I went into the game against Tottenham Hotspur with at least some insecurities around the result. Whilst I was supremely confident in the Reds’ ability to score, I was also aware of the fact that Spurs had been able to find the net on a regular basis in the build-up to the match. After all, they had defeated Manchester City 4-0, even if it isn’t the City that we’ve all grown used to in recent years. I had virtually none of those concerns as Liverpool travelled to the London Stadium to face Julen Lopetegui’s men. The Hammers have looked more like relegation fodder for the majority of the season, to say nothing of the fact that we’ve already beaten them comfortably once. Add in the injuries and suspensions that they’ve suffered and it’s easy to see why it always looked like a comfortable Liverpool victory was likely. In end, it played out more like a training game than a competitive Premier League one, which is just what you want for this time of the year. The games are coming thick and fast, so being able to be so relaxed in the second-half was ideal.
✅ Díaz
✅ Gakpo
✅ Salah
✅ JotaLiverpool’s forwards were feasting vs. West Ham ♨️ pic.twitter.com/URdA4fioii
— B/R Football (@brfootball) December 29, 2024
Right now, the Reds look like Champions elect. Goodison Park will always be a tougher challenge for Liverpool than it will for any other team, so it is great for us that the Blues have taken points off our title rivals recently, yet also a massive alarm for Arne Slot to pay attention to. We cannot assume that we will win that game, no matter how well we’re playing and no matter how close to the relegation zone Everton may be hovering at any given moment. Even so, the lead that we have built-up is good enough to mean that we’re going to be able to suffer a few dropped points along the way. Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United don’t look like all that right now, yet there is no doubt that the Red Devils will turn up at Anfield looking to prove a point. Of course, the reality of trying to win a title, especially when you’ve only won one in recent years, is that you see demons around every corner. Arsenal look like they’ve got nothing but easy games, whilst each of Liverpool’s fixtures appears to be a potential banana skin. Right now, though, the title is ours to win.
Mo Salah is the Best Player on the Planet Right Now
It is important to flag up that the amount of time that I spend watching other football clubs is limited. I am not across what is happening in La Liga, for example, nor do I care that much about what’s taking place in the Bundesliga. You might be reading this as an expert in the comings and goings of South American football and know of a player who has scored a hat-trick in every game and got a load of assists to boot. Regardless, I am watching Mo Salah every time he takes to the pitch and there is no question in my mind that he is the best footballer in the world right now. What he is doing week-in, week-out is just madness. In the 18 Premier League games that he’s played so far, he has notched up 30 goal involvements. He has scored 17 times and, as if to prove allegations of him being ‘selfish’ are a complete nonsense, he’s also added 13 assists. When you realise that he’s also scored four times and got two assists across six Champions League games, it is clear that he isn’t just stat-padding in the lesser competitions like some players do.
Mo Salah will end 2024 with the most goal involvements of any player for clubs in Europe’s big-five leagues in all competitions (52).
He has scored or assisted a goal every 64 minutes played on average.
The best footballer in the world. pic.twitter.com/vgeUhh8HsM
— Michael Reid (@michael_reid11) December 29, 2024
Salah is doing what he’s doing against the very best teams out there. There is no other player in the sport right now that has been able to effectively ensure that they are worth a goal a game every time they take to the pitch. If he can’t score one then he’ll make sure that someone else does. For nearly a decade, Luis Suarez was the best forward that I’d seen play for Liverpool and Steven Gerrard the best player in general. I think that Salah has now overtaken them both. It is clear from the player himself that he wants to win a Balon d’Or, but I’m not sure that he will be able to add that particular award to his collection. You have to look back to George Weah’s victory in 1995 to find an African who has won the award, being the only one, whilst no one outside of Europe and Brazil has won the competition unless their name was Lionel Messi. There might well be a racism problem at France Football, but that takes nothing away from how genuinely sensational Salah has been across 2024 in general and this season in particular.
Why Hasn’t His Contract Been Sorted?
Speak to almost anyone in football right now about Mo Salah, whether a supporter, a journalist or a pundit, and the topic of the forward’s contract won’t be far away. The Egyptian King is out of contract in the summer and allowed to talk to outside interests from next month. There is a world in which he decides to sign a contract with someone else in January and depart Liverpool for free. The words ‘give him whatever he wants’ are often bandied about by fans of the club, but obviously that’s nonsensical. What if he wants to deeds to Anfield or to be paid a million pounds a second? The entire point is that Salah’s agent and Liverpool Football Club are going through negotiations right now and the likes of Richard Hughes, in concert with Michael Edwards, will be wary of giving away the house. Salah is a phenomenon and, as I’ve already said, the best player in the world right now. The problem is that he is also going to be 33 in June. I watched Cristiano Ronaldo underperform for Juventus and United as the best-paid player in the world, so I understand Liverpool fears.
🎶 James’ ‘Sit Down’ rings out after the full time whistle as Anfield serenades Mohamed Salah after another win.
#LFC contract message sent. Give Mo his dough 📝
— Theo Squires (@theosquiresecho.bsky.social) 26 December 2024 at 22:03
I am quite sure everyone, from Edwards to Hughes, John Henry to Arne Slot, would like Salah to stick around for another year or two. Certainly the way that he’s playing doesn’t show any sign of dropping off. The issue is that that will all be away of what happens when he does start to suffer a drop-off in his form. Once that happens, at his age, there will be no recovering from it. He is also at an age when injuries are more likely and will hit for longer. These are all of the things that need to be borne in mind by all parties in the discussions. The problem is, Salah and Remy Abbas will want to protect the player from a world in which injuries take their toll, ensuring he can earn as much money as possible, whilst the club’s representatives will be wary of paying out on a player in those circumstances. This is complicated stuff, as demonstrated by the fact that Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold also need their contracts sorting. As supporters, we can tend to think it’s easy but it very rarely is. I think it will get sorted, but it might come down to who blinks first.
Excellent piece.