Liverpool Beat Stoke City 3-0; Mohamed Salah Comes off Bench, Scores Brace

Mohamed Salah raced to Liverpool's rescue on Wednesday and came off the bench to bag a quick-fire brace as the Reds won 3-0 at Stoke City and moved above Tottenham Hotspur into fifth in the Premier League standings. 

Sadio Mane netted his first Premier League goal since August and set the Merseysiders en route to triumph at the Bet365 Stadium, with Salah coming off the bench to net a brace and put manager Jurgen Klopp's mind at ease.

A swift turnaround will see the Reds back in action on Saturday when they travel to face Brighton & Hove Albion, while the Potters are back in action on home soil against Swansea City.

A midweek win at the Bet365 Stadium was crucial for Liverpool considering Tottenham's slip at Leicester City on Tuesday, but a lack of clinical edge made for a far more tense encounter than it should have been.

Dominic Solanke led the line for Klopp's side as Salah and Philippe Coutinho dropped to the bench for a respite. Mane and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain patrolled the wings, while former Reds Peter Crouch and Joe Allen started for the Potters.

Stoke's three central defenders did a fine job of containing Solanke early on, but it was after 17 minutes that the hosts fell behind following a contentious decision to let play go on despite calls that the ball had gone out.

Liverpool defender Joe Gomez managed to deliver the ball from the byline under great pressure, Solanke teeing up Mane for a routine finish as Empire of the Kop celebrated his stepping up to the plate:

But the Senegal international couldn't maintain that level of comfort in front of goal, and the hosts clearly missed Salah, as Mane saw several gaping opportunities go astray.

Klopp watched as last season's headline star faltered on several occasions, most notably hitting the post from a one-on-one minutes before the break.

It became apparent that one goal likely wouldn't be enough of a cushion for Liverpool to lean on, as Crouch caused problems in the Reds half, and it wasn't until Salah was introduced that Klopp's men could afford to breathe a sigh of relief.

There were signs of a Stoke revival emerging until the Egyptian entered the fray as Oxlade-Chamberlain's replacement on 67 minutes, needing only 10 more to make clear his importance to this Liverpool attack.

The spotlight wasn't stolen from Mane entirely, though, as it was his pace and cross from the right that opened the chance for Salah to volley in almost unopposed on his left foot. The BBC's John Bennett applauded his almost-instant contribution:

Stoke's approach appeared to almost instantly switch after Salah started having his say on the game, and it was evident in Liverpool's third the sense of fear his presence had instilled among the home side.

Erik Pieters' woeful attempted back-pass never reached Lee Grant and was instead snapped up by Salah, who converted a simple 12th Premier League goal of the season and continued his ridiculous run of form, per Anfield HQ:

The league's leading scorer this season may not have won Liverpool this fixture single-handedly, but there was no doubting he had a huge say in handing the Reds three points that push them back into fifth.

Klopp's decision to rest some of his regular starters ultimately paid off, albeit with the get-out-of-jail-free card that is Salah, while Stoke drop to 16th following their fourth consecutive game without a win.