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That Mohamed Salah has not started either of the last two games that Liverpool has played in the Champions League— Galatasaray and Eintracht Frankfurt — tells its own story.
In seasons gone by, he would have been a certainty to make the starting XI. It would have made no difference that there was three games scheduled in the space of a few days: he would have been there for them all.
Not right now, though. As Jamie Carragher suggested recently, Arne Slot's star man is not performing at a level whereby his spot is guaranteed for every game — and there has been plenty of scrutiny regarding the 33-year-old.
Wayne Rooney, for instance, suggested that Salah's recent poor showings are because of his age. Others have questioned his suitability to play alongside the multiple new signings, or queried if he might be missing Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Some have scoffed at the decision to hand him a two-year deal in retrospect, despite it being obvious that the Egyptian should be tied down after a season in which he provided a remarkable 56 goal contributions in 52 appearances.
But speaking ahead of the trip to Brentford, Slot brushed off a question about Salah's form. "I think it's been a difficult moment for all of us," he said. "No one is used to losing, for all the players that have played here for so many years.
"Even for the new players as well, because we started the season with seven wins, if you start to lose once, that's a difficult moment for everyone, let alone if you [lose] twice, three or four times."
Amid the criticism — and Salah being dropped to the bench for the big game on Wednesday — the Liverpool talisman has the ideal chance to prove the doubters wrong.
If history has told us anything about the Liverpool number 11, it is that silencing those who question him is something he has made a habit of. He is, for instance, now an eight-season wonder.
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Much of the discourse around Salah has been strange in the early weeks of the season. Though he is clearly not performing at his peak level, talk of him not tracking back enough or losing his pace completely misses the point.
He wasn't doing much defending last season and it has been a long time since his speed was electric; it just doesn't matter when he is finding the back of the net more regularly.
Ultimately, the biggest problem that Salah has had has been his finishing. For whatever reason, and often inexplicably, he simply hasn't taken the chances that Florian Wirtz and co have created for him.
A determined Salah has often been the most dangerous version, however. Though he can't argue with being taken out of the team, there will be an extra motivation to put things right when he returns.
"We know that trophies are what count and we will do everything possible to make that happen next season," Salah posted on social media at the end of Jurgen Klopp's tenure, a year before he fired the Reds to the Premier League title. "Our fans deserve it and we will fight like hell," he promised.
This week, he might have taken references to Liverpool off his X/Twitter profile, but it would be unwise to think this current malaise will last forever. If anything, he will be more determined than ever to turn things around — a scary prospect for those soon to face him.
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