Mohamed Salah has declared he will never take representing Liverpool “for granted” following his historic strike against Aston Villa on Saturday night.
The Egypt forward has endured a challenging beginning to the season which has mirrored the Reds’ recent dreadful run of results. The Merseysiders defeated Aston Villa 2-0 at Anfield to halt a sequence of four consecutive Premier League defeats.
Salah found the net just before the interval, capitalising on a wayward pass from Emiliano Martinez to slot the ball into an almost unguarded goal.
The strike enabled him to match Wayne Rooney’s record for the most Premier League goal involvements at a single club. He also matched Roger Hunt and Ian Rush in reaching 250-plus goal for the Reds.
During this campaign, Salah has appeared noticeably frustrated – on the field. At moments, it has seemed as though he has been grappling with adjusting to the signings of Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
Nevertheless, following his 277th goal contribution in the top-flight, he emphasised that he remains delighted with his time on Merseyside. When informed post-match about equalling Hunt and Rush’s tally, he responded: “[I feel] Great.
“It’s a great feeling to score goals and win trophies at such a big club. It’s something that I don’t take for granted. I’m so happy and so proud.”
Ryan Gravenberch’s crucial second goal for Liverpool secured a victory over Unai Emery’s squad, propelling the Reds to third place in the Premier League, seven points behind leaders Arsenal. The team now faces a critical Champions League showdown with Real Madrid and a significant away match against Manchester City in the Premier League.
When questioned about the significance of the win over Villa, he responded: “Yeah it was very important. We’ve lost a few in the Premier League and the Champions League. But we are starting to come back now. It’s a good win – before some very important games with Real Madrid and Manchester City. It was a very important win for us.”
When asked about his personal performance, which includes five goals and three assists in 14 appearances, Salah said: “No, I said at the beginning. But I know football, I’ve played it for many years.
“This is a very freaky season for us because we’ve had a few new players, very good signings, but they need time to adapt to the team. And we lost a few good players. We just need time to adapt and learn each others’ games. I think we’ll be fine.”