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#3 Mohamed Salah buries his 2018 Champions League final ghosts
On the 27th of May, 2018, Liverpool clashed swords with Real Madrid as the Reds looked to bring the Los Blancos’ European juggernaut to a grinding halt. Unsurprisingly, Mohamed Salah was expected to spearhead the English club’s charge with him having conjured spectacular numbers in the 2017-18 season.
However, the Egyptian was completely taken out of the picture courtesy a rather robust challenge by Sergio Ramos. The forward went off in tears and one felt that he had missed his chance to influence a European final. Yet, when accorded another opportunity on the 1st of June 2019, Salah pounced and ensured his name was splashed across the back pages for all the right reasons.
In the 1st minute, the Reds were awarded a rather contentious penalty. The Egyptian stepped up and powered the spot-kick beyond the reach of Hugo Lloris. Though the Frenchman guessed the right way, Salah just had too much behind his shot.
Apart from the goal, the forward looked lively and targeted the likes of Jan Vertonghen and Danny Rose. While he caused the latter problems with his pace, he made life hard for the former with his physicality. On several occasions, he cut in-field and occupied Vertonghen. In the process, the other Liverpool players were able to exploit the space created by Salah.
As the game progressed, the former Roma man’s speed was also a constant counter-attacking avenue.
The Egyptian was defensively sound too as he made sure Rose didn’t enjoy the freedom of the left flank. A major part of Spurs’ offensive play revolves around the full-back and hence, Salah’s contribution couldn’t be overstated enough.
A year back, many were left heartbroken with the sight of a professional footballer, especially of the ilk of Salah, walking away crestfallen. Yet, just twelve months later, Liverpool’s Egyptian King rose from the ruins to find himself atop the European pyramid.
After all, some love stories are just meant to be.
