How Dominik Szoboszlai can step up in Mohamed Salah's place after UEFA Champions League heroics at Inter as Liverpool drama rumbles on
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Published 10/12/2025 at 16:14 GMT
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Liverpool put aside the Mohamed Salah chaos engulfing the club to secure a crucial 1-0 victory over Internazionale in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday evening, with Dominik Szoboszlai scoring the match-winning penalty. The Hungarian has been a positive in a disappointing campaign for The Reds, and could be the man to step up while Salah's future gets resolved.
Highlights: Szoboszlai penalty seals narrow Livepool win at Inter
Video credit: TNT Sports
Despite Liverpool’s hard-fought and impressive victory over Inter to boost their chances of qualifying for the next phase of the UEFA Champions League, the discourse around the club is still consumed by the saga involving Mohamed Salah.
The reverberations from the player’s bombshell interview following the dramatic draw with Leeds United in the Premier League are still being felt at Anfield and beyond, with speculation over what comes next at the forefront of every conversation involving the Premier League champions this week.
If anything, football itself is a welcome distraction, even with the team’s recent disappointing form.
The win over Inter was just Liverpool’s fifth win in their last 15 matches across all competitions, but victory provides a much-needed boost amid the current turmoil.
In the absence of first-choice penalty-taker Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai was the man to step up and dispatch the 87th minute spot-kick that secured the three precious points at San Siro, keeping Arne Slot’s side treading water in the top eight in the league phase, for now at least.
The Hungarian has actually been one of Liverpool’s bright lights in what has been a dark season, with his winner in Milan making it five goals for The Reds across all competitions - the same number as Salah and Cody Gakpo, and only behind the eight scored by summer signing Hugo Ekitike.
His five assists are the most of anyone in the side to date this campaign, along with Gakpo, who is also on the same number.
| Liverpool goal contributions 2025/26 (all competitions) | GA (Goals+Assists) |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | 10 (5+5) |
| Cody Gakpo | 10 (5+5) |
| Hugo Ekitike | 9 (8+1) |
| Mohamed Salah | 8 (5+3) |
| Ryan Gravenberch | 6 (3+3) |
Nominally a midfielder, the 25-year-old can and has been able to provide a creative spark from the centre of the pitch.
In Liverpool’s three most recent league outings, however, he has been shifted to a wide right role – taking up the position usually occupied by Salah before the Egyptian was relegated to the bench for the games against West Ham United, Sunderland and Leeds.
Strictly speaking, despite drawing two of these matches, Liverpool are unbeaten across the three games - Szoboszlai himself scoring the would-be winner in the latter game before The Reds conceded a stoppage-time equaliser.
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Aside from his goals and assists, Szoboszlai’s contribution to the Reds attack has seen him rank amongst the best chance creators in the team.
He has also made the most successful passes in the opposition half other than Curtis Jones (per 90 minutes).
Szoboszlai ranks above Salah in both of these metrics.
| Player | Chances created per 90 minutes (inc. assists) |
| Florian Wirtz | 2.50 |
| Cody Gakpo | 2.48 |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | 2.38 |
| Mohamed Salah | 2.28 |
| Alexis Mac Allister | 0.88 |
| Hugo Ekitike | 0.86 |
| Ryan Gravenberch | 0.81 |
| Curtis Jones | 0.45 |
| Alexander Isak | 0.43 |
Stats in 2025/26 (all competitions) - minimum 450 minutes played as midfielder/forward
| Player | Successful passes in opposition half per 90 minutes |
| Curtis Jones | 45.7 |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | 35.0 |
| Ryan Gravenberch | 31.7 |
| Florian Wirtz | 29.0 |
| Alexis Mac Allister | 28.9 |
| Mohamed Salah | 18.4 |
| Cody Gakpo | 18.0 |
| Hugo Ekitike | 10.7 |
| Alexander Isak | 8.0 |
Stats in 2025/26 (all competitions) - minimum 450 minutes played as midfielder/forward
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Video credit: TNT Sports
It’s almost crazy to think this stuttering Liverpool side started the season like a house on fire, winning seven matches in a row across all competitions, including five in the league.
This included a victory over current table-toppers Arsenal, with Szoboszlai scoring the winner as he hammered in a stunning 30-yard free kick in a 1-0 win.
His goal aside, Szoboszlai earned plaudits for his overall display, made all the more impressive by the fact he was playing in an unfamiliar right-back position, a role he filled more than once during this period.
Far from looking out of place, he thrived, winning possession more than any other Liverpool defender across the games he played in the position.
With Liverpool’s strategic approach to allowing full-backs to go forward, he was also the chief chance creator among players utilised across the backline.
| Player | Possession won per 90 minutes |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | 5.0 |
| Andy Robertson | 4.5 |
| Conor Bradley | 4.4 |
| Ibrahima Konate | 3.5 |
| Milos Kerkez | 3.4 |
| Virgil van Dijk | 2.7 |
Stats in 2025/26 (all competitions) - minimum 450 minutes played as defender
| Player | Chances created from open play per 90 minutes |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | 0.80 |
| Milos Kerkez | 0.75 |
| Andy Robertson | 0.61 |
| Conor Bradley | 0.57 |
| Virgil van Dijk | 0.38 |
| Ibrahima Konate | 0.26 |
Stats in 2025/26 (all competitions) - minimum 450 minutes played as defender
Liverpool needed somebody to step up in Salah’s place and Szoboszlai did just that in assuming the unsettled star’s responsibilities against Inter.
Speaking to TNT Sports afterwards, Szoboszlai insisted that Liverpool players should not be distracted by the drama involving his team-mate, and the focus going forward will be on winning games to improve their form.
"That’s our job," he said. "To perform on the pitch and don’t think what’s going on outside of the pitch, and that’s what we did today to take the three points.
"It’s not always up, it’s sometimes down, like a rollercoaster. Sometimes you lose a game, sometimes you win a game, and today we managed to win it with a penalty and a clean sheet and that is the most important [thing]."
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'That's our job' - Szoboszlai on putting aside media frenzy to get result
Video credit: TNT Sports
While nobody is realistically expecting him to hit the heights Salah has in a red shirt, Szoboszlai’s impact this year could be a necessary antidote to counter the afflictions Liverpool are suffering, and provide something resembling the calm amid the chaos.
That fact is further emphasised by his recognition of his personal responsibilities as a player at the club, and trying to have a positive influence on the team.
"I try to do my best on the pitch and off the pitch, try to help as much as I can," he said. "The new players, and also maybe the players who are longer here.
"That’s our job to help each other as a team, work harder and in the end get the result like that."
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