Liverpool star man Mohamed Salah has returned a third positive test for coronavirus, the Egyptian Football Association has confirmed.
The striker is now set to miss Sunday’s clash with Leicester City and could also be set to sit out of Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Atlanta. It comes as the UK government coronavirus rules state that the Egyptian forward must now undergo a ten-day isolation period after testing positive.
Third Positive Coronavirus Test for Mohamed Salah
Salah to Miss Crucial Games
According to the Egyptian FA, the 28-year old returned a third positive test during Wednesday’s swab testing. He had already missed Egypt’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Togo on Saturday and Tuesday after testing positive then.
The statement from the Egyptian FA read: ‘Today, Mohamed Salah, the star of the national team and the English club Liverpool, made a new swab to detect the COVID-19 virus, but its result was positive.
‘Today, Mohamed El-Nani, the star of the national team and Arsenal of England, also conducted a second swab, which confirmed its positive results, as their case is followed up first with the knowledge of Captain Mohamed Fadl, a member of the Five-Year Committee, the head of the team’s returning from Togo, and Dr Muhammad Abu Al-Ela, the elected doctor.’
Salah Tweets out Appreciation After Coronavirus Case
I’d like to thank everyone for the supportive messages and well wishes. I’m confident I’ll be back on the field soon 💪
— Mohamed Salah (@MoSalah) November 17, 2020
The Egyptian becomes Liverpool’s fourth player to have contracted coronavirus after Thiago Alcantara, Sadio Mane, and Xherdan Shaqiri.
His international teammate and Arsenal midfielder Mohamed Elneny also returned a positive COVID-19 test and will now miss his team’s fixture against Leeds United. Elneny has become a surprisingly regular starter for Mikel Arteta this season, featuring 11 times this season so far.
Absentee Crisis at Liverpool
The red side of Merseyside is undergoing a serious injury crisis with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez long-term absentees, while Trent Alexander-Arnold is ruled out with injury which saw him limp off in the 1-1 draw with Manchester City.
Fabinho, Jordan Henderson and Andy Robertson are all added to the list and now are doubtful for Sunday after picking up injuries on international duty. This could see Klopp field a side without nine regular first-team starters.
Main Photo
