2024-01-22T05:57:37+00:00
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/ The news of the return of the Egyptian player Mohamed Salah to his club, Liverpool, to receive treatment for the injury he sustained in the Ghana match, sparked widespread controversy in football circles on social media.
The Egyptian Football Association announced on Monday that Mohamed Salah, the injured captain of the national team, will attend the team’s last match against Cape Verde in the group stage of the African Cup of Nations, and then head to England to complete the rehabilitation program.
The Egyptian Football Association said on its Facebook account, “After conducting additional tests on Mohamed Salah during the last hours and after communication between the national team’s medical staff and its counterpart at Liverpool FC, it was decided that the player would return to England after the Cape Verde match to complete his treatment.”
He added: “We hope he will join the national team in the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations if we qualify.”
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said it made sense for Salah to return to the Premier League club to complete his rehabilitation programme after sustaining an injury during the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.
The Liverpool striker suffered a muscle injury just before half-time in Thursday’s Group B match against Ghana in Abidjan.
The Egyptian Football Association said he was expected to miss the next two games if the team secured qualification for the knockout stage. Asked at a news conference after Sunday’s 4-0 win over Bournemouth if Salah could return to Merseyside, Klopp told the club’s website: “That’s the plan. If it’s 100 per cent decided, I don’t know, but that’s the plan. However long he’s out, I think everyone probably thinks it makes sense for him to do his rehabilitation with us or with our team. That’s the plan.”
“I spoke to him right after the game, almost the night he got injured. He’s been in touch with our doctor ever since. The doctor told me the news, so I think he’ll be back,” he continued.
Asked whether Salah could play again for Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations, Klopp said: “I’m not a doctor. I would say that if Egypt qualify for the final and he’s fit before the final, then maybe yes. Why not?”
Salah, who has 96 caps, was part of the Egypt team that lost to Cameroon in the final of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon, and lost the title again in the last edition held in Cameroon two years ago, when Senegal won on penalties.
Recently, rumors have spread about Mohamed Salah fleeing against Ghana and claiming to be injured. Hamada Anwar, Director of the National Teams Department at the Egyptian Football Association, responded to these rumors, confirming that Mohamed Salah is an important player in the Egyptian national team and that he led the team to reach the World Cup previously. He also confirmed that Salah’s presence at the press conference for the Cape Verde match is the best response to the rumors of his fleeing from the national team.
Anwar added, Mohamed Salah’s mentality is greater than these actions. He is one of the best players in the world, so how can he escape?
Anwar asks: Let’s assume that Salah forced himself during the Ghana match and participated in tomorrow’s match against Cape Verde. Will the fans say that he is a fighter and did not run away?