Arne Slot theorises why Mohamed Salah has 'smiled less' as Liverpool prediction made

Liverpool boss Arne Slot is confident that Liverpool's star man Mohamed Salah will be back to his best soon and have a smile on his face again.

Despite not scoring in three consecutive games for the Reds - a dry spell he hasn't experienced in over two years - Slot believes it's the recent Champions League and Carabao Cup losses that have dampened Salah's spirits, not his goal drought.

Slot stated: "I think Mo has smiled less because we went out of the Champions League and we lost the final. It has nothing to do with not scoring a goal.

"For me it's simple, sometimes the fixture list is more difficult than other periods of the season so you face Paris Saint-Germain, Newcastle in a final and then a derby.

"He hasn't scored in three - so that's why he has to score on Sunday! Hopefully he will. Paris St Germain is one of the best teams in Europe at the moment.

"Newcastle in the final - they were all over it. Everton, with 10 people in their own 18-yard box all the time, it's so difficult to score a goal against them.

"I know Mo - and he lives for goals. It would be weird if he was saying 'oh, I'm happy I didn't score.' But he's not distracted or thinking 'I can't play football any more'. Mo knows that his biggest quality is he can play a poor game and still score a goal. So his head is not all over the place. Not at all.

"That's why he scores so many goals, because he wants it so much. There were probably periods this season when he smiled a bit more - but that's not just him.

Slot also clapped back at former Liverpool striker Michael Owen for suggesting that not winning the Champions League and Carabao Cup will tarnish their Premier League triumph slightly. It comes after an awkward exchange between Owen and Van Dijk, with the Reds captain dismissing his claim.

"Michael did play for us didn't he?" Slot said. "So he is aware of the fact that in 35 years we won the league once? There is your answer.

"If you can win the league with this club then, phew, nothing else matters I would say. If you do it 10 times in a row then I could understand that people say: 'Oh but you only win the Premier League.'

"If [Manchester] City only won the Premier League then I could understand people saying: 'It's not a good season for City.' But if, at this club, you can compete for it and let alone win it, then it is a strange question to ask in my opinion. If Virgil has this opinion as well then I agree with him."

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