The head coach of Egypt Under-23s national team says they will speak to Liverpool about Mohamed Salah’s availability in the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer.
Salah was named in the preliminary squad earlier this month as one of three overage players, with nations allowed to include three such players in their final squads for the competition.
With the Olympics scheduled to take place in Tokyo between Friday, July 23 and Sunday, August 8, Salah would miss some of Liverpool's pre-season and the start of the 2021/22 Premier League campaign.
Jurgen Klopp is understandably reluctant to sanction the Reds number 11's departure for the tournament with a decision yet to be made on his involvement.
However, Egypt’s Under-23 boss Shawky Gharib has said that they will send an official letter to Liverpool asking for their permission to allow Salah to take part in the tournament this summer.
“The rules of the Olympic football competition stipulate that any player who was not included in the preliminary list could not participate, and therefore we put Salah’s name on the initial list,” Gharib is quoted saying in King Fut .
He added: “Salah is very valuable in Egypt and outside of Egypt. He’s the top scorer of the English Premier League and one of the best players in the world.
“It doesn’t make sense to aim for an Olympic medal and not try to include a player like him in your team.
“We are preparing a file regarding Salah’s participation before contacting Liverpool, officially. The file will contain the details of the draw, the group that includes the Pharaohs and the place where the national team will reside.
“After the draw we will complete the file and then contact Liverpool immediately.”
