Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah was delighted to help his side to another three points in the 3-1 win over West Ham United on Sunday and said he’s happy to bear the team’s burden for finding the back of the net.
A pair of second-half goals leaves the Egyptian international three clear at the top of the Premier League scoring charts, with 15 to his name now this season - despite the Reds’ recent run of four league games without a goal from any player.
That goalless streak coincided, or indeed led to, a downturn in results which saw the reigning champions drop out of the top four, but they are back up to third after this win and the victory over Tottenham in midweek, with Manchester United and Leicester also dropping points over the weekend.
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Salah says he knew that regular strike partners Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino weren’t going to be lining up against the Hammers, but he’s happy to carry the team’s hopes and knows the victory was an important one.
“It’s a good win for us, playing away again and you need to win every game,” he told Sky Sports.
“I’ve scored a few times against [West Ham] but they’re a tough team in a good position this season. Before the game I knew [Firmino and Mane were] not going to start and there’s responsibility on me. I just try every game to play my own game.”
Salah’s second was a lightning counter-attack off a West Ham corner which saw Xherdan Shaqiri fire a cross in for Liverpool’s No. 11 to immediately control with his weaker side and clip home a clinical finish, with the forward paying tribute to his team-mate.
He also insisted that the Reds must now maintain the winning streak they have restarted with two victories in the space of three days, as they face Brighton and then leaders Manchester City next week.
"[The control was with] my right foot! I need to keep practicing but I have to give Shaq credit for a lovely ball. The finish was OK!
“Every league is like that, you have to win every game [to challenge for the title]. [Man] City struggled at the beginning, we were three or four games ago. You need to keep winning if you want to win the league - it’s a really big week.”
