Jurgen Klopp admits Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino have been the beneficiaries of Mohamed Salah becoming a wanted man for Liverpool this season.
Salah has been given special attention by opponents following his record-breaking Reds debut campaign in which he scored 44 goals in 52 appearances.
The Egyptian has nevertheless rattled in 17 Premier League goals, a total only surpassed by the 19 from Manchester City's Sergio Aguero, while Liverpool team-mate Sadio Mane also has 17 and Roberto Firmino 12.
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That is already more than the 25 Mane and Firmino scored combined in the top flight last season.
And asked if the two forwards had benefited from the attention on Salah, Klopp said: “100%. That’s how it is.
“If you have only one, you think maybe you rely a bit too much on that. This year we don’t rely on Mo’s goals, but he’s still in a very good position in comparison to all the other players. Seventeen goals is a good number, and there are still a lot of games to come."
Salah has gone eight games without a goal but put in the header which led to Toby Alderweireld eventually scoring an own goal for Liverpool's late winner against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
“You could see at the end, it was an own goal, it was his decisive header which forced it," said Klopp. "Big relief there, I’m sure it felt like his goal. It’s not important if it counts, just that he was in the decisive position.
"How the ball went in was luck, but that Mo was in that situation came from the training ground. We wanted him to be in that position around the second ball.
“Usually Mo is not in the box for those second balls, but here he was and we stuck to that. I was really pleased when I watched it back."
Liverpool are at Southampton on Friday night aiming for a victory that will take them back to the top of the Premier League table above Manchester City.
Salah has scored four goals in his three previous games against the Saints.
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And Klopp believes the Egyptian has had to adapt to the baggage from his new-found status as one of the Premier League's most dangerous talents.
“For sure," said the Reds boss. "We didn’t really speak about it, but it was clear and obvious.
"He scored 40 goals last year, all the awards came after, then you are not 100% when pre-season starts. The shoulder was still a problem, but he did everything brilliant.
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“His career is not over. He scored 20 goals this year, so he scored 60 in the last two. Wow! That’s not too bad. He’s a threat, he helps us a lot and he deals with new situations really well.
"He doesn’t seem to be bothered that he hasn’t scored in a few games, and I’m not. As long as we work together and do the right things, he will be fine."
