Why People Should Stop Doubting Mo Salah

Article by Harry Siddle – @HS_10FtbolOn one or more occasions this season, it’s likely you’ve heard a rival fan or even Liverpool fan claiming either Mohamed Salah is a ‘’one season wonder’’ or is off form. In fact nothing could be further from the truth. Despite not scoring at a similar rate to the end of last season, Salah in comparison to players amongst the top 6 comes out on top in terms in not just the eye test but also statistically.So far this season Salah has three goals and an assist to his name in six appearances in the Premier League, which would be deemed a good and respected start for most players in Europe who aren’t called Mohamed Salah. The extremely high expectations fans and himself have of him have probably been the main reason of the worry or questioning of his performances so far this season, when in reality Salah is performing at a very high level already this season.What was noticeable about Salah’s incredible goal scoring season last year was the fact he over performed his expected goals for the season by almost 7 goals. This is significant because the best finishers in the world manage to score more goals than they are expected to do so from the chances they are given every single season, which can definitely be applied to Salah’s game. He has also outperformed his xG for Roma in his last two seasons before joining Liverpool, which highlights how much of a good finisher he really is.Why is this important to judging Salah’s performances this season? You may ask this question whilst reading, but an important thing to consider when looking at the most prolific attackers in the world is to look at where they are taking their shots, and whether these shots are in dangerous positions to score or not. The two images below are showing Salah’s shot map from last season and this current season.Salah Shot MapSalah Shot Map – This Season What is key to notice is how the majority of Salah’s shots this season have come in and around the penalty and six-yard box, which is very similar to his shot map from last season. This fact is important because it highlights how Salah is still getting into great positions to score just like last season, down to both his movement in behind defences and from the way Liverpool play. Fans should only start worrying about Salah’s goal scoring if either he is taking considerably less shots per game and is taking shots in less dangerous areas.The first of these two things can’t be applied to this season, as Salah is taking 4.6 shots per game which is slightly higher than last season, meaning his output hasn’t differed in terms of shooting from last season. To add to this his xG90 (Expected Goals per90 minutes) is 0.88 which is in the top 3 for players in the league who have played more than 250 minutes. What this tells me is that Liverpool fans should stop worrying about Salah’s performances, and in particular his ‘’lack’’ of goal scoring prowess this season. He is consistently getting into extremely dangerous locations to score and his xG90 is up there with one of the best in the league. Just like at the start of last season, all Salah needs is time to turn his ‘’poor form’’ into the player we all know he can be.As well as still being a constant goal scoring threat this season, it might surprise you to find that creatively Salah is proving to be one of the surprising stand out players in the league so far. A good way of objectively seeing how good creatively a player is to look at their xA90 (Expected Assists per90) and key passes per 90. Expected assists, which quantifies in a number the chances of a player having an assist in a game by looking at the chances their passes lead to, is very impressive for Salah as his 0.42 xA90 is once again in the top 5 for the best players in the premier league.To add to this the players who have made more than 3 appearances this season (250+mins), Salah has completed the 3^rd most amount of key passes per 90 with 3.4. To combine both of Salah’s creative numbers and attacking output numbers for this season we have something very impressive also. For the top 10 players with who have a minimum of 250 minutes played, Salah comes 2^nd in terms on NPxG90 + xA90 (Non Penalty Expected Goals per 90 + Expected Assists per 90) with 1.26 only just behind Gabriel Jesus. This means based on the five appearances in the Premier League, Salah is performing the second best in terms of getting the best chances (that aren’t penalties) and creating chances for others in the league.Not bad for a player who’s supposed to be a ‘’one season wonder’’.Considering the fact that not only is Salah one of the smartest players in Europe in terms of creating chances for himself from his elusive offensive movements, but the fact that chances will come thick and fast for Liverpool in every game, inevitably there is no doubt that at one point this season Salah will begin to replicate his amazing form from last seasonArticle by Harry Siddle – @HS_10Ftbol New to the Redmen TV shop! Bobby Firmino tees! Available for a limited time only!