02 January 2024 , 07:23
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Mohamed Salah explained a change of boots at half-time helped calm him after a penalty miss threatened to derail Liverpool's evening against Newcastle on Monday.
Salah's 22nd minute spot-kick was saved by visiting goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, with Trent Alexander-Arnold sending the rebound off target. The Egypt star eventually broke the deadlock early in the second period, though, before making no mistake with another penalty late on.
Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo were also on target for Liverpool, with Alexander Isak and Sven Botman scoring for a Newcastle side who needed several other Dubravka stops to even keep them in the contest. Jurgen Klopp's side moved three points clear with their win, with Aston Villa second and both Arsenal and Manchester City two points further back.
"The [pair of boots] I missed a pen with, I just trained with yesterday," Salah said after failing to beat Dubravka with his first effort. "It's not superstition but I wanted to change them. I just changed them and made my mind calm."
It was the second time Salah has failed to convert from the spot this season, having previously scored the rebound after being denied by Bournemouth keeper Neto. He also missed against Bournemouth and Arsenal last season, but explained he had no doubts over his second against Newcastle.
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"I'm calm. I always practice," he said. "The first one I was confused because the goalkeeper moved. The second one I did like I did in training."
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Mohamed Salah converted one of his two penalties against Newcastle (AP)Salah also picked up an assist for Gakpo's goal, and manager Klopp was asked about his top scorer after the game It was the Egypt star's final Reds outing before he jets off to Cote d'Ivoire for the Africa Cup of Nations looking to go one better than the defeat in the last final.
"Mo is a goal scoring machine," Klopp said. "It would have helped if he'd scored the first penalty."
"It is extremely special," he said after the victory, which saw his team break the Premier League's record for expected goals in a single game. "Darwin [Nunez] had chances too. I would say 99.9% of players would have finished it themselves but he chose to pass it. Special game, special night."
Salah made no secret of his hopes for AFCON, which could keep him out of club action until mid-February if Egypt go all the way. "I want to win," he said.
"We have some really good players. We have players who can play in my position. It means a lot to play for the national team. It's something I cannot take for granted. I would love to win it."