Egypt forward Mohamed Salah suffers knee injury ahead of Australia tie
Egypt captain Mohamed Salah has suffered a left knee injury during a 1-1 World Cup draw with Iran, placing his participation in next Friday’s last-32 clash against Australia in doubt.
The 34-year-old was unexpectedly substituted 57 minutes into the final Group G fixture and was later seen with ice strapped to his leg on the bench.
Head coach Hossam Hassan confirmed the former Liverpool forward requires further medical assessment before their first knockout match.
Hassan remains hopeful over captain’s fitness
Despite the premature exit, the Egyptian medical staff have received initial positive feedback from their talisman.
“I talked to Salah and he said he’s going to be OK and it’s not a big injury,” said Hassan. “We still have time to talk to the medical staff, but I think he will be back.”
The prolific attacker has been pivotal to the Pharaohs’ tournament campaign so far, contributing two assists and scoring his 68th international goal during a 3-1 victory against New Zealand.
Egypt advance after surviving late scare
The North African side progressed as Group G runners-up behind Belgium, who secured a commanding 5-1 victory over New Zealand in their simultaneous fixture.
However, progression was only guaranteed after a potential stoppage-time winner for Iran was disallowed for an offside infringement.
That result leaves the Middle Eastern nation waiting on other fixtures to see if they can reach the knockout rounds for the first time in their history.
Meanwhile, a heavily fancied Belgian outfit will now travel to Seattle on Wednesday to face a third-placed team in the next phase of the competition.
