GiveMeSport
·1 December 2023
GiveMeSport
·1 December 2023
Mohamed Salah proved once again that he’s a class act in the aftermath of Liverpool’s Europa League victory over LASK at Anfield on Thursday night. The Egyptian forward was asked by two opponents for his shirt at full-time but made sure both players went home with a souvenir.
Proof Mo Salah is a class act off the pitch
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Salah scored one of Liverpool’s goals as the Reds ran out 4-0 winners. Luis Diaz also got himself on the scoresheet while Cody Gakpo notched a brace against the Austrian outfit.
Handed the captain’s armband for the first time at Anfield, in the absence of Virgil van Dijk and the benched Trent Alexander-Arnold, Salah netted his 199th Liverpool goal from the penalty spot early in the second half. In 19 appearances this term, the ever-reliable forward now has an impressive 18 goal contributions to his name.
Salah’s latest goal put Liverpool 3-0 up and he was substituted by Jurgen Klopp minutes later. The Egypt international will no doubt be desperate to score his 200th Liverpool goal at home to Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday.
One of world football’s biggest stars, it’s no surprise that Salah was approached by two LASK players for his shirt at the full-time whistle. One of those players was 21-year-old Nigerian winger Moses Usor, who got to Liverpool’s No. 11 first and bagged the prize possession.
As Salah was taking off his shirt, he was heard saying to another LASK player: “I’ll give you a second one inside.” Watch the heartwarming footage below:
Typically classy stuff from the man nicknamed the Egyptian King. No wonder he’s one of football’s most popular and respected personalities. He’s demonstrated on numerous occasions down the years that he’s not just an incredible footballer, he’s also a great human being.
Safely through to the Europa League knockout stages after winning four of their opening five Group E matches, Liverpool are currently the favourites to win Europe’s second-tier competition. Asked how much of a priority the tournament is this season, Klopp said in his post-match press conference: “What do you mean how much of a priority? In comparison to other competitions or whatever?
“Unfortunately, my career is not like this where I can choose, to be honest. I have to take what I get. When we play the competition it's the most important competition on the planet. Easy as that. But now we play Premier League on Sunday and so that is then the most important competition, definitely. We want to go as far as somehow possible [in the Europa League].”
However, the Premier League is certainly Klopp’s priority. Liverpool currently sit third in the table, one point behind second-placed Manchester City and two behind leaders Arsenal after 13 matches. Level on points with fourth-placed Aston Villa, and only two points above fifth-placed Tottenham, it’s tight at the top of the table and the Reds are expected to be involved in a title race during the second half of the campaign.
If Liverpool were to end the season as Premier League champions, they would equal the record set by rivals Manchester United and become 20-time champions of England’s top division. However, there’s an awful lot of football to be played between now and May, and both Arsenal and Man City are still more likely to lift the Premier League trophy this season in the eyes of the bookmakers.