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Mohamed Salah and Egypt’s preparations for next month’s Africa Cup of Nations haven’t got off to the best of starts following a suprise defeat to Uzbekistan on Friday.
The Liverpool winger joined his international teammates in Dubai for the Al Ain International Cup as he looked to put his struggles with his club this season behind him.
Having safely secured its spot in next year’s World Cup, Egypt can now begin to plot its charge for an eighth AFCON title, with the tournament getting underway in Morocco on December 21 - although it seems as though Salah and his teammates might have some work to do before then.
With just over a month before the tournament starts, Egypt would have been hoping to warm-up with a victory over an Uzbekistan side 23 places below it in the FIFA world rankings.
Hossam Hassan’s side though suffered just its second defeat in the last 21 months as it fell to a 2-0 loss. Oston Urunov’s first-half double was enough to secure victory for Fabio Cannavaro’s team, which will be making its first appearance at a World Cup next year.
Salah played the full 90 minutes at the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium but, not for the first time this season, was unable to make an impact as his side missed out on a place in the final of the mini tournament.
Egypt was missing a number of key players, including Manchester City star Omar Marmoush, although Hassan wasn’t happy with the errors made by his side.
“Individual mistakes caused the loss to Uzbekistan, especially after our strong performance in the second half,” Hassan said after the game (via Al-Ahram).
“Friendly matches are important for learning and correcting mistakes, especially as the team is missing key players.
“We were without eight key players from the regular starting lineup, but it was an opportunity for new faces like Marwan Osman, Osama Faisal, Zalaka, and Mahmoud Saber to get playing time.
“We missed the services of Mohamed Abdelmonem, Emam Ashour, and Mohannad Lashin in midfield, as well as Ibrahim Adel and Omar Marmoush up front.”
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Having lost against Uzbekistan, Egypt will now face Cape Verde in a third-place play-off on Monday after the fellow African side lost on penalties to Iran.
It’s not yet clear whether Salah will be involved in that game, with Liverpool boss Arne Slot no doubt eager to see his winger rested before losing him to AFCON next month.
Salah is expected to make his way to Morocco after Liverpool’s game against Brighton on December 13, and will miss at least three of the Reds’ subsequent fixtures. With the tournament running until January 18, the 33-year-old could end up missing seven games, including a crucial encounter with Arsenal on January 8.
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