30 Mind-Blowing Facts About Mohamed Salah That Every Fan Must Know

Mohamed Salah, a gifted footballer from Egypt, who is known for his finishing, dribbling and speed, is considered to be one of the best players in the world. His performance in the last few seasons, has not only earned him numerous accolades, but has also become the named that rules the football world. Here are some interesting facts about the player that will make you go crazy for him:

"File:Mohamed Salah 2015.jpg" by Илья Хохлов is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

1.  Mohamed is the only player to have scored at Old Trafford for Liverpool in two different games in a single season, having scored twice in a 3–2 defeat in the FA Cup, since Harry Chambers in the 1920-21 season.
2.  He is a devoted Muslim and is known to perform sujud, act of low bowing to God, after scoring every goal in all his matches. His fans have even reiterated that if Salah keeps up his performance, and scores more goals, they would also convert to Islam.
3.  Mohamed 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 making Pharaohs reach their first World Cup finals since 1990.
4.  In the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, he was one of the leading goal scorers who led his teams to the finals, and even earned a place in the CAF Team of the Tournament.
5.  With his score in a 1-1 draw with Newcastle United on April 24, 2021, he became the first Liverpool player in history to have reached the 20-goal mark for a third season.
6.  Mohamed Salah Hamed Mahrous Ghaly was born on June 15, 1992 in Nagrig, Gharbia, Egypt, to Salah Ghaly. He has a younger brother named Nasr Salah.
7.  Since childhood, Mohamed always had Football as his priority, and was not good at academics. Despite his parents insisting on him having a conventional career, he chose football as his life.
8.  In an interview he claimed that in his teenage days, if he was not playing football, he would be watching football matches on television. He joined a local youth club ‘Al Mokawloon’ in Cairo.
9.  The club was far away from his native, due to which he had to take five different buses for 3 hours, which reduced his time for academics drastically. Still, he was determined to have football as his career.
10.  At the age of 14, Mohamed was discovered by a scout who was initially watching another child play, but got distracted with Salah’s performances.

"File:Spartak Moscow VS. Liverpool (1).jpg" by Дмитрий Садовников is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

11.  He was accepted into the senior team of the club when he was 15 years old, in May 2010, but was initially a substitute player. He gradually became the regular forward in the team.
12.  He had to take a special diet and also underwent a special training program as his muscles were not fully developed at that time. The First team manager Mohamed Radwan was impressed with his performance.
13.  In the year 2012, when Egyptian Premier League’s existence was threatened, Mohamed was offered a four-year contract by Swiss club Basel.
14.  Following this, he made his debut in UEFA Championship League as well as the Europa League. He had a very important role in Basel’s 2012-13 ‘Swiss Super League Championship’ victory.
15.  Although he was getting regular game time, Mohamed had difficulty in scoring. Sometimes after the match, he would be in tears which Radwan claimed only motivated him to become better.
16.  His scored his very first Champions League goal in August 2013, in the game against Maccabi Tel Aviv, in the third qualifying round.
17.  Following the match, he became the subject of a major controversy, as he appeared to have deliberately avoided shaking hands with the players of the Israeli Club in both the home and away legs.
18.  He was transferred from Basel to Chelsea in a deal worth £11 million, in January 2014, and made his debut in the Premier League on February 8, 2014 as a substitute.
19.  However, even before the 2014-2015 season, his future with the Chelsea team was doubtful as he had to return to carry out military service as the Egyptian Minister of Higher Education cancelled his registration for an education scheme.
20.  Still, after meeting Ibrahim Mahlab – the then Egyptian prime minister and Shawky Gharieb – the Minister of Higher Education, Mohamed was spared of military service.

"File:Mo Salah 2018 (cropped).jpg" by Kevin Walsh from Preston Brook, England is licensed under CC BY 2.0

21.  Just as the Chelsea transfer deadline day approached, Salah joined the Italian club Fiorentina on an 18-month loan and made his debut in the 65th minute as a replacement for Joaquín in a 3–2 Serie A victory against Atalanta at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.
22.  In 2013, Salah married his longtime girlfriend Maggi Sadeq, whom he met in his junior high school. The couple has two daughters – Makka, born in London in the year 2014, and Kayan born in 2020.
23.  During the first league match of the 2020-21 season, he scored a hat-trick including two penalties, in a 4–3 victory against Leeds United on September 12, 2020.
24.  With this, he became the first Liverpool player to have scored in four consecutive league openers from 2017–18 season to 2020–21 season.
25.  Mohamed also became the second player in the history of Premier League to have achieved this feat, only after Teddy Sheringham who scored from 1992-93 season to 1995-96 season.
26.  With Salah’s hat-trick, he also became the first Liverpool player to have scored a hat-trick in the first league match since John Aldridge scored a hat-trick against Charlton Athletic in the 1988-89 season.
27.  In November 2020, he tested positive for Coronavirus, during the medical swab conducted for the first national football team. However, he did not suffer any kind of symptoms. A week later, he tested negative and returned to training.
28.  He was slammed in a tirade by his teammates as well as the former Egypt forward Mido, for attending his brother’s wedding earlier in the week, in Cairo, which had over hundreds of guests.
29.  Although it was not confirmed that he had contracted the virus at the wedding, he has been criticized for attending it during the pandemic, that too just before the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.
30.  He is the first player to have scored 100 goals for Liverpool, since Steven Gerrard who scored in 2008. He is also the third fastest player in the history of Liverpool, after Roger Hunt and Jack Parkinson to have reached the milestone.
31.  Mohamed Salah Net Worth: $90 Million