Liverpool will play Aston Villa. And then they will host Wolverhampton Wanderers on the final day of the Premier League season. Then? Jurgen Klopp will unleash one last salvo of fist bumps into the Anfield stands.
He will wave goodbye to Merseyside. There will be song and sadness. Liverpool will remember of the historic journey that has seen success across nearly every possible front. The Premier League and the Champions League? Both conquered.
Klopp's squad swerved away from their finest form in recent months and have now crashed out of the Europa League and FA Cup while slumping in the English top flight, pulled away from a gripping title race.
But FSG did not rest on their laurels and, after bringing Michael Edwards back as their new CEO of Football, have moved to appoint Feyenoord boss Arne Slot. It's not yet finalised but the Dutch manager's move to Liverpool has been cut and dried.
Slot mirrors Klopp in implementing a high-energy, heavy-metal brand of football and he will demand his players to be extremely active in both attacking and defensive moments.
His tactics could be perfect for Mohamed Salah, who has received his share of criticism in recent weeks but remains one of Europe's finest forwards.
Mohamed Salah's season in numbers
Salah has scored 25 goals and added 14 assists for Liverpool this season but has been culpable of some below-standard displays in recent weeks to coincide with Liverpool's toothless run of poor results.
However, he returned to form with a bang as Liverpool thrashed Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 last time out and while he's out of contract at the end of next season, The Athletic's ever-reliable David Ornstein has recently suggested that the 31-year-old will remain at Anfield next season.
As per FBref, the Egyptian winger ranks among the top 6% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals and the top 1% for touches in the attacking penalty area and assists made per 90.
He might be struggling at the moment, having failed to score in four successive Premier League matches before Spurs, producing a limp attacking effort as Liverpool crashed out of the Europa League against Atalanta – who have now reached the final – and even coming to blows with Klopp on the touchline during April's 2-2 draw against West Ham United.
Under Slot, the esteemed Egypt international could be revived, especially given that the tactician operates with a 4-2-3-1 formation, which could spark a transformation within Liverpool's central midfield.
Currently, Klopp employs an industrious and multi-approaching engine room to charge his high-octane brand, and while Slot has stylistic similarities to his German counterpart, he uses a No. 10 to spark creativity and maintain fluency in build-up play.
It's a move that could see Dominik Szoboszlai reach new heights next season, consequently lifting Salah back to the top of his game.
How Salah & Szoboszlai could thrive under Slot
Liverpool signed Szoboszlai from RB Leipzig last summer after activating his £60m release clause, and while he started ferociously, the Hungary international has waned as the campaign has entered its later stages.
The 23-year-old has been affected by injuries but there's no excusing some of the wayward performances that have derailed the fight for trophies, with reporter Lewis Steele even speaking of the "stinker" displays he has produced recently.
Matches played
31
31
Matches started
28
25
Goals
0.22
0.13
Assists
0.29
0.09
Pass completion
80%
82.5%
Shots taken
2.13
2.47
Shots on target
1.03
0.56
Shot-creating actions
5.51
4.76
Progressive passes
5.55
6.41
Progressive carries
2.76
3.16
Successful take-ons
1.95
1.04
Ball recoveries
5.55
7.27
The comparison table highlights Szoboszlai's decreased prolificness since moving to Liverpool, noting his rise in progressive passing and carrying, a product of his deeper-lying, more creative central midfield role.
But he's beating a defender – successfully taking them on – at almost half the rate that led him to be described as a "generational talent" by journalist Marcel Moeller while plying his trade in Germany.
Most importantly, perhaps, Szoboszlai is unable to provide the goalscoring support that earned him such acclaim in his pre-Liverpool days. Despite this downswing, he is actually taking more shots than he did last year, though on its own this metric is misleading given that the Hungarian hit the target almost twice as often in the Bundesliga last season.
By playing further forward, in a central or wide attacking midfield role, Szoboszlai could grow considerably as a Premier League star, with the tactical tweak under Slot's guidance possibly even forging a new partnership between the players.
Salah, for example, might be one of the finest finishers that the Premier League has seen but he has also moulded his game into a more dynamic spread that adds emphasis on creativity.
1.
Mohamed Salah
Liverpool
22
2.
Bruno Fernandes
Manchester United
20
3.
Dwight McNeil
Everton
17
3.
Heung-min Son
Tottenham Hotspur
17
5.
Kevin De Bruyne
Manchester City
16
5.
Martin Odegaard
Arsenal
16
Szoboszlai has showcased his fleet dribbling skills and deft playmaking qualities both during his first year at Liverpool, but there's no doubt that he has been shoehorned into a deeper, more tightly configured role than he might have preferred within Klopp's Reds system.
It's a new era at Liverpool and while Slot will assess, assemble and reassemble his Liverpool squad as he chews over the optimum starting 11, Szoboszlai has all of the talented needed to forge a successful, trophy-laden career for himself under the Dutch coach's guidance.
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In his favoured position, he might just be the creative linchpin of a fearsome frontline.









