Liverpool have Mohamed Salah revitalised, ready to lead their Premier League title charge

The international break came at the perfect time for Jurgen Klopp’s side, who have recovered their form after a worrying winter dip to keep their title hopes firmly alive.

While it’s Manchester City who currently hold the baton, the Reds sit at the top of the pile having played a game more than their rivals. It remains clear that this season’s race is going right to the wire.

One player who helped kick Liverpool into top gear at the start of the season was Mohamed Salah, last year’s PFA Player of the Year and record-breaking goalscorer.

The Egyptian has not once reached the bar he set so high last season but even still his contributions have been reflective of a world class attacker.

Liverpool began 2019 with a seven-point advantage at the summit which soon began to disintegrate following their lack of firepower in front of goal.

Draws with Leicester, West Ham, Manchester United and Everton saw City regain control and if it wasn’t for the impeccable form of Sadio Mane, who has 11 goals in his last 11 games, Liverpool would be staring down the barrel of another trophy-less season.

While that still remains a possibility, Klopp’s men are now back in the driving seat of their two-pronged assault on the Premier League title and Champions League.

Away from the limelight of the international break, Salah was quietly resting up on a sun-kissed beach thought to be in Mexico.

The 26-year-old was given a fortnight off by Egypt boss Javier Aguirre who was looking to give new blood the opportunity to impress in his absence.

And it would have been easy for Klopp to keep Salah around Melwood considering that he is a player out of form, but instead he told his star to get away, take his mind off things and enjoy some well-earned relaxation ahead of the run-in.

“He always played pretty much all games everywhere, for his country and for us,” Klopp said upon his return.

“It was really important [to give him a break].

“Now he will be here, a week to prepare for the rest of the season, so that’s cool. I spoke to him, he looked really relaxed and in a good mood. Now, let’s go.”

Salah was snapped alongside NFL star Odell Beckham Jr and also posted a picture on his Instagram of a message he’d carved into the sand: “You will never walk alone.”

Before the break in schedule he’d gone seven matches without scoring for the Reds, his biggest drought since arriving on Merseyside.

The run has gone beneath the radar seeing as Mane has taken centre stage as Klopp’s go-to guy but now he’ll be ready to bury the barren spell in the final sprint for silverware.

There has not been added pressure on Salah to score because this Liverpool team is not solely reliant on his output. The fact they have still been able to grind out the wins shows that he could prove the difference between now and May.

History also suggests he’ll be back among the goals very soon, after a spell of 600 minutes without a goal for club and country in 2017, he scored seven and assisted eight in Roma’s final 14 league games to help them consolidate a second placed finish behind Juventus in Serie A.

Tottenham ought to be fearful of Salah come Sunday when the Premier League returns. He got the beating of their defence to score three times last season, including a stunning solo goal at Anfield.

There’s every reason why he could rediscover his taste for it having scored five times in eight appearances against Spurs for Basel, Fiorentina and of course Liverpool.

source: express.co.uk