Michael Owen explains Mohamed Salah’s important role in Liverpool’s 9-0 win vs Bournemouth
It is hard to believe that Mohamed Salah had no tangible hand in any of the nine goals that Liverpool put past Bournemouth on Saturday, August 27.
Yet, that is a fact. The Egypt international played the full 90 minutes in our record Premier League win but did not muster a single goal or an assist. He had two clear-cut chances to score as well.
A Harvey Elliott cross found him just a couple of yards away from the goal, with the goalkeeper in no man’s land. He somehow missed that, and then missed another golden chance to score when a ball played over the top found 1v1 with Mark Travers.
A lot of the raillery from rival fans after the full-time whistle was aimed at the former AS Roma and Chelsea winger not being able to contribute anything to the win. Michael Owen, the only player to have won the Ballon d’Or while playing for LFC, thinks differently.
He told PremierLeague.com (h/t Liverpool Echo):
“Certain teams when they go a few goals ahead you think they’ll probably ease off now. But when you’ve got someone like Mo Salah who hasn’t got on the scoresheet and didn’t all game, you think ‘you know what, they’re going to keep going here.’ Because they’re all hungry for goals and you just knew it was going to be a big score.”
Owen is right. Fans who watched our thrashing of the Cherries would have noticed how hard Salah was working both on and off the ball.
It wasn’t his day, but he was a crucial presence in attack that kept Bournemouth’s defenders on their toes. Salah has looked like a shadow of himself since the end of AFCON earlier this year.
Goals and assists aside, he seems to be getting some important passes wrong, making the wrong decisions in the final third, and struggling to finish chances you would expect a player of his stature to score.
More Liverpool News:
- Transfer News: Liverpool join the race to sign Sheffield United midfielder Sander Berge
- Liverpool Player Ratings vs AFC Bournemouth: Diaz and Firmino shine in Anfield rout
- Team News: Confirmed Liverpool starting XI to take on Bournemouth
Yet, he remains our talisman. The elite mentality he possesses guarantees that it won’t be long before the 30-year-old winger is back amongst the goals again. He is also here to stay until 2025 after signing a new contract earlier this summer.
