Before Liverpool nicked an away win against Wolves, Jurgen Klopp responded to suggestions from Gary Neville that Mohamed Salah was a selfish player.
The German boss launched a staunch defence of the hitman, stating: "He wasn't criticised by us for being too selfish because he never was.”
It appeared the former Borussia Dortmund manager was responding to recent criticism from Neville, who even suggested Salah’s hunger to score may have even made him an “unlikeable” presence amongst the side.
“He doesn't pass sometimes to his team-mate, he'll be a little bit more selfish, a little bit less likeable because of that, probably by the fans, probably by some of his team-mates," Neville boldly said about the Egyptian winger.
However, Mirror Football afforded the Egyptian some extra attention, to see whether he was as “Selfish” as Neville suggested.
Salah’s adaptation to Jota
Roberto Firmino’s absence has forced Liverpool to mildly adapt their playing style in recent weeks.
Jota has been filling the shoes of the silky Brazilian in excellent fashion in recent weeks, but the Portuguese star’s role is slightly different.
While Firmino’s strength is his ability to entice defenders and create space for Mane and Salah to exploit, while Jota’s main attributed are his pace, intelligent movement, and ruthless finishing.
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Despite Salah’s preference to attack the space in behind, the Egyptian regularly dropped inwards to carve that space out for Jota and Mane.
Salah’s passion for scoring goals and leading the attack for Liverpool is unquestionable, however, he proved against Wolves he is willing to pull the opposition’s defensive curtain back so Mane and Jota can take centre stage.
Alexander-Arnold chance
While Salah is steamrolling the goalscoring charts in the whole division, other teams have seen an incredible influx of goals from their full-backs or their deeper midfielders.
Trent Alexander-Arnold is known more for his assists, Salah’s movement helped create a wonderful chance for the England international.
In the first-half, Thiago lofted a wonderful first half pass for Alexander-Arnold, but the connection on his time volley from the right hand side of the area was not as sweet as the pass.
However, Salah opened the space with a wonderful diagonal run into the heart of the Wolves defenders, who proceeded to follow Salah’s lead and vacate acres of space for the right-back.
Under no circumstances would the Egyptian have been the one taking the chance, but his movement was just as influential in creating the opportunity for Alexander-Arnold than Thiago’s pass.
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Working hard off the ball
Throughout Premier League, and wider football history, strikers have always wanted to stockpile their energy for chances and goals.
However, this was certainly not the case for Salah, who is a vital part of Liverpool’s widely revered ‘Gegenpress’.
The assertive, aggressive, and relentless pressing style is not for the feint hearted, and certainly not for strikers who unwilling to put in the hard yards for their team mates.
Salah is certainly not one of those players, as he demonstrated on numerous occasions when he was pushing Wolves up the pitch, or even tracking back when Alexander-Arnold was caught too far forward.
Wonderful clipped pass for Mane
When Robertson made his trademark dart down the left-hand side, Wolves defenders gravitated towards their own goal; ready to intercept and block any cross.
However, it never arrived, as Salah bent his fun and dropped deeper.
The Scottish defender cut the ball back towards the forward, who instinctively looped a first time chip over the Wolves defence and onto the onrushing Mane, who was not a million miles away from reaching the pass.
With a bit more fortune, the Senegalese international would have had an excellent opportunity to win the game for the Reds.
Origi’s dramatic winner
There is no better way to banish accusations of being 'selfish' than setting up the winning goal.
Super substitute Divock Origi popped up in the dying stages of the contest to seal what could be an enormous three points for the season.
Salah’s provided the perfect pass for the Belgian to control, spin, and fire into the back of the net from close range.
It was a great end to a tireless display by the Egyptian star.
