Liverpool face losing Mohamed Salah earlier than expected as star to miss multiple matches

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Liverpool are in ongoing discussions with Egypt over the early release of Mohamed Salah for next month's Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco. The Reds may lose their star player sooner than expected, as Egypt plans to call him up for a mid-December friendly, potentially causing Salah to miss a crucial Premier League match against Brighton, in addition to the games he is already set to miss over the festive period.Egypt kick off their AFCON campaign on December 22 against Zimbabwe at Agadir's Adrar Stadium.

This means Salah could also miss Liverpool's game against Tottenham two days earlier. With the African tournament running from December 21 to January 18, Salah, who is the third-highest scorer in Liverpool history, could miss up to six matches, depending on how far Egypt progresses in the competition.If Egypt exit at the group stage, Salah could return for the New Year's Day match against Leeds, although a more realistic return date is considered to be the Fulham game three days later.However, if Salah participates in the pre-AFCON friendly against Nigeria on December 14, he could also miss the match against Brighton at Anfield the day before.

As the reigning champions struggle to retain their Premier League title, having already lost five matches, an extended absence for Salah would be a significant setback for head coach Arne Slot.Discussions are continuing between club and country as Liverpool prepare themselves for another AFCON tournament involving a player who has topped their scoring charts in every campaign since joining in 2017.Relations between Liverpool officials and the Egyptian Football Association remain strong, with talks underway to find a solution ahead of a crucial period for both parties next month."We are still in contact with Liverpool and Manchester City (over Omar Marmoush) at the moment for this matter," Egypt's technical director Ibrahim Hassan told winwin.Salah features on a three-man shortlist for Player of the Year at Wednesday's Confederation of African Football awards ceremony, taking place in Rabat, Morocco, and the former Roma star could receive special permission from his Anfield bosses to attend the event.The Liverpool forward, whose 29 strikes helped deliver the Reds their 20th title last season, competes against Paris Saint-Germain and Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi and Galatasaray's Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen, the 2023 winner.Salah claimed the accolade in back-to-back years during 2017 and 2018, and is targeting a fourth triumph that would draw him level with the record held by Samuel Eto'o and Yaya Toure, who have each secured the honour recognising Africa's finest footballer on four occasions.Salah will be absent from Egypt's match against Cape Verde in the United Arab Emirates on Monday evening, as confirmed by a statement from the Pharaohs that the forward is being rested.Egypt announced: "The Egyptian national football team, led by Hossam Hassan, held its training session in Al Ain in preparation for a friendly match against Cape Verde at 6pm on Monday - Cairo time - at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain, UAE."The absence of the duo Ahmed Sayed Zizo and Hamdi Fathi from the Cape Verde match due to injury was also confirmed, and Salah Mohsen underwent recovery training, in addition to giving Mohamed Salah a rest, and his non-participation in the Cape Verde friendly."Tarek Abou El-Enein and Mohamed Abou Hussein, members of the board of directors of the Football Association, attended the training session of the Egyptian national team."