Liverpool wing king Mohamed Salah broke an astounding three records and equalled another in the Reds' marvellous 2-0 win over Premier League champions Manchester City at the Etihad.
Arne Slot's men opened up an 11-point gap over Arsenal at the summit of the standings courtesy of Sunday's statement success, where Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai struck in the first half.
The Egypt international firstly finished off an exquisite short corner routine, although he benefitted from a wicked deflection off of Nathan Ake, which deceived Ederson as his strike flew into the back of the net.
However, there was nothing fortuitous about Salah's second contribution, as the 32-year-old beat the Man City offside trap, teed up Szoboszlai and witnessed the Hungarian coolly beat a stranded Ederson.
Before bagging his second contribution of the game, Salah had already equalled a Premier League record with his opening goal, his 16th of the top-flight season away from Anfield.
The former Chelsea man has now scored the joint-most goals away from home in a single Premier League campaign, matching the totals of Kevin Phillips in 1999-00 and Harry Kane in 2022-23.
What three records did Salah break vs. Man City?
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While Salah is now on the cusp of breaking that record, the winger has moved into a category of his own in three categories, firstly becoming the only player to have a direct hand in 40 or more goals in more than one Premier League season.
Salah now has 25 goals and 16 assists to his name from just 27 top-flight contests this term, just one shy of his total contributions from his debut season, 42 in 2017-18 (32 goals, 10 assists).
In addition, the Egyptian has also become the first-ever player to score and assist in both Premier League games against the reigning champions in one campaign, having also done so at Anfield in December's 2-0 victory.
Finally, Salah has now totalled 15 direct goal contributions against Man City in the Premier League, more than any other player in history, overtaking Steven Gerrard's 14.
Is Salah in the best form of his life?
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A certain Jose Mourinho memorably once remarked that people who "don't understand football" analyse the game through stats, but the stats do not lie whatsoever with Salah, who is on course for the greatest individual Premier League season in history.
The Liverpool man is averaging 1.64 goals or assists per game this year, putting him on course for an astounding 62 after 38 matches, which would easily be the most direct contributions of any Premier League season.
Salah chose to stay grounded when asked by Sky Sports News if he was having his best-ever campaign, though, replying: "I don't know. It is opinion.
"Maybe people prefer my first seasons or now but I prefer now because winning the league, helping the young players, it is special. We need another title. Me and the big guys in the team, we need another title."
Salah was not wrong whatsoever when he claimed that Liverpool need another Premier League crown, but the Reds have now cleared one of the toughest hurdles left, and the 32-year-old must surely be a leading contender for the Ballon d'Or if the Merseyside giants get over the line.
Ben Knapton
