Mohamed Salah spared Liverpool’s blushes in a frustrating draw with Burnley.

Scott Arfield had handed the visitors a shock early lead at Anfield when he rifled home inside the penalty area after a catalogue of defensive errors.

Less than three minutes later, the Reds pulled level courtesy of Salah’s low drilled shot on the turn after latching onto Emre Can’s dinked upfield ball.

But Jurgen Klopp’s side could not make their regular spells of dominance count after the break as they were denied on numerous occasions.

Here were the key talking points from Anfield:

Deja-vu with the defence

 

The repetition is becoming as tedious as the issue itself, but Liverpool’s defence continues to dominate the headlines for the increasingly worse.

Only the identity of the opposition made a distia nction between the blunders against Burnley and Sevilla in the Champions League, just three days prior.

This time it was Trent Alexander-Arnold’s abject failure to beat Stephen Ward and worsened by Ragnar Klavan and Joel Matip’s ensuing miscommunication.

Jurgen Klopp’s anguished shout of ‘why?’ on the touchline said it all but he is not alone in wondering why his backline appear incapable of basic functions.

That theme continued after the break as Liverpool conceded a needless corner where only Matip’s goal line clearance prevented Ben Mee scoring.

Eventually, there might actually be other on-field issues worth discussing.

Mane already proving a big miss

 

Much of the summer was spent debating how Liverpool would cope without Philippe Coutinho in the event of a prospective move to Barcelona.

Perhaps the questions should have been about the absence of the player whose value has grown exponentially in his current absence.

The debate over whether Sadio Mane’s presence may have produced a more positive outcome against Burnley is likely to be the subject of intense debate.

Expect the discussion to continue over the course of the next seven days, by which time the Senegal winger will again be available for selection.

Until then, the Reds face an unenviable battle to make their dominance count. Here they had 35 shots, nine of them on target, and a solitary goal to show.

Contrasted with their opposite number, who amassed five shots with only one off-course and it shows just how badly Klopp’s side are missing Mane.

Coutinho getting back to his best

 

It may be a defining ‘sliding doors’ moment in two club’s respective seasons.

As Ousmane Dembele was sidelined on his full Barcelona debut by a premature injury, Coutinho was attempting to set the agenda at Anfield.

Liverpool may be hoping that they had heard the last of the Brazilian’s saga with the Catalans but a starring role against the Clarets did little to help that.

On the back of a subdued midweek cameo against Sevilla, Coutinho resumed normal service with his trademark jinking runs and timely lay-off passes.

There were clear signs that the playmaker may soon find himself back on the score sheet again. He will have to work on his finishing a little first, though.

Salah is a cast-iron success

 

At just shy of £37 million, Mohamed Salah already had big shoes to fill.

Mane’s absence has left Liverpool’s record signing increasingly in the spotlight but it has done little to deter him during his latest Premier League spell.

Salah was one of the rare bright spots of this performance; regularly causing Burnley problems and sparing his side’s blushes with a drilled equaliser.

With his fifth goal in all competitions since moving to Anfield this summer, hitting double figures before the midway point appears a certainty.

Liverpool may have been considered naive to sign the Egyptian at a second time of asking but the ex-Chelsea man is already coming good just eight games in.