Mohamed Salah

Mohamed Salah Hamed Mahrous Ghaly, born 15 June 1992 is an Egyptian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Liverpool and captains the Egypt national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is known for his finishing, dribbling, and speed.

Salah started his senior career with Egyptian club Al Mokawloon, departing shortly thereafter to join Swiss side Basel for an undisclosed fee. In Switzerland, his performances attracted Premier League side Chelsea, who signed him in 2014 for a reported fee of £11 million. However, he was used sparingly in his debut season and was allowed to leave on loan to Serie A clubs Fiorentina and Roma, with the latter eventually signing him permanently for €15 million. Following his role in helping Roma to a second-placed finish and a club record points-tally in 2017, Salah returned to the Premier League to sign for Liverpool for a then club-record fee of £36.9 million.

In his second spell in England, Salah adapted his game from a natural winger to a forward, going on to break the Premier League scoring record for a 38-game season and subsequently receiving the Premier League Golden Boot after netting 32 goals in 36 league games. Salah’s performances earned him a number of individual accolades, including the PFA Players’ Player of the Year. He also came third in the 2018 Best FIFA Men’s Player award. In the following season, he finished as the Premier League’s joint-top goalscorer, and helped Liverpool win the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League. In his third season with Liverpool, he helped end the club’s 30 year league title drought by winning the 2019–20 Premier League.

At international level, Salah represented Egypt at youth level before making his senior debut in 2011. Following his performances at the 2012 Summer Olympics, he was named CAF Most Promising African Talent of the Year. Since then, he has helped Egypt reach the final of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, and was top scorer during CAF qualification to help the team qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Salah has been named the CAF African Footballer of the Year (2017 and 2018), BBC African Footballer of the Year (2017 and 2018), and was selected in the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament and the CAF Team of the Year on several occasions.

Club career

Al Mokawloon

Salah started out playing for local youth teams. He names Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane and Francesco Totti as his childhood idols. In 2006, he joined the youth team of Al Mokawloon aged 14 after being spotted by a scout who had originally come to watch another child play but was distracted by Salah. Salah frequently had to miss school to make the 3 hour journey to training. When Salah was 15 he was noticed by then first team manager Mohamed Radwan, who moved him to the senior squad immediately. Salah had to be given a special diet and training program due to his muscles not being fully formed because of his young age. He made his senior team debut in the Egyptian Premier League coming on as a substitute on 3 May 2010 in a 1–1 away draw against El Mansoura. During the 2010–11 season Salah continued earning minutes on the pitch, eventually becoming a regular in the team. Even though he was getting regular game time, Salah struggled to score. In the dressing room after matches he would sometimes be in tears because of this, and Radwan says it only motivated him to become better. He scored his first goal for them on 25 December 2010 in a 1–1 away draw against Al Ahly. He remained a regular for Al Mokawloon, appearing in every game of the 2011–12 season. Following the Port Said Stadium riot on 1 February 2012, the Egyptian Premier League was suspended, and on 10 March 2012, the Egyptian Football Association announced their decision to cancel the remainder of the season.

Basel

2012–13: Development and breakthrough

Swiss Super League club Basel had been monitoring Salah for some time, so following the Egyptian Premier League suspension, the club organised a friendly match with the Egypt U-23 team. The match took place on 16 March at the Stadion Rankhof in Basel, and despite only playing the second half, Salah scored twice, helping the Egyptians to a 4–3 win. Basel subsequently invited Salah to remain in the city for a week’s training. On 10 April 2012, it was announced that Salah had signed for Basel on a four-year contract starting from 15 June 2012. He initially found it difficult to settle, having arrived unable to speak the language and been signed as a replacement for fan-favourite Xherdan Shaqiri (who he would later play alongside at Liverpool). Salah scored on his unofficial debut on 23 June 2012 against Steaua București during a friendly match, a 4–2 defeat. He made his official Basel debut in a UEFA Champions League preliminary stage match against the Norwegian club Molde on 8 August, coming on as a substitute in the 74th minute. He made his league debut on 12 August against Thun, playing the full match.

He scored his first league goal a week later, the second goal in the 2–0 home win against Lausanne. Salah scored his first Europa League goal in the quarter-finals on 11 April 2013, as Basel advanced to the semi-finals by beating Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 on penalties after a 4–4 aggregate draw. In the semi-final on 2 May, Salah scored against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, although they were beaten 5–2 on aggregate. Despite late disappointment in Europe, Basel comfortably won the Swiss Super League season 2012–13 Championship title and finished runners-up in the Swiss Cup.

2013–14: Final season and league championship

Ahead of the 2013–14 Swiss Super League season, Salah was a member of the Basel team that won the 2013 Uhrencup. Salah scored in his first league appearance of the season against Aarau on 13 July 2013. He scored his first Champions League goal a month later against Maccabi Tel Aviv on 6 August 2013 in the third qualifying round. Salah was the subject of major controversy following the game, after he appeared to deliberately avoid shaking hands with the players of the Israeli club in both the home and away legs.

He scored twice against the Bulgarian league champions PFC Ludogorets Razgrad on 21 August 2013 in the play-off round. On 18 September 2013, Salah scored the equaliser against Chelsea in the 2–1 away win during the group stage. During the return tie on 26 November at the St. Jakob-Park, Salah scored the winning goal as Basel beat Chelsea for the second time with a 1–0 home win. However he was unable to prevent Basel being eliminated in the group stage.

On the domestic stage, Salah continued to perform. Scoring 4 goals in 18 games, including a double against title rivals Young Boys, he helped Basel win the league title for the fifth time in a row.

Chelsea

2013–14: Entry into first-team squad

On 23 January 2014, Chelsea announced that a deal had been agreed with Basel to sign Salah for a fee reported to be in the region of £11 million. Three days later the transfer was completed, making him the first Egyptian to sign for the London based club. Liverpool had been keen to sign the Basel striker, and had made an offer of £11 million but were beaten to his signature by the Blues.

On 8 February, Salah made his debut for Chelsea in the Premier League, coming on as a substitute in the 3–0 win over Newcastle United. Seven games later, on 22 March, Salah scored his first goal for Chelsea against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge in the London Derby, coming on as a substitute for Oscar, in a match which ended with a 6–0 win for the Blues. Then, on 5 April, Salah opened the scoring and later won a penalty and assisted the third goal in Chelsea’s 3–0 win over Stoke City.

2014–15: Domestic success

Before the 2014–15 season, Salah’s future with Chelsea looked to be in doubt after reports suggested he could be forced to return to Egypt to carry out military service after his registration for an education scheme was rescinded by the Egyptian Minister of Higher Education. He was spared of military service after a meeting with the then Egyptian prime minister Ibrahim Mahlab, the Minister of Higher Education and the Egyptian national manager Shawky Gharieb. Salah changed squad numbers from 15 to 17 for the start of the season, with his new number having been vacated by Eden Hazard changing to number 10.

Salah was rarely used during the season, making just three Premier League, two UEFA Champions League and three cup appearances, failing to score in any of them. On 28 October 2014, after a poor performance in a 2–1 win at League Two club Shrewsbury Town in the fourth round of the League Cup, he and fellow winger André Schürrle were criticized publicly by manager José Mourinho. Although Salah only made three league appearances before his loan move to Fiorentina, Mourinho stated that he would receive a replica winner’s medal from the club for his contributions that season.

Loan to Fiorentina

On the transfer deadline day, 2 February 2015, Chelsea confirmed that Salah would join Italian club Fiorentina on an 18-month loan until the end of the 2015–16 season, as part of a transfer deal which saw Juan Cuadrado moving in the opposite direction. Six days after signing, he made his Fiorentina debut coming off the bench in the 65th minute as a replacement for Joaquín in a 3–2 Serie A victory against Atalanta at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.

Salah chose the number 74 shirt in honor of the victims of the Port Said Stadium riot.

Salah made his first start for Fiorentina on 14 February against Sassuolo, scoring his first goal for the club in the 30th minute. He then provided an assist to Khouma Babacar just two minutes after scoring; the match ended in a 3–1 win for Fiorentina. Twelve days later, Salah scored his first European goal for Fiorentina, as his side advanced to the round of 16 of the Europa League, beating Tottenham 3–1 on aggregate. Salah scored the winning goal for Fiorentina against Inter Milan on 1 March, his third goal in Serie A. Four days after that, Salah scored both of Fiorentina’s goals in their 2–1 win away to Juventus in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg. At the end of the season, Fiorentina activated an option to make the loan move permanent, but Salah refused the move. Even though the loan agreement was for 18 months, Salah refused to return to Fiorentina and instead joined fellow Serie A club Roma. On 11 September, Fiorentina filed a complaint to FIFA, claiming that Chelsea had breached the agreed contract when they allowed Salah to join Roma on loan. The Court of Arbitration for Sport cleared Salah and Chelsea of any wrongdoing.

2015–16: Loan to Roma

On 6 August 2015, Salah joined Roma on a season-long loan for €5 million; with the option to make the deal permanent, for a reported €15 million. He wore the number 11 shirt. He made his debut on 22 August, as the new season began with a 1–1 draw at Hellas Verona. On 20 September, Salah scored his first goal of the season against Sassuolo to help Roma salvage a point as the match ended in a 2–2 draw. He went on to score in his following two matches, a 2–1 loss against Sampdoria and a 5–1 win against Carpi. On 25 October, Salah returned to the Stadio Artemio Franchi, scoring the opener against his former club Fiorentina to help earn a fourth straight league win for Roma. In his return, Salah was also sent off after picking up a second yellow in the closing minutes of the match, just seconds after picking up his first yellow. On 4 November, he scored the opening goal of a 3–2 Champions League win over Bayer Leverkusen.

On 4 March, he faced his former side Fiorentina again and scored another double as Roma won 4–1 and broke into the top three. Salah would go onto score another three goals that season, scoring against Bologna, Genoa, and AC Milan, the latter on the final day. In the 2015–16 season, Salah scored 15 goals in 42 matches as Roma finished in third place in Serie A and qualified for the Champions League. In June, it was announced that Salah won the club’s 2015–16 Player of the Season award.

Roma

2016–17: Permanent transfer, Serie A runner-up

On 3 August 2016, Roma announced the signing of Salah on a permanent deal for €15 million. He scored his first goal of the season in a 4–0 win over Udinese in the opening game of the season on 20 August. On 6 November, Salah scored a hat-trick in a 3–0 win over Bologna, his first club career hat-trick. However, a ruptured ankle ligament kept him out for the first half of December. He returned as a half-time substitute in a 1–0 defeat against title rivals Juventus on 17 December. Salah the endured a two month period without a goal, he broke his drought on 19 February, scoring against Torino in a 4–1 win. On 9 March, he scored Roma’s opening goal in an eventual 4–2 defeat to Lyon in the first leg of the round of sixteen in the UEFA Europa League. In spite of a 2–1 win in the second leg, they were unable to turn the tie around and were knocked out 5–4 and aggregate. On 28 May, in the final game of the season, Salah was substituted for captain Francesco Totti, who was playing his final game with the club, in a 3–2 win over Genoa. Roma finished the season in second, just four points behind champions Juventus. Salah scored 19 goals in all competitions.

Liverpool

2017–18: Record-breaking individual success

On 22 June 2017, Salah agreed a transfer to Liverpool. He signed a long-term contract with the Reds for an initial £36.5m fee that could rise to £43m. The fee was a club record, eclipsing the £35m spent on Andy Carroll in 2011. He was assigned the number 11 shirt previously worn by Roberto Firmino who instead switched to number 9. He joined the club on 1 July upon the opening of the summer transfer window, becoming Liverpool’s first Egyptian player. He scored on his Premier League debut against Watford in a 3–3 draw on 12 August. On 24 August, Salah scored his second goal for Liverpool, in a 2017–18 UEFA Champions League play-off round 4–2 win (6–3 agg) against Hoffenheim, his first goal at Anfield. Three days later, Salah scored and assisted a goal in a 4–0 victory over Arsenal. For his performances in August, Salah was awarded Player of the Month by Liverpool supporters. On 17 October, Salah netted twice in a 7–0 Champions League win over Maribor, helping Liverpool to the joint-largest ever away win in the competition, and the largest away win by an English club.

On 26 November, Salah scored the opener and refused to celebrate in a 1–1 home draw with his former team Chelsea out of respect for the club as well as victims of the North Sinai Mosque attack two days earlier. Salah rose the top of the Premier League goalscoring charts by scoring twice after coming on as a substitute away at Stoke City on 29 November in a 3–0 win. The following month, Salah netted in a 4–0 win over AFC Bournemouth; a result which saw Liverpool become the first team in Premier League history to win four consecutive away league matches by a margin of at least three goals. In the process, he also became the joint-second fastest player to reach 20 goals for Liverpool on his 26th appearance, behind George Allan who reached the milestone in 19 appearances in 1895.

On 17 March 2018, Salah scored four goals in a 5–0 win over Watford, which was his first hat-trick for Liverpool. In this game, he also broke a record of scoring 36 times in his debut season for Liverpool, and also became the leading goalscorer in Europe’s top five leagues – overtaking Barcelona’s Lionel Messi and Tottenham striker Harry Kane. Following Salah’s record-breaking goal exploits former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard stated “we are witnessing the start of greatness”.

In early April 2018, he scored in both Champions League quarter-final matches against Manchester City to help his side advance. On 22 April 2018, Salah was awarded the PFA Players’ Player of the Year award, having earlier been named in the PFA Team of the Year for the Premier League. Two days later, he scored a brace in a 5–2 Champions League semi-final first leg win over former club, Roma. In doing so, he simultaneously became the first player from Africa and the first Liverpool player to score 10 goals in a single campaign in the tournament. His double also took him to 43 goals for the season across all competitions, surpassing Roger Hunt’s tally of 42, and making him Liverpool’s second-highest goalscorer in a single season, behind Ian Rush. He had previously also broken the club’s record for the Premier League era, surpassing Robbie Fowler’s total of 36 goals set in the 1995–96 campaign, and Fernando Torres’ record of 33 for the most goals by a Liverpool player in a debut season. After his two goals and assists in the first leg against Roma, Salah featured in the second leg as Liverpool beat Roma 7–6 on aggregate to qualify for the final for the first time in eleven years. He would then become the Premier League’s all-time goalscorer for a 38-game season, registering his 32nd league goal in a 4–0 win against Brighton & Hove Albion en route to being awarded the Premier League Golden Boot.

In the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final against Real Madrid, Salah injured his left shoulder in the 30th minute. After initially carrying on, he left the field in tears after going to ground in a challenge with Madrid defender Sergio Ramos; the match ended in a 3–1 defeat. The Egyptian FA stated that this would have no effect on his playing at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and that Salah would still be named in the team’s final squad on 4 June. The day after the match, Ramos wrote a message and sent him good wishes.

2018–19: European champion and second Golden Boot

On 2 July 2018, Salah signed a new long-term contract with Liverpool. Manager Jürgen Klopp said the news was important as a statement of intent in terms of Liverpool’s status in the football world in having Salah commit himself further to the club. On 12 August, Salah Liverpool’s first goal of the season, in a 4–0 win over West Ham United. On 20 August, in a 2–0 away win over Crystal Palace, Salah played a part in both of Liverpool’s goals; winning a penalty for the first, and providing an assist for Sadio Mané for the second. Five days later, Salah scored the only goal in Liverpool’s 1–0 win over Brighton.

On 30 August 2018, Salah was named on the three-man shortlist for the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year, coming in third place, and was also included on the three-man shortlist for the UEFA Forward of the Season, coming in second place. On 3 September he was named on the three-man shortlist for the Best FIFA Men’s Player, finishing third. Salah controversially received the 2018 FIFA Puskás Award for goal of the year, the winning strike his goal at Anfield in his first Merseyside derby, prompting online protests against the decision. On 24 October, Salah scored twice against Red Star Belgrade in the UEFA Champions League group stage, with his second goal his 50th for the club. With 50 goals in 65 games he is the fastest player in Liverpool history to reach the half century.

On 8 December, Salah scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 away win over Bournemouth, to move Liverpool to the top of the league table. Three days later, he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win over Napoli in their final Champions League group fixture, the result qualifying Liverpool to the round of sixteen. On 19 January 2019, he scored his 50th Premier League goal with a brace in a 4–3 win over Crystal Palace, reaching the tally in 72 appearances. In doing so, he became the joint-fourth fastest player to achieve the milestone, alongside Fernando Torres, and behind only Andy Cole, Alan Shearer and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

In February 2019, West Ham said they were investigating a video which allegedly showed fans racially abusing Salah, including for being Muslim. The investigation resulted in the fan being banned for three years. On 5 April, he scored his 50th Premier League goal for Liverpool in a 3–1 win over Southampton and in the process broke Torres’ record to become the fastest player to reach the milestone for the club, doing so in his 69th appearance. It also saw him become the third fastest to player to reach the milestone for a single club in the Premier League era, behind Shearer for Blackburn Rovers, in 66 appearances, and van Nistelrooy for Manchester United, in 68 appearances. Later that month, he scored the second goal in a 2–0 win over Chelsea which helped Liverpool earn a club-record-equaling 26th win for the Premier League campaign; and the club’s second-highest ever wins return in the top-flight after the record of 30 set in 1979. On 26 April, he made his 100th appearance for Liverpool and broke the record jointly held by Roger Hunt and Sam Raybould for the player with the most goals in his first century of appearances for the club, netting twice in a 5–0 win over Huddersfield Town to take his tally to 69. On 1 June, he scored Liverpool’s first goal in a 2–0 win over Tottenham in the 2019 UEFA Champions League Final from a penalty. Salah’s goal, which he scored in the opening two minutes of the match, was the second fastest goal ever scored in a Champions League final, slower only than Paolo Maldini’s effort for A.C. Milan against Liverpool in the 2005 final. In September 2019, Salah was nominated for the FIFA FIFPro World11 award by worldwide players’ union, FIFPro, and FIFA as one amongst 55 players.

2019–20: Premier League champion

On 9 August 2019, Salah scored Liverpool’s second goal in a 4–1 win against Norwich City in the opening game of the 2019–20 Premier League season. In the 2019 UEFA Super Cup on 14 August, Salah scored Liverpool’s fifth and ultimately decisive penalty in a 5–4 penalty shoot-out win against Chelsea, after the game had finished 2–2 after extra-time. In December, Salah ended fifth in the voting polls for the 2019 Ballon d’Or, and made his 100th Premier League appearance later in the month, marking the occasion with a goal and assist in Liverpool’s 3–0 win over Bournemouth. Later that month, Liverpool won the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup, with Salah receiving the Golden Ball award for Player of the Tournament.

On 19 January 2020, Salah scored his first goal in five encounters against rivals Manchester United with a run that spanned from outside his box to the other goal in Liverpool’s 2–0 win at Anfield in the Premier League. On 29 January, Salah scored Liverpool’s opening goal in a 2–0 win at West Ham, a victory that saw the club beat every team in a Premier League season – the first time in the club’s 127-year history that they had acccomplished it in the top-flight. On 7 March, Salah scored the opening goal in a 2–1 win against Bournemouth as Liverpool made it an English top-flight record of 22 consecutive home wins. It was also his 70th Premier League goal in 100 appearances for Liverpool, meaning that he had scored seven more goals than the previous best in their first 100 league games for the club (63 goals by Fernando Torres). Salah’s 20th of the season saw him become the first Liverpool player to score 20 goals in all competitions in three consecutive seasons since Michael Owen between 2000–01 and 2002–03.

On 24 June 2020, he scored as Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 4–0 at Anfield, as Liverpool edged closer to securing the title. After Liverpool being confirmed as champions, Salah would go on to score a further two goals (both against Brighton) before lifting the trophy after a 5–3 victory over Chelsea.

2020–21: Surpassing 100 Liverpool goals

On 12 September 2020, Salah scored a hat-trick in the first league match of a season, including two penalties, in a 4–3 win against Leeds United. Hence, he became the first Liverpool player to score in four consecutive league openers from 2017–18 to 2020–21, and the second man in Premier League history, after Teddy Sheringham from 1992–93 to 1995–96. He also became the first player to score a hat-trick for Liverpool in the first league match since John Aldridge achieved this feat against Charlton Athletic in the 1988–89 season.

On 17 October 2020, he scored his 100th goal for Liverpool in all competitions in a 2–2 away draw against Everton. In scoring his 100th goal in his 159th game, Salah became the first player since Steven Gerrard in 2008 to reach the milestone, and the third fastest in Liverpool’s history after Roger Hunt (100 goals in 144 games), and Jack Parkinson (153 games). Salah is the fastest to reach 100 goals for Liverpool while scoring purely in England’s top flight, given that both Hunt and Parkinson scored some of their goals for Liverpool in the Football League Second Division.

On 31 January 2021, Salah scored two goals against West Ham and became the fifth Liverpool player to score more than 20 goals in all competitions in four consecutive seasons, and the first since Ian Rush did so six times running from 1981–82 to 1986–87. In addition, his goal in the 68th minute that game was later voted as Premier League Goal of the Month.

International career

Youth

Salah played for both the Egypt U-20 team and the Egypt U-23 team, representing Egypt in both the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the 2012 Summer Olympics, scoring a penalty against Argentina in the round of sixteen of the former tournament, with Egypt losing the match 1–2.

Salah was selected for the youth squad to play at the 2012 Summer Olympics scoring in all three of the team’s group games. In their opening match on 26 July, he scored Egypt’s second goal in a 3–2 defeat to Brazil. He scored the equaliser in their 1–1 draw against New Zealand played on 29 July, before scoring Egypt’s opening goal in a 3–1 win over Belarus in their final group stage game played on 1 August, securing advancement into the knockout stage of the tournament, where Egypt were eliminated following a 3–0 quarter-final defeat to Japan on 4 August.

Senior

On 3 September 2011, Salah made his debut for the Egypt national football team in the 2–1 away defeat by Sierra Leone. He scored his first goal for Egypt’s first team in the 3–0 win against Niger a month later, on 8 October, in qualifying for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.

On 10 June 2012, he scored a goal in the 93rd minute in stoppage time against Guinea to give Egypt an important 3–2 away victory in a 2014 World Cup qualifier. On 9 June 2013, Salah scored a hat-trick in a 4–2 away win against Zimbabwe as Egypt won their fourth consecutive match in the World Cup qualifiers. A week later in the following match, he scored the only goal away to Mozambique, putting Egypt into the final qualifying group. On 10 September, Salah scored his sixth tournament goal in a 4–2 win over Guinea, securing Egypt a 100% record to finish their qualifying group and becoming the joint-top scorer among all African teams in the qualification stages.

On 10 October 2014, Salah scored in a 2–0 win over Botswana, also scoring in the return fixture on five days later, in qualifying for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations. On 19 November, Salah scored the opening goal in a 2–1 away defeat to Tunisia, as Egypt missed out on qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations finals for a third consecutive time.

Salah was a member of the Pharaohs’ squad for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations held in Gabon. On 25 January, he scored in Egypt’s 1–0 win over Ghana to secure first place in Group D. He went all the way to the final with Egypt, scoring twice and assisting two times in six games, earning him a place in the CAF Team of the Tournament.

Salah was the top scorer for Egypt with five goals during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification, including both goals in the decisive 2–1 victory over Congo, one of which was a penalty in the last minute to make the Pharaohs reach their first World Cup finals since 1990. Despite doubts over his fitness following his shoulder injury, Salah was included in Egypt’s 29-man provisional squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup and was included in their final 23-man squad on 4 June. He missed Egypt’s opening match against Uruguay on 15 June, which the Pharaohs lost 1–0, conceding in the 89th minute. Salah scored a penalty in Egypt’s 3–1 defeat to hosts Russia at the Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg four days later. In Egypt’s final group game on 25 June, Salah scored his second goal of the World Cup with a chip over the goalkeeper in Egypt’s 2–1 defeat to Saudi Arabia at Volgograd Arena.

On 8 September, in a 6–0 win over Niger in qualifying for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, Salah scored two goals, provided two assists and also missed two penalties. His first penalty, in the first minute of the game, was saved, while the second he converted the loose ball after it was initially saved.

On 16 June 2019, Salah provided two assists after coming on as a substitute in 3–1 win over Guinea in friendly warm-up game for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations on home soil, wearing the captain’s armband for the first time ever in his international career. On 26 June, Salah scored his first goal of the tournament in Egypt’s second group match, a 2–0 win over DR Congo; he was also involved in the opening goal of the match, which was scored by captain Ahmed Elmohamady.

Salah was named as the captain of the Egypt national team in September 2019.

Style of play

Analysis

Regarded as a quick, mobile, hard-working and tactical player, with good technique and an eye for goal, Salah is predominantly known for his speed, movement, clinical finishing, agility, dribbling skills, first touch, and ball control, as well as his ability to use both his pace and flair on the ball in order to beat opponents, and create scoring opportunities for himself or his teammates. A versatile forward, he primarily plays as a winger on the right flank, a position which allows him to cut into the centre onto his stronger left foot, and either shoot on goal or play quick exchanges with other players and make runs in behind the defence towards goal. He can also play in the centre behind the main striker as either an attacking midfielder or second striker.

On his increased threat in front of goal since joining Liverpool, Salah credits Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp’s request for him to occupy more advanced central positions, often operating as a main striker, with the forward telling ESPN, “I play closer to the goal than any club before.” Salah initially started his career at the left-back position, however, following a 4–0 win over the youth team of Egyptian club ENPPI, Salah was in tears for not scoring after missing several clear chances; this made his coach realise his passion for scoring goals, forcing him to move him to a forward position.

Reception

While playing Al Mokawloon, American coach Bob Bradley saw Salah play and noted his prodigious speed, explosiveness, and intelligence on the pitch, already evident at his young age. Upon signing for Chelsea, José Mourinho said of Salah: “He’s young, he’s fast, he’s creative, he’s enthusiastic. When we analysed him he looks the kind of humble personality on the pitch, ready to work for the team.” Mourinho added that Salah has “similar qualities” with “talented players” that he had worked with, such as Gareth Bale and Arjen Robben. His technical skills, pace, left foot, goalscoring, position and direct playing style led him to be nicknamed the “Egyptian Messi”, in the Italian media. Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldo – whom Salah idolized while growing up – stated, “Salah is an incredible player with a tremendous quality. He looks like Messi.” Salah has also received praise for his refusal to celebrate against his former clubs.

Personal life

Salah and his wife, Maggi, married in 2013. Their daughter, Makka, born in 2014, is named in honour of the Islamic holy city of Mecca. He had another daughter, Kayan, born in 2020. Salah is Muslim and celebrates goals by performing the sujud. On this goal celebration, Salah told CNN, “It’s something like praying or thanking God for what I have received, but yeah, it’s just praying and praying for a win. I’ve always done that since I was young, everywhere.”

Active on social media, Salah has over 40 million Instagram followers, the most for a person from Egypt.

In November 2020, Salah tested positive for coronavirus.

Outside football

Sponsors

Salah has a sponsorship deal with sportswear and equipment supplier Adidas: he wears Adidas X18 football boots. He appeared in an Adidas 2018 World Cup commercial along with other players in the Adidas stable, including David Beckham, Lionel Messi and Paul Pogba, and singer Pharrell Williams.

In March 2018, Salah appeared in an advertisement for Vodafone Egypt. Filmed visiting several Merseyside landmarks, the video was originally released in Arabic (but was also translated to English).

Charity

Salah is active in regeneration projects in Nagrig, his hometown where 65% of people live in poverty, donating money to help build a school and hospital. The project includes the construction of an Al-Azhar institute and an ambulance unit. In an interview with Al-Masry Al-Youm, Salah’s father claimed that his son refused to accept any financial assistance with the project.

During his time in Egypt, Salah’s family was once robbed, however, the thief was caught and arrested by police, with Salah’s father preparing to press charges against him, but Mohamed convinced him to drop the case. Afterwards, Salah helped the thief financially, giving him some money and trying to find him a job. In February 2018, following a match against Tottenham, Salah donated a replica shirt to young supporter Mohamed Abdel Karim, who was previously pictured wearing a jumper reading Salah’s name and shirt number. Moreover, Mohamed Salah has helped more than 450 families by giving them monthly allowances and he also helped the government by giving approximately $300,000 when the country was experiencing an economic crisis.

In popular culture

Liverpool fans created a chant to the tune of Dodgy’s “Good Enough”, saying that if Salah continued to score goals, they would convert to Islam – “If he’s good enough for you, he’s good enough for me, if he scores another few, then I’ll be Muslim too.” Salah gave his approval to the chant, and it has been cited as an example of inclusivity. Salah is devout to a degree that many other well-known Muslims sports figures are not, and his charm and apolitical persona have made him a popular figure in the UK. During his goal celebration, Salah lays in the prostrate position to thank god in sujud.

Salah is nicknamed “The Pharaoh” by the press and his fans. He has also been given the nickname “Egyptian King” by Liverpool supporters, arising from a chant set to the tune of “Sit Down” by English band James.

Following his goal that led Egypt to the World Cup finals for the first time since 1990, a school in Egypt was named after him. Following Egypt’s exit from the World Cup, Salah stayed in his home country for his pre-season holiday. In late June, his address was accidentally leaked on Facebook. After this, crowds of fans showed up at Salah’s house, with Salah greeting the fans and signing autographs for some, although according to reports in Spain, police did arrive to cordon off his house.

During Liverpool’s 2018 pre-season tour in the U.S., American artist Brandan Odums created a mural in the Times Square area displaying Salah in the Egypt kit, with the player later posting an image on social media posing next to it. In Egypt, several murals have also been created displaying Salah’s likeness, including one in the capital of Cairo.

A testament to his influence in the region and globally, Salah was featured on the cover of two major magazines in 2018: GQ Middle East (feature story titled “The Unstoppable Rise of Mo Salah”) and Time magazine’s 2019 TIME 100 edition. An advocate of women’s equality in the Middle East, Salah (in his TIME 100 entry) states, “We need to change the way we treat women in our culture”. English comedian, and noted Liverpool fan, John Oliver wrote Salah’s feature in the TIME 100 issue. Oliver notably started the feature writing “Mo Salah is a better human being than he is a football player. And he’s one of the best football players in the world.” Despite being named as the “GQ Middle East Man of The Year” in 2019, another GQ photoshoot, with Brazilian model Alessandra Ambrosio, caused him some criticism in the Islamic world. In January 2020, Salah was honoured with a wax statue at Madame Tussauds in London. The museum announced that the statue would be unveiled later in the year. “As Egyptian forward and currently both European and World Club champion with Liverpool F.C., Mo Salah is a global star at the peak of his power. We know that fans will love seeing him at the home of celebrity, where he rightly belongs,” Steve Davies, General Manager at Madame Tussauds in London said.

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 10 March 2021

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Al Mokawloon Al Arab	2009–10	Egyptian Premier League	3	0	2	0	—		—		—		5	0
	2010–11	Egyptian Premier League	20	4	4	1	—		—		—		24	5
	2011–12	Egyptian Premier League	15	7	0	0	—		—		—		15	7
	Total		38	11	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	44	12
Basel	2012–13	Swiss Super League	29	5	5	3	—		16	2	—		50	10
	2013–14	Swiss Super League	18	4	1	1	—		10	5	—		29	10
	Total		47	9	6	4	0	0	26	7	0	0	79	20
Chelsea	2013–14	Premier League	10	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	—		11	2
	2014–15	Premier League	3	0	1	0	2	0	2	0	—		8	0
	Total		13	2	2	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	19	2
Fiorentina (loan)	2014–15	Serie A	16	6	2	2	—		8	1	—		26	9
Roma (loan)	2015–16	Serie A	34	14	1	0	—		7	1	—		42	15
Roma	2016–17	Serie A	31	15	2	2	—		8	2	—		41	19
	Total		65	29	3	2	0	0	15	3	0	0	83	34
Liverpool	2017–18	Premier League	36	32	1	1	0	0	15	11	—		52	44
	2018–19	Premier League	38	22	1	0	1	0	12	5	—		52	27
	2019–20	Premier League	34	19	2	0	0	0	8	4	4	0	48	23
	2020–21	Premier League	27	17	2	3	1	0	8	5	1	0	39	25
	Total		135	90	6	4	2	0	43	25	5	0	191	119
Career total			314	147	25	13	4	0	94	36	5	0	442	196

International

As of match played 6 July 2019.

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Egypt	2011	2	1
	2012	15	7
	2013	10	9
	2014	9	5
	2015	4	2
	2016	6	5
	2017	11	5
	2018	6	7
	2019	5	2
Total		68	43

International goals

As of match played 6 July 2019. Egypt score listed first, score column indicates score after each Salah goal.

List of international goals scored by Mohamed Salah

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	8 October 2011	Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt	2	Niger	2–0	3–0	2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2	27 February 2012	Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar	3	Kenya	1–0	5–0	Friendly
3	29 March 2012	Khartoum Stadium, Khartoum, Sudan	6	Uganda	1–1	2–1	Friendly
4	31 March 2012	Khartoum Stadium, Khartoum, Sudan	7	Chad	1–0	4–0	Friendly
5	22 May 2012	Al Merrikh Stadium, Omdurman, Sudan	10	Togo	2–0	3–0	Friendly
6					3–0
7	10 June 2012	Stade du 28 Septembre, Conakry, Guinea	12	Guinea	3–2	3–2	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
8	15 June 2012	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	13	Central African Republic	2–1	2–3	2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
9	6 February 2013	Vicente Calderón Stadium, Madrid, Spain	18	Chile	1–2	1–2	Friendly
10	22 March 2013	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	19	Eswatini	2–0	10–0	Friendly
11					3–0
12	9 June 2013	National Sports Stadium, Harare, Zimbabwe	21	Zimbabwe	2–1	4–2	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
13					3–1
14					4–2
15	16 June 2013	Estádio da Machava, Maputo, Mozambique	22	Mozambique	1–0	1–0	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
16	14 August 2013	El Gouna Stadium, El Gouna, Egypt	23	Uganda	2–0	3–0	Friendly
17	10 September 2013	El Gouna Stadium, El Gouna, Egypt	24	Guinea	3–2	4–2	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
18	5 March 2014	Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck, Austria	28	Bosnia and Herzegovina	2–0	2–0	Friendly
19	30 May 2014	Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos, Santiago, Chile	29	Chile	1–0	2–3	Friendly
20	10 October 2014	Botswana National Stadium, Gaborone, Botswana	33	Botswana	2–0	2–0	2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
21	15 October 2014	Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt	34	Botswana	2–0	2–0	2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
22	19 November 2014	Stade Mustapha Ben Jannet, Monastir, Tunisia	36	Tunisia	1–0	1–2	2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
23	14 June 2015	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	38	Tanzania	3–0	3–0	2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
24	6 September 2015	Stade Omnisports Idriss Mahamat Ouya, N’Djamena, Chad	39	Chad	3–1	5–1	2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
25	25 March 2016	Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Kaduna, Nigeria	41	Nigeria	1–1	1–1	2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
26	4 June 2016	National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania	43	Tanzania	1–0	2–0	2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
27					2–0
28	9 October 2016	Stade Municipal de Kintélé, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo	45	Congo	1–1	2–1	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
29	13 November 2016	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	46	Ghana	1–0	2–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
30	25 January 2017	Stade de Port-Gentil, Port-Gentil, Gabon	50	Ghana	1–0	1–0	2017 Africa Cup of Nations
31	1 February 2017	Stade de l’Amitié, Libreville, Gabon	52	Burkina Faso	1–0	1–1 (4–3 p)	2017 Africa Cup of Nations
32	5 September 2017	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	56	Uganda	1–0	1–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
33	8 October 2017	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	57	Congo	1–0	2–1	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
34					2–1
35	23 March 2018	Letzigrund, Zürich, Switzerland	58	Portugal	1–0	1–2	Friendly
36	19 June 2018	Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg, Russia	59	Russia	1–3	1–3	2018 FIFA World Cup
37	25 June 2018	Volgograd Arena, Volgograd, Russia	60	Saudi Arabia	1–0	1–2	2018 FIFA World Cup
38	8 September 2018	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	61	Niger	3–0	6–0	2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
39					5–0
40	12 October 2018	Al Salam Stadium, Cairo, Egypt	62	Eswatini	4–0	4–1	2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
41	16 November 2018	Borg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria, Egypt	63	Tunisia	3–2	3–2	2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
42	26 June 2019	Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt	66	DR Congo	2–0	2–0	2019 Africa Cup of Nations
43	30 June 2019	Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt	67	Uganda	1–0	2–0

Honours

Basel

• Swiss Super League: 2012–13, 2013–14

Liverpool

• Premier League: 2019–20
• UEFA Champions League: 2018–19; runner-up 2017–18
• UEFA Super Cup: 2019
• FIFA Club World Cup: 2019

Egypt

• Africa Cup of Nations runner-up: 2017

Individual

• CAF Most Promising Talent of the Year: 2012
• UAFA Golden Boy: 2012
• Swiss Super League Player of the Year: 2013
• El Heddaf Arab Footballer of the Year: 2013, 2017, 2018
• A.S. Roma Player of the Season: 2015–16
• Globe Soccer Best Arab Player of the Year: 2016
• CAF Team of the Year: 2016 (as a substitute), 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
• CAF Africa Cup of Nations Team of the Tournament: 2017
• Premier League Player of the Month: November 2017, February 2018, March 2018
• Premier League Goal of the Month: January 2021
• PFA Player of the Month: November 2017, December 2017, February 2018, March 2018, December 2018, January 2019, April 2019
• BBC African Footballer of the Year: 2017, 2018
• African Footballer of the Year: 2017, 2018
• Goal Arab Player of the Year: 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
• PFA Players’ Player of the Year: 2017–18
• FWA Footballer of the Year: 2017–18
• Premier League Golden Boot: 2017–18, 2018–19
• Premier League Player of the Season: 2017–18
• PFA Team of the Year: 2017–18 Premier League
• Liverpool Fans’ Player of the Season Award: 2017–18
• Liverpool Players’ Player of the Season Award: 2017–18
• PFA Fans’ Player of the Year: 2017–18
• UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2017–18
• ESM Team of the Year: 2017–18
• Onze d’Argent: 2017–18
• Honorary Citizen of the Chechen Republic: 2018
• Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine: 2018.
• UEFA Men’s Player of the Year Award: 2018 (3rd place)
• UEFA Champions League Forward of the Season: 2017–18 (2nd place)
• FIFA Puskás Award: 2018
• The Best FIFA Men’s Player: 2018 (3rd place)
• FIFA FIFPro World11 2nd team: 2018, 2019 (5th Forward)
• FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball: 2019
• Goal 50: 2018 (3rd place), 2019 (3rd place)
• Football Supporters’ Federation Player of the Year: 2018
• Time 100: 2019
• Liverpool Goal of the Season: 2018–19 (vs. Chelsea)
• GQ Middle East Man of The Year Award: 2019
• Fans’ Footballer of the Year award: 2020
• IFFHS CAF Men’s Team of The Year: 2020
• IFFHS CAF Men’s Best Player of the Decade: 2011–2020
• IFFHS CAF Men’s Team of the Decade: 2011–2020

Records

England

• Most goals in a 38-game Premier League season: 32 goals in 2017–18
• Most games scored in during a Premier League season: 24 games in 2017–18
• Most goals by an African player in a Premier League season: 32 goals in 2017–18
• Most Premier League Player of the Month awards in a single season: 3 (November 2017, February 2018 and March 2018)
• Most left-footed goals scored in a season: 25 goals in 2017–18
• Most teams scored against in a Premier League season: 17 teams (shared with Ian Wright and Robin van Persie)
• First player to outscore three Premier League teams in a Premier League season: West Brom (31), Swansea City (28) and Huddersfield Town (28) in 2017–18

Liverpool

• Most goals in a debut season: 44 goals in 2017–18
• Most European goals in a season: 11 goals in 2017–18 (shared with Roberto Firmino)
• Most games scored in during a single campaign: 34 games in 2017–18
• Most top-flight goals in a season by a Liverpool player: 32 goals in Premier League 2017–18 (shared with Ian Rush)
• Most Liverpool Player of the Month awards in a season: 7 months in 2017–18
• Fastest player to score 50 goals for Liverpool: 65 games in 2018–19
• Fastest Liverpool player to score 50 Premier League goals: 69 games in 2018–19
• Most goals in the first 100 appearances overall in Liverpool history: 69 goals
• Most goals in first 100 Premier League appearances in Liverpool history: 70 goals
• Most goals for Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League: 24 goals

Egypt

• Egypt’s all-time highest scorer in FIFA World Cup history: 2 goals in FIFA World Cup 2018 (shared with Abdulrahman Fawzi, 2 Goals in FIFA World Cup 1934)
• Egypt’s all-time highest scorer in CAF Africa Cup of Nations qualification: 14 goals

Italy

• Highest-scoring Egyptian in Serie A history: 35 goals in 81 games