Virgil van Dijk, a defender for Liverpool, argues Mohamed Salah’s performance last season was negatively impacted by rumors of a new contract. In each of Liverpool’s three finals last season, including the match that decided the UEFA Champions League title versus Real Madrid, the Egyptian attacker was unable to score.
Meanwhile, Salah has only scored once in his previous five Premier League appearances, a lone goal against Wolves on the final matchday, with Van Dijk believing that his standards have dipped due to the uncertainty surrounding his future.
See Also: Joe Gomez: Mohamed Salah Is A Legend At Liverpool
Virgil van Dijk Reactions To Salah’s Form
Salah eventually put an end to speculations of a possible Anfield exit by signing a new three-year extension in July, and he has been a regular in the team during pre-season.
At the King Power Stadium on Saturday, the 30-year-old played at his peak as Liverpool defeated Manchester City 3-1 to win the Community Shield for the first time in 16 years.
Salah was involved in the first goal’s creation, the second goal’s scoring from the penalty spot, and the third goal, which was scored by recent addition Darwin Nunez, all of which he helped to set up.
After the game, Van Dijk was all praise for Salah, insisting that after a trying time, his teammate is now playing with a “free mind” once more.
“He’s under the microscope all the time,” said the Dutch defender. “He obviously created that himself because he’s such a good player, but he shows that consistency all the time. Towards the end of the season, maybe April onwards, there were a lot of talks with the contract and stuff.
“We are all human beings and I think that affected him a little bit unfortunately. But he still showed a high level of quality. Now everything is sorted, he’s playing with a free mind, he’s happy to be here and I think everyone else is happy too.”
Cool, calm, clinical 👑
A brilliant angle of @MoSalah‘s penalty and the passionate celebrations from the travelling Kop 😍 pic.twitter.com/Wqer2cC5pV
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 31, 2022
Who Will Challenge Salah For The Golden Boot In 2022-23?
Salah won the Golden Boot despite going through a poor spell of play last season because he and Son Heung-Min both finished with 22 goals, which tied them for the most goals scored.
Salah has already won the esteemed individual award in 2017–18 and 2018–19, making this his third time taking home the prize.
However, he will need to perform at his peak once more in 2022–2023 since a few more lethal strikers, including Nunez, Erling Haaland, a newcomer to Manchester City, and Harry Kane of Tottenham, will be his rivals.
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