Former Arsenal star Lukas Podolski has hit back at the “stupid” criticisms that have been aimed at Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.
The Reds forward is currently away on international duty with Egypt as they take part in some friendly matches. Salah was on the scoresheet twice as his country beat Niger 3-0 at the Borg El Arab Stadium on Friday night.
The 30-year-old's form in front of goal for Liverpool this season has been the subject of debate among critics. The 30-year-old has found the back of the net four times in nine outings in all competitions, with just two coming in the Premier League.
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However, Podolski has hit back at the criticism aimed at Salah, labelling them as “stupid”. The former Germany international went on to explain why he thinks that the Reds No.11 will get back into form for his club in the near future.
"We don't need to talk about Salah, he is your hero (Egypt), the greatest player ever in your country I think,” Podolski told Dostor . “There is not much to talk about, everyone knows him as a player, they know his quality, what he did for Liverpool and the Egyptian football
“I don't know if he has received offers to leave Liverpool before renewing his contract, he has decided to stay at Liverpool, and I think he is proud to stay at Liverpool, we are talking about a world-class player.
"If he doesn't score in a number of games, of course the criticism will always be there, and he has to deal with that, but that doesn't change him as a player or as a person to have a bad start to the season with Liverpool.
"After everything bad comes something good, and I think you shouldn't create problems with that for Salah. This is part of the sport and you have to deal with it, especially in football.
"The good thing is that if you have two or three bad games, you can score in the next game and everyone will shut up about that, you have to enjoy the football life, you have to deal with results, situations and bad starts. You have to deal with that and accept that.
"For me, it's stupid to criticize great players who have already proven a lot like Salah, you have to deal with criticism, and when you have a long time in that profession, you have to know how to deal with it.”
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