Jürgen Klopp has declared Mohamed Salah the best player in the world following the Egyptian's dazzling performance in Liverpool's 5-0 victory at Watford. Salah scored a brilliant solo goal, reminiscent of his strike against Manchester City earlier this month, and set up Sadio Mané's opener with a moment of exquisite vision.
'Come on, who is better than him?' Klopp said. 'We don't have to talk about what Messi and Ronaldo have done for world football and their dominance but, right now, he is the best. His performance was massive. The pass for the first goal was great and the second goal was special. He is top, we all see it.'
Salah's goal was his tenth of the season and ninth in eight games. He acknowledged his current rich vein of form, saying: 'I'm just trying. Sometimes I don't have luck, I'm just trying to give 100% of what I have. I am confident at the moment, I'm scoring goals, helping the team win points, which is the most important thing.'
The match also marked a milestone for Mané, who scored his 100th Premier League goal. Klopp highlighted that the Senegal forward has achieved this without the aid of penalties, having taken just one in his Liverpool career—a saved effort against Red Star Belgrade in 2018. 'The special thing is he's scored 100 goals without a penalty,' Klopp said. 'It's a special number, he should be proud of that. It doesn't happen for a lot of players but he's a world-class player as well, it's incredible how good he is.'
Watford manager Claudio Ranieri, in his first match in charge, was left to rue his side's performance. 'I knew before coming that I'd have to work very, very hard,' he said. 'At the beginning we were very nervous and after [eight] minutes you concede a goal. And some of their goals were our presents.' Of Salah, he added: 'If not the best, he's one of the best. At the moment Salah is in great condition and everything he touches is gold.'
