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These days, Mohamed Salah generally makes his way into all-time Premier League XIs without too much hassle. Where Cristiano Ronaldo was once a shoo-in on the right flank, he is now typically shunted through the middle or onto the left, in spite of where he spent most of his time for Manchester United.
That's not to say Salah can claim to be better than Ronaldo overall, with the Portuguese star still standing behind only Lionel Messi among this generation's greatest players. But when it comes to impact on the Premier League, the Liverpool man has moved comfortably clear.
He is, after all, the fourth-highest-scoring player in the league's history, and the 10th-highest-scoring assister, moving clear of Ronaldo on both counts. All of which makes the sudden fallout between Salah and Liverpool all the more disappointing.
For those who might have somehow missed it, Salah has caused a huge stir after being left out of the side by Arne Slot for three games running. His week out of the team prompted a furious backlash, in which he claimed to have "no relationship" with the manager.
On the pitch, damage limitation appears to be going well. Slot once again left Salah out for the trip to face Inter Milan, and Liverpool came away with a hard-fought and much-needed 1-0 victory.
But the question now is how things resolve themselves off the pitch. And Liverpool has been warned that Salah could soon be drawing an altogether unwanted parallel to Ronaldo.
"Liverpool can’t allow this fiasco to continue or spread within the club, they need players to graft,” warned Paul Parker, speaking to Gambling Portal British Gambler. "They know what’s happened 40 miles up the road at Manchester United with Cristiano Ronaldo a few years ago, they don’t want it to escalate into a similar situation there.
"They can’t allow this to grow, they need to nip it in the bud, and they need to do it quickly. Back in my time, the manager had the power to close the door shut on a player completely, but we all know how it is these days, and Slot has had to keep it ajar and the board have said their bit."
Parker is referring to Ronaldo's second spell at United, from which there are indeed a handful of comparisons to be made to Salah's current predicament. While the former Real Madrid man still offered moments of brilliance on his return to Old Trafford, there was an increasing question over how much Erik ten Hag could impose his style of play while carrying a passenger out of possession.
In fairness, Ronaldo was far deeper into veteran status than Salah is now, and the equation does not necessarily balance in the same way; it was only last season that the Liverpool star was leading his team to the title. But one thing that the pair definitely have in common is the ability to heap unwanted pressure on their respective managers by virtue of their superstar status.
Ten Hag felt the need to be strong in the face of public comments from Ronaldo, and it all escalated into a media circus. It's never a good sign when Piers Morgan takes center stage.
While Ten Hag won the battle, there were ultimately no winners of the war. He had the air of the captain of a sinking ship more or less from that moment onward, and the only surprise was how long it took for him to go under.
Slot and Liverpool will need to show greater diplomacy. And with any luck, Salah will show that he has slightly less of an ego than Ronaldo.
But this is undoubtedly a testing moment for both sides. Liverpool has seen exactly how quickly these situations can go south, and it's in everyone's best interests to resolve this as quickly as possible.
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