Mohamed Salah struck a sensational late goal to send Egypt into the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals, firing home a superb trivela in the final moments of extra time to secure a 3–1 win after a 1–1 draw in normal time. The Liverpool forward’s effort capped a tense knockout clash in which Egypt had to dig deep to overcome stubborn opposition.
The result guarantees that Salah will remain at AFCON until at least January 10, when Egypt contest their quarter-final. As a consequence, the Reds will be without their No. 11 for Thursday’s Premier League meeting with Arsenal on January 8, and he is also expected to miss the FA Cup third-round tie against Barnsley on January 12, regardless of how far Egypt progress.
Egypt’s next opponents will be either Ivory Coast or Burkina Faso, with a semi-final clash against Mali or Senegal awaiting the winners. That opens up the possibility of a high-profile reunion between Salah and former Liverpool teammate Sadio Mané later in the tournament, with hosts Morocco also looming as potential finalists.
Despite entering the round-of-16 as favourites, Egypt were made to work hard after Marwan Attia’s opener was cancelled out late on by Jodel Dossou. Yasser Ibrahim restored Egypt’s lead early in extra time before Salah’s decisive strike from outside the box sealed the win. The goal continued Salah’s fine form at the tournament, marking his third goal in three appearances after scoring in the group-stage victories over Zimbabwe and South Africa.
