Sport
All three of Liverpool’s attacking trio found the back of the net in the recent 5-0 demolition of West Ham. In what was another statement performance by the Premier League table-toppers, Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah scored as Arne Slot’s team sent out a warning to their title rivals.
Of course, Liverpool are accustomed to having a front three capable of deciding a match. Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Salah formed arguably the greatest attacking trio in Premier League history, giving the Reds incredible attacking potency over several seasons. Their new front three might be just as dangerous.
Diaz, Gakpo and Salah have combined for 30 goals in the Premier League this season. That’s more goals than Everton have scored as an entire team. Liverpool are running away with the title and they are being propelled forward by the most productive and consistent attacking line in the division.
Slot has subtly remoulded Liverpool’s attack since taking over from Jurgen Klopp in the summer. Gakpo has been moved out to the left wing where he thrives for the Netherlands. This has resulted in the former PSV attacker having his best season to date at Liverpool, registering three goals and two assists in his last five outings.
Diaz is another player who has benefited from the arrival of Slot with the Colombian frequently deployed through the middle. The 27-year-old has scored 12 goals in all competitions this season and is thriving in a role where he is expected to use his pace and directness to get in behind opposition defences.
The way Diaz plays as a centre forward is reminiscent of Luis Suarez such is his relentless movement and knack of taking up good goalscoring positions inside the box. Diaz’s Liverpool career looked to have stagnated under Klopp with speculation about his future swirling as recently as the summer. Now, he is indispensable.
Then there’s Salah who is arguably in the form of his life at the moment. The Egyptian has an incredible 17 goals and 13 assists in just 18 league appearances this season. At his current rate, Salah is on course for the best individual season of any attacker in Premier League history in terms of goal involvements.
Salah insists he’s “far away” from putting pen to paper on a new contract, but Liverpool should enjoy the Egyptian for the brilliance he is producing on a regular basis this season. No other player in the Premier League is on his current level. He might even be the best player in the world at this moment in time.
Firmino, Mane and Salah’s best-ever Premier League season (2019/20) saw them score 46 goals between them. Diaz, Gakpo and Salah are on course to blow past that number before the end of the 2024/25 campaign with Liverpool expected to win the title such is their commanding lead at the top of the table.
Defences win championships, they say, and Liverpool also boast one of the best defensive records in the Premier League this season, conceding just 17 goals in 18 games. However, it’s Diaz, Gakpo and Salah who are the biggest difference between the Reds and the rivals they have left in their wake.
Beyond the first-choice front three, Slot also has Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez to offer something different off the bench and as rotational options, even if the latter can frustrate through his wastefulness in front of goal. No other Premier League team has the attacking depth and variety that Liverpool boast at the moment and it could deliver them a title.
Leave feedback about this