With the victory, Liverpool moved five points clear of their Spanish opponents and all but secured first place in Group B. This will prove to be important because by coming in first, they will be much more likely to avoid a difficult opponent in the round of 16.
Salah's two goals added to what has been the hottest streak of his career - no small feat when you consider that he scored 44 goals in all competitions in the 2017-18 season; these included an almost unfathomable 32 in the Premier League alone.
Since the season began in August, Salah has scored 12 goals and handed out four assists in all competitions. He has also been selected as man of the match four times - a remarkable number given how early in the season it still is.
What makes this even more impressive is the fact that Salah is doing it against elite teams. Salah's molten-hot run of form has included matches against Chelsea, AC Milan, Manchester City, and now Atlético. Though it may be unlikely that he will win it, Salah might very well be making a late run to force himself into contention for the Ballon d'Or.
Right now, the Egyptian is arguably the best striker on the planet. There isn't a defensive line which seems to have an answer for him. Only Robert Lewandowski of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund's Erling Haaland have a legitimate case over Salah at the moment.
Salah isn't just dominating on the stat sheet alone. He is not only scoring goals with machine-like efficiency; he is also humiliating opponents while doing so. The goal he scored against Manchester City went viral almost immediately after he scored it as he carved up the City defense, leaving them in the dust.
His goal against Atlético was almost as impressive. Salah opened the scoring by making his way past three Atlético players before launching a shot from just outside the box that made its way into the net via a deflection off Atlético defender Geoffrey Kondogbia.
A major reason for Salah's incredible play this season has been his positional move. Salah is playing further out on the wing than he has for several years, and this has taken his game to new heights. As shown by his goals against City and Atlético, even elite defenses are finding it almost impossible to handle Salah as he moves inside from such a wide position.
Additionally, Salah's interplay with right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold has been truly superb. As one of the duo moves inside, the other will stay out wide to provide width. This combination has proven to be almost unstoppable when both are in peak form - like now. Salah might just turn out to be the driving force behind Liverpool's second Champions League title in four seasons.
Liverpool's next match will be a Premier League clash against arch-rivals Manchester United. Salah's current hot streak coupled with United's shaky form should see Liverpool claim a fairly straightforward victory. Even if United do somehow manage to contain Salah, they will almost certainly have done so by doubling or even tripling him often. This would in turn lead to players such as Jota, Alexander-Arnold, and Sadio Mané becoming wide open and punishing United accordingly.
Anfield has seen countless all-time great strikers over the decades. Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush, Michael Owen, and Luis Suárez are the names which headline this illustrious list. Yet, when all is said and done, it might very well be Salah who ends up the greatest Liverpool striker of all time.
I'll finish by bringing this up: James Milner currently wears Liverpool's iconic #7 jersey. When Milner retires or leaves Liverpool, whichever comes first, he should see to it that Salah will inherit the #7 jersey. There is no other player who more deserves the honour of donning that number at that club.
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