‘Difficult watching him’ – Salah criticised after City loss
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It’s the kind of performance we’re simply not used to seeing from Mo Salah, and former England goalkeeper Joe Hart didn’t hold back when analysing the forward after Liverpool were beaten 4-0 by Manchester City.DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL EMPIRE OF THE KOP APP FOR ALL THE LATEST & BREAKING UPDATES – STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE! ON APPLE & GOOGLE PLAYSpeaking on TNT Sports, Hart highlighted a clear drop in confidence from the Egyptian, particularly in key moments that could have changed the game early on.Hart questions Salah confidence after big chances missedHart admitted that watching our No.11 was unusual given the standards he’s set over the years.He said: “Well, it was difficult watching him today actually.
We’re so used to him being such a confident player.”That contrast was clear from the opening stages, especially when Salah failed to capitalise on a huge opportunity after a defensive error.The former Manchester City goalkeeper pointed to that exact moment, explaining: “I think that first opportunity that he had that [Abdukodir] Khusanov managed to fall over, get back up and tackle him was a real telltale in how Mo Salah was going to play today.”It’s a harsh but fair observation, because from that point onwards, the Egyptian never looked fully at ease in front of goal.‘He looked really low on confidence’Hart went even further in his assessment, suggesting the 33-year-old’s mindset played a major role in the overall display.He added: “He struggled and he looked really low on confidence. We saw him walk in at halftime.
He was devastated, absolutely devastated.”That emotional reaction at the break says a lot, particularly given the context of Salah announcing he will leave at the end of the season.Despite that, Hart was clear that the responsibility remains on the forward to deliver in these final months, stating: “But he’s a senior player. He’s a big player for Liverpool… right now he’s got to put it all out on the pitch and score goals for his team.”When you combine this with Jermaine Pennant’s criticism of the wider team performance and the scenes involving Pep Lijnders on the touchline, it paints a worrying picture, and with Paris Saint-Germain up next, we need our biggest players, especially Salah, to respond immediately.