Reuters / LEE SMITH
Press reports talked about the possibility of a crisis between the Liverpool team and Egypt due to the announcement of the inclusion of Mohamed Salah, the “Reds” star, in the Pharaohs preliminary squad to participate in the Summer Olympics.
Shawky Gharib, the technical director of the Egyptian Olympic team, confirmed that Mohamed Salah is at the top of the initial list chosen to participate in the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo next summer.
The Egyptian national team qualified for the Olympiad after being crowned champion of the U-23 Africa Cup of Nations, which Cairo hosted in 2019.
According to FIFA regulations, the team qualifying for the Olympic Games is entitled to recourse to 3 players over the age of 23 years.
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“Salah is at the top of the primary list, but his English club’s decision remains,” Gharib said in statements to the Egyptian “On Time Sport” channel.
He added, “The options will be according to the technical situation, before sending the final list no later than June 30th.”
Press reports indicated that the Egyptian side has not yet spoken to the English Premier League champions about the decision, which is likely to cause problems for the Reds next season.
The postponed Olympic Games activities are scheduled to be held from the summer of 2020, from July 23 to August 8, 2021, which means that Salah’s schedule will be greatly crowded.
And thus Salah will be absent from most of the Liverpool preliminary matches and will also miss the start of the new season in the Premier League.
Liverpool coach Juergen Klopp hopes to win the battle of Salah services over the summer, and he will not be happy about his star joining the Egyptian Olympic team.
It is noteworthy that Mohamed Salah, 28, is the Premier League’s top scorer, with 17 goals scored in 25 matches, two goals ahead of Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandez, and three goals against Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane.
Source: Agencies
