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It's been a while, but Mohamed Salah reappeared assuming the lead part in recent days with two goals in Casablanca that confirmed Egypt's position at the upcoming World Cup. The star taking center stage once more. Liverpool must have him to stay there.

Reasons for Inconsistent Displays

There are numerous factors why inconsistent, lackluster showings have been the common thread characterizing the team's start to their championship defense, whether they produced seven wins in a row or, before Manchester United's arrival to Anfield on Sunday, three losses in a row. The turmoil from so many offseason moves, the coach's hunt for his top team, the late forward's loss; the winger has experienced the consequences of them all during his atypically subdued start to the campaign.

Sunday's Key Fixture

Sunday's showpiece occasion could provide the impetus for the cause of a record 16 goals in 17 appearances for Liverpool against Manchester United, who are making their centenary trip to the stadium and have not triumphed at their archrivals for over nine years. The attacker will pose Slot with another unexpected problem, however, if he continue caught in the disruption much longer.

Recent Form

The team's head coach must have recognized the irony of the player's initial score against the opponent in midweek. Drilled first time with the exterior of his stronger foot into the front post, Salah's eighth goal of the national team's qualifying effort was from an nearly the same location to his costly miss in the Chelsea match before the national team pause.

Had that right-foot effort been finished shortly after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would even now be celebrating the new signing's first superb assist in the English top flight. Analyses into his drop and Liverpool's rare losing run might also have been postponed. Instead, Wirtz's wait goes on while Slot fumes over a third away defeat, two due to last-minute winners and one the outcome of a controversial spot-kick. Narrow differences, as he reiterated on Friday, but they do not camouflage bigger issues.

Previous Campaign's Influence

Salah was instrumental in pushing the side towards a record-equalling 20th championship the previous term while speculation over his long-term plans lingered in the background. “We brought nearly the best out of Mo this season,” said the manager when his leading striker signed an extension in April. There has been a clear decrease on an personal and collective level since. The team, not the details of a deal, are responsible.

Statistical Drop

His output in terms of scores and assists is reduced 50% on the corresponding point the previous term, from a total 8 in the initial seven fixtures of last season to 4 (a pair of goals and a couple of assists) the current campaign. His tally of attempts has fallen from twenty-two to 12 while accurate shots have dropped from fifteen to 5, causing a steep decline in shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6%, data show.

A single trait that has held more steady is Salah's creativity. With twelve chances created, versus fourteen at the comparable period of last campaign, his stats are among the top in Europe and comparable in the group of Lamine Yamal and rising stars, his younger counterparts by fifteen and 13 years respectively.

Team Performance

Indicators of team display will trouble the coach more. He had seventy-six touches in the enemy penalty area in the first seven matches of the prior campaign. This term's count is 39. The stats are reflective of the team's difficulties as a whole. Only United and Arsenal have taken a greater number of attempts on goal than Liverpool this season, but Liverpool's proportion of shots from within the six-yard area is the smallest in the division, their share from distance among the top. Liverpool's percentage of shots on target – 28.4 percent – is also among the weakest in the league.

“In the first half of the previous campaign we mostly scored from a special moment from an attacker and in the later stage it was more from a set piece,” Slot said. “This season we haven’t had as numerous moments of genius and we have not found the net from dead balls. But we are still the team that from general play generates the most quality opportunities.”

Recent Additions

They are not beating opponents in the manner the coach envisaged when Wirtz, the French forward and Alexander Isak were acquired this summer, although Liverpool remain the division's joint third-highest scorers. A draw on Sunday would be enough for Slot to reach the century of points in fewer games than any coach in Liverpool's past (46). Imagine what his forward line will do when it finally gels. Liverpool remain a squad of outstanding talent, capable of starting and reeling in any foe for the championship, but unity is missing. That cannot be pinned on the new signings alone.

Individual and Team Challenges

Salah is not the only established member to suffer a decline, with the midfielder returning to match sharpness and Ibrahima Konaté laboring. But he ends up at the center of the upheaval that has of late enveloped Liverpool. This goes to a individual level, with Salah's sadness over the passing of Diogo Jota clear on that emotional opening night against the Cherries. The impact of Jota's death can neither be measured nor overlooked.

Strategic Adjustments

Last season, he