Jurgen Klopp shrugs off concerns regarding Mohamed Salah’s form after Liverpool’s Europa League exit
Liverpool FC were eliminated from the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals at the hands of Atalanta on Thursday, April 18. They had shockingly lost the first leg 3-0 at Anfield last week and had a huge challenge to overturn the deficit at the Gewiss Stadium on Thursday.
The Reds had a brilliant start to the game as Mohamed Salah converted a penalty in the seventh minute after a handball from Matteo Ruggeri. However, they couldn’t add to the score and lost 3-1 on aggregate. Salah had another excellent chance but failed to capitalize on it. He was eventually subbed off in the 66th minute for Darwin Nunez.
While Salah’s stats have been decent this season, he has been far from his best. He, along with other Liverpool attackers, have missed numerous chances in recent times. Manager Jurgen Klopp was asked about the Egyptian’s form after their Europa League elimination in a post-match press conference. He said:
“I am not particularly concerned. That’s what strikers do, that’s what happens to strikers, that’s how it is. We have to go through this, he has to go through that. He is one of the most experienced players we have in the squad. We will go through that but that’s pretty much all. It’s not that Mo didn’t miss chances before in his life, that’s a part of the game.
“The penalty was super-convincing, a super penalty, then the next chance, that was obviously unlucky but it is not the first time he missed a chance like that. I will not make a big story of it, what you make of it I obviously have no influence on obviously, but no, I am not particularly concerned.”
Salah has scored six goals and provided four assists in his last 11 games across competitions. Overall, he has registered 24 goals and 13 assists in 38 games for Liverpool this season.
A look at Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool career
Liverpool signed Mohamed Salah from AS Roma in 2017 for €42 million. He broke the record for most goals scored in a single 38-game Premier League season with 32 goals in his first campaign. The record was later broken by Erling Haaland in the 2022-23 season.
Salah, meanwhile, has scored 210 goals and provided 88 assists in 343 games for Liverpool across competitions so far. He has helped them win one Premier League title and one UEFA Champions League trophy, among numerous other trophies.
The 31-year-old, though, has been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia in the summer, with Al-Ittihad showing major interest.
Also Read: Why Isn’t Liverpool the Top Contender to Win the Premier League Title This Season?