Mohamed Salah appears to be out of contention to play at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, according to James Pearce of the Athletic.
Egypt Set to Miss Out on Mohamed Salah for Tokyo Olympics
Liverpool Unlikely to Allow Him to Play Despite the Player’s Wishes
Egypt intended to include Salah as one of the overage players allowed to join the playing squad at the Olympics this year. The tournament begins runs from July 22 to August 7 and would interfere with Salah’s preparations for the beginning of Liverpool’s Premier League season on August 14 against Norwich City.
The forward is already set to miss a portion of the Premier League season due to the African Cup of Nations running between January 9 and February 6 of next year. The club is unwilling to let him represent his country in Tokyo as well after an exhausting 2020/21 season.
Speaking recently about the challenge of including Salah in the Egyptian Olympic squad, Megahed said: “I do not want to say that it is impossible for Salah to participate in the Olympics, but it is difficult. Salah agreed to lead the Olympic team during the last camp of the Egyptian team. We contacted Liverpool to allow Salah to join the Olympic team, and they said they were waiting for the approval of the technical staff.
“But, in the end, Liverpool refused the request because they do not want to lose the player at the beginning of the season, as well as next January with the Africa Cup of Nations, which will keep him from participating in the English Premier League matches. We spoke with Salah again, and he told us that he will make a new attempt with the technical staff of his team, to resolve the matter, and within the next two days he will find a way.”
While the Egyptian will get a well-earned break this summer, Liverpool could lose Sadio Mane and Naby Keita during the Olympics as the pair are set to represent Senegal this summer.
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