Is Salah's form 'glaringly obvious' reason for Reds' decline?

By capitulating 3-0 at Anfield to struggling Nottingham Forest, Liverpool's form has gone from a bump in the road, to a short uphill struggle to now staring over the edge of an almighty precipice.

It is not yet a crisis, but they can certainly see it looming right in front of them. Being bottom half of the table is one thing, but being closer in points to the relegation places than they are to Arsenal at the top is an even more sobering thought.

Reds fans want to know one overriding reason; unfortunately dropping off a cliff so sharply is caused by more than one wrong turn.

‌However, the glaringly obvious cannot be ignored.

In previous seasons Mohamed Salah would often score a third of Liverpool's goals in the Premier League. He currently has four with almost a third of the season gone. That average of 23 league goals per campaign over the last eight years looks a long way off.

Salah four from 12 so far is a perfectly good return for a very good winger. He is still level with Pedro Neto and Iliman Ndiaye, while being just ahead of Bukayo Saka. That is not who he compares himself with however.

More importantly at this rate he would end up with 12 goals for the season, something Liverpool simply cannot afford to happen. It may be the club has been leaning on his genius - and to a degree that of Virgil van Dijk - even more than everyone thought.

‌Can they get out of the spiral? Absolutely yes, in fact I will be amazed if they are not back in the Champions League places by the start of the New Year.

It would help if Salah could start scoring again as well as the newbies - like Alexander Isak - if the unthinkable of failing to reach the Champions League is to be avoided.

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