Salah was ranked as the best striker in Liverpool's history, ahead of Ian Rush, and controversy ensued

Ahead of flying out for the Africa Cup of Nations, Mohamed Salah drew level with Erling Haaland in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot after scoring a brace against Newcastle to leave Liverpool top of the table. The curious thing about the Egyptian's double, who reached 14 goals, is that he did it after missing a penalty in the first half and after changing his shoes to avoid further misses, he admitted to Sky Sports.

"Yes, I did it. With the others I missed the penalty. It's not superstitious because I play with a lot of boots, but when I feel he's going to play with my head, okay, off, change your boots! I didn't want to go into the second half thinking 'I didn't score in these shoes'. So I just put my mind at rest and concentrated on the game. It is worth remembering that Salah has missed four of his last 10 penalties for Liverpool, but he did make it clear that he never intended to step aside when the spot-kick was awarded after 86 minutes.

After the win, Liverpool moved three points clear of Aston Villa, who are their closest challengers with 42 points from 20 games played, to go top of the table. Mohamed Salah's performance against Newcastle was the Egyptian's latest Premier League display. The last for the moment, so far, because few doubt there will be more to come for Liverpool. Salah scored two goals, provided an assist and completely turned the tide of a game when the Reds were crashing into Dúbravka: "Nobody should be surprised that 'Mo' can change a game because he has done it hundreds of times," Klopp explained in the press conference afterwards.

The best striker

In light of Salah's form, Ian Ladyman wrote an article in the Daily Mail in which he claimed that the Egyptian should be considered the best striker in Liverpool's history, even putting him ahead of Ian Rush. This sparked a controversy on social media that divided fans who agreed and those who disagreed.

(3) Mail Sport en X: "🗣️ 'Why Mo Salah is NOW the greatest forward Liverpool have ever had' ✍️ @Ian_Ladyman_DM" / X (twitter.com)