LEWIS STEELE: Liverpool had been handicapped like a horse at Cheltenham – but with Mohamed Salah fully fit things can only get BETTER… Thrashing Sparta Prague must have sent shockwaves to Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta

It’s easy to forget that Liverpool have found themselves in this position, with one trophy in the bag and in a strong position to win three more, with their talisman missing for the past three months.

As the Reds chased one win after another in the first half of the season, there was a feeling – on Merseyside and beyond – that everything could come crashing down in January when Mohamed Salah left for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Salah did that and much more, with the Egyptian picking up an injury during the tournament in Ivory Coast, starting just one match for his club since New Year’s Day.

But here we are, heading into the March international break with Liverpool still plowing past teams and having overcome the major hurdle of being without their best player for a significant portion of the season.

To compare their trophy haul to a horse the week of the Cheltenham Festival, Liverpool are severely handicapped, not to mention a rippling injury crisis throughout the team.

Jurgen Klopp praised the Egyptian who made his first start for the Reds after returning from an injury layoff

Liverpool’s dominant Europa League win is said to have sent messages to title rivals Mikel Arteta (left) and Pep Guardiola (right)

But with coach Jurgen Klopp aiming for greatness no matter who is in the XI – ‘it’s not about who plays, it’s about how they play’, he often says – Liverpool are still flying.

However, that can only improve now that Salah is fully fit. His goal and hat-trick of assists against Sparta Prague in this 6-1 thrashing were just a reminder of his unique talents and importance to this team.

His goal took his tally to 20 for the season for the seventh consecutive campaign. No player in Liverpool’s illustrious history has done that, further underlining his position as one of Anfield’s greatest players.

It must also have sent shockwaves through Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta ahead of the latter part of the season, not to mention Erik ten Hag ahead of Liverpool’s visit to Old Trafford in the FA Cup on Sunday.

“In the seven years we worked with him, the one problem we never had was consistency,” Klopp said. ‘Mo is just delivering and delivering and delivering, his desire doesn’t stop, his quality is there and his desire to score doesn’t stop.

Salah (left) provided an assist for Cody Gakpo (right) during the match, with the Egyptian also teeing up Bobby Clark and Dominik Szoboszlai

But Liverpool are still flying and Salah’s return will only help them shift into another gear

“He has improved in so many aspects since he started here. That’s right, he won’t stop. I’m less surprised than maybe some others, I honestly thought it had happened, but he was injured for a while, otherwise he would have done it in January or February. But great, very good, and great to have him back.”

Liverpool have overcome many obstacles this season, but any hopes of them crumbling in the final weeks of the season should be dispelled by the return of Egypt’s King Salah.