Former Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has suggested that the main reason behind the Reds’ poor start to the season has been forward Mohamed Salah.
The Merseyside outfit have endured a miserable first few months of the campaign having won just four out of their opening 11 Premier League games - their 1-0 defeat at the hands of lowly Nottingham Forest the latest indiscretion.
That indifferent form leaves them eighth in the current standings and already 12 points behind current table-toppers Arsenal. Many have been attempting to find a reason behind the Reds’ collective fall-off but former right-back Johnson believes Salah is one of the prime causes.
Speaking to Midnite, the now 38-year-old said: “If you're only completing four passes in a game, then it's obviously personal.
“The formation doesn't make you give the ball away. Everyone is below par, Salah and the rest are fantastic players and they will find a way to get back to winning ways. A lot of them have been below par at the same time.
“When two or three big players are off-form, the rest can get the team out of trouble, but when it's the other way round, then you've got a problem.”
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Whilst Johnson has claimed that Salah has not managed to find his best form yet this season, the Egyptian still boasts an excellent goalscoring record. The former Roma star has hit nine goals in 16 appearances in all competitions - although five of those have come in the Champions League.
Apart from Salah, Johnson also has a few other theories as to why Liverpool have underwhelmed this season. He has claimed their sale of Sadio Mane could potentially be a huge reason behind their slump.
The former Red continued: “There was a time for Liverpool where that game against Forest would have been a given win. You can't be good enough to beat one of the best teams around [Man City] and then lose to Nottingham Forest.
“It can only be down to mentality and concentration because that should have been an easy victory to carry on some great momentum, but for some reason, they are struggling against lesser sides at the moment.
"The reason for the amount of losses is a list of things; a hangover from how successful Liverpool have been in recent years, they've lost a couple of big players and it's hard to maintain the standards they set. Unfortunately, there's a handful of players who have dipped in personal form too.”
Liverpool will of course be attempting to get back to winning ways in the Champions League as they travel to Amsterdam to take on reigning Eredivisie champions Ajax before then tackling Leeds United next weekend.
