Romario

I would be border line impossible to be better I agree. But if he had a 3 year deal and started to decline Liverpool could recoup. Also what are we calling a decline. 15 goals and 15 assists a season ?

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/soccer/2025/02/23/genius-level-mohamed-salah-enters-his-imperial-phase-to-guide-liverpool-to-win-at-city/ Genius-level Mohamed Salah enters his imperial phase to guide Liverpool to win at City Arguably the best attacking player in the world this season did three startlingly high-grade things to ensure victory If you’re going to win it in February, then win it in February in the right way. On a rain-sodden day in Manchester, Liverpool didn’t so much overwhelm Manchester City as stroll politely past, all controlled aggression and strength in reserve. A 2-0 scoreline seemed fair enough by the end. But then, by half-time this already felt like a victory lap. Albeit, an apposite one. If this really is to be the moment Liverpool took a decisive lead down the back straight, it happened in a way that reflects perfectly the calm, still centre of their season, both goals arriving in a 23-minute spell when Mohamed Salah decided it was time to bend the day to his will. From August to the fag end of winter, Salah has played with a kind of light around him this season. Perhaps in time this will come to be seen as his imperial phase, a perfectly ripe footballer in a team perfectly set up to feed his cutting edge. In the first half he did three startlingly high‑grade things. The first was scoring Liverpool’s opening goal. A low corner form the right was pea-rolled into the centre and funnelled on by a fine touch from Dominik Szoboszlai to Salah unmarked by the penalty spot. The first-time shot was hard, low and deflected past Ederson. The second moment of High Salah was both breathtaking and the genesis of Liverpool’s second goal. Again he took the ball in the left channel as City’s players just seemed to melt away, drowning in aura, not wanting to look directly at this thing. From there Salah produced the most delightful stunned reverse no-look nudge into the run of Trent Alexander-Arnold, one of those moments where you get a sense of a footballer operating with his footballing third eye wide open, just rearranging the other parts around him. It came to nothing, but moments later Salah set up the second goal. Again he was given a kind of presidential motorcade escort down the City left, before passing inside for Szoboszlai to roll a shot into the corner. As the ball hit the net Salah was already clenching his fists like a man about to set fire to his air guitar, the look of a footballer who knows this game is done. You can sometimes get a little too used to extraordinary things happening. The goal and the assist here made it 25 and 16 in the league, and nine in his last eight games in all competitions as the season narrows to a point. Just as striking, all of this has been enacted with that weirdly carefree air of ruthlessness, the certainty of the player who takes penalties like he’s trying to destroy something behind the goal (no visualisation, no breathing exercises here) and just seems to be having the time of his life out in the middle of all that noise and heat. It is still slightly baffling that Kylian Mbappé or Vinícius Júnior are talked up so often as the best attacking footballers in the world. Mbappé in particular has an impressively powerful multi‑platform celebrity machine at his back. But Salah has been top gun, the best attacking player in the world this season; and arguably the most decisive presence in any elite European team for much of the past five years. Not that those higher registers were needed here. On a day when the task for City was simply to look like a functioning entity, Pep Guardiola picked an end‑of‑term kind of team, all fun attacking angles. Arne Slot’s Liverpool team was also notable. Once again every player was inherited from his predecessor. At least five of them are now playing in slightly altered roles. And Liverpool’s manager deserves his slice of credit for Salah’s extraordinary bloom. Slot may have the air of a friendly neighbourhood greengrocer who juggles apples on his forearm, but he has also been sharp and confident enough to fix only the parts that need fixing. Salah has been asked to deliver more of the same, but also freed up by Liverpool’s increased patience on the ball to become more of an actively creative influence. Salah-dependence is clearly a thing. How could it not be? He has either made or scored more than half of Liverpool’s goals this season. And Salah has also carried Slot, has imbued every managerial call with an air of righteousness. You don’t need to possess a fearless dead-eye super-ripped genius-level finisher to build a reputation as a brilliant manager. But it does kind of help. Liverpool will surely go on to win the league from here. And if it seems a little ominous still that the best attacking player in Europe is yet to sign a new contract, this is perhaps just a time to live for the present, to drink in that age of imperial Salah.

An empty Anfield with a suspended Slot not there to see it.

We're all back on the Darwin train! Tomorrows his night. I can feel it.

Swap with Raphinha.

The work rate of Diaz and the out that he constantly gives the team is really underestimated by so many I think. He's having a Gakpo out of position season this year but in games like yesterday he was brilliant.

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Gakpo Joto Darwin Chiesa Elliot and Endo are all fit and dandy. Problem is the other end. I'm sure Slot has a plan. Maybe going super defensive and just taking the points yesterday was a plan to conserve energy with Newcastle coming but we looked like we'd played extra time when the whistle blew.

Not so sure. It looked like there was chaos behind the scenes during the last 2 years under Klopp to the point he had to find his own guy to do transfers which he did and got us a whole new midfield. Then he announced he was off. You could argue if we win the league and champs league that letting Slot settle in with the current team and see what he thinks come the end of the season is the most clever and sane business a club can do ( looking at you Man U) but only if we now go ahead and back him this summer and not use it as an excuse to tell everyone how clever we are by never buying anyone. I think Trent is gone. Mo 50/50 and I think Virg stays. We’ve already got the goalie sorted if Ali leaves. So defense ( rb lb cb) another quality midfielder and a striker are the priorities for me.

I think he’s good enough to do whatever’s been asked of him. I think he looks class and like you said when the brief was to defend Mo Salah and he does it well then you can’t say he’s not good at defending. Add to that he’s a hell of a footballer and it seems that’s what’s needed next season under Slot. He’s also the perfect age at 23.

Absolutely. Falls between Jota and Bobby for me and that’s all positive.

We are a far far better team but they are really well balanced and really physical. After yesterday I think we might need to do something clever again like Rafa the crap out of them and catch them on the break. Fatigue will have to be a factor. Trent Dom Macca Grav Robbo all looked completly dead on their feet at the end. It was probably the worst possible game Trent could be forced to play so many minutes in.

Yes that fella!! : )

I think if they lose v Forest on Wednesday they'll focus on the CL and give up the league.

It's massively frustrating but if you're going to go down that route then unfortunately it comes down to pixels doesn't it. The controversy is deciding the frame to use. Unless you're completly side on on ground level to the player kicking the ball it's impossible to pick the exact frame of contact or the frame where it leaves or whichever one they pick....

I think Rayan Aït-Nouri at 23 looks a brilliant player. Think he can do it all. Also Matheus Cunha should be in the conversation too as an alternative to Nunez. Morgan Gibbs-White as a 10 could be interesting and I'd try and get Archie Gray from Spurs before he's happy to never win anything ever at all.

I remember. He was big and pudgy. Thought that'd be sorted by now but I think he's done.

I think that's the issue with the team in general. I remember Ibrahimović saying the Barca dressing room was like a kids classroom. Everyone was quiet and did what they were told and it just didn't have anyone who would question anything. I see that in City too. Tetris players who all slot in brilliantly but when the system breaks they don't have too many leaders on the pitch. Probably too simplistic but they keep doing the same thing over and over and over.....

The amount of times he's in our box cleaning up too is unreal. I mistake him for Robbo about 4-5 times a game. Right time right place.

I think when a great goal is marginally off side then a little leeway (artistic merit) should be involved. I'm happy to be the guy Var switches over too when this decision needs to be made. Yesterdays stands 100%

I mentioned him about a month ago on here. I can't remember who they were playing but he was so completly shot. He couldn't run at all. Looks out of shape and like it hurts to run. He's like a brilliant pub player who's about 45. You can see he was great but that's long gone. The decline is extraordinary.

When he arrived I meant yes. I thought he came in and blew everyone away and the club were surprised by his fitness levels. If I remember Mo arrived late and might have beaten him then but his numbers were off the charts.

That Omar Marmoush could have been good as our number 9 going off yesterdays performance. He looked very very good. Massive too.

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That was my hopeful thinking too. 3rd was where we should land given how good the team is and if Slot can make the transition as smooth as possible then that would be a success. Thought it would still be hard though as it's a new everything for him and a huge learning curve so a CL spot and that would be great. But to be where we are is incredible. It's easy to say that Klopp handed over a brilliant working team with a fantastic attitude and he has but Slot has made it all look incredibly easy and it's far from it. It's would have been far easier to f*** it up than make it look this easy. I think he's an incredibly measured intelligent person to have navigated the season so well. He's been pitch perfect from day one. The only issues is the use of the squad but he clearly has a huge job to do and this summer he gets to add players he feels will make the difference. If he can squeeze money and signings out of our owners then he's extraordinary.