Chris Sutton predicts Mohamed Salah will do something he has not done in four years vs Aston Villa

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Liverpool need to beat Aston Villa on Saturday because hope of a return to form is starting to dwindle.The Reds head into the game against Unai Emery’s side with four Premier League defeats in a row and a 3-0 loss at home in the EFL Cup against Crystal Palace, where they fielded a young side.It is all going wrong for Arne Slot and his side at the moment as many of the most reliable stars have found themselves out of form, with Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah two of the names in the firing line.Join our newsletter for news & smart analysis. While Salah scored a sublime goal in Liverpool’s 3-2 defeat to Brentford last weekend, his general form has not been exactly up to the high standards he has set over his eight years on Merseyside.This dip in form has been something that is picked up by pundits, with the 33-year-old being criticised despite some of the issues causing this form, including the displays of the team and a lack of service.Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty ImagesChris Sutton predicts a Mohamed Salah Premier League hat-trickThe Egyptian is still a legendary player, and the fact that he was able to convert over the weekend gives fans confidence that another goal contribution will occur in the near future.Chris Sutton believes that the player will be able to get back to his usual goalscoring form in the most extraordinary way against Villa at Anfield.READ MORE: Mohamed Salah statistic shows why Liverpool still need to start him this seasonThe former Chelsea player believes that Salah will net a hat-trick against Emery’s side, which would be his first Premier League hat-trick in four years.It was exactly four years ago last week that Salah went to Old Trafford and scored three times in a 5-0 win over their long-time rivals.

His last hat-trick in all competitions came in the 7-1 win over Rangers in 2022.Writing for BBC Sport, Sutton predicted a 3-1 win for the Reds as he explained: “Liverpool boss Arne Slot made a lot of changes for Wednesday’s Carabao Cup defeat by Crystal Palace, but it still felt like another damaging defeat, their sixth in the past seven games.“Slot’s side play Real Madrid and Manchester City after this, and they desperately need to end this slump in form before it gets any worse. He rested players against Palace for this weekend, so he knows how important it is, but on current form, Aston Villa are favourites – they have won their past four league games and are on a roll.“Looking at both teams over the past few weeks you would expect Villa to get something here.

So, with this game I am going to base my prediction on something that I thought about when I was a player – history.“Villa have taken only one point from their past seven visits to Anfield, and have won only one of their past 15 league games against Liverpool – although that was a 7-2 success in October 2020. I had my bogey teams – most of them felt like that by the end to be honest… So, I am going with Liverpool to win, with Mohamed Salah getting a hat-trick.”Mohamed Salah will not get a hat-trick, but he will scoreIn the current form of this Liverpool side and Salah, it is very unlikely that fans will see an incredible hat-trick from the legend.However, after getting his shooting boots back on against Brentford, it should be the confidence booster he needs to get back to his old ways.With a home crowd around him, it will be an environment where he thrives enough to have one of his strikes sucked into the net by the roar of the Anfield faithful.