It was the only moment all night when a hush descended on Anfield.
A fervent crowd had been braced for the net to bulge. Instead, there was a collective state of incredulity at the sight of Mohamed Salah failing to convert a penalty just before the break.
The Egyptian attacker, who had scored 10 successive spot-kicks for Liverpool since missing against Real Madrid in November 2024, was furious with himself. He had got it horribly wrong — clipping the ball so tamely down the middle that the Galatasaray goalkeeper, Ugurcan Cakir, who had dived to his left, was able to use his right boot to hook it away.
The outstanding Dominik Szoboszlai, who had broken the deadlock with a clinical finish before being brought down by Ismail Jakobs inside the box, stood looking perplexed with his hands on his head as the aggregate score remained at 1-1.
Salah’s powers have waned considerably during this troubled season for Arne Slot’s team and he squandered three glorious chances during a ridiculously one-sided first half.
If the penalty miss had deflated Liverpool it would have been held up as a symbol of Salah the fading force. But the narrative shifted during a dazzling second-half performance which set up a Champions League quarter-final with holders Paris Saint-Germain next month.
Salah more than atoned for his misjudgement from 12 yards as he set about tormenting Galatasaray’s overworked back line. There was the pinpoint assist for Hugo Ekitike, who provided the finish to a slick team move. Salah was also heavily involved in Liverpool’s third goal, as his sweet strike was parried into the path of Ryan Gravenberch, who tucked away the rebound.
What followed was like a flashback to when the third-highest goalscorer in the club’s history was in his pomp. After some neat interplay with Florian Wirtz, Salah cut inside on to his left foot and curled an unstoppable shot beyond Cakir.
It was vintage Salah as he became the first African to score 50 Champions League goals. He patted the crest on his shirt as he saluted the Kop before being wrapped in a bear hug by captain Virgil van Dijk. He should have doubled his tally soon after when he struck the bar from Ekitike’s cutback.
Mohamed Salah celebrates scoring Liverpool’s fourth goal (Michael Regan/Getty Images)
“It says a lot about Mo that after missing a penalty just before half-time, which can sometimes be hard for an individual or for a team, so compliments for how we came out in the second half,” Slot told reporters post-match.
“We have had a lot of setbacks this season. A lot of halves where we created chance after chance without doing justice to how we have performed. But Mo came out, gave a great assist and then scored a trademark goal that he has scored so many times in this stadium. That tells you a lot about his mental strength but definitely also the team because adversity is something we can definitely talk about this season.”
This was Salah’s 10th Liverpool goal of the season in all competitions. He loves writing history but the fact he is now only the third Liverpool player to reach double figures in nine or more consecutive seasons for the club, after Gordon Hodgson (1926-27 to 1934-34) and Roger Hunt (1959-60 to 1968-69), is unlikely to mean much to him.
It’s been a hard slog given that at this stage a year ago he had netted 32 times. He also had 22 assists back then compared to just nine now.
What looked like a no-brainer when Liverpool gave him a lucrative new two-year contract worth in excess of £400,000 ($531,000) per week last April hasn’t panned out like anyone envisaged.
Relegated to bench duty, the 33-year-old forward’s frustration boiled over in early December when he publicly accused the club of “throwing him under the bus” and making him a scapegoat for the team’s failings. He also claimed his relationship with Slot had broken down.
Since returning from Africa Cup of Nations duty in late January, bridges have been built and he has been a regular starter but his contribution has been mixed and doubts about his future beyond May remain. Salah is measured against the crazily high standards he has set previously. For context, his current tally of 19 goal involvements in 2025-26 is higher than Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka (16) or Manchester City’s Jeremy Doku (15).
“Mo is a legend,” Ekitike told TNT Sports. “Sometimes people say he has a difficult season, but for players like us who have been watching him for years, he’s important. You look tonight and I think he had many chances but he still had the mindset to give me a great ball to score. I’m really happy for him.”
A debate has raged all season over whether Salah’s dwindling output is simply down to the effects of Father Time or whether Liverpool’s summer revamp led to a change of approach which no longer plays to his strengths.
What certainly helped against Galatasaray was Salah operating more centrally and getting more frequently into areas where he can hurt opponents rather than staying out wide. He had seven shots, six of them on target, 13 touches in the opposition box (more than anyone else), completed all 14 of his passes in the final third and created two chances.
There was the rare sight of Salah gesturing to be substituted with 16 minutes remaining. He received a warm ovation but what it means for Saturday’s Premier League trip to Brighton & Hove Albion remains unclear. “He came off not because he had scored enough but because he felt something, so let’s see where he is for the weekend,” Slot said.
Wednesday’s emphatic 4-0 victory provided a much-needed injection of positivity for Liverpool following Sunday’s grim draw with Tottenham Hotspur, which triggered such an angry backlash from supporters. This was exactly the kind of exciting, incisive brand of attacking football that fans have wanted to see as they swarmed all over the visitors.
Slot was more animated than he has ever been on the Anfield touchline as Liverpool played on the front foot at a tempo and intensity that hasn’t been witnessed enough during this stop-start campaign.
The atmosphere undoubtedly helped. They were relentless and the numbers were astonishing — 32 shots, 16 of them on target and an xG (expected goals) total of 4.88. The final scoreline massively flattered the outclassed Turkish champions. Wirtz created eight chances alone — the most by a Liverpool player in a Champions League match on record.
“It is not as simple as you think to say if you bring this tonight, you can bring this every game,” Slot added. “There is an opponent to play against, a style of play, there are so many factors why we could bring what we could bring. Anfield and the players can rise to the occasion on a European night. Every game has its own story but this is the standard we are looking for.”
Luis Enrique’s PSG will provide a distinct step up in class in the quarter-finals but Wednesday was a timely reminder about the heights Liverpool are still capable of reaching.
The sight of Salah so involved and playing with a swagger also bodes well for what’s to come. He’s still a match-winner and he refused to allow that misstep from 12 yards to define his night.