da fezbet： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.
da 888： Liverpool continued their unbeaten start to the Premier League season against Tottenham on Sunday, recording their ninth win of the campaign to extend their lead over Manchester City to six points.
Jurgen Klopp’s men managed to overturn a 1-0 deficit after Harry Kane immediately opened the scoring, as goals from Jordan Henderson and Mohamed Salah in the second-half earned the Reds all three points at Anfield.
However, there was one thing that the German manager should’ve done immediately after the Egyptian’s goal.
Snapshot
Liverpool took the lead in the 75th minute thanks to Salah’s penalty, which was won when Serge Aurier clumsily fouled Sadio Mane in the penalty area.
The former Basel, Chelsea and Roma forward wheeled off in celebration before playing the next ten minutes of the game until Joe Gomez replaced him shortly after he was seen on the turf clutching his ankle.
Klopp should’ve subbed Salah straight after his goal
The Egypt international recently missed the 1-1 draw against Manchester United due to an ankle injury he sustained in the 2-1 win over Leicester, before returning to action in Wednesday’s Champions League win over Genk.
Salah played every minute of that win over Genk, and Klopp only seemed to withdraw him in the 85th minute against Spurs because he was down holding his ankle.
So, why on earth didn’t the former Borussia Dortmund boss get his star man off the pitch and wrapped in cotton wool as soon as his side took the lead?
Liverpool have arguably their biggest league game of the season coming up soon with Manchester City set to arrive at Anfield on the 10th November, a game that the Merseysiders would love Salah to be available for.
Furthermore, with a lack of quality reinforcements to replace the No.11, it seems strange that Klopp felt the need to keep him on even longer in what was Salah’s second game of the week just after returning from injury.
The Mirror’s David Maddock reported that Salah walked through the Anfield tunnel with a huge ice pack on his ankle, and one can’t help but wonder why Klopp didn’t get his striking asset off shortly after the penalty.