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It's been a while, but the Egyptian star reappeared taking on the starring role last week with a brace in Casablanca that sealed Egypt's spot at the 2026 World Cup. The key player stepping on center stage once more. The Merseyside club require him to remain there.

Causes for Inconsistent Displays

There exist numerous factors why variable, unconvincing displays have been the recurring theme running through the team's opening to their title defence, if they achieved seven wins in a row or, before the Red Devils' trip to Anfield on Sunday, three losses in a row. The upheaval from multiple offseason moves, the coach's search for his best XI, Diogo Jota's loss; the winger has felt the impact of them all during his unusually subdued opening to the campaign.

The Weekend's Key Fixture

The weekend's key fixture could provide the impetus for the origin of a impressive 16 strikes in 17 outings for the club against United, who are making their 100th visit to the stadium and have not won at their biggest foes for more than nine years. The attacker will create Slot with a further unexpected problem, yet, should he remain caught in the turmoil indefinitely.

Current Performance

Liverpool's head coach likely noticed the contrast of the player's opening strike against Djibouti last Wednesday. Drilled directly with the exterior of his stronger foot into the near post, his eighth strike of the national team's qualifying effort originated from an very similar location to his expensive error in the Chelsea match before the national team pause.

If that attempt been finished shortly after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would even now be eulogising Florian Wirtz's first excellent assist in the Premier League. Inquests into his dip and the team's infrequent losing streak might also have been delayed. Rather, the midfielder's search goes on while the coach broods over a third away defeat, two due to last-minute winners and one the result of a controversial spot-kick. Narrow differences, as Slot reiterated on Friday, but they cannot hide larger problems.

Previous Campaign's Contribution

The forward was key in pushing Liverpool towards a record-equalling 20th crown last season while speculation over his future persisted in the backdrop. “We brought almost the utmost out of Salah this season,” said Slot when his leading striker signed a new two‑year contract in the spring. We have seen a noticeable decline on an individual and team level since. The team, not the terms of a contract, are responsible.

Performance Decrease

His contribution in terms of scores and assists is reduced 50% on the corresponding point the previous term, from a combined 8 in the first seven fixtures of 2024-25 to four (two goals and two assists) this season. The count of shots has fallen from twenty-two to 12 while shots on target have fallen from fifteen to 5, causing a sharp drop in shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6%, statistics show.

A single trait that has held more steady is his chance creation. With twelve chances created, versus 14 at the same stage of last term, his figures remain among the top in the continent and comparable in the group of Lamine Yamal and rising stars, his younger counterparts by 15 and 13 years respectively.

Team Output

Measures of team performance will concern Slot further. He had seventy-six touches in the opposition penalty area in the initial seven matches of the prior campaign. This season's count is thirty-nine. The numbers are symptomatic of the squad's difficulties as a whole. Just United and Arsenal have tried more shots on goal than them this season, but the team's proportion of shots from within the six-yard area is the smallest in the Premier League, their ratio from outside the area among the greatest. Liverpool's percentage of efforts on goal – 28.4% – is also among the poorest in the league.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we primarily found the net from a special moment from an attacker and in the second half it was more from a dead ball,” the manager said. “Currently we haven’t had as numerous acts of brilliance and we haven’t scored from dead balls. But we are nonetheless the side that from live action creates the highest quality opportunities.”

Summer Arrivals

They aren't beating foes in the fashion the coach imagined when Wirtz, the French forward and the Swedish striker were signed this summer, though the team stay the division's third-best goalscorers. A draw on Sunday would be enough for Slot to achieve the 100-point mark in less games than any manager in Liverpool's past (46). Think what his attack will do when it clicks. Liverpool remain a squad of supreme talent, equipped to sparking and reeling in any rival for the title, but synergy is absent. This cannot be blamed on the recent arrivals by themselves.

Personal and Collective Challenges

The player is not the sole key player to experience a drop-off, with the midfielder working his way back to match sharpness and the defender struggling. But he is at the core of the turmoil that has of late enveloped Liverpool. This applies to a individual level, with Salah's sorrow over the death of Jota evident on that emotional season opener against Bournemouth. The effect of Jota's tragedy can not be quantified nor overlooked.

Tactical Adjustments

Previously, he