There are similarities
Mohamed Salah has taken this season by storm, scoring beyond the levels that even his biggest fans anticipated. He’s currently on 44 goals in all competitions this season, having played 50 games. Only the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Leo Messi have recorded these sorts of numbers in recent years.
Roma felt the full force of Salah’s quality last week when he tore through them at Anfield in Liverpool’s 5-2 win over Roma in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final.
Salah opened the scoring with a powerful shot, perfectly bent into the top corner, before adding a second with a delicate chip over Roma goalkeeper Alisson. Salah is part of an elite few who can do that against one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
In the build-up to the return leg of this semi-final, that will take place at the Stadio Olympico on Wednesday night, Alisson has spoken about the threat that Salah poses, comparing him to Leo Messi.
“It’s tough,” Alisson told Gazzetta Dello Sport. “He [Salah] has innate talent and now has an incredible confidence in himself, but we can stop him playing as a team.
“Messi is the strongest player I’ve played against, but now Momo [Salah] is feared like him.”
It’s not an outlandish claim, when you witness the fear that Salah puts in defenders as soon as he picks up the ball. So frightened of being embarrassed by a quick turn, defenders freeze and are powerless to stop the inevitable when Salah has the ball in a dangerous position.
If Roma are to have any chance of overturning this three-goal deficit, they will have to focus on keeping the Egyptian quiet.
