Mo Salah

[SB]

Some chatter that he is on the bench tomorrow with Frimpong starting wide right.

Great idea trying it out in the CL where a slip up isn’t the end of the world should it not work out. But I think it will work.

[Scratch]

IF (big IF) Salah is 'rested', it might be the kick up the bum he needs to up his game a little. Yes, he's got goals and assists and that is great, but we need him for 90 mins, not just in flashes here and there.

I wonder if one of the LW we have would be effective on the right? Maybe stick a right footer out there who will take on the man and put some crosses in, rather than cutting inside to keep it on the stronger foot?

[SB]

Wrong Fred

[Norbs]

Time to bang the same drum again.

Totally abject, greedy and manages to get 100 minutes. Not having room for Isak and Ekitike but Salah has a free pass.

Costing us big time

[BobTheCharmer]

I said that last season should have been his swansong. Go out at the top with a title. Not renewing his ****ing contract. Madness.

[Kenneth]

I said that last season should have been his swansong. Go out at the top with a title. Not renewing his ****ing contract. Madness.

I was with you bob, but 'I told you so's aren't very helpful or popular.

[peterbread]

I get keeping him on because he can create something out of nothing but he doesn’t seem to be doing that this season. Let’s see what he can do coming off the bench instead. Those shots he had today were terrible. You’d expect him to at least hit the target.

[Exiled_red]

Probably need to get my tin hat for this, but I thought today was one of his better performances this season (low bar to be fair) but there were a few of his trademark runs, the shots at the end of them were poor (high and wide)and a decent cross, he was still way off but not totally missing.

[peterbread]

It’s the kind of game he would have won us before but can he still do it?

[BobTheCharmer]

I was with you bob, but 'I told you so's aren't very helpful or popular.

Ah well they'll just have to suck it up.

I feel a bit sorry for him as his legs can't do what he wants them to. It's not like he doesn't care or isn't trying. He's just bang average now with the odd moments of magic.

[baitman]

We gave him a 400k a week contract.
Im sure the plan was to allow the new guys to settle in, then sell him after the first year and recover a big fee, maybe £100M from saudi, then use that for Olise.
We'd be lucky to get £50M for him in January

[danperkins]

He's been dreadful alright, if he's scoring you can forgive other aspects of his game to a certain extent and if he's not scoring you look at work rate and other positives he is giving to the team, unfortunately he is doing neither.

[Kenneth]

We don't need him to score our goals, we have quality CFs capable of scoring 20 league goals a season now. We do need him tracking back and helping defend, but he's been relieved of those duties. Neither he nor Gakpo go anywhere near the corner flags, all of their crosses are from deep and high and curling towards the keeper and are easier to defend. We need actual width from our wide attackers, and to be able to get passed their fullback, and because he can't do either of these things, salah should not be playing

[Fierce]

We don't need him to score our goals, we have quality CFs capable of scoring 20 league goals a season now. We do need him tracking back and helping defend, but he's been relieved of those duties. Neither he nor Gakpo go anywhere near the corner flags, all of their crosses are from deep and high and curling towards the keeper and are easier to defend. We need actual width from our wide attackers, and to be able to get passed their fullback, and because he can't do either of these things, salah should not be playing

Neither he nor Gakpo are wingers, that's the issue. They're both exactly what has worked so well in the past 10 years - wide forwards

Salah and Mane worked perfectly with a deeper 'forward' allowing them to get into the box, but we don't play that way any more

I'm not sure Salah is as finished as is being made out, but its a fairly drastic decline, even given last year's numbers

[Kenneth]

We haven't had £200m worth of number 9s in the box waiting for service before though. And we had the Salah who could dribble the ball passed three players and score or play it across to feet. And we had a false 9 to inter-play with. That is not our current squad, we don't need all the goals to come from our wide forwards.