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It has been some time, but Mohamed Salah reappeared assuming the lead part last week with a brace in Casablanca that confirmed Egypt's place at the global tournament. The main man taking the spotlight yet again. The Reds require him to keep that position.

Causes for Inconsistent Showings

There exist several factors why variable, unimpressive showings have been the recurring theme defining Liverpool's beginning to their title defence, if they recorded seven wins in a row or, before Manchester United's arrival to Liverpool's home ground on Sunday, a losing run. The upheaval from so many summer changes, the coach's search for his best XI, the late forward's loss; Salah has felt the impact of them all during his atypically low-key start to the campaign.

Sunday's Showpiece Occasion

The weekend's big match could provide the impetus for the cause of a impressive 16 strikes in 17 outings for the club against Manchester United, who are making their centenary trip to Anfield and have not succeeded at their fierce rivals for more than nine years. The attacker will pose Slot with another unexpected problem, though, if he continue lost in the turmoil indefinitely.

Latest Display

Liverpool's boss likely recognized the irony of the player's opening strike against the opponent last Wednesday. Struck immediately with the outside of his stronger foot into the near post, his eighth strike of Egypt's World Cup qualifying campaign originated from an very similar location to his costly miss versus Chelsea before the national team pause.

Had that right-foot effort been converted moments after the resumption at Stamford Bridge we would even now be praising the new signing's maiden excellent pass in the Premier League. Discussions into Salah's drop and Liverpool's rare defeat streak might as well have been delayed. Instead, Wirtz's wait goes on while the coach stews over a third loss on the road, a couple inflicted by last-minute winners and one the outcome of a controversial spot-kick. Small margins, as Slot emphasized on recently, but they do not mask underlying concerns.

Last Season's Contribution

Salah was key in propelling the side towards a record-equalling 20th league title last season while uncertainty over his future rumbled in the background. We extracted almost the best out of Mo that campaign,” said Slot when his main attacker signed a fresh deal in the spring. We have seen a clear decrease on an individual and team level since. The squad, not the details of a contract, are to blame.

Statistical Decline

His output in terms of scores and assists is down half on the corresponding stage the previous term, from a combined 8 in the first seven matches of last season to four (two goals and a couple of assists) the current campaign. His number of attempts has decreased from 22 to twelve while efforts on goal have dropped from 15 to 5, contributing to a sharp decline in shot accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9 percent to 55.6 percent, data show.

One attribute that has held more steady is Salah's chance creation. With twelve key passes, against 14 at the same stage of last term, his numbers are among the top in the continent and comparable in the ranks of young talents and Arda Güler, his juniors by 15 and 13 years each.

Collective Display

Measures of collective display will worry the coach further. He had seventy-six contacts in the opposition box in the initial seven league games of last season. This term's tally is 39. The numbers are symptomatic of the team's issues in general. Only Manchester United and the Gunners have attempted a greater number of attempts on goal than Liverpool in the current term, but the team's percentage of attempts from within the goal area is the lowest in the division, their ratio from distance among the greatest. Liverpool's percentage of accurate shots – 28.4% – is as well among the lowest in the league.

“In the first half of last season we mainly scored from a moment of magic from one of our front three and in the later stage it was more from a free-kick or corner,” Slot said. “Now we have not seen as numerous sparks of quality and we haven’t scored from set pieces. But we are nonetheless the team that from live action creates the most quality opportunities.”

New Signings

They are not beating rivals in the fashion the coach planned when Florian Wirtz, the French forward and Alexander Isak were acquired recently, though the team remain the league's third-best goalscorers. A draw on the weekend would be enough for Slot to attain the 100-point total in less games than any boss in the club's history (46). Imagine what his attack will do when it does settle. Liverpool remain a squad of exceptional individual quality, capable of igniting and catching any foe for the title, but synergy is missing. That can not be blamed on the recent arrivals only.

Individual and Collective Issues

Salah is not the sole key member to experience a decline, with Alexis Mac Allister returning to form and Ibrahima Konaté struggling. But he finds himself at the core of the upheaval that has lately engulfed Liverpool. This extends to a personal level, with his grief over the passing of Jota evident on that heartfelt opening night against the Cherries. The influence of his death can not be assessed nor dismissed.

Strategic Changes

In the prior campaign, he