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It has been a while, but Mohamed Salah was back assuming the lead part recently with a brace in Casablanca that secured the Egyptian team's place at the global tournament. The star claiming the spotlight yet again. The Merseyside club must have him to keep that position.

Factors for Variable Performances

There exist several causes why inconsistent, lackluster displays have been the recurring theme running through the team's opening to their title defence, if they recorded seven straight victories or, before Manchester United's arrival to Liverpool's home ground on the weekend, a losing run. The disruption from numerous summer changes, the coach's quest for his top team, Diogo Jota's tragic death; the winger has experienced the effect of them all during his unusually low-key start to the season.

Sunday's Key Fixture

The weekend's showpiece occasion could offer the spark for the cause of a record 16 scores in 17 games for Liverpool against United, who are paying their centenary trip to Anfield and have not won at their fierce rivals for more than nine years. The attacker will create the manager with an additional unforeseen dilemma, yet, should he stay caught in the turmoil for an extended period.

Recent Form

The team's manager likely recognized the paradox of the player's first goal against the opponent last Wednesday. Swept directly with the outside of his stronger foot into the close post, Salah's eighth goal of the national team's qualification run came from an nearly the same position to his costly miss in the Chelsea match prior to the international break.

If that attempt been finished moments after the resumption at Stamford Bridge we would still be eulogising Florian Wirtz's first excellent assist in the Premier League. Discussions into his decline and the team's rare losing run might also have been delayed. Instead, the midfielder's search persists while Slot broods over a third loss on the road, two caused by late goals and one the outcome of a controversial spot-kick. Small margins, as he reiterated on Friday, but they cannot hide underlying concerns.

Last Season's Impact

The forward was crucial in propelling Liverpool towards a tying 20th championship the previous term while doubt over his future persisted in the backdrop. We achieved nearly the maximum out of Salah this season,” said the manager when his main attacker signed a fresh deal in the spring. We have seen a noticeable decline on an individual and collective level from then. The team, not the details of a deal, are accountable.

Statistical Decline

His production in terms of scores and assists is reduced half on the corresponding stage the prior campaign, from a total 8 in the initial seven league games of last season to 4 (a pair of goals and two assists) the current campaign. His tally of attempts has fallen from twenty-two to 12 while efforts on goal have declined from 15 to five, contributing to a steep drop in shot accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6%, figures show.

One attribute that has remained consistent is his creativity. With twelve key passes, versus fourteen at the equivalent point of last campaign, his figures remain among the finest in Europe and comparable in the ranks of young talents and rising stars, his juniors by fifteen and thirteen years each.

Collective Performance

Indicators of collective performance will trouble the coach further. He had 76 touches in the enemy box in the first seven fixtures of the prior campaign. The current campaign's total is thirty-nine. The numbers are reflective of the team's difficulties overall. Only United and the Gunners have taken more shots on goal than Liverpool now, but Liverpool's rate of shots from inside the goal area is the poorest in the Premier League, their ratio from outside the area among the top. Liverpool's rate of shots on target – 28.4% – is as well among the poorest in the league.

“In the first half of last season we mostly found the net from a moment of magic from one of our front three and in the second half it was mostly from a set piece,” Slot said. “Now we lack as numerous sparks of quality and we have not found the net from set pieces. But we are nonetheless the side that from live action creates the highest xG chances.”

New Signings

They are not beating opponents in the fashion Slot envisaged when Florian Wirtz, the French forward and Alexander Isak were signed this summer, though Liverpool remain the league's equal third-top goalscorers. A tie on the weekend would be sufficient for him to achieve the 100-point mark in fewer games than any coach in the club's past (46). Imagine what his forward line will do when it clicks. The side remain a team of supreme individual quality, capable of sparking and reeling in any foe for the championship, but synergy is lacking. This can not be blamed on the recent arrivals only.

Individual and Team Challenges

The player is not the sole established member to suffer a drop-off, with the midfielder returning to match sharpness and the defender struggling. But he finds himself at the heart of the upheaval that has lately enveloped the club. This goes to a individual level, with his grief over the passing of Jota clear on that poignant season opener against the Cherries. The effect of Jota's tragedy can not be assessed nor overlooked.

Tactical Changes

In the prior campaign, he