Mohamed Salah targeted by pitch invaders during Egypt match; escorted off by men in military uniforms
By Ben Church, CNN
(CNN) — Mohamed Salah was escorted off the pitch by men in military uniforms at the end of Egypt’s World Cup qualifier against Sierra Leone after pitch invaders targeted the Liverpool star on Sunday.
In the 89th minute of the match, with Egypt 2-0 up, footage on social media shows stewards in high-vis yellow jackets running onto the pitch and tackling a pitch invader close to where Salah was standing.
Stewards could then be seen throwing punches at the perpetrator on the floor, before guiding him off the pitch at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in Paynesville, Liberia.
Simultaneously, at least one other spectator attempted to reach Salah, but was chased away by stadium staff and some of the Egyptian forward’s teammates.
In another video on social media, a shirtless Salah could be seen being escorted off the pitch by men in military uniform, while some people tried to take selfies with the star.
The 31-year-old Salah appeared to be undisturbed by what had happened and looked calm as he walked off the pitch.
CNN reached out to the Confederation of African Football, FIFA, the Egyptian FA and the Sierra Leone soccer federation for comment but had not received a response at time of publication.
Salah hasn’t publicly spoken about the pitch invasion on social media, though he posted an Instagram picture on Monday, with a picture of a young mascot looking up slightly in awe of the Egyptian international before the game started.
The match was also eventful, with Sierra Leone finishing the game with nine men after two red cards.
Meanwhile, a brace from Trézéguet secured Egypt’s 2-0 win as it continued its impressive start to the qualifying campaign.
It sits unbeaten at the top of Group A after two matches, having previously thrashed Djibouti 6-0 on Thursday.
Salah will now return to Liverpool ahead of a much-anticipated match against Manchester City in the Premier League on Saturday.
CNN reached out to Liverpool for comment on the incident but had not received a response by time of publication.
The-CNN-Wire
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