ST’s weekend football debrief
You snooze, you lose in fast-paced English Premier League
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Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah (left) has now gone four games without a goal contribution for the first time this season.
PHOTO: AFP
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The English Premier League has often been hailed for its excitement and high-quality football. But every once in a while, things go pear-shaped even for the biggest clubs across the table. Here are three key talking points.
Something’s not right with Salah
With 27 strikes, including nine in his last 10 league games, Liverpool talisman Mohamed Salah still leads Manchester City’s Erling Haaland in the Premier League Golden Boot race by six goals. But a closer look reveals the cracks, as the Egyptian has now gone four games without a goal contribution for the first time this season.
And these were key games as well, as he fired blanks in the Champions League last-16 second-leg loss to Paris Saint-Germain, League Cup final defeat by Newcastle United, a narrow league win over Everton, before the recent 3-2 reverse at Fulham.
There was minimal damage to Liverpool’s league title aspirations though, as no team in the top five managed to win this past weekend, and they lead Arsenal by 11 points with seven games to go.
But with his dribbling success rate and number of shots taking a dip in 2025 according to the BBC, surely Salah’s performance will be a concern as the Reds look forward to the next season.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot seemed unbothered when he said: “Maybe he should see it as a compliment (that people are talking about his barren run) because his numbers were not normal (when he was scoring). The good thing about Mo is he knows what kind of player he is. Mo will show up again, I don’t worry about that.”
With the Reds yet to extend the 32-year-old’s deal, will he turn up in the Saudi Pro League instead?
Manchester sides need a rebuild
The drab 0-0 draw in the Manchester derby
As a result of their prolonged inability to sort out their on-field issues and add quality, the Red Devils are mired in 13th place, although 20-year-old Patrick Dorgu provided some optimism with a fine display on the left side of Ruben Amorim’s 3-4-3 system.
The Citizens shouldn’t gloat, for it could also be the first time in the Premier League era in which neither United nor City finish in the top four, with City in danger of missing out on Champions League football for the first time since 2010-11.
The arrival of Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez, Abdukodir Khusanov, Vitor Reis and Savinho – all aged 26 and under – shows Pep Guardiola is planning for life after Kevin de Bruyne.
But it remains to be seen if either manager has what it takes to lead them back to the top.
Unwelcome relegation records
With their 3-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur,
Just ahead of them and also looking destined for the drop are 2016 champions Leicester City, who have lost their last seven league games without scoring, and have just 17 points before their April 7 match against Newcastle, which took place after press time.
Ipswich Town, who have scored in all but one of their matches since February, have put up more of a fight, but still have only 20 points. Their 2-1 loss to 17th-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers after taking the lead could prove to be the fatal blow, as they are 12 points behind the West Midlands side with only 21 points to play for.
If the trio get relegated, they will follow in the footsteps of Luton Town, Burnley and Sheffield United, who returned to the Championship a season after winning promotion. It would be the first time this has happened in consecutive seasons.
Furthermore, they could be the worst trio in Premier League history if they fail to beat the combined tally of 66 points by last season’s bottom three.
David Lee is senior sports correspondent at The Straits Times focusing on aquatics, badminton, basketball, cue sports, football and table tennis.
