Neil Ruddock has heaped praise on Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah for the initiative he showed in scoring the Reds’ second goal against Southampton on Friday evening.
The Egyptian scored a stunning breakaway strike that started with a mazy run inside his own half.
But former Anfield favourite Ruddock was eager to praise his anticipation in the build up and shared that Salah was different from a lot of centre-forwards in his opinion as most would be hanging around the edge of the box.
Speaking on Goals on Sunday (Sky Sports Premier League, April 7th, 12.45), he said: “Salah’s on the edge of the box. He takes a chance.
“It’s bobbling about and he says ‘I’m going to go’. By the time it comes forward he’s halfway up the pitch.
“Most centre forwards would still be hanging around the edge of the box.”
OPINION
This wasn’t the goal of a player short on confidence. The Liverpool man might have been enduring an uncharacteristic barren spell prior to the strike, but for him to pull it out of the bag like this, when it matters most, shows a player that entirely backs his own ability. It was a special goal that reminded people of just what he can do, and Ruddock is right to pick out the movement in the build up. The way that Salah anticipates the possibility of a counter is top class, and speaks volumes about the way that he reads the game around him. He sees things in a different way to the rest of us, and that allows him to get the breaks that so often look like good fortune. Make no mistake, he still had no right to score from where he did, but he made things a lot easier for himself by just thinking cleverly.
