In the midst of Liverpool’s Premier League title victory and the ensuing jubilations, Mohamed Salah shattered another scoring record. The Egyptian netted Liverpool’s fourth goal, breaking a six-match scoreless streak, as it trounced Tottenham 5-1 to secure the title.
The 32-year-old’s goal was his 33rd of the season in all competitions, with 28 of those coming in the Premier League. With 18 assists in England’s top tier, he is poised to clinch both the Golden Boot and Playmaker award, not to mention a sweep of individual honors.
However, his goal against Spurs propelled him up a notch in the Premier League’s all-time scoring charts. With his 186th Premier League strike, he has now surpassed Manchester City legend Sergio Aguero to sit fifth in the rankings.
If he manages to score three more goals in Liverpool’s remaining four matches, he will leapfrog Manchester United icon Andrew Cole into fourth place. Meanwhile, after recently penning a new two-year deal with the Reds, Wayne Rooney (208) and Harry Kane (213) are well within Salah’s reach as he sets his sights on Alan Shearer’s all-time record of 260.
In other news, Salah has now scored 244 goals for Liverpool in 397 appearances across all competitions. And earlier this season, he ascended to third place in their all-time charts. Only Ian Rush (346) and Roger Hunt (285) are ahead of him in the standings.
In the wake of Liverpool clinching the Premier League, Daniel Sturridge caught up with Salah and teased out his ambitions for personal milestones. As he spoke to his former colleague on Sky Sports, Sturridge probed: “I wanted to know now, I know you, bro, so don’t even try it. Do you have your eye on a personal record outside of the elation of winning this Premier League?”
(Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Initially confused by the line of questioning, Salah sought clarification, prompting Sturridge to elaborate: “No, I mean of course the record goalscorer… you’ve signed a new contract,” as he touched on Salah’s future targets at the club.
Salah then affirmed his desire to make history with goal contributions, saying: “Yeah, goal involvements (in a season), that’s for sure,” and added confidently, “Definitely, hopefully I’m going to break it soon, the goal involvements, because I know I broke the record for 38 games. Now I think it’s one goal to go or one assist to go.”
Sturridge jibed him playfully, declaring, “You know exactly how much it is!” to which Salah openly responded: “I’m counting, I’m counting!” He underscored his competitive spirit and motivation, concluding that such targets spur him to work hard and maintain his edge.
(Image: Sky Sports)
Although Salah won’t topple his incredible 44-goal debut season tally for Liverpool, he’s on the brink of surpassing his own record for goal involvements. Standing at 56 goals and assists this season, he’s nipping at the heels of his 58 contributions from 2017/18.
Legends Andy Cole and Alan Shearer’s joint record for the most Premier League contributions might have been set in an era of longer seasons with 47, but Salah’s staggering 46 in a 38-game run has already outstripped Thierry Henry and Erling Haaland’s previous high-water mark of 44.
Not content with just rewriting the record books, Salah has shed light on how a transformative chat with coach Arne Slot unleashed his scoring prowess even further. “He is very honest,” he said.
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“The Dutch are quite tough, but he made our lives easier. You can see the numbers. Now I don’t have to defend much.”
Recounting the strategic shift that bolstered his attacking output, Salah revealed: “The tactics are quite different. I said, ‘As long as you rest me defensively, I will provide offensively’, so I am glad that I did. He listened a lot and you can see the numbers.”
Embracing the art of the offensive gamble in the tough Premier League landscape, Salah affirmed, “When you play in the Premier League, you have to defend, but I said that I can gamble and somehow I can make a difference. My number of assists shows that you can create chances as well.”
Liverpool.com says: Slot has definitely got more out of Salah this season, and that is one key strand that has led to the title success. The Egyptian has been in superb form and, having signed a new two-year contract, that will need to continue.
