Liverpool star Mohamed Salah was the subject of several op-eds on Wednesday.
Describing him as the “happiness maker” in state-owned Al-Ahram newspaper, Khaled Ezzedine praised the footballer’s achievements and awards, speaking about Salah’s chances to remove Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi from their “throne.”
Also in Al-Ahram, Farouk Goweida argued that Salah was the subject of a “conspiracy” which drove him out of the Champions League final with an injury. Taking a fierce position against Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos, Goweida compared him to a “gangster” and a “pirate,” saying Salah still got most of the attention because of his injury and that Ramos will face public backlash and be remembered as a “criminal of war.” Additionally, Goweida accused the referee of being part of the plot and intentionally disregarding action against Ramos.
Likewise, Al-Ahram’s Ahmed Abdel Tawab addressed “Ramos’ aggression” against Salah, demanding that he face punishment for his “crime.” Also describing Ramos as a “thug,” the writer argued that Real Madrid should be held accountable for the responsibility of keeping Ramos in the team and making him captain despite his repeated aggressions against players.
As for Abdul Moneim Saeed, Salah remains the perfect example for those who want to blame failure on racism and conspiracy theories against Arabs and Muslims, according to his piece in Al-Ahram. Saeed argued that as a person belonging to such a group, Salah was able to earn the respect and admiration of the West and said that if Arabs work hard and add something to humanity and civilisation, they will reach high positions.
In Al-Masry Al-Youm, Yasser Ayoub took a look at how Salah received extensive attention in the British media, which shared Egyptians’ distress about his latest injury. Comparing Salah to other Egyptian sports players who were previously celebrated in foreign media, Ayoub opined that Salah added value to Egyptian sports through a success story that topped any other and that thanks to him, the old Egyptian perception of achievement has changed; it is now not enough for Egyptians to just be represented abroad as their ambitions have increased after Salah.
In Al-Shourouk newspaper, Hassan Al-Mestekawy wrote a piece commenting on a recent report by Deutsche Welle which tackled the politicisation of Salah, in which Al-Mestekawy himself refuted such allegations. According to the sports writer, the Egyptian government is not trying to use Salah for political propaganda as the report claimed and Salah’s contributions to his country are genuinely out of his belief in his social responsibility.
