“Different”: Gabby Agbonlahor thinks something FSG did in July has affected Liverpool

Follow us on Google Discover

Gabby Agbonlahor has been speaking about Mohamed Salah on talkSPORT, where he made an interesting claim about the Liverpool forward.

Agbonlahor thinks new contract has affected Salah

Well, according to Agbonlahor, the Egypt international has not been himself since Fenway Sports Group (FSG) finally handed him a new contract in July.

After months of speculation, FSG finally buckled to Salah’s demands, handing him a new three-year contract worth £350,000-a-week.

However, Agbonlahor thinks this has had a negative impact on the Liverpool No.11’s form, and compared the situation to when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang suffered a dip after penning his new contract at Arsenal in 2020.

Speaking alongside Ally McCoist, the 35-year-old said: “Does he look different after signing his contract? We hammered Aubameyang for his form after signing a bumper new contract at Arsenal. Where’s that energy for Mo Salah? He’s not been the same player at all. The same effort as well has not been there.”

The 30-year-old has failed to score in his last five Premier League appearances, and somehow didn’t record a single goal involvement as Liverpool beat Bournemouth 9-0 in August.

Nevertheless, Salah has been a victim of his own success so far this season, as he has still managed to record an impressive amount of goal involvements.

The Egyptian has scored five goals and also provided four assists in 12 appearances this term.

Liverpool contract not to blame for Salah slump

In our view, the three-year contract has nothing to do with a drop in Salah’s performances.

In truth, it probably has more to do with the fact Liverpool’s midfield has been far from settled this season, while the attack has also been quite dysfunctional since the departure of Sadio Mane.

Jürgen Klopp has also tinkered with his formation in recent weeks, with Salah often finding himself in areas designed for him to be a creator rather than the man who finishes things off.

We can see where Agbonlahor is coming from, although we firmly believe the reasons behind Salah’s below-par campaign so far are mainly tactical.