Jamie O’Hara claimed that Mohamed Salah is “a bit like Harry Kane” due to his struggles in cup finals. In seven cup-final appearances since joining Liverpool, Salah has scored just one goal — a penalty — and failed to register an assist.
The Egyptian had no impact on Sunday’s Carabao Cup final as the Reds were beaten 2-1 by Newcastle to cap a miserable few days, which also saw Arne Slot’s men crash out of the Champions League at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain.
Salah is enjoying a statistically brilliant season, scoring 32 goals and registering 22 appearances in 43 appearances for the Reds, but O’Hara questioned his record in finals.
“I feel for Mohamed Salah, he’s a bit like Harry Kane,” O’Hara said on talkSPORT. “He’s a brilliant player – there’s no doubt – but if you want to be classed as the ‘hero’ player for Liverpool, like Steven Gerrard and Ian Rush, you have to perform in finals. While, yes, Liverpool do have the trophies, they’ve relied on the team performance rather than individuals.
“Him personally, in a final, hasn’t really performed to his usual standard we see often in the Premier League. He was non-existent in the EFL Cup final against Newcastle. In eight finals for Liverpool and Egypt, I think he’s only scored one and assisted one, and the goal was a penalty against Tottenham. He has to be more of a presence in big games.”
Arne Slot’s men will resume the season knowing they have a 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League table and just nine games remaining. While it seems a foregone conclusion they will win the title, O’Hara does not think Slot’s team is at the same level that the Reds were when they were at their best under Jurgen Klopp.
“Liverpool have been brilliant this season; they’ve been really efficient,” he said. “But the quality of the elite clubs in the Premier League has dropped off a cliff in the Premier League and Liverpool have been there to pick up the pieces and, ultimately, have been the best of a bad bunch.
“They’re a good team, but they aren’t the Liverpool of old. They aren’t Jurgen Klopp’s team that finished second to Manchester City, or the Liverpool team that won the league and were breathtaking. I think they’ve come unstuck.
“Against Paris Saint-German, they were outclassed; PSG were far the better team. In the Carabao Cup final, they were physically and mentally fatigued. Newcastle were up for it and you could tell they were there to compete. Liverpool just weren’t at the races. I don’t think Liverpool are as good as everyone’s made them out to be.”
