Liverpool have been heavily reliant on Mohamed Salah this season.
The three-time Golden Boot winner has 22 goal involvements in the opening 15 games of the campaign. He’s been directly involved in 71% of the goals scored by Arne Slot’s team, scoring 13 times and assisting on nine occasions.
He’s been the standout performer.
It isn’t even close either.
Diogo Jota, however, managed to eclipse one of the world’s most in-form players on Saturday. The Portugal international only recently returned from an injury he picked up against Chelsea back in October.
Slot turned to his No20 with 79 minutes on the clock against Fulham at Anfield. The Reds were 2-1 down and had been playing with 10 men for over an hour.
Within seven minutes of his introduction, the Premier League leaders had their equaliser. Jota showed great composure and quick feet to bamboozle Jorge Cuenca, cutting back from his left side onto his right before firing a shot past Bernd Leno from just inside the penalty area.
It was a clinical finish and highlighted exactly what Liverpool have been missing over recent weeks.
Luis Diaz has netted five times in the Premier League this term but is without a goal in the English top-flight since September.
Darwin Nunez has just two goals to his name and his last arrived over a month ago.
Cody Gakpo has two in his last three outings in the league but his tally in the league still stands at just three.
The goals just haven’t been flowing for Salah’s supporting cast. Granted, chances have been at a premium but the decision-making in the final third has been suboptimal, to put it nicely.
And this has added more pressure to the Saudi League transfer target. If he has an off day, Liverpool look bereft of ideas. And that was threatening to be the case on Saturday against the Cottagers.
Salah had four shots but wasn’t really a threat, racking up an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.22. He also created just one chance.
Nunez and Diaz both devalued their efforts against Marco Silva’s side. Granted, their chances weren’t the best, their execution was severely lacking.
Jota’s execution, however, was perfect.
His cameo off the bench saw him have two shots and create two chances. He finished the game with an expected goals involvement (xGI) of 0.6. The 28-year-old almost won the game when a penalty box scramble resulted in him having an effort deflected just over.
Slot praised the super sub when speaking with BBC’s Match of the Day, saying: “We had Jota back...I couldn’t have asked for more. Jota is so intelligent with his positioning and with what to do with the ball. It was a great team goal. It’s nice to have him back, he’s been away for two months.”
And skipper Virgil van Dijk singled out the former Wolves winger for praise: “Hopefully he can stay fit and be important for us like he has been in the past. I think he was very good when he came on in that false nine/No 10-ish [role], very lively and that's what he brings to the team.”
This is a pivotal time of Jota’s Liverpool career.
The Reds have been linked with a host of strikers over recent weeks, with Omar Marmoush, Matheus Cunha and Joao Pedro supposedly on Liverpool’s shortlist.
All three can play in a similar way to Jota. They aren’t out-and-out centre-forwards. They’re more hybrids who can also operate in the left channels and as link players.
The 2019/20 Premier League champions have a lot of players who can play that role so if there’s interest in a Cunha, a Marmoush or a Pedro then someone is going to have to be sacrificed.
The obvious choice in the eyes of many is Darwin. He’s a divisive player who frustrates.
But there is a world in which Diaz and Jota are the two players battling it out for a place in Slot’s squad.
Jota turned 28 earlier this month while Diaz turns 28 in January. Both are out of contract in 2027 and ideally would be looking for a new deal this summer to see them well into their 30s.
Liverpool are unlikely to offer both players a new contract. It’ll be one or the other.
The 46-cap international is at a disadvantage. His injury record coupled with his rumoured salary likely means the Reds will favour extending Diaz’s deal. Jota regularly misses large chunks of the season and he’s on a reported £140,000-per-week.
At his age now, he’s not going to want to take a pay cut, is he? So he could well become of the highest earners at the club, if he’s offered a renewal.
Diaz, meanwhile, barely picks up knocks and is on just £55,000-per-week. With Slot deploying him at centre-forward this season, he can now play anywhere across the attack and this makes him even more valuable.
A new deal for the Colombian offers the best value for money at this current time.
But Jota has something Diaz doesn’t. Jota has that killer instinct and ruthlessness in the penalty area that many clubs are searching for.
It is almost a straight shootout between the two, turning the entire situation into a make-or-break one for both players.
If Jota, along with Salah, can fire Liverpool to the title, he could prolong his career on Merseyside. If he picks up yet another knock during this pivotal time of the season, it could put an end to his stint with the Reds.
It really might be as simple as that.
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