Liverpool has had an eventful 2024. It was only earlier this year that Jurgen Klopp was hoisting the League Cup aloft at Wembley; since then, there has been a change of head coach, and the assembly of a credible title charge spearheaded by a rejuvenated Mohamed Salah.

Not that he was ever especially "un-juvenated". Salah may well have found a whole new level under Slot, but he has been consistently among the very best in the world since the moment he arrived at Anfield, with his remarkable consistency a major factor in discussions over his Liverpool future.

As we head into 2025, there is also uncertainty over the situations of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk. But it is surely Salah whose contract is most important, as an amusing comparison to Everton demonstrates.

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After his goal and two assists against West Ham yesterday, Salah will end the calendar year with 52 goal involvements: 29 goals and 23 assists. That's more than any other player in the top five leagues.

For context, Everton as a team has scored just 37 times all year, only eight more times than Salah, and 15 below the Egyptian's total number of goal involvements. And since the start of the 2024-25 season, Salah has outscored the Blues outright, bagging 17 to their 15.

This drives home another point. By his own high standards, Salah was pretty pedestrian in the first half of this year; 30 of his 52 goal involvements in 2024 have come since the current season got underway in mid-August.

Despite giving the likes of Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Robert Lewandowski (and Everton) a significant headstart, Salah still finished the year ahead of all of them. His form under Slot has surpassed anything he has ever managed before in a Liverpool jersey.

For example, this December, Salah broke the Premier League record for the most goals and assists in a calendar month, registering 14. That's in spite of playing a match fewer than expected, after the game against Everton was postponed.

Ending the year strong is typical Salah. The other side of that coin is that the slight slowing-down we saw in the second half of last season has become relatively customary too.

But in fairness, it would be faintly ridiculous if he continued at the current rate. He would shatter the existing assists record (he needs eight in his next 20 games to claim it outright), running Erling Haaland close for the goals record in the process.

So even accounting for a tailing-off, this is still a season for the ages for Salah, one that deserves to be marked by the Premier League title. It might even be marked by individual honors too, with the long-elusive Ballon d'Or surely now within reach.

Liverpool is not a one-man team, but it has one man who can outperform entire teams. The very fact that you can make a "Salah vs Everton" comparison speaks volumes; the fact that it's a battle he is winning in 2024-25 says it all.

Liverpool.com says: What an incredible player Mohamed Salah is. From January to June, he was being questioned more than ever before, and yet he has still ended 2024 with the most goal involvements of anyone in the top five leagues.

How demoralizing it must be for Everton to see that Salah alone has scored more goals than the entire club in 2024-25. The physical gulf between the clubs is set to grow from next season, but it will still be nothing compared to the gap in quality.

But while Liverpool will allow itself some New Year smugness, it will not last unless the contract situation can be resolved. The Reds are witnessing history on a weekly basis, and a new deal for Salah is a matter of utmost importance.