The nation of Egypt will collectively be praying that Mo Salah will be fit for the 2018 World Cup. Around the 30 minute mark of the 2018 Champions League final, Salah went down in a tangle with Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos. Salah attempted to play on but was shortly substituted for Adam Lallana. Immediately there were fears that Salah, who has had a record-breaking season with Liverpool, would miss the World Cup in Russia, which begins on June 14. Egypt has qualified for the tournament for the first time since 1990.
Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp told the club’s official website, “It’s a serious injury, a really serious injury. He is in the hospital for an X-ray. It’s either the collarbone or the shoulder itself. It doesn’t look good, that’s it.” The site adds that Klopp was rushed to a local hospital in Kiev after the collision.
The Daily Mail’s Dominic King tweeted that after the game, which Liverpool lost 3-1, Salah got on the team bus with his arm in a sling. King added that Salah “wouldn’t, understandably, speak to anyone.”
Here’s what you need to know:
1. A Sports Science Doctor Tells Heavy.com That Salah Should Be Fit to Play Some Part in the World Cup
Speaking as a spectator of the incident to Heavy.com, Dr. Humaira Ashraf, an associate professor of sports medicine at Rutgers University said, “It appeared to be an acromioclavicular joint injury. This was based on the mechanism of injury and how he responded on the field afterward.” Dr. Ashraf spoke about the prognosis for such an injury saying, “Acromioclavicular (AC) joint injuries are graded, and if he falls in the grade 1 or 2 category, again based on how he responded after the injury and his range of motion, it can be a few weeks to recover.”
Dr. Ashraf added, “The prognosis is good, based on what I saw, because it was not a ‘dislocation.’ Which would give him a higher grading score (3 or above. The next step will be an X-ray if it has not already be done and this will give the medical team a lot of information.”
2. Egypt’s Team Doctor Is ‘Hopeful’ That Salah Will Be Fit in Time
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In a statement, via Associated Press reporter Rob Smyth, Egypt’s team doctor said that he was “hopeful” that Salah would be fit in time for the World Cup. A Twitter translation of the statement reads, “Update | Dr. Mohammed Abu Ola, an elected physician, reported that the Liverpool Medical Service had informed him after conducting a radiation on the shoulder of Salah and the result was that the player was alarmed at the shoulder bands he added that according to this diagnosis he was optimistic that Salah would be attached to the national team in the World Cup ???? @MoSalah.”
Egypt begin early in the World Cup, on the second day, June 15, against Uruguay in Yekaterinburg.
3. Salah Last Battled Injury at the Start of April 2018
During April 2018, Salah suffered from two separate injury scares. In the early part of the month, it was unclear if Salah would be fit for the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City, though Jurgen Klopp did not specifically state what injury the Egyptian was suffering from. After playing against Stoke City in the Premier League, Talksport noted in their report that Salah appeared to be limping towards the end of the game after enduring several heavy challenges during the game.
4. Twitter Is Devastated at the Prospect of Salah Missing the World Cup
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The Twitter world seems united behind Mo Salah’s recovery for the World Cup. Here are some of the best messages of support:
Let’s hope Mo Salah is available for World Cup 🙏
Salah has shouldered the hopes of a nation.
Now Egyptians praying for his shoulder
Hoping Mohamed Salah isn’t out of the World Cup. Might throw up if that ends up happening.
Dear God,
Please don’t let Mo Salah miss the World Cup.
Thank you
Heartbreaking to see Mo Salah leave the Champions League final. Brutal blow for Liverpool after a promising start. Here’s hoping the shoulder injury is something Salah can overcome in time for the World Cup.
5. Sergio Ramos Has Been Accused of ‘Laughing’ as Salah Left the Field
There is a camera angle that appears to show Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos laughing with the assistant referee as Salah left the field. On British television, legendary England striker Gary Lineker said of Ramos, “Ramos amused there, not sure what’s going on there. He was mildly irritating at other times in the match as well. Ramos, extraordinary player that he is, can be like that.”
Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp told the media after the game that he felt Ramos’ challenge had been “harsh.” The Guardian’s Daniel Taylor wrote in his post-game report that, “Sergio Ramos had some nerve offering a sympathetic hug on the way off.” Taylor also wrote, “Television replays hardened the suspicion it was a calculated move on Ramos’s part and, when Salah landed with a hell of a thud, the damage was considerable.”
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Mo Salah’s Injury: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know