The exceptional Egyptian footballer Mohamed Salah is used to being in the limelight. In the second leg of the World Cup qualifier in Senegal, however, the striker had to endure a strange kind of illumination on Tuesday evening. The two teams had brought the drama about one of the last World Cup tickets to a climax, the decision had to be made on penalties. As soon as Salah started, countless green dots of light danced on his face and body, as if he weren’t standing in a stadium in Senegal’s capital Dakar, but on the dance floor in a village disco. Spectators had taken laser pointers into the stadium to influence the game in favor of their team. To put it kindly. In fact, the conditions for the shooter were at the very least on the edge of what was reasonable.
The green lights also danced through the penalty area when Ahmed Sayed shot.
(Photo: Stefan Kleinowitz/AP)
However, Salah did not complain to the referee about the blinding attempts, instead he took measurements, ran up – and shot the ball over the goal. After Salah, every other Egyptian shooter had green lights in their faces, as did goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy when he tried to save Senegalese penalties. In the end, only one of Egypt’s four attempts found its way into the net, the result being 3-1 (1-0, 1-0) for Senegal, giving the country its third World Cup appearance. Egypt, on the other hand, who won the first leg 1-0, sank into mourning, with Salah the darker figure.
Because there is a history behind his missed shot: in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations in early February, there had already been a showdown on penalties against Senegal. At that time, Salah had been chosen as the fifth shooter and then had to watch his team-mates give up the chance to win before he was allowed to take the point. The Egyptian national team had learned their lessons from this supposed mistake and now sent Salah first. So he became a tragic figure early on. His Liverpool teammate Sadio Mané, on the other hand, became a hero – as in the Africa Cup of Nations final, he converted the last and decisive penalty.
However, this fact did not shake Salah’s central role in this drama. Because the Egyptian association complained that the Liverpool FC player in particular had become the victim of further attacks. “The Egyptian national team was racistly attacked by offensive signs in the stands against the Egyptian players in general and Mohamed Salah in particular,” the federation wrote on Instagram. In addition, bottles and stones were thrown at the Egyptian players during the warm-up. Bottle throws could be observed at least during the game. According to the association, the buses were attacked even before the game, and the attacks led to “broken windows and injuries,” the association wrote. Fifa announced that it would investigate the incidents.
Spectators leave a trail of chaos at Nigeria’s national stadium in Abuja.
(Photo: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP)
A major outbreak of violence erupted in Nigeria as hundreds of spectators stormed the pitch after the 1-1 draw with Ghana, which cost Nigeria their place at the World Cup after the 0-0 draw in the first leg due to the away goals rule still in force there. The mob ravaged the field, attacking players from both teams. In the chaos, the African Federation’s doping officer, Joseph Kabungo, died. The exact cause is still unclear.
Cameroon secured a World Cup ticket with a 2-1 win in Algeria with a goal in four minutes of extra time after Bayern striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting had scored an earlier goal. Tunisia and Morocco are also in Qatar.