EPL

Fabinho backs Salah to become one of Liverpool's greatest ever

By Sports Desk July 11, 2022

Fabinho thinks Mohamed Salah could go on to be regarded as one of the greatest players to ever pull on a Liverpool jersey after signing a new contract.

Salah ended speculation around his future by agreeing a new three-year deal on July 1 – the Egypt forward only had 12 months remaining on his previous deal with the Reds and could have departed as a free agent after the 2022-23 season.

That would have been a significant blow for Liverpool considering Salah's impact since joining from Roma in 2017.

The 30-year-old has made 254 appearances for the Reds and scored 156 goals, assisting 58 more.

Those 156 goals rank Salah ninth on the list of Liverpool's record scorers, while his Premier League goal involvements tally of 164 is third only to Robert Lewandowski (184) and Lionel Messi (200) among players from Europe's big five leagues since August 2017.

He has played a vital role in Liverpool winning six trophies since his arrival, including the Reds' first Premier League crown and a Champions League title, but Fabinho is convinced there could be even more to come from Salah.

Speaking in Bangkok on Monday ahead of Tuesday's friendly against Manchester United, Fabinho said: "We are really happy for [Salah], happy to see him playing for Liverpool.

"He's already a Liverpool legend, but I think he can be one of the best Liverpool players in the history of this club.

"So I'm happy for him, for sure he will continue to score goals and play his best football because he is really important for us."

While pre-season friendlies might be considered of little importance to the average supporter, Harvey Elliott is fully aware of how crucial they could be to him.

The 19-year-old enjoyed an impressive loan spell with Blackburn Rovers in the Championship in 2020-21 and looked set for a prominent role in the first team upon his return.

But a dislocated ankle suffered against Leeds United in September kept Elliott out until February, and while he was able to take part in the final three months of the season, he freely admits he was not himself.

The England Under-21 international's mental state has improved over the off-season, however, and he is eager to make the most of pre-season.

He said: "It's easy to sort of get overwhelmed by the injury and come back, and you keep thinking about it and not feel comfortable and confident and stuff like that, and I think towards the end of the season, I did a little bit, because my form wasn't really there, and I wasn't really myself in training sessions just because I was a bit worried.

"So, I mean, now I feel 100 per cent, that the line has gone through last season. This season is a new one, new achievements to be reached and new goals to be reached as well.

"So I'm just looking forward to it and making sure, as I said, I'm in the best possible position to go out.

"I'll put myself out there to the manager, to the coaching team, to the players that, I'm still here, and I'm still able to play for the team. I'm still able to give my 100 per cent focus and committing to the team."

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  • Liverpool 1-0 Real Betis: Szoboszlai gets Slot era up and running Liverpool 1-0 Real Betis: Szoboszlai gets Slot era up and running

    Dominik Szoboszlai's goal was the difference as Arne Slot's first game in charge of Liverpool with spectators present ended in a 1-0 win over Real Betis in Pittsburgh.

    Liverpool lost 1-0 in a behind-closed-doors meeting with Preston North End last week, but they were victors in sweltering conditions when their pre-season tour of the United States got under way on Friday.

    Szoboszlai scored the only goal after 34 minutes, stroking his finish past Adrian after Mohamed Salah slipped a pass through to the Hungary international.

    That goal came four minutes after Curtis Jones was forced off through injury, being replaced by 17-year-old Trey Nyoni.

    Former Reds goalkeeper Adrian denied Conor Bradley as a strong Liverpool side chased a second, while Harvey Elliott nodded wide from a Kostas Tsimikas cross.

    After Slot rang the changes with 63 minutes gone, Kaide Gordon missed Liverpool's best chance to make it 2-0 by dragging his effort wide, but it did not matter as a controlled performance saw the Reds home.

    Data Debrief: Reds in cruise control

    Slot had been expected to bring a slightly more measured approach than the "heavy metal football" preached by his predecessor Jurgen Klopp, and that was on full display on Friday as Betis were held at arm's length.

    Liverpool enjoyed 62.7% of the possession throughout the match, though Slot will be looking for more penetration when they face Arsenal in the next game of their tour on Wednesday, having only recorded 12 touches in the penalty area to Betis' 10. 

  • Slot's Liverpool success will be measured by trophies, says McAllister Slot's Liverpool success will be measured by trophies, says McAllister

    Gary McAllister says Arne Slot must be prepared to aim high by targeting trophies if he is to be successful with Liverpool.

    The Dutchman is set to begin his first season in charge of the Reds after being appointed as Jurgen Klopp's successor in May.

    Liverpool enjoyed a trophy-laden spell under the German, winning their first-ever Premier League title, as well as a Champions League, a Club World Cup, a Super Cup, an FA Cup and two EFL Cups.

    However, Slot was no stranger to success while at Feyenoord, leading the team to the Eredivisie title in 2022-23 before lifting the KNVB Cup in April during his final season with the club.

    McAllister, who won five trophies in the two years he spent at Liverpool, says Slot's success will be determined by the silverware he collects.

    "Liverpool is a club that's synonymous with winning, and when you don't win you fail," McAllister told Stats Perform.

    "When there's a new management team, you're given a little bit more time, but the facts are Liverpool's target, I felt, and as a player that played against them for most of his career, the targets that Liverpool set, you go into every tournament looking to win it.

    "You try to win every game and that's the expectation of the club and that's what makes it a very special club."

    Klopp spent nine years at Liverpool, breaking club records as his team pushed for trophies on a regular basis.

    The Reds enjoyed a club-record 68-match unbeaten run at Anfield over nearly four years in the Premier League between April 2017 and January 2021.

    Klopp also oversaw three of the four most prolific seasons in Liverpool's history, including the club-record total of 147 goals scored in 2021-22.

    Slot has admitted he has "big shoes to fill", but McAllister believes the 45-year-old will be able to live up to the high expectations left behind by Klopp.

    "Arne arriving at the club, following Klopp, realising that it's such a difficult job anyway, but to follow somebody who's done particularly well at the club over an eight, nine-year period is going to be tough, and I don't think the new manager is under any illusions," he added.

    "What I would say is he's a man that seems to be a very strong character, good personality, and he's just got to come in and be his own man and trust what he does.

    "He's done very well in his previous managerial career and coming to Liverpool I feel is a natural progression in the levels of the game that he's worked at.

    "So, everybody at the club will be deeply backing him and be right behind him, he'll have amazing support."

    Liverpool's first pre-season game under Slot ended in a 1-0 defeat to Preston North End last week before the players flew out to the United States for a three-game tour.

    They are also only one of two Premier League clubs yet to conduct any business in the transfer window so far, but McAllister urged fans to be patient with Slot while he gets settled in his new role.

    "Whenever there's a change at a club, I think the fans have got to realise that it does take time for a new manager, a new coaching group to come in and get their ideas over to the players," he said.

    "There's got to be a modicum of patience, but at Liverpool, expectation levels are very, very high and sometimes, in professional soccer, in elite soccer, patience is something that most managers don't get.

    "As much as the fans have got to be aware that everything is new and there are new ideas, Arne and the players will want to get off to a quick start.

    "I feel that this pre-season tour is going to help them start the season against Ipswich Town very strongly. I feel the games that they've got here in the US, here in Pittsburgh against Betis, and then we go to play Arsenal and Manchester United, the build-up is pretty good."

     

  • Jones 'happiest he's ever been' at Liverpool under Slot Jones 'happiest he's ever been' at Liverpool under Slot

    Curtis Jones says he is "probably the happiest he's been" since Arne Slot's arrival at Liverpool.

    Jones was first promoted to the first team by Jurgen Klopp in September 2019, but despite going on to make 133 appearances for his boyhood club, he failed to nail down a place in the German's starting line-up after that.

    Last season, the 23-year-old made 36 appearances in all competitions, more than in any other season, netting five goals as Liverpool won the EFL Cup and finished third in the Premier League.

    Now, with a new manager at the helm, Jones believes Slot's more patient approach will suit him better, allowing him to secure a regular starting spot.

    "[Slot's] amazing. It's probably the happiest I've been," Jones told reporters during their pre-season camp.

    "As a style of play, it suits me. It is a clear plan. Arne is fully involved in the training, he coaches us a lot, he's big on the finer details.

    "He knows it's going to take a bit of time because it's a big change. I came around the team as a young lad. I always had a way of playing, but I had to adapt and change.

    "It wasn't anything I couldn't do. But this now is more me. I can get on the ball more. I can 'do me' more.

    "My way of playing has always been to get on the ball and play, help the team, and be comfortable on the ball.

    "I then came around a team who had world-class lads on the wing and up front. The centre-mids were always more like runners, more disciplined.

    "Now the midfielders are going to be the heart of the team. In terms of our build-up, we have to be more calm and play more as a team.

    "We're not in a rush to attack. We want to have the ball and just break teams down. In the past, it was kind of a rush. It was a bit too direct; it was up and down. Now Arne wants us to have all the ball and completely kill teams."

    Liverpool are in the United States for their three-game pre-season tour, starting with Real Betis on Friday.

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