German coach Thomas Reis made an impressive start as the new manager of Trabzonspor, leading the team to a 4-0 victory over Galatasaray in his first match in charge.
Mohamed Salah was the standout player, scoring a hat-trick and providing the assist for the fourth goal. His performance came alongside a noticeable change in how he was used on the pitch, with greater freedom in the attacking third.
How Did Thomas Reis Get the Best From Mohamed Salah?
Reis did not make a major change to Salah’s position, as the Egyptian continued to operate primarily from the right flank. The main difference came in his responsibilities.
The German coach sought to reduce the amount of energy Salah had to spend away from dangerous areas while giving him more freedom to attack and exploit spaces during transitions.
Before the Galatasaray match, Reis explained that he wanted to preserve Salah’s energy and avoid forcing him to run excessively, while the team would handle defensive responsibilities collectively and allow the Egyptian star greater attacking freedom.
That approach was visible during the match. Salah was no longer required to repeatedly drop deep to receive the ball. Instead, he stayed in more advanced areas and waited for Trabzonspor to regain possession before making runs into the spaces behind the opposition defense.
What Happened to Salah Before Reis Arrived?
In previous matches, Trabzonspor relied heavily on Salah as a primary source of attacking danger. This sometimes forced him to move away from the penalty area in search of possession.
Salah would drop deeper or receive the ball on the right against organized defenses before attempting to carry the attack into more dangerous areas himself.
The issue was visible against Konyaspor, when Trabzonspor enjoyed long periods of possession and reached 71% possession in the first half, but faced a compact defensive setup that limited the space available to Salah.
The presence of Onuachu as a central striker and Muci’s movements through the middle also contributed to congestion in certain attacking areas, sometimes leaving Salah wide or forcing him to drop deeper rather than operate freely near the penalty area.
Reis Changes Trabzonspor’s Shape
The scenario was different against Galatasaray. Reis used a compact defensive structure before switching quickly into attack as soon as Trabzonspor regained possession.
This approach allowed Galatasaray to push higher up the pitch, but it also created space behind the defensive line. Salah was able to exploit those spaces more effectively.
Instead of receiving the ball directly in front of a defender and looking for room to dribble, Salah could attack the space behind the defensive line. This was particularly clear in the opening goal, when he received the ball with space ahead of him and raced toward goal before finishing.
A Different Striker Helps Salah
Reis also made an attacking adjustment by starting Frankoulino Djau instead of Paul Onuachu, giving Trabzonspor greater movement in the final third.
Djau’s movement away from the penalty area helped pull defenders out of position and create additional spaces, allowing Salah to move from the right flank into central areas and get closer to goal.
Trabzonspor also relied more on quick vertical attacks and ground-based combinations rather than depending heavily on aerial balls. That approach suits Salah’s pace and ability to attack spaces behind defenders.
From Creating Chances to Finishing Attacks
The most significant change was the reduction in Salah’s responsibility during the early stages of attacking moves, with more of the buildup work being shared among his teammates.
Reis therefore did not need to change Salah’s primary position. Instead, he changed the conditions around him by reducing his defensive and buildup workload away from goal, creating more space, using a more mobile striker and encouraging faster transitions.
The result was a hat-trick and an assist from Salah in Trabzonspor’s 4-0 victory over Galatasaray. The next challenge for Reis will be maintaining the same attacking effectiveness against teams that sit deeper and deny Salah the spaces he found in his first match under the German coach.
How did Thomas Reis use Mohamed Salah differently?
Reis gave Salah greater attacking freedom and reduced the amount of work he had to do away from dangerous areas, allowing him to focus more on attacking transitions.
How many goals did Mohamed Salah score against Galatasaray?
Salah scored three goals in Trabzonspor’s 4-0 victory over Galatasaray.
Did Mohamed Salah provide an assist against Galatasaray?
Yes. Salah scored a hat-trick and also assisted Trabzonspor’s fourth goal.
Did Thomas Reis change Mohamed Salah’s position?
Reis did not make a major change to Salah’s position, but he adjusted his responsibilities and gave him greater freedom in the attacking third.
How did the change in striker help Salah?
Frankoulino Djau’s movement helped create space by pulling defenders away from central areas, giving Salah more room to move inside from the right flank.
