Jamie Carragher shares what he does not want to see about Mo Salah at Liverpool
Jamie Carragher has leapt to Mohamed Salah’s defence after Liverpool lost the Carabao Cup final.
The Reds were defeated 2-1 by Newcastle at Wembley on Sunday afternoon, as the Egyptian saw his influence heavily restricted once again.
The 32-year-old recorded zero shots and failed to create a chance as Arne Slot’s side struggled to impose themselves in the game.
Carragher feels sorry for Salah after Liverpool loss
Salah has been in sensation form for Liverpool this campaign but his influence has dropped off in the last four matches.
However, Carragher believes that it is not solely the Egyptian’s fault that his contributions have been lacking recently.
Speaking on Sky Sports after the contest, he said: “I almost feel a little bit sorry for Mo Salah, he has taken a bit of criticism after two Paris Saint-Germain games, he was up against possibly the best left-back in the world in Mendes, who was fantastic.
“He didn’t do too much, he wasn’t great today but he doesn’t get help off the other attackers, this is not like it was under Jurgen Klopp where Mane could bail Liverpool out of trouble or Firmino.
“The other attackers that Liverpool have got are good players, they’re not great players so I don’t want to see too much criticism of Salah over this last week, what it has shone a light on is that Liverpool needs to go out and buy two attackers, not as squad players, possibly to play alongside Salah for next season.”
Liverpool need to stop their reliance on Salah
Liverpool have been overeliant on Salah this season, with the Egypt international notching 32 goals and 22 assists in 43 games in all competitions.
He is on course to break the Premier League record for contributions in a single season, which is held by Alan Shearer with 47 as he currently boasts 44 with nine matches left to play.
| Stats (Premier League) | Salah | Gakpo | Diaz | Jota | Nunez |
| Goals | 27 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 5 |
| Assists | 17 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
Meanwhile, the likes of Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, and Darwin Nunez have all struggled to contribute despite the Reds sitting pretty at the top of the Premier League.
The trio have just two goals between them in the Reds’ last ten matches and Slot may have to give Federico Chiesa a chance in the side after his exploits in the final.
If the Italian can take some of the burden off Salah, it will go a huge way to ensuring that the Reds lift the title at the end of the season with Arsenal breathing down their necks.
It is worth a try, the former Juventus man has shown relentless energy and a penchant for creating chances when he has appeared and if he can contribute in the run-in, it may free up Salah to start performing again without the expectation on his shoulders.
With Salah’s contract expiring in the summer, the Reds need to figure out their attacking struggles either to help their star man if he re-signs or to ensure that they have the necessary firepower to still compete if he departs.