"Overall he was annihilated, as in the first leg, by Nuno Mendes" - French media slam Mo Salah for showing in Liverpool's loss to PSG

French newspaper L'Equipe have lambasted Liverpool star Mohamed Salah for his performance against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). The Reds were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League following their second leg loss at Anfield on Tuesday, March 11.

Despite narrowly defeating PSG 1-0 in the first leg, Liverpool were undone in the second leg of their Round of 16 clash. Ousmane Dembele's early goal (12') leveled the scores on aggregate before the Ligue 1 outfit cruised to an impressive 4-1 win on penalties.

L'Equipe were critical of Mohamed Salah's performance, handing him a match rating of just 4/10. They wrote (via Daily Mail):

"Overall Salah was annihilated, as in the first leg, by Nuno Mendes, losing a considerable number of duels against him. In addition, the ex-Roma player, who lost possession 31 times (his team's record), also stood out for his inability to properly exploit counter-attacks initiated by his team-mates."

They added:

"Even if he converted his shot on goal, the Pharaoh's record is therefore largely insufficient in his confrontations against PSG, the team he has faced the most in his Champions League career without ever finding the goal."

Salah was surprisingly ineffective against PSG in the first leg after being well contained by Nuno Mendes. The 32-year-old fared better at Anfield but was unable to register a goal contribution, losing 10 duels, and landing one shot on target from four attempts, as per FotMob.

The Egyptian King didn't perform that much better on the ball, completing three dribbles from seven attempts (43 percent success rate), and completing zero crosses from an attempted six.

---

"Trophies still to fight for. Together!" - Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk posts defiant message on social media following PSG loss

Liverpool captain and centre-back Virgil van Dijk expressed his disappointment on Instagram after losing to PSG in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. However, he urged his teammates to embrace the opportunity to fight for other trophies in their remaining 10 games this season.

Van Dijk posted:

"We’re all disappointed this morning but it’s time to get ready for Wembley. Embrace & enjoy another cup final, hopefully we can bring it home again. 10 games to go. Trophies still to fight for. Together!"

Liverpool are set to face Newcastle United in the EFL Cup final at Wembley on Sunday, March 16, as they look to retain the trophy and win their first title under Arne Slot. They are also the favorites to win the Premier League title, leading the table with 70 points from 29 games, 15 points ahead of second-placed Arsenal.