Mohamed Salah scored a 51st-minute penalty as Liverpool comfortably recorded a 4-0 win against LASK at Anfield on Thursday (November 30) to top the Group E with one game to spare in the UEFA Europa League (UEL) 2023/24.
Liverpool, with 12 points from five matches, have secured the top spot in Group E and Jurgen Klopp couldn’t be happier as the 2016 UEL runner-ups remain clear favourites for this year’s European Championship.
Cody Gakpo netted a brace while Luis Diaz and Salah scored one each to register a comfortable win over the Austrian club.
Salah, with his goal from the penalty spot, notched up his 199th goal for Liverpool and is just one away from becoming the only fifth player in the club’s noteworthy history to score 200 goals.
The Egyptian has already found the back of the net 13 times in 19 matches this season and the right-winger would be willing to reach the 200-goal landmark when Liverpool host Fulham at Anfield on Sunday (December 3) in the Premier League (PL).
Salah has already become a club legend in just six years with the club as he formed one of the best-attacking trios of all time with Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane — both are playing in the Saudi Pro League now — and helped the Reds win their first PL title since 1990 and UEFA Champions League since 2005.
Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp expressed his satisfaction as The Reds cemented their place at the top of Group E courtesy of a goalless draw between Toulouse and Union Saint-Gilloise.
"Two top results for us tonight in the group," said Klopp. "It was clear, with the defeat at Toulouse (last time out) we made it a bit more tricky but because of our result and their result we are now top of the table and that will not change.
"That's good, very important in the busy schedule we have from now on. A lot of positives in the game, a lot of good football. The thing I didn't like too much, and told the boys at half-time, (was) that this game should have been put to bed already at half-time.
"You cannot play better, you cannot set it up better, (but) you can finish it better obviously – but we didn't,” he concluded.
