Mohamed Salah has been labelled a ‘phantom’ by the French media after he was ‘devoured’ by Nuno Mendes in Liverpool’s incredible victory over Paris Saint-Germain.
Alisson was the hero for Reds as he pulled off a number of miraculous saves to keep Slot’s side in the game before a smash-and-grab goal from late substitute Harvey Elliott ensured they will take a one-goal lead back to Anfield for the second leg.
Salah, who’s taken the Premier League by storm with 25 goals and 17 assists in 28 games and is now the favourite to win the Ballon d’Or this year, had no shots, completed no dribbles, failed to create a chance or make a key pass despite several opportunities to do so, and won no fouls or duels.
As French outlet GFFN claimed having given him a 2/10 rating, Salah was a ‘phantom’.
The report stated: ‘Salah, touted as the current favourite for the Ballon d’Or, was a phantom.
‘The Egyptian was uninvolved for large periods, comfortably shackled by Mendes and Pacho. He didn’t make any of his three dribbles, lost all eight of his duels and lost possession on 16 occasions.’
FootMercato – who gave him a 2.5/10 – were similarly disparaging, claiming PSG left-back Mendes ‘devoured’ Salah in a ‘ghostly’ display by the 32-year-old.
‘The Egyptian was ghostly, touching very few balls in the Parisian camp,’ the FootMercato report stated.
‘On each of his rare accelerations, Salah was devoured by Nuno Mendes, in a duel where the Portuguese full-back was promised hell.
‘In the second half, the former Chelsea and Roma player had the chances, but never made the right decision with the ball at his feet, nipping in the bud the rare opportunities of the English, like in the last minutes when his pass to Nunez was too imprecise.’
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The French media was rather more complimentary about the display of Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson.
GFFN handed him a 9/10: ‘Clearly the man of the match and the one who provided the game-defining performance.
‘The Brazilian made nine saves on the night and succeeded in frustrating the PSG forward line, notably denying Dembélé in a one-on-one and making two important saves in the second half.’
FootMercato merely wrote ‘read above’ as their report on the Brazilian’s performance, in reference to the multiple PSG forwards listed whose efforts were denied by the 32-year-old.
After the game, Liverpool boss Arne Slot admitted that he has never worked with a goalkeeper like Alisson during his career.
Slot told TNT Sports: “No, I don’t think I’ve ever worked with a goalkeeper that has played at this level, which is normal because he’s the best in the world.”
“So, I had some very good players as a manager but never the best goalkeeper in the world and that I think he is, he showed that today.”
