Mo Salah experienced the full range of emotions when he put Liverpool ahead on the final day of the Premier League season
© Jack Thomas / Wolves via Getty Images
Liverpool star Mo Salah went from ecstasy to heartbreak in the span of just a few seconds after he mistakenly appeared to think that he had won the Premier League title for Liverpool with his late goal against Wolves – only to be told by fans that rivals Manchester City had gone ahead against Aston Villa to place them in pole position for the crown.
News had filtered throughout Anfield on Sunday’s tense final day of action that rivals Man City were losing 2-0 to Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa – leaving Liverpool just needing to beat Wolves to win the title.
Wolves, though, were proving to be stubborn opposition with the score tied at 1-1 – until Salah finally provided the breakthrough late on and raced towards the Liverpool support in the belief that he had just helped his side win the league.
The Egyptian, however, was informed just seconds later that City had scored three goals in just over five minutes to take the lead against Villa.
Salah’s celebrations quickly melted away as fans were pictured gesturing that the score in Manchester was now 3-2, with Liverpool’s chances relying on their former captain Gerrard guiding his side to a late equalizer at the Etihad.
😂 😂 pic.twitter.com/7HpmZYQ2Ay
— Tety Steven (@TetySteven) May 22, 2022
Cruelly, there appeared to have been a breakthrough as a roar erupted around Anfield suggesting that Aston Villa had leveled the scores – but that rumor proved to be false, one again breaking Liverpool hearts.
The moment was captured on the Sky Sports broadcast of the game, with commentator Rob Hawthorne noting: “A cheer going around though we know not why because Manchester City, to our knowledge, are still leading by three goals to two.
“I’m not sure if a false rumor has spread around here like wildfire.”
Ain’t no way someone scammed the Liverpool fans at Anfield that Aston Villa made it 3-3 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/EFPtJcajNj
— GoatSZN (@UTDxGoat) May 22, 2022
He thought he had a Aguero moment pic.twitter.com/OwuXeTCQfH
— Tяυsτ №¹-Yahya™ (@RealistYahz) May 22, 2022
Reports online suggest that the rumor was started in error by a Liverpool fan who misinterpreted a pitch-side LED substitution board as referring to a goal being scored in Manchester.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp even appeared to have been snared in the false alarm as he hugged midfielder Thiago on the sideline.
Salah, though, was perhaps the most visibly affected when, as one Twitter user noted, he was denied what was effectively his ‘Sergio Aguero moment’, referencing the famous scenes several years ago when the Argentine star clinched the Premier League title for Man City with a stoppage time goal against QPR.
It wasn’t all bad news for Salah, though, as his goal in the match was enough to draw him level with Tottenham’s Son Hueng-min in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot with both claiming 23 goals this campaign – five ahead of Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
