Premier League superstar Mo Salah delivered a devastating performance with four goals as the Liverpool ace lit up Egypt’s African Cup of Nations qualifier victory over Djibouti.
Considering that Liverpool’s Egyptian King has made a habit of tearing pieces out of even Europe’s best backlines, a Djibouti outfit placed 189th in the FIFA World Rankings always had the impression of a team of mice going up against a hungry lion.
And, as Egypt hit six in front of their own supporters, an irrepressible Mo Salah roared his way to four goals in the space of 69 minutes, breaking an all-time record in the process.
With 15, Salah is now Egypt’s all-time top scorer in AFCON qualifiers.
16 goals this season for Liverpool and Egypt
“Salah is capable of scoring at any time,” Egypt coach Rui Vitoria tells Ahram Online. “He is like an artist. For me, the third goal was the highlight of the game because it was the result of team effort, and Salah, like an artist, added the finishing touches,
“Salah is a player who can make a difference, and he consistently does so.”
The former Chelsea, Roma and Fiorentina speedster now has 55 goals for his country. He is just 13 short of the Egypt record, and few would bet against Salah scribing his name into the history books again before he calls time on his international career.
Mo Salah breaks AFCON qualifier record
“Mo Salah gets praised a lot. But I don’t know if he gets enough praise,” Brentford boss Thomas Frank told the ECHO after Liverpool’s living legend scored twice in last week’s 3-0 victory over the West London outfit at Anfield.
“I think now, off the top of my head, he is the best player in the Premier League, potentially. In terms of goals and assists, what a level (Salah is at). He must be one of the top offensive players in the world. Not like the ten ten but top three.”
Salah now has 16 goals for club and country since the start of the season.
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