POTM (Premier League) – October 2021
October has seen some incredible results and some stunning performances, making headlines throughout the month. And in all the chaos of the Premier League, one player in particular has been tearing things up on a weekly basis, Mo Salah, who has netted 5 times and made 4 assists in just 4 matches. With an average of 2.25 goal involvements per game, this month has belonged to Liverpool’s Egyptian superstar, earning him a back to back NextGoalWinner POTM award.
Before discussing exactly why he has earnt this recognition, we must also mention some of the other talents who have had a stellar month, in particular Ben Chilwell who has been defensively solid and bagged 3 goals which has shown Tuchel’s ability to let his full-backs get involved in the attack. Meanwhile, the likes of Rice, Foden and Livramento have all had superb months of football, and are unfortunate not to have edged the award from Salah, but it’s not meant to be.
If you have anything to add to our NextGoalWinner POTM decision, or disagree with our pick, head over to Twitter (@NextGoalWinBlog) and let us know what you think.
Match By Match
October 3rd: Liverpool 2-2 Manchester City – In a huge clash already at this early stage of the season, it was all square between the two title favourites. In this game, it was Salah who once again stood out as the star man, netting the second and setting up Mane for the first, as Liverpool twice took the lead only to be pegged back by City. Thanks to his goal involvements, Salah was man of the match with an 8.8/10 rating for his performance, completing the most dribbles in the game (5), making the most tackles (3) and winning the most duels (11). Not only an attacking threat throughout, but defensively strong and was a thorn in the side of Guardiola and City throughout.
October 16th: Watford 0-5 Liverpool – Liverpool after the international break returned with a bang, as they decimated strugglers Watford with their new man Ranieri in the dugout. With another goal and assist in this one, Salah was once again superb, earning an 8.7/10 rating, he was 2nd overall to the hattrick man Firmino. With 5 shots in the game, he was an attacking threat and could have had several more in this one, but continuing his record of scoring in the last 5 league games, he will be more than happy with his performance.
October 24th: Manchester United 0-5 Liverpool – Following up their 5-0 away win with another 5-0 away win, Liverpool will have this one in their history books as arguably biggest rivals Manchester United were outplayed and utterly embarrassed by Liverpool and Salah in particular. Netting 3 goals at Old Trafford, and setting up another, he grabbed a 9.8/10 man of the match performance in the most remarkable and stunning game seen at Old Trafford for some time. But I don’t really want to talk about it anymore.
October 30th: Liverpool 2-2 Brighton – Following up their 10-0 aggregate from the last 2 games, they were pegged back by the impressive Brighton side who have started superbly this season. In the only game where Salah failed to score, he still set up one of Liverpool’s first half goals, however they were pegged back by Potter’s men. Salah dropped below an 8 rating (7.9) for the first time in the last 2 months, showing how Brighton managed to keep the in-form man quiet. Despite this, he still made the most dribbles and created the most chances, however he was unable to get through Brighton’s defence, only managing 2 shots in the whole game. A disappointing end to the month, but a remarkable month for the Egypt man.