26 Superstars: Mohamed Salah
With highlights, quotes, stats, trivia, World Cup history and 2026 hopes, FIFA spotlights Egypt icon Mohamed Salah.
Growing up, Mohamed Salah would play football with his brother and pretend to be Ronaldo, Francesco Totti or Zinedine Zidane. Those childhood dreams made way for a meteoric rise, and now the Egypt superstar will rub shoulders in the history books with the greats of the game he once tried to emulate.
Salah moved to Basel on his 20th birthday and scooped two Swiss titles with the national giants while catching the eye in the UEFA Champions League. A disappointing transfer to Chelsea saw him move into Italian football where he impressed with Fiorentina before signing permanently with Roma, going on to provide 55 goal involvements in 83 games for the Giallorossi.
Liverpool came calling in 2017 and the spellbinding winger quickly enraptured Anfield. He netted 44 goals in his first term, the most in a single season by a Liverpool player for 34 years and a club record for a debut campaign. Eleven of those came in Europe, as the Reds reached their first Champions League final since 2007.
The following years have followed a similar goal-laden trail. He has scored at least 23 in each of his full seasons since, overhauling club icons Robbie Fowler, Steve Gerrard and Gordon Hodgson to move into third on the Reds' all-time scoring list. In November 2025, he netted his 250th Liverpool goal in their victory over Aston Villa.
"He is a top professional, a real role model. It was always clear that if he doesn't score in his last game, then there's a good chance he'll score in the next game because it increases his desire." Jurgen Klopp
“He is one of the best players in the world. He's scored a lot of goals for Liverpool. He makes the difference. I love watching him play – he's a great player.” Kylian Mbappe
"He's had so many years of consistency, that's the beauty of it. People don't realise how difficult it is to keep doing it, keep showing up. He's a very, very good player and I'm glad I've been on a good journey with him." Virgil Van Dijk
"It's special that he's scored so many goals already; what makes it even more impressive is that he does this year after year after year." Arne Slot
“In terms of goals, assists, moments in big games, and who he is as well, he's probably been one of the best players in the world since he's come in [to Liverpool].” Curtis Jones
“When you're watching him live, you see the bigger picture. I really enjoy watching him. He is a world-class player.” Roy Keane “I'm a big fan of him. It's unbelievable what he does.” Son Heungmin
As a teenager playing in the Al Mokawloon youth side, Salah would go to school from 7-9am, before setting off for football training. The journey there would take more than four hours and require up to five busses, and ensured Salah wouldn't return home until 10pm at the earliest.
During his two-year spell with Roma, Salah played with childhood icon Totti. He featured alongside the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ winner on 29 occasions, and was the player who made way for the iconic No10 to come on for his farewell match against Genoa on 28 May 2017.
Salah has become "addicted" to playing chess, stating in 2023 that he had racked up an impressive score of 1,400 on Chess.com. "It takes your mind away from football. I like to watch it, and I like to play, every day. Literally every day," he told Sky Sports. "I’m addicted to chess. No one stands a chance against [world top seed] Magnus [Carlsen], but hopefully, we’ll play one day."
Salah scored 32 times in the Premier League during 2017/18, breaking the record for the most goals in a 38-game season. He has since been eclipsed by Erling Haalad with 36.
He is the top-scoring African in the Premier League and Champions League, surpassing Didier Drogba to reach both milestones.
Salah is one of only two players to win the Premier League Golden Boot four times, joining Thierry Henry. The Egyptian scooped the prize in 2017/18, 2018/19, 2021/22 and 2024/25.
Salah remains the only African player to win the FIFA Puskás Award, having taken the accolade in 2018.
Salah has won a joint-record seven Premier League Player of the Month awards, alongside Sergio Aguero and Harry Kane.
He is the only person to be named PFA Players' Player of the Year on three occasions.
Salah is one of only two players, alongside Kevin De Bruyne, to win the Premier League Playmaker of The Season Award, a prize given for claiming the most assists, more than once. Only he and Harry Kane have held both that prize and the Golden Boot at the same time. In 2024/25, he broke the record for most goal involvements in a single season (29 goals, 18 assists).
In December 2025, he recorded his 277th Premier League goal involvement for Liverpool, moving him ahead of Wayne Rooney into top spot for the most goals and assists for one Premier League club.
Salah is Egypt's second highest scorer on 67 goals, behind only current national coach Hossam Hassan. He sits seventh on the all-time appearance list.
With 20 goals, Salah is the top-scoring African in FIFA World Cup™ qualifying history. He broke clear of Moumouni Dagano, Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto'o and Islam Slimani on 18 strikes with a brace in the 3-0 win over Djibouti which booked the Pharaohs' place at FIFA World Cup 2026™.
It was Salah's goals which fired Egypt to their first World Cup in 28 years at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™. He netted three in qualifying before a game-winning brace, including a last-minute penalty, to sink Congo and return the Pharaohs to the global stage.
An injury suffered in the Champions League final ensured he travelled to those finals short of full fitness, but he still left his mark on the competition. He netted Egypt's first goal since their 1-1 draw with the Netherlands in Group F at Italy 1990 from the penalty spot in the 3-1 loss to the hosts.
In the next game, Salah lifted the ball over Saudi Arabia goalkeeper Yasser Al-Mosailem to give Egypt a 22nd-minute lead, becoming the first Egyptian since Abdelrahman Fawzi at Italy 1934 to score at the tournament from open play and to net more than once at a finals. Despite his heroics, the Pharaohs would go on to lose 2-1.
Egypt will head to this tournament with one goal in mind: claiming a first World Cup win. The North Africans enter with a record of two draws and five defeats from their seven encounters, and with their talismanic forward turning 34 the day before their bout with New Zealand, this could represent their best chance to end that run.
Manchester City star Omar Marmoush and the electric Trezeguet will join Salah to make a front three which could trouble any defence at the finals. Elsewhere, legendary goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy, defender Ramy Rabia and midfielder Hamdy Fathy will likely help make up an experienced core.