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Former Liverpool midfielder Didi Hamann says the arrival of Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz this summer has made things harder for Mohamed Salah, who was left out of the starting XI in the Champions League midweek.
Arne Slot said Salah's exclusion was simply about rotating his roster, but Liverpool struggled against Galatasaray without its talisman. Jeremie Frimpong was deployed on the right wing but that didn't work out, and Wirtz was once again a little lost as he continues to adapt to life at a new club.
"Salah found it hard to score from open play in the second half of last season," Hamann told Grosvenor Casino. "Once you get past 30, and he’s 33 now, there aren’t an awful lot of players scoring on a consistent basis in the Premier League.
"You’ve got Robert Lewandowski, who does it, and you’ve got Harry Kane; in the Premier League, you don’t. Salah was a freak of nature, very rarely injured, and the numbers he got.
"But I think everything will deteriorate at some stage, and I think we saw it at times last season.
"Again, this year, he hasn’t found it easier to score goals, creating or getting chances. The dynamics changed as well because in the past, Salah was the guy they looked for.
"Now it might be Wirtz, even though he’s had a very disappointing start to his Liverpool career. And now with Isak coming in, obviously, there are two ways of seeing it.
"You can say there’s another guy taking attention and maybe taking balls away from Salah. On the other hand, you can say maybe it gives him a bit more space because they have to look after two or three top players.
"My gut feeling is that the arrival of Isak won’t improve Salah’s numbers."
Salah has scored three goals and set up another three in his eight appearances so far this season. However, the Egyptian has often been on the periphery and two of his goals have come from the penalty spot.
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The signings of Wirtz and Isak for a combined $325 million (£241 million) perhaps point to how Liverpool will look when Salah moves on. For now, though, Slot has the luxury problem of trying to fit them all into the team — and it hasn't clicked yet.
Liverpool.com says: Collectively, Salah, Wirtz and Isak are not playing well yet. But individually, it's not like they're doing much right either (in Isak's case, because he is still working his way up to full match fitness).
If they can find some form on an individual basis, the goals should start to flow. The trio are each too good for that not to become the case in the next few months.
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