BEVERLY HILLS, April 24, (THEWILL) – In the first game of Round 33 in the English Premier League on Saturday, Mo Salah produced a fourth-minute rocket that firmly established the pedigree of the Egyptian as one of the very best strikers to grace the frontline of the Liverpool attack. The goal took Salah’s tally to 20 goals making him the first ever Liverpool player to score 20 goals in three Premier League seasons.
It means the 28-year-of Egypt international has overtaken the joint-record previously set by Robbie Fowler and Luis Suarez at Anfield. His goal record of 20 this season combines with the 22 he scored in the 2018/2019 season and the personal best of 32 in the season before that to make him the deadliest striker of the Reds.
However, on Saturday at Anfield, it fell short of taking the full three points for the Jurgen Klopp side. For long periods of their match, that pile driver seemed to be enough to allow the hosts deny Newcastle any comforts for their Saturday trip south to Anfield, but a stoppage-time equaliser turned the game on its head and ensured that the points were shared.
Before then, Newcastle had a goal disallowed for handball earlier in stoppage time in what was a wild finish to the match and just as Kloppites were heaving a collective sigh of relief for their side’s top four chances, Newcastle loanee from north London club Arsenal, Joe Willock, pounced on a long ball, controlled it with inch-perfect confidence and struck it in.
Liverpool, for the umpteenth time this season, will do with self introspection for it was another fixture characterised by wasteful finishing from Klopp’s charges. Had they been as clinical as Salah was in netting that third-minute strike, there could have been no let in for Willock to score another late important goal for the visitors in the second consecutive match.
And, without that equaliser, Liverpool could have had enough to move them back into the fourth and final UEFA Champions League qualification spot in the league standings at the current time. But, they are rather stuck in sixth place, one point behind two UCL hopefuls Chelsea and West Ham, who are joint-fourth.
For Newcastle, who are definitely pleased with the business they did in the transfer window that brought the Arsenal man to St. James’ Park. They are now nine points clear of the relegation zone as a result of a recent recovery and appear certain to preserve their top-flight status for another season.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
