Tag: Extraordinary

Mohamed Salah became the first player to score and assist in eight Premier League games in the same season as Liverpool thumped West Ham to finish the day eight points clear of Nottingham Forest at the top of the Premier League.

Salah, who along with Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold can negotiate summer moves to overseas clubs from Wednesday, produced an extraordinary assist for Cody Gakpo before scoring himself on the stroke of half-time.

Liverpool already led through Luis Diaz’s 30th-minute goal and Trent Alexander-Arnold’s long-range strike was deflected in 10 minutes into the second half, before Salah danced with the ball from halfway to lay on a fifth Liverpool goal (for Diogo Jota) and ensure a comfortable victory that cemented their lead heading into 2025.

Here The Athletic’s Andy Jones and Liam Tharme break down the key issues from the game.

---

Did Salah mean his magic touch?

Just when you think you have seen Mohamed Salah do it all, like all great magicians he pulls another rabbit out of the hat.

In a game where he once again registered both a goal and an assist, it was the touch leading to his pass for Cody Gakpo’s goal that underlined his brilliance… as if we needed any more reminding.

As Luis Diaz ran onto a ball over the top, Salah drifted towards the box ready to receive the ball.

The Colombian slipped the ball into his feet and, as he waited for it, Salah glanced over his shoulder, spotting the oncoming Konstantinos Mavropanos.

Before he could react, the ball had passed through the Greek’s legs and Salah had spun away from him.

The touch was so good that it is difficult to describe. Salah hopped into the air, before flicking the ball with his right foot in the direction of the goal. It was unorthodox as it was mesmeric. A moment of brilliance and beauty.

This may become the modern-day ‘Bergkamp touch versus Newcastle’ debate over whether it was intentional or not. In the form Salah is in, it is difficult to think anything other than it was fully intentional.

The 32-year-old then used a burst of acceleration to get to the ball first, nutmeg another West Ham defender, and direct it into the path of Gakpo, who made no mistake. Asked by Sky Sports after the game about the two nutmegs, Salah said the first was unintentional but the second one was deliberate.

The forward couldn’t help but laugh as Curtis Jones quizzed him about it as well during the celebration immediately after the goal. He is a man at the top of his game and continues to make the seemingly impossible, possible.

Andy Jones

---

How has Diaz matched last season’s goals tally already?

It’s still December, and Luis Diaz has already matched his Premier League goal tally (eight) from last season. The Colombian has benefited from Slot’s flexible attacking approach, spending plenty of time in the half-spaces and out on either flank, connecting with Liverpool’s wide wingers and complementing midfielders making runs beyond the ball.

His opener at the London Stadium was a smart, reactive finish, after he dropped in to receive from Trent Alexander-Arnold and tried to find Curtis Jones’ penetrative run. The pass, fortunately, ricocheted back to Diaz, and he fired in.

Diaz has played off the left too, when Darwin Nunez has been No 9, though he looks at his best when Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah play high and wide. His form can be patchy, as is the case with most forwards, and he failed to score (and only assisted once) in the final nine games of last season, though Diaz has scored two or more goals on four occasions this season, including a hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League. When he’s on it, he’s on it.

Liam Tharme

---

How significant is Liverpool being so far clear at the start of 2025?

Being top of the Premier League at Christmas often feels significant for title challengers, but as they enter 2025, Liverpool are leaving the trailing pack in the dust.

As the final whistle sounded at the London Stadium, Liverpool increased their advantage at the top of the table to eight points, re-establishing the type of gap they had built at the start of December.

While Chelsea and Arsenal are yet to play their matches in this set of fixtures, Liverpool’s postponed Merseyside derby against Everton means that they have played the same number of games (18) as both — Arsenal sit nine points behind in third, and Chelsea at 10 in fourth. Nottingham Forest are second, having played a game more than all three sides.

It is a substantial lead and feels significant because Liverpool are not only in the driving seat, but it gives them room for error that the chasing pack does not have because of the number of points left to make up.

The home defeat by Nottingham Forest in September remains the only loss of Liverpool’s Premier League campaign and, as they go from strength to strength, they continue to find new ways to win and impress.

The lead they have built is incredibly impressive, but there is still a long way to go. However, if the teams below them continue to drop points as they have done in the first half of the campaign, they will soon be needing snookers.

Andy Jones

---

What had Liverpool learned since Spurs?

There’s a lot to be said for a ‘boring’ second half when you’ve scored three first-half goals. Liverpool found that out the hard way at Tottenham a week ago but were excellent at managing their lead away to West Ham, at a ground where they have far from a perfect record.

Lopetegui’s half-time tweaks saw the introduction of Niclas Fullkrug as No 9, giving them a target man, and allowing Jarrod Bowen to revert to his primary role as a winger. Little changed; Liverpool defended well in wide areas, with the ground so quiet that on-pitch shouts of “higher” — for the defence to get up — could be heard up in the press box.

Considering Liverpool started with a second-choice centre-back of Joe Gomez, and finished with a third choice when he went off injured to be replaced by Jarrell Quansah, their tightness and compactness was excellent. West Ham were limited to only four shots worth 0.29 expected goals, and Liverpool made more tackles (21 versus 16) despite dominating possession.

Their first-half pressing was excellent, setting traps into the right-footed left-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka, and they slotted into a low block and played counter-attack football when they needed to. It’s only a second away clean sheet in eight games but an important one with trips to Tottenham (again), high-flying Nottingham Forest and (outstanding at home) Brentford next up.

Liam Tharme

---

What did Arne Slot say?

Asked about the expiring contracts of Salah, Van Dijk and Alexander-Arnold: “I think I have a lot of control over what they do: if they are on a training pitch, if they are in a meeting with me. But, talking about their private lives. I don’t have control about them. So that was the situation half a year ago, the situation as long as I’m the manager, but I have control to a certain extent over them from what I expect from them on the pitch.

“I’m really pleased to see what Virgil brings, what Trent brings, and what Mo brings. Now, the positive thing for me is that for four or five months it was only Trent, Mo and Virgil where you guys were talking about.

“I assume, don’t let me down, please, that people (media) now are going to talk about every player we’re going to bring in in the upcoming months and which player is going to leave. So I got some other questions as well, and not only about these three.”

Asked by Sky Sports if he was able to provide any good news about his own contract situation, Salah said: “No. We’re far away from that. But again, I don’t want to put something in the media and people start saying stuff, but nothing has really moved on.

“For now, the only thing on my mind is Liverpool winning the league and I want to be part of that. That is the only thing I’ve focused on since the beginning of this season.”

On Joe Gomez going off, Slot said: “You saw today an injury of Joe Gomez. If a player says he wants to stop, he has to be changed.“In a sprint, then we all know it’s a hamstring and we all know it’s going take a while before he is back. I don’t know how long but he will be out for quite a bit. These situations can happen in a season.”

What next for Liverpool?

Sunday, January 5: Manchester United (H), Premier League, 4.30pm UK, 11.30am ET

---

Recommended reading

(Top photo: Sky Sports)