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It's been a while, but Mohamed Salah returned taking on the main part in recent days with a double in Casablanca that sealed Egypt's position at the global tournament. The star stepping on the spotlight once more. The Merseyside club require him to keep that position.

Factors for Unsteady Performances

There are several reasons why variable, unimpressive showings have been the frequent pattern defining Liverpool's start to their championship defense, if they recorded a winning streak or, prior to the Red Devils' arrival to Anfield on Sunday, three consecutive defeats. The turmoil from so many summer changes, Arne Slot's search for his best XI, the late forward's passing; the winger has felt the impact of them all during his unusually low-key start to the term.

Sunday's Key Fixture

The weekend's showpiece occasion could offer the impetus for the origin of a record 16 strikes in 17 outings for Liverpool against United, who are paying their centenary trip to the stadium and have not triumphed at their fierce rivals for more than nine years. The attacker will pose Slot with an additional unexpected problem, however, if he remain lost in the upheaval much longer.

Latest Form

Liverpool's boss likely seen the irony of Salah's opening strike against the opponent in midweek. Struck directly with the exterior of his stronger foot into the front post, Salah's eighth goal of Egypt's qualifying effort was from an nearly the same location to his costly miss in the Chelsea match prior to the national team pause.

Had that attempt been converted moments after the restart at Chelsea's ground we would even now be eulogising Florian Wirtz's first sublime assist in the English top flight. Inquests into his decline and Liverpool's infrequent losing streak might as well have been postponed. Rather, the midfielder's search goes on while the coach fumes over a third consecutive defeat away, a couple due to last-minute winners and another the result of a debatable penalty. Small margins, as he emphasized on Friday, but they do not camouflage larger problems.

Previous Campaign's Contribution

Salah was key in driving Liverpool towards a historic 20th league title the previous term while doubt over his career persisted in the background. “We brought almost the best out of Salah that campaign,” said the manager when his main attacker signed a new two‑year contract in April. There has been a clear drop-off on an individual and team level since. The squad, not the details of a deal, are to blame.

Statistical Drop

His output in terms of goals and setups is reduced 50% on the corresponding point the prior campaign, from a total 8 in the opening seven fixtures of last season to four (a pair of goals and a couple of assists) this season. The count of attempts has fallen from 22 to twelve while efforts on goal have dropped from 15 to five, leading to a sharp drop in shooting accuracy (excluding blocks) from 78.9% to 55.6 percent, statistics show.

One attribute that has stayed stable is his playmaking. With 12 key passes, against fourteen at the equivalent point of last campaign, his numbers are among the finest in Europe and comparable in the ranks of young talents and Arda Güler, his younger counterparts by fifteen and thirteen years respectively.

Collective Display

Metrics of team performance will trouble Slot more. He had 76 contacts in the opposition penalty area in the opening seven league games of the previous term. This term's tally is thirty-nine. These figures are indicative of the team's problems overall. Only Manchester United and Arsenal have taken more shots on goal than them in the current term, but Liverpool's percentage of shots from inside the six-yard box is the poorest in the top flight, their percentage from long range among the highest. The club's percentage of efforts on goal – 28.4% – is as well among the poorest in the competition.

During the initial phase of last season we mostly scored from a moment of magic from an attacker and in the second half it was mostly from a set piece,” the manager said. “This season we have not seen as many sparks of quality and we haven’t scored from dead balls. But we are nonetheless the side that from live action generates the most expected goals opportunities.”

Recent Additions

They are not punishing rivals in the way the coach planned when Wirtz, Hugo Ekitiké and Alexander Isak were signed this summer, though the team remain the division's equal third-top scorers. A tie on Sunday would be enough for him to achieve the 100-point total in fewer games than any boss in Liverpool's past (46). Imagine what his forward line will do when it does settle. Liverpool are still a team of supreme skill, capable of igniting and chasing any rival for the title, but synergy is absent. That cannot be pinned on the recent arrivals by themselves.

Personal and Collective Challenges

The player is not the only senior member to experience a decline, with Alexis Mac Allister regaining to form and Ibrahima Konaté struggling. But he is at the core of the upheaval that has of late affected the club. That goes to a individual level, with Salah's sorrow over the loss of Jota evident on that poignant opening night against the Cherries. The impact of his tragedy can neither be measured nor dismissed.

Tactical Adjustments

In the prior campaign, he