The Egyptian was far from his best during the first leg of the Reds’ UEFA Champions League quarterfinal against SL Benfica last night (April 5). Salah looked subdued, completing just 77% of his passes and missing two big chances (as per Sofascore).
He did record two shots on target and two key passes but was largely well-dealt with by the Portuguese outfit. The 29-year-old was eventually substituted around the hour mark for Diogo Jota.
Speaking after the match, Klopp reflected on his substitution of Salah and his interaction with the player as he headed back to the dugout. He said (as quoted by Metro):
The German tactician added that he could see Salah’s willingness to get on the scoresheet while he was on the pitch, opining:
Both Salah and Sadio Mane played in Qualifiers for the 2022 FIFA World Cup for their respective countries during the recently concluded international break. Klopp believes those matches may have taken a lot out of both players, stating:
The Liverpool boss concluded:
After a blistering start to the season, Salah has now scored just once in his last six matches.
Liverpool pick up impressive win at Benfica in Champions League quarterfinal
Mohamed Salah’s subdued outing didn’t seem to affect Liverpool, who picked up an important first-leg victory at the Estadio da Luz last night. They will hold a 3-1 lead heading into the second leg at Anfield on April 13.
Ibrahima Konate opened the scoring for the Reds in the 17th minute with an excellent header from Andrew Robertson’s cross. Sadio Mane doubled their advantage 17 minutes later after Luis Diaz nodded the ball down in the box.
Darwin Nunez got one back for Benfica just four minutes after half-time but Diaz sealed the win by scoring from substitute Naby Keita’s pass in the 87th minute.
Liverpool will now shift their focus to a top-of-the-table Premier League encounter against Manchester City this weekend.
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