Mohamed Salah reveals UFC inspiration behind iconic new Liverpool celebration

Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah has revealed the reason for his new celebration which has already been seen twice this season when he scored against Ipswich Town and then Brentford.

"I think I was watching the UFC – [Alex] Pereira against Israel Adesanya," Salah explained to the Men In Blazers podcast. "When he won the second fight against Pereira, he celebrated like that because Pereira beat him in the first one.

"I like the celebration, that’s why I do it. I am a UFC fan. And also back home, people take it as, our Egyptian pharaohs used to do it when they drew something in a temple or the pyramids or somewhere. It’s similar."

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Salah, who is in the final year of his contract at Anfield , has begun the campaign in electric form. With Federico Chiesa arriving from Juventus in a bargain transfer move, the Egyptian should be rotated more often, too, meaning that his legs can be saved for the most important moments.

And he will be hoping to continue his excellent goalscoring record against Manchester United later this weekend. Salah has netted more times (14) against the Old Trafford side than any other team since he arrived at Liverpool.

"I just go to the game, try to focus on the game and win the game," he said. "I know what it means to the fans and the city, so I’m always trying to help the team and score goals. If we score goals we have a better chance to win the game so I’m always focusing on the game, trying to help the team to win the game."

Liverpool.com says: Salah doing the new celebration in front of the away end at Old Trafford... it's a great image, but it's one that is absolutely plausible too. The arrival of Chiesa will only mean Salah is even more desperate to show why he is the number one option on the right-hand side of the Liverpool attack.