Mohamed Salah

Mohamed Salah is a right winger with a striker's eye for goal. He starts wide, comes inside onto his stronger left foot, then shoots, plays a quick one-two or runs in behind the defence. Jürgen Klopp pushed him into more central positions at Liverpool, often as the main striker, and Salah put it simply: "I play closer to the goal than any club before." As of 2026 he plays for Trabzonspor and captains Egypt. As a boy he had started out at left-back, until he cried after missing several clear chances in a youth match and his coach moved him up front. His speed stood out early. Bob Bradley, who saw him as a youngster at Al Mokawloon, was struck by his explosiveness and intelligence as much as his pace. José Mourinho, signing him for Chelsea, said: "He's young, he's fast, he's creative, he's enthusiastic." Yet he barely played there. Loans to Fiorentina and Roma, where Italian media called him the "Egyptian Messi", put his career back on track. His first Liverpool season brought 32 Premier League goals, then a record for a 38-game campaign, and Steven Gerrard said "we are witnessing the start of greatness". No one has scored more left-footed goals in Premier League history, which tells you how heavily his game leans on one side. He is also cool from the spot, scoring inside two minutes of the 2019 Champions League final and chipping a Panenka in a World Cup shoot-out in 2026. Later he became a creator as much as a scorer. In 2023–24 he took on more of a playmaking role, and Klopp called him "smart enough to adapt to all these different things". In 2024–25, as Liverpool won the league again, he became the first player to take the Golden Boot, the Playmaker award and Player of the Season in one campaign, and every one of his league assists came from open play. Watch for the trivela and a first touch that rarely lets him down. He was never a luxury player. He is usually described as quick, mobile and hard-working with good tactical sense, and Klopp used him more than anyone else during his years in charge. After hurting his shoulder in a challenge with Sergio Ramos in the 2018 Champions League final, he still scored twice at that summer's World Cup. He signed off at Liverpool by breaking Gerrard's club record for Premier League assists. For Egypt he carries an even bigger load. His last-minute penalty against Congo sent the country to its first World Cup since 1990, he has been captain since 2019, and in 2026 he led Egypt to their first-ever World Cup wins and the round of 16. Liverpool fans sang about the "Egyptian King", and he is known for refusing to celebrate against his former clubs.