Dynasties in sports exist for two reasons. A: You need great players and great coaching. B: You need a little bit of luck. The New England Patriots are the greatest dynasty ever. It’s a reign of terror I’m not sure we will see again. Having Tom Brady and Bill Belichick is one thing. Being in the same division as the Dolphins, Jets, and Bills on accelerated their dynasty. Liverpool has something similar going on. Is it time to declare Mohamed Salah as the face of the Premier League?
Liverpool cannot be beaten. Who deserves the most credit for this? How do you not start with Mohamed Salah? The Liverpool forward has played in 50 Premier League Games. Salah has 44 goals, 14 assists, and hasn’t lost. I don’t care how you slice it. You can’t even do that in a video game. That’s an incredible accomplishment.
Still, despite Salah’s run of excellence, he’s rarely recognized as one of the best players in the world. I should say not often as he should be. Jurgen Klopp wins manager of the month every 30 days. Salah has never won a Ballon d’Or award. He’s never even placed top 3. Some of his teammates such as Sadio Mane and Virgil Van Djik steal a lot of the spotlight away whether that’s fair or unfair.
Salah, however, is a great story. How many historic players come from Egypt? Salah’s combination of finishing, dribbling, and speed is easy to spot and root for. Salah is also a player who was a late bloomer and had to overcome being pushed aside multiple times. Salah surfaced with Chelsea but never really did anything. He then bounced around to Fiorentina and Roma before landing in Liverpool.
Obvious Liverpool deserves a ton of credit here. Liverpool purchased Salah for at the time was a club record deal. They took a big chance on a player that was just starting to get his feet wet with Roma. $36 million pounds now seems like a bargain for this kind of player. Sure, Klopp has helped him. Still, what Salah is doing and has done is remarkable.
Salah holds the record for most goals in a premier league season (32). He’s the first player to outscore three teams in the league (West Brom, 31, Swansea City, 28 and Huddersfield Town, 28) by himself during that record setting 2017-2018 season. Salah is the most lethal scorer for a Premier League Champion and a Champions League champion.
Is there even another candidate for face of the Premier League? Like the Patriots, they have garnered hate for being good. Liverpool’s impact is felt across the F.A. Cup. Salah is an attraction. The rest of the EPL is also down. Liverpool has a 23 point lead in the standings. It’s not a fluke either. We should recognize that Mohamed Salah is the face of the Premier League. Salah, 27, has scored 72 goals in 102 games for the club. Liverpool’s rise has coincided with Salah’s run of excellence. It’s probably not a coincidence.
