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It has been a period, but Liverpool's forward reappeared taking on the starring role in recent days with a brace in Casablanca that secured the Egyptian team's position at the 2026 World Cup. The key player stepping on center stage another time. Liverpool need him to keep that position.

Factors for Unsteady Performances

There exist several reasons why unsteady, unimpressive displays have been the recurring theme running through the team's start to their league defense, if they achieved seven straight victories or, prior to the Red Devils' visit to Anfield on Sunday, three consecutive defeats. The upheaval from so many new signings, Arne Slot's quest for his top team, the late forward's passing; the winger has endured the impact of them all during his atypically quiet opening to the season.

Sunday's Showpiece Occasion

Sunday's key fixture could deliver the catalyst for the source of a record 16 goals in 17 games for the club against United, who are paying their 100th appearance to Anfield and have not won at their biggest foes for over nine years. The attacker will pose Slot with another unexpected problem, though, should he stay caught in the upheaval much longer.

Current Display

Liverpool's boss likely recognized the contrast of Salah's opening strike against the opponent recently. Drilled first time with the outside of his stronger foot inside the close post, Salah's eighth goal of the national team's World Cup qualifying campaign came from an very similar spot to his costly miss against Chelsea before the break for internationals.

If that attempt been finished shortly after the resumption at Stamford Bridge we would still be praising Florian Wirtz's maiden excellent setup in the league. Discussions into Salah's decline and the team's rare losing streak might as well have been delayed. Rather, the midfielder's search goes on while the coach stews over a third consecutive loss on the road, a couple inflicted by last-minute winners and another the result of a debatable penalty. Narrow differences, as Slot emphasized on Friday, but they do not camouflage bigger issues.

Last Season's Impact

The forward was crucial in driving Liverpool towards a record-equalling 20th league title last season while speculation over his future lingered in the background. “We brought nearly the utmost out of Mo this season,” said Slot when his main attacker signed an extension in the spring. We have seen a clear decline on an personal and team level from then. The lineup, not the details of a contract, are responsible.

Performance Decrease

His contribution in terms of scores and setups is reduced half on the corresponding stage last season, from a total eight in the first seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (a pair of goals and a couple of assists) this term. The count of attempts has dropped from twenty-two to 12 while shots on target have declined from 15 to 5, causing a significant drop in shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6 percent, statistics show.

A single trait that has held more steady is Salah's chance creation. With 12 key passes, against fourteen at the same stage of last term, his numbers stay among the best in Europe and up in the group of Lamine Yamal and rising stars, his younger counterparts by 15 and 13 years each.

Collective Performance

Indicators of collective display will concern Slot further. Salah had seventy-six contacts in the enemy penalty area in the initial seven matches of the prior campaign. The current campaign's count is thirty-nine. The stats are reflective of the squad's problems as a whole. Just United and the Gunners have attempted more attempts on goal than them this season, but the team's rate of shots from inside the goal area is the smallest in the Premier League, their ratio from long range among the top. The club's rate of efforts on goal – 28.4% – is as well among the poorest in the competition.

During the initial phase of the previous campaign we mostly found the net from an individual brilliance from one of our front three and in the later stage it was mostly from a free-kick or corner,” the manager said. “Currently we lack as many acts of brilliance and we have not found the net from set pieces. But we are nonetheless the side that from general play generates the highest quality opportunities.”

Summer Arrivals

They aren't punishing foes in the way Slot planned when Florian Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were brought on board in the offseason, while Liverpool are the division's equal third-top goalscorers. A draw on Sunday would be sufficient for Slot to reach the century of points in fewer games than any boss in Liverpool's past (forty-six). Think what his offense will do when it clicks. Liverpool are still a team of exceptional skill, able to igniting and chasing any opponent for the title, but synergy is absent. This cannot be pinned on the new signings by themselves.

Individual and Team Issues

The player is not the only established player to experience a drop-off, with the midfielder regaining to match sharpness and Ibrahima Konaté laboring. But he finds himself at the center of the upheaval that has recently affected the club. That extends to a personal level, with his sadness over the passing of Jota evident on that emotional season opener against Bournemouth. The effect of Jota's tragedy can neither be measured nor ignored.

Strategic Adjustments

In the prior campaign, he