The aura is gone at Anfield. Once the most intimidating ground in Europe, it has lost its sanctity

A YEAR AGO, Mo Salah was locked in a tense and very public contract negotiation with the owners of Liverpool FC.

- camondunphy

It dragged on for months.

Every press conference, every post-match interview, every whisper around Anfield revolved around whether the Fenway Sports Group would finally pay him what he deserved.

Eventually they did. The issue was settled, and most Liverpool supporters - including myself - felt the owners had been mean-spirited, almost disrespectful for taking so long to reward a player who had given them everything.

But football moves fast.

On Wednesday night Salah sat on the bench for most of the match. Last Saturday he watched the entire thing from the bench.

It pains me to say it but Mo may never again be the force he was even 12 months ago. The devastating turn of pace, the moments of magic, the confidence that terrified defenders - those things don't look as sharp any more.

And more importantly, the team he flourished in simply doesn't exist now. That Liverpool side, the one that won the title by 10 points, has dissolved piece by piece. And in the effort to rebuild it, Arne Slot is making things worse.

Take Wednesday night. A home match against Sunderland, newly promoted and expected to be fighting relegation. Liverpool should have brushed them aside. Instead, they struggled badly. They escaped with a 1-1 draw thanks only to a desperate equaliser.

It has become a pattern - teams that should fear Liverpool now relish playing them. The aura is gone. Even Anfield, once the most intimidating ground in Europe, has lost its sanctity.

Opponents no longer walk out trembling, they walk out believing.

And too often, they're right.