Mohamed Salah showed his class again to give Liverpool victory despite a poor performance against bottom-of-the-table Southampton.

Southampton 2-3 Liverpool

Premier League (12) | St. Mary’s Stadium
November 24, 2024

Goals: Armstrong 42′ Mateus Fernandes 56′; Szoboszlai 30′, Salah 65′, 83′ (pen).

1. World-class Salah gives Liverpool the edge in the title race… eventually

Now Man City loses again this was an opportunity for Liverpool to increase their lead in the title race, but for a while it looked like they would not succeed.

Come on Mohamed Salah. Now undoubtedly the best player in this English Premier League, despite a general lack of recognition of his quality.

With Liverpool trailing 2-1, a brilliant pass over the top from Liverpool’s most consistent midfielder this season, Ryan Gravenberch, gave Salah a chance.

Alex McCarthy rushed out to get another chance, but the goalkeeper’s decision changed the type of finishing required, which wasn’t as easy as Salah made it look.

It took a perfect first touch to send the ball into the net and the Egyptian took care of that, tracking the ball back for a quicker restart. Winning is the only thing on Salah’s mind, despite the talk of contracts elsewhere.

Then came the chance to win the match. The penalty win gave Liverpool hope, but there are still penalties to be scored and there is more pressure on a potential winning penalty than others, but Salah put it away.

Actually, he did more than put it away; it was more convincing than that as he found the side netting with precision and power as McCarthy dived in the right direction.

It was another occasion where world-class Salah won the game for Liverpool, going the extra mile in the difference-making moments where such players thrive.

2. The left back question

This match showed why Kostas Tsimikas has arguably moved ahead of Andy Robertson in the pecking order at left-back.

Robertson, one of the best in the world in his position at his peak, now appears to be struggling, and it showed when Tyler Dibling ran at him before the foul that led to Southampton’s penalty.

It was tense whether it was inside or outside the box, but either way Robertson was looking at a loss on how to deal with the 18-year-old, and you could foresee what would happen at that moment.

He wasn’t the only defender to have such problems. Even Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk were caught a few times, but it is becoming increasingly clear that the team can improve in this area.

Tsimikas is a good backup player, but maybe he could be the first choice now; which shows why this is the position that Slot and the recruitment team need to address as soon as possible.

3. Not getting the pressure of the green, but still winning

This game was certainly not a convincing performance on Arne Slot’s part, plus it encountered a few things that were out of their control.

Adam Lallana was lucky to stay on the field for a stud tackle over the top of Gravenberch’s ankle.

It’s the kind of challenge that usually results in a red card, as Liverpool experienced themselves, but Lallana got away with a yellow card.

The penalty for the Robertson challenge is less controversial, but still a referee on another day might have considered it a free kick outside the penalty area and VAR wouldn’t have been able to overturn that decision either.

If the decision is so close, surely the referee should award the free kick instead of something as big and potentially as game-defining as a penalty, and then use VAR to check.

Even then, Caoimhin Kelleher saved the penalty, and on another day he turned back from danger, but as it was, penalty taker Adam Armstrong followed up and scored the rebound that Kelleher almost saved again.

All of this allowed Southampton to gain a foothold in the match when they looked set to slip, especially as they struggled to build from the back.

Liverpool weren’t flawless and it was a poor performance, but a few decisions here and there, and a few bounces of the ball can make a difference. None of them went Liverpool’s way.

4. Need for improvement

Liverpool won’t always be able to rely on Salah like this.

There were many performances across the team that offer plenty of room for improvement, and it would be unfair to single out Robertson alone in this regard.

Up front, Darwin Nunez worked hard as usual but fell short in other areas until he created a good chance for Luis Diaz. Maybe he should drift wide more often.

Diaz himself has been on a bit of a boil after a great start to the season, and Alexis Mac Allister hasn’t looked his best in recent weeks either.

It seems ridiculous to criticize a group of players who have won ten of their twelve games in the league, have conceded just eight goals and have a good lead at the top of the table, especially for this time in the season.

If some things are improved and the players kick into gear at the same time, Liverpool could beat City next week and take an even more convincing lead at the top of the Premier League.

5. The Champions League just became real, but it should give priority to City

Liverpool are in a comfortable position in the Champions League but face a short turnaround between Sunday’s match and their biggest European test yet against Real Madrid on Wednesday.

They are in a good position to progress straight into the last 16, but Real are currently only on course for a place in the knockout stages of the play-offs and will be more desperate for a win.

Cody Gakpo and Curtis Jones left this match early, so it seems certain they will start against Real.

With Trent Alexander-Arnold injured, it looks like Conor Bradley will fill in at right-back, but could Joe Gomez come into the backline instead?

Some rotation is needed as the City game needs to be prioritized with a chance to go 11 points clear on December 1.