth last summer, it is fitting that Robertson leaves at the end of the season.
FSG will be grateful they did not sign the Scottish star when Tottenham offered a small fee for him in the January transfer window, but it is clear that extending his contract is a risk. After all, Robertson has said he wants to “play football” at this late stage of his career, and Slott probably can’t promise the consistency he deserves.
Robertson’s decline was less surprising, less sudden, but just as real, and while it would be a shame to think that Anfield will say goodbye to their popular left-back this summer, he has to go, especially with Kerkez establishing himself at left-back.
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