Egypt wants Mohamed Salah to compete in the Olympics this summer, but the Pharoahs are starting to accept that he will play this preseason with Liverpool.
Egypt is getting used to the idea that Mohamed Salah won’t be competing in the Olympics, which could provide Liverpool a significant preseason boost.
With less than a month until the campaign kicks off in the French capital, the Football Association has not yet held formal discussions over Salah’s inclusion in the Egypt squad for the forthcoming Paris Games as one of their three players over 23.
Given that the Games are not FIFA-mandated and that the Egyptian FA are reportedly coming to terms with the fact that their star player won’t be traveling to Paris, Liverpool is under no duty to release Salah.
Eight days before the Reds begin their Premier League season, on July 24, the tournament kicks off. Although there has been no formal communication, sources in Egypt have told the ECHO that the Pharaohs are “90% sure” the Reds forward will stay with his club during the pre-season, giving Arne Slot a significant advantage as he plans his first summer in the position.
Salah has been a member of Liverpool for seven years. The Reds have attempted to maintain a respectful relationship with Egypt during that time, and they acknowledge that the No. 11’s profile in his native country calls for extra caution when handling such matters. However, sending a player who has been the team’s top scorer every year since his arrival in 2017 away to Ipswich Town for a competition that ends just one week before the Premier League season begins is not the best course of action, especially at a time when new head coach Slot is trying to launch the best possible new era at Anfield.
This implies that Salah is now anticipated to be part of the team’s tour to the United States in late July and early August, when he will undoubtedly play in the friendly matches against Real Betis, Arsenal, and Manchester United before making his debut at Anfield on Sunday, August 11.
Striker Mohamed Trezeguet’s absence from the Olympics was confirmed last week by Turkish club Trabzonspor, who disclosed that they had denied their player’s request to participate.
A statement on their official website stated, “Our footballer Mahmoud Trezeguet has received an invitation to play for Egypt’s U23 football team at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.”
“Our player told our club that he wanted to compete in this competition, but because our team will be playing crucial qualifying matches in UEFA club competitions during the invitation period, our athlete will not be able to compete in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris because the Olympic U23 games are not included in FIFA’s international match calendar. The public is kindly informed of it.”
Rugero Micali, Egypt’s men’s football coach for the Games, expressed his hope last month that Salah will be included in the team for the competition, which starts on July 25 with a match against the Dominican Republic.
“We have 10 names under consideration, and we will choose three players from them,” Micali stated. “The ultimate decision must take into consideration our weaknesses. We hope that the players who are chosen will receive approval from their clubs after extensive negotiations with overseas clubs to allow their players to compete with us at the Olympics.
“We are currently expecting word from the Egyptian Football Association on our communication with Salah and his team, Liverpool. He is really welcome to join us. I hope Salah can compete for us at the Olympics.
“As I said earlier, it is always good for a player to be involved, we do not interfere in players’ clubs about whether or not they are in the squad, our job is to determine who can help us, and obviously if many of them do not play, they may arrive at matches without fitness, and this is not good.”
Salah was set to be sent to Japan for the 2020 Olympics, but Liverpool saved himself from that by turning down Egypt’s requests for his release three years prior. The competition concluded one week before to the Premier League season, on July 22 and continued until August 7. Salah decided to stay on Merseyside as a result, and he helped the Reds win 3-0 at Norwich City in the season opener by scoring and dishing out an assist.
