Troy Deeney slams Liverpool star after poor start to season: 'He's been terrible'

Former Watford striker Troy Deeney (Picture: Getty)

Troy Deeney issued a scathing critique of Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah after the Egyptian’s slow start to the season.

Salah was the Premier League’s Golden Boot winner last season, scoring 29 goals as Liverpool cruised to the league title under Arne Slot.

That fine form saw the 33-year-old rewarded with a new two-year contract to extend his stay at Anfield beyond the summer.

However, the forward is one of several Liverpool players in Slot’s new-look side to have looked sluggish so far this campaign, having scored just one goal from open play in his first seven league matches.

And Deeney pulled no punches when asked about Salah’s most recent performance against Chelsea as well as his start to the season more generally.

‘The same as he’s done all season. Terrible,’ he said on The Football Exchange podcast .

‘And remember, every time I’ve said he’s been terrible, everyone in the comments has been coming for me that I don’t like Mo Salah. I have an agenda.

Mohamed Salah has scored only one open-play goal in the league this season (Picture: Getty)

‘But he has been terrible. Terrible.’

Not everyone has sought to jump to the same conclusions, however, with former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy suggesting Salah’s form was nothing to be concerned about.

‘I don’t think he looks lost. I think he’s getting in great positions. His end product isn’t as good as it has been,’ he told talkSPORT.

@metrosportuk No Salah, no party for Liverpool 😬 After losing three games in a row, there could be a correlation between Mo Salah’s form and Liverpool’s results. If he doesn’t perform, is it game over for the Reds? Has Arne Slot changed his system due to their new signings, which impacts the Egyptian King in a negative way? #salah #liverpool #premierleague #arneslot #wirtz ♬ original sound – Metro Sport – Metro Sport

‘He’s set the bar ridiculously high. His finishing hasn’t been anywhere near to his levels.

‘He’s shooting when he should pass, passing when he should shoot, mis-hitting shots or ballooning them over when we’ve seen him score so many times in those positions. So, his end product is down.

‘Physically, he’s getting in the same positions. He looks sharp. He looks fit. I wouldn’t worry about that.

‘So I don’t think he looks lost in terms of what they’re doing when they’ve got the ball. It’s just his decision-making, and end product isn’t what we’re used to seeing.’

Liverpool will hope to have Salah back to his best for the visit of Manchester United after the international break.

And he certainly appears to have rediscovered his shooting boots while on international duty, scoring twice in a 3-0 over Djibouti to help Egypt rubber-stamp their spot in the 2026 World Cup.