Mohamed Salah and his AFCON rival Sadio Mane scored twice each against Leeds and assisted Joel Matip during a 6-0 thrashing at Anfield on Wednesday night. And in doing so, Salah has broken yet another Premier League record.
The Egyptian international may have suffered heartbreak in the Africa Cup of Nations final just weeks ago. But Salah has come back just as prolific as when he briefly departed Anfield. And he now leads the race for the Premier League golden boot with 19 goals to his name.
Salah has already surpassed many others to claim multiple Premier League records. But his latest achievement may be one of his proudest stats.
Salah has now contributed to 160 goals in the Premier League. The vast majority of which have been at Liverpool after a brief spell at Chelsea before later finding his feet.
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Didier Drogba managed 159 goal contributions during two stints at Stamford Bridge. This was the previous record held by an African player in the Premier League, making Salah the all-time leading contributor for his continent throughout history.
The speed at which Salah has surpassed this though is particularly frightening, as the Egyptian managed this in 72 fewer games than Drogba, dwarfing what was formerly an incredible achievement by the Chelsea legend.
Drogba will always be considered as one of the greatest Premier League strikers of all-time. And the Ivory Coast international led Chelsea to their first Champions League title almost single-handedly due to his heroics against Bayern Munich in the final.
The Ivorian’s legacy is untouched. But the speed at which Salah has surpassed Drogba highlights just how dominant he has been since signing for Liverpool back in 2017.
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Salah has been Liverpool’s top scorer in each of the last four seasons. And it’s no coincidence that the Premier League and Champions League followed shortly after his arrival.
The Egyptian’s influence helped bring Liverpool their sixth European crown after they narrowly missed out to Real Madrid in Kiev the season before, as Salah limped off the field in tears.
But getting so close was a clear trigger for Salah. And he came back even better, and even sharper in the next season, and fired Liverpool to European glory with a 2-0 win against Tottenham in the final.
Liverpool’s long-awaited Premier League title then followed. And at the rate that the Reds are going, they may feel confident about catching Manchester City and doubling up on their recent success.
The 6-0 win against Leeds puts Liverpool within three points of the league leaders. And with a trip to the Etihad yet to come in April, they may still have a chance of getting one over their title rivals this season.