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Liverpool opted to give Mohamed Salah a new deal last term after months of speculation - but in doing so they went against FSG's firm contract rule that had seen several big names leaveTalk of Mohamed Salah's future dominated last season with the Egyptian scoring on a weekly basis against the backdrop of that being, potentially, his final campaign at Liverpool.The forward himself only fuelled the fire admitting openly that he viewed it as his last season at Anfield. Such an approach which was implemented by Michael Edwards during his spell as sporting director between 2016 and 2022.He's since returned and both Salah and Virgil van Dijk, who turned 34 in June, were given new deals in the hope that continuity would allow Liverpool to continue their dominance.READ MORE: Steven Gerrard's message to Rangers fans after turning down manager jobREAD MORE: Diogo Jota’s best man at wedding unveils emotional new tribute to late Liverpool starSo, fast forward six months from Salah penning his new deal and the numbers aren't great.
If anything they're a ringing endorsement for why FSG had their contract policy in the first place.In the final nine games of last season he scored twice. Even his creativity has taken a major dip - he's had three assists in his last 17 league games.
As a team the Reds are struggling with their expensive, new summer signings yet to properly gel, and Salah is proving to be a victim of their current circumstances.Salah's age, despite his relentless dedication to recovery and keeping his body in shape, was always going to catch up with him one day. Cristiano Ronaldo is a perfect example of a player, and his team-mates, moulding into a new role and shape to ensure he can defy the ageing process.Wayne Rooney commented on how Salah's dip in work rate was tolerable whilst he was scoring, but when the numbers drop off that's when the alarm bells ring."When it's going well and you're scoring goals and winning games it's great and the team will put up with that but, over the last week, I would question his work ethic," he said.One of Salah's greatest team-mates, Sadio Mane, was 30 when he left the Reds with his contract winding down.