Mohamed Salah is reportedly planning to skip Egypt’s international camp in June, as the Liverpool ace aims to manage his workload. The forward has had a stellar season so far, racking up 32 goals and delivering 22 assists in 45 appearances across all competitions.
Salah’s contract is due to expire at the end of the season, but recent whispers suggest he’s on the brink of signing a new deal with Liverpool. The striker will celebrate his 33rd birthday in June, and the Reds will be banking on him maintaining his current form into the next season.
A Daily Mail report suggests that Salah intends to ‘fully focus on resting his body after a long and arduous campaign’ this summer, hence his decision to bypass Egypt’s international camp in June.
Last summer, Salah was considered for a spot in Egypt’s squad for the Paris Olympics as one of the three over-23 players permitted in each nation’s team. However, he chose not to participate in order to fully commit to Liverpool’s pre-season under the new leadership of Arne Slot.
This decision is believed to have played a significant role in Salah’s exceptional performance this season, with the winger benefiting from a complete rest following a lengthy campaign that saw Liverpool clinch the Carabao Cup and make significant progress in both the Europa League and FA Cup.
Egypt could also reap the rewards of Salah’s decision, as they’ll want their star player in peak condition ahead of a packed year of international fixtures, including World Cup qualifiers, the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2026 World Cup.
Egypt are in a strong position to secure their spot in next year’s World Cup, with Salah’s team leading their group by five points and only four matches remaining. Should they qualify, it would mark Egypt’s fourth World Cup appearance, their last being in 2018.
Salah’s recent performances have seen a downturn, with the Liverpool star failing to find the net in his last four outings. Nonetheless, Slot is optimistic that Salah is just going through a minor blip and will bounce back to his best soon.
“Maybe he should see it as a compliment [that people are talking about it] because his numbers were not normal [when he was scoring],” Slot commented on BBC Match of the Day following Liverpool’s 3-2 loss to Fulham. “The good thing about Mo is he knows what kind of player he is. Mo will show up again, I don’t worry about that.”
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Slot also dismissed worries regarding captain Virgil van Dijk’s recent form, who hasn’t been at his sharpest in Liverpool’s latest fixtures against Fulham and Everton. “I mainly give credit to other players as well,” Slot remarked.
“If you look at Beto, Virgil wasn’t the first defender to find it hard to play against him as he chases for every ball, pushes you just before you get the ball. The one who played there today, you have to give a lot of credit to him as well.
“I still see a lot of things that Virgil does really well. If you play 50 to 60 games a season, even for Virgil, there will be one or two moments where he could have done better. I don’t worry about Virgil.”
