Mohamed
Salah will be sidelined for no more than three weeks with the shoulder injury
he sustained during Liverpool's Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid,
the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has confirmed.
Salah's
participation at Russia 2018 was thrown into doubt when he left the field in
tears after half an hour of Saturday's 3-1 defeat in Kiev, having tangled with
Madrid captain Sergio Ramos before landing heavily on the turf.
After the match, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp told
reporters he felt the Premier League Golden Boot winner may struggle to recover
in time for the tournament, but Salah later tweeted to say he was
"confident" of being ready.
On Wednesday, the EFA issued a statement detailing how its
president Hani Abu Reda, head coach Hector Cuper and national team doctor
Mohamed Abu El-Ela travelled to Valencia to observe Salah's treatment and
rehabilitation in the Spanish city.
The statement described the 25-year-old as having a
"determination" to link up with his international teammates and
added: "For his part, Mohamed Abu El-Ela [said] that the period of absence
of Salah due to injury will not exceed three weeks."
Egypt plays its opening match in Group A against Uruguay
in Ekaterinburg on June 15 – exactly three weeks from Liverpool's Champions
League final loss.
It means Salah is still in a race against time to be ready
for the tournament but veteran coach Cuper is keen for the saga not to derail
his team's preparations for a round-robin assignment that also features matches
against hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia.
"[After] Salah's injury I still have the same hopes
and aspirations. I can never give up," he said at a news conference at
Egypt's pre-tournament training base in Bergamo, Italy.
"Injuries happen in football but, with our enthusiasm
and ambition as it is, we have confidence in our ability to overcome any
difficulties we face. Certainly Salah's injury was the most important recent
event."
Salah scored 44 goals in a spectacular debut season for
Liverpool following his £36.9 million switch from Roma last year, while his
late penalty in October sealed a 2-1 win over Congo and Egypt's first
qualification for the World Cup since 1990.
Ramos'
role in his injury has caused a sustained furor, despite no foul being awarded
for the incident during the final.
An online petition calling for UEFA
and FIFA to take action against the Spain defender passed 500,000 signatures on
Wednesday. – SportingNews.com
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