LIVERPOOL – Liverpool’s rising star and departing legend combined to ease the pressure on Arne Slot as goals from teenager Rio Ngumoha and Mohamed Salah beat Fulham 2-0, snapping the Reds’ three-game losing streak on Saturday. The win provided a much-needed respite for the embattled manager, whose side had suffered consecutive defeats to Manchester City, Everton, and Paris Saint-Germain.
Salah failed to get on the pitch at all during Liverpool’s chastening 2-0 Champions League defeat by Paris Saint-Germain in midweek. Slot insisted he was reserving the 33-year-old’s energy for when his side enjoyed more of the ball after being starved of possession by the European champions.
Salah’s Home Return
Salah responded to mark his first Anfield appearance since announcing he will leave at the end of the season with a first home goal in the Premier League for over five months. Andy Robertson also announced his departure this week after nine glorious years at the club. But if those exits had Liverpool fans longing for the days when Jurgen Klopp’s side were at their peak, Ngumoha gave hope for the future.
Ngumoha’s Record-Breaking Strike
The 17-year-old has been handled conservatively by Slot despite showing his capability with a late winner in the second game of the season at Newcastle. In his flashes since, Ngumoha has provided the width and pace Liverpool have badly been lacking during a difficult second season for Slot. He became Liverpool’s youngest ever Premier League goalscorer at Anfield when he wriggled clear of his marker to bend a sublime strike into the far corner on 36 minutes.
Just four minutes later, Salah did likewise from the opposite side of the area to net his 256th Liverpool goal.
Champions League Challenge
A completely different scale of task awaits Slot’s men on Tuesday as they aim to overturn the first-leg deficit against PSG in the Champions League. But a return to winning ways was vital to open up some breathing space in the battle just to be in the competition next season. Five English sides are now guaranteed Champions League qualification.
League Position
Liverpool remain fifth but opened up a four-point lead over sixth-placed Chelsea, who host Manchester City on Sunday. Defeat is a major blow to Fulham’s European ambitions as they slip to 11th.
Fan Discontent
How much respite a first league win in four games gives Slot remains to be seen. Disgruntled fans chanted the name of former midfield favourite Xabi Alonso after last weekend’s 4-0 demolition by City in the FA Cup quarter-finals. Alonso, who left Real Madrid in January, is the prime candidate to take over should Slot be dismissed at the end of the season despite winning the Premier League in his first year in England.
The disquiet around Anfield is not, though, restricted to the coach and players. Fans staged protests before and during the game at planned ticket price increases, in line with inflation, for the next three seasons.
Analysis: A Win, But Questions Remain
Liverpool’s 2-0 victory over Fulham stops the bleeding, but it does not cure the underlying illness. The Reds have won just one of their last five league games and remain fifth, a position that would secure Champions League qualification but is far below the expectations of a club that won the Premier League last season.
Rio Ngumoha’s emergence is a bright spot. At 17, he became Liverpool’s youngest ever Premier League goalscorer at Anfield, and his pace and width have been sorely lacking in recent matches. Mohamed Salah’s goal, his first at Anfield in the league for over five months, was a reminder of what Liverpool will lose when he departs at the end of the season.
The chants for Xabi Alonso are a worrying sign for Slot. Despite winning the Premier League in his first season, the Dutchman is under pressure. The 4-0 defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup was humiliating, and the 2-0 loss to PSG in the Champions League has left Liverpool on the brink of elimination.
Tuesday’s second leg against PSG will define Liverpool’s season. If Slot can overturn the deficit, the crisis will be forgotten. If not, the calls for Alonso’s return will only grow louder.
