Egypt are hoping to call up Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah for next summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
Countries are allowed to include three non-U23 players in their squad for the tournament, which will run from July 24 to August 10.
And Egypt coach Micale has revealed that he hopes Salah can take up one of those spots and lead his nation in the French capital.
“We still have one year to think of the matter and evaluate the situation, but for sure we welcome Salah. Salah is as significant as Neymar in Brazil,” he told Egyptian television.
This Is Anfield understands that, because the Olympics is not a FIFA-sanctioned competition, Liverpool will have the power to block any call-up.
They exercised that right two years ago to prevent Salah, Ibrahima Konate and Takumi Minamino taking part in the delayed Tokyo Games.
And, though no decision has yet been made, it is likely to be an appealing option once again given that tournament’s scheduling means that a player’s pre-season preparations would be severely compromised by their involvement.
Liverpool will also take into account that Salah will miss the start of 2024 due to the Africa Cup of Nations, which could see him miss up to 10 games – two significant international absences will not be taken lightly.
In the past, other Premier League clubs have proven more receptive to the idea of allowing their stars to take part in the Olympics despite the obvious drawbacks.
Richarlison made a late return to Everton‘s pre-season in the summer of 2021 as he helped Brazil secure the gold medal in Japan.
Salah has already previously represented Egypt at the Olympic games, forming part of their squad for London 2012 at the age of 20.
He scored three goals in four games as his country reached the quarter-finals before being knocked out by Japan.
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