Mohamed Salah will miss Egypt’s upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against South Sudan after the national team decided to rest him because of concerns over the artificial playing surface.
The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) said Salah will not travel with the squad for Tuesday’s match in Juba. The decision was made to protect the 34-year-old forward, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters.
Egypt will face South Sudan on September 29 in their second qualifier for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations. The match will take place at Juba Stadium, which has an artificial turf pitch. Ahram Online
Salah rested for South Sudan match
According to the EFA, coach Hossam Hassan and his staff had already discussed the decision with Salah before Egypt’s opening qualifier against Angola.
The federation said the technical staff chose to rest Salah because of the playing surface and to protect the player.
Salah started Friday’s match against Angola at Cairo International Stadium. However, Hassan replaced him during the second half as Egypt were held to a goalless draw.
Hassan later said the substitution was a tactical decision. He also said Egypt would need special preparation for the South Sudan match because it will be played on artificial turf. Ahram Online
Egypt begin AFCON qualifying campaign
Egypt are seeking a place at the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations, which will be jointly hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The Pharaohs opened their qualifying campaign with a 0-0 draw against Angola. They will now travel to Juba looking for their first victory of the campaign.
Salah remains one of Egypt’s most important players and is currently one goal short of Hossam Hassan’s national-team scoring record, according to the Al Jazeera report supplied for this article.
Egypt are record seven-time African champions, although they have not lifted the AFCON trophy since 2010.