Arne Slot believes it is no surprise Mohamed Salah keeps delivering the type of “special” performance that helped Liverpool earn a point on a remarkable evening at Newcastle United.
Salah set up one goal, scored twice and hit the crossbar during a superb second-half showing as the Reds were ultimately held to a 3-3 Premier League draw on Wednesday night.
Liverpool were a goal behind after a poor opening half before Salah’s assist for Curtis Jones lit the blue touchpaper for a thrilling second stanza in which Fabian Schar’s 90th-minute equaliser means the visitors’ lead at the Premier League summit has been cut to seven points by Chelsea and Arsenal.
Salah, whose contract talks are still to be resolved, now has 15 goals and 12 assists in 21 appearances this season.
And of the Egyptian’s future, Slot said: “It’s difficult for me to predict the long-term future but I can predict that he is in a very good place at the moment and in a very good team that provides him with good opportunities and he is able to do special things.
“What makes him even more special is that in the first 50 minutes you thought that he’s not playing his best game today and then comes up with 45 minutes of an assist, two goals, hitting the bar and being a constant threat.
“That’s something not many players can do if they played the first 50 minutes like he did. That’s also what makes him special. If you just look at the goals his finishing is so clinical and shows he is a special player. But that’s what we all know.”
Salah is now out on his own as the player with the most Premier League games in which he has contributed a goal and an assist having matched Wayne Rooney’s tally of 36 in the 2-0 home win over Manchester City at the weekend.
And when Slot was asked if he suspected Salah was past his best when he first started working with the player at the start of pre-season, he added: “I’ve seen many games of last season but it’s always difficult to judge a player if you’re not there.
“What I did most was just seeing style of play and team performance, not that much the individual performance.
