Jurgen Klopp is delighted to be able to call upon Mohamed Salah for Liverpool again, as per his comments to the club’s official website.
The Egyptian is back from his AFCON disappointment and is ready to spearhead Liverpool’s assault on the quadruple.
That began with a scintillating half hour cameo against Leicester last night. Salah was reportedly eager to be involved despite having only returned to training on Tuesday.
It would have been tempting for Klopp to start his talisman here. But Liverpool have been in good form without their number 11, so it made sense not to throw him in for the full game.
The King returns
When Salah did emerge in the second half, he looked like he’d never been away. The 29-year-old was immediately into the action and Leicester defenders looked terrified of him.
Not long after coming on, Salah almost scored. Latching onto a loose ball he shimmied away from the defender and bore down on goal, only for Kasper Schmeichel to make a good save.
Klopp was impressed with what he saw from his player.
“The first move was genius; the defender slipped and he walked away. Unfortunately, Kasper Schmeichel is not a bad goalie, so he made an incredible save,” the manager said after the game.
Salah then went close with a trademark curler from just inside the box. Schmeichel looked beaten but the ball smacked the crossbar.
“Then the crossbar or the edge of the goal, an incredible situation, and the other one I forgot but that’s just Mo,” said Klopp.
Managing minutes
Salah played 120 minutes four times during his AFCON absence. The last of those games was less than a week ago on Sunday, as Egypt lost in the final.
The physical and mental toll that the tournament will have taken on Salah will need to be managed.
Of course, he is one of the first names on the teamsheet for Liverpool. But with so many big games coming up, Liverpool need him as fresh as possible.
Klopp said that the plan to use him later on in the game was also tactical against Leicester.
“He had 35 minutes roundabout, it was the idea to bring him early, that we really can use him then,” said the German.
“We played a lot of football in the first 55 minutes, so that’s tiring for the opponent as well, and that Mo can then come on gives your game a different dimension and we nearly used that.”
That shows the benefit of having quality back-up. A front three of Luis Diaz, Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota looks more than capable of doing damage to any team in Europe. That allows Mo the time off he needs to be in as peak-a-shape as possible.
A well rested and determined Salah is bad news for the rest of Europe, but brilliant news for Liverpool. Great to have you back, Mo!
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