Mohamed Salah may face time on the sidelines after limping off towards the end of Egypt’s 4-1 friendly win over Swaziland with what has been described as a “muscle strain”.
The Liverpool forward scored direct from a corner in the African Nations Cup qualifier in Cairo before appearing to suffer a hamstring injury.
Egypt assistant Hany Ramzy moved to ease fears over the 26-year-old’s fitness post-match by insisting it was “not a big injury”.
📽 HIGHLIGHTS .. Egypt 4-1 eSwatini
MD3 – Group J #AFCON2019Q pic.twitter.com/0SzbJkvp7R— CAF (@CAF_Online) October 12, 2018
“The initial diagnosis confirmed that the injury is a muscle strain and there is no possibility of muscle rupture,” Ramzy is quoted as saying by www.yallakora.com.
“The player needs to have radiation to determine the injury and the duration of his absence.
“It is not a big injury, we support him with all our energy and we hope he will return without being affected by an injury as soon as possible.”
Salah, who hit 44 goals for Liverpool in all competitions last term, has struggled for form so far this season.
The former Roma star has scored just three in 11 appearances for the Reds, who return to Premier League action against Huddersfield on October 20.
Egypt face a return fixture against Swaziland on Tuesday in Group J.
Salah netted 44 goals for the Reds last term including 32 in the Premier League. But his start to the new campaign has been considerably slower, with the Reds striker scoring only three times.
Former Liverpool centre-forward Fowler is unconcerned over Salah’s struggles.
“I think he’ll still score goals, I think he’ll still score a lot of goals,” Fowler said to Sky Sports.
“What I like about Mo Salah is that his work ethic is brilliant, he doesn’t shy away from anything. What I would be more worried about is if he wasn’t getting chances.
“He will bang the goals in. I’m not sure he’ll hit the heights he did last year but he is still a magnificent player. He will still be a danger throughout the Premier League season.
“I’m not saying he’s having a bad year so far. He’s still a good player, he’s still an excellent player but to replicate what he did last year will be unbelievable.”