By M Saad
A site to behold for any football fan is to watch a player run on the field with the ball at a tremendous speed. It can give one a rush of blood — an incomparable excitement akin to watching your favourite horse leaping in front of the rest at racecourse. And it is this pace with the ball coupled with extraordinary dribbling skills and of course, game sense that differentiates great players from the rest. It’s a rare talent in the game and those who possess this gift have made it to the vanguard of footballing history.
Such gifted players are capable of turning the course of game in a matter of seconds — they are a nightmare for the opposition’s defenders and defensive midfielders.
They are feared and thus, nudged and kicked a lot by opposition players to distract them from unleashing their fluent creativity on the field. Maradona, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Figo, Messi, Ronaldo, Bale had it in their prime. These great players and Mohamed Salah have one thing in common — a scintillating speed with the ball.
Salah’s quick runs across the pitch, the way he capitalises on gaps in the midfield, creates gaps in the defence and his incredible goal-scoring ability are all attributes of a player destined for greatness.
When he arrived at Liverpool in 2017, the Egyptian forward was a promising 25-year-old player, whom previously Chelsea had snatched from the Merseyside club a few years ago. No one could have predicted back then, Salah would become a statement-making jewel in the crown of the prestigious English club with so much history.
Liverpool has a fanbase unlike any other club in the world. Its ardent fans sing in chorus You Will Never Walk Alone to cheer their team. Young kids today at the Merseyside’s playing fields celebrate their goals in the style of their ‘Egyptian King’ by humbly prostrating in submission. There is perhaps no other Muslim player anywhere in the world who is loved so much as Salah is at Liverpool. More so, perhaps because so far he has managed to keep controversies at bay unlike Germany’s Mesut Ozil and France’s Karim Benzema.
It goes without saying that the pace of the game and standards of Premier League are quite different from other leagues in Europe. Salah arrived at Anfield after representing Swiss club Basel, then Chelsea and Serie A clubs like Fiorentina and Roma, so he had ample experience of playing in Europe.
However, he had big shoes to fill in as he arrived at a time when the club was still in the rebuilding phase. Apart from Liverpool’s glorious victory in the 2005 Champions League final against AC Milan in Istanbul, there was not much to cheer about for the Reds’ fans. The 31-year-old Egyptian, now in his sixth year at Liverpool, scored 44 goals in all competitions in his first season and since then he has never looked back. He has scored 188 goals in 309 games for the Reds. Over the years, Salah has become a pivotal piece in the success story of the club, which won four trophies in 2019-2020 season, including the league title and Champion’s League.
So naturally, the footballing world was eagerly awaiting if he would follow the footsteps of his former Liverpool teammates Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino and join Saudi League’s Al-Ittihad at a record fee that reportedly surpassed even the record-breaking offers made to Ronaldo and Messi.
Saudi Pro League clubs have become retirement homes for a great many players in their dotage who opt for fat cheques over playing top-level football. Salah’s Arab origins only added to the hype, more so considering the statements Benzema made after his arrival in Riyadh.
The Egypt international’s transfer rumours created a furore in Saudi and English media with contradicting stories confirming and refuting his transfer for many days. On the pitch, Salah’s commitment was still unwavering.
One could see he was not playing like a frustrated departing player. He was disappointed at being substituted against Chelsea, and against Aston Villa last week, his anticipation for the ball — a hallmark of his great footballing skills — could have added another goal to the score sheet for Liverpool had Darwin Núñez succeeded in putting his brilliant pass into the net.
Salah did find the back of the net in the game. It has been reported that he gave a post-match dressing room speech in which he confirmed his future at the club. Liverpool’s coach Jürgen Klopp who has built the team since his arrival at Anfield in 2015 also confirmed that during his meetings with Salah they are only discussing “the future”. It is highly likely Salah might stick with the Reds until his contract expires in 2025, if the owners of the club want. Because he has realised his true potential as a player in Liverpool colours. All those training and counselling sessions and grooming at Anfield has made what Salah is today — a cult in English football. Indeed, there are few things greater than money. And that for Salah seem to be passion for playing for Liverpool.