Mohamed Salah scored the decisive goal for Egypt in their AFCON match against Benin and was also praised for some smart play with a teammate
Mohamed Salah of Egypt in action
Mohamed Salah sealed the win for Egypt(Image: Photo by Samah Zidan/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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Global media have reacted to Mohamed Salah's performance following Egypt's 3-1 win over Benin in the Africa Cup of Nations. The result booked Egypt a place in the AFCON quarter-finals, with Salah and his team-mates aiming for glory.
Now into the last eight, Egypt needed extra time to defeat the West African nation. Benin's defensive unit frustrated Egypt in the match, which was at deadlock until 69 minutes when Marwan Attia thumped a side-footed effort into the top corner from range.
Jodel Dossou bagged the equaliser with just a few minutes to play and forced the extra time period. Yasser Ibrahim put Egypt 2-1 ahead on 97 minutes with Salah bagging the decisive goal in the 124th minute to put the game beyond all doubt.
Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram wrote positively about Salah's performance, with the Liverpool legend integral in multiple key moments of the game.
"Egypt signalled their attacking intent early when Salah released Omar Marmoush," wrote Al-Ahram. "Whose one-on-one effort was denied by Benin goalkeeper Marcel Dandjinou in the seventh minute."
Mohamed Salah celebrates with his team mates after scoring the 3rd goal
Mohamed Salah was mobbed by his teamates after scoring the decisive goal(Image: Photo by Mohamed Tageldin / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)
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Again touching on his involvement in the match, they wrote: "Atteya finally broke the deadlock in the 69th minute, finishing from the edge of the area after a one-two between Salah and Mohamed Hany."
On Salah's goal, they said: "Benin pressed for another equaliser but were unable to break down an organised Egyptian defense and Salah sealed the win in the dying minutes with a composed lob after being set up by Zizo."
International media outlet BeIN Sports praised Salah's finish: "Mohamed Salah put the contest to bed on the counter.
"The Liverpool star finished clinically to score his third goal of the tournament, sealing the win and confirming a hard-fought, but fully deserved, place in the next round of the next round.
The Olympics official website said Salah shone in the game and said Salah "calmly" lifted the ball over the goalkeeper and also praised the combination play between him and Hany for Attia's goal.
Sports News Africa described Salah as "inevitable" and "drove home the nail" with his decisive goal. Salah was also praised by MENA outlet Btolat.com and given an 8.6 score in their ratings.
Speaking after the game, Salah himself said: “It was a tough game. We fought hard physically, and the levels are very close in this tournament. There are no easy matches in AFCON.
“I’m happy with this win, especially as most of our players compete in the local league, which makes the challenge even greater.”
Liverpool are back in action without Salah against Arsenal on Thursday. The Egyptian star has not been at his best this season for the Reds but he is a confidence player and performing well at AFCON could work out very nicely for Arne Slot and Co when he returns from Morocco.