25/12/2025

SPORTS THURSDAY | DEC 25, 2025

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Salah puts Reds crisis behind him Egyptian player ties African greats with Afcon scoring streak E GYPT captain Mohamed Salah has put aside his travails at Liverpool and is focused on Africa Cup of Nations suc cess with his national team, coach win the Africa Cup of Nations,” Hassan added. Salah goes into Monday’s match having last started for Liverpool in their 4-1 home loss to PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League at the end of November.

“Our national team captain Mohamed Salah becomes the first Egyptian player to score in five consecutive editions of the Africa Cup of Nations” the Egyptian FA posted on X . Liverpool’s talisman has scored in the 2017, 2019, 2021, 2023 and now 2025 editions, match ing Ivory Coast’s trio Didier Drogba, Abdoulaye Traore and Yaya Toure as well as Tunisian winger Youssef Msakni. Salah now has the chance to increase his tally with two Afcon tournaments scheduled within the next three years in 2027 and 2028. A goal in each edition would allow the Egypt international to break the record held by Cameroon’s Samuel Eto’o, Zambia’s Kalusha Bwalya and the Ghanaian duo Andre Ayew and Asamoah Gyan. The 33-year-old has scored eight goals in 20 Afcon games – four fewer than Hassan El Shazly, Egypt’s all-time top scorer in the tour nament and three fewer than his current coach Hassan. Egypt will face South Africa tomorrow (11pm Malaysian time), then take on Angola on Dec 29, as Salah aims to finally lift the Africa Cup after losing the final in 2017 and 2021. – Reuters

Hossam Hassan said on Sunday. Egypt’s talisman is at the tournament in Morocco on the back of a fiery outburst after being dropped by the Premier League champi ons, but his comments and subsequent apol ogy to teammates have had no impact on his form, Hassan said ahead of Egypt’s opening Group B match against Zimbabwe in Agadir on Monday. “Salah’s morale in training is very high, as if he were just starting out with the national team, and I believe he will have a great tournament with his country,” said the coach. At 33, it is arguably Salah’s last chance to win an elusive trophy with Egypt and add interna tional honours to an impressive collection of medals at club level. “I believe Salah will be among the best play ers at the tournament and he will remain an icon and one of the best players in the world. “I support him technically and morally, because we cannot forget that Salah needs to

He was dropped for the next game against West Ham United and after a draw with Leeds United on Dec 6 lashed out at the club and Liverpool coach Arne Slot, telling journalists he felt he had been made a scapegoat for their poor start to the season and suggested that he may not have long left at Anfield. Hassan said he had kept in touch with his captain throughout the controversy. “There was constant communication with Mohamed Salah during what I don’t want to call a crisis because any player can have a differ ence of opinion with his coach at his club.” Salah has not scored since Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Aston Villa at the start of November, including an outing with Egypt in a friendly against Uzbekistan last month. “The same situation happened with Salah when he went through a period of not scoring goals with Liverpool,” Hassan told reporters. “Then he returned to the right path through

the national team and as a result he came back at a level even better than before. I believe he will deliver a strong tournament alongside his teammates.” On Monday, Salah became the first Egyptian player to score in five consecutive editions of the African Cup of Nations with his late strike in a 2-1 win over Zimbabwe. Egypt’s captain fired home a left-footed effort in the 91st minute to give the seven-time champions a late victory and Hossam Hassan’s side a comfortable start in Morocco, setting a new record for Egypt.

Senegal, Nigeria start Afcon campaigns with wins

Mujica’s hattrick keeps Al-Sadd’s ACL hopes alive QATAR’S Al-Sadd staged a late fightback to claim a 4-2 victory over Shabab Al-Ahli in Doha yesterday, earning Roberto Mancini a first win in the Asian Champions League Elite as head coach and keeping the team’s slim hopes of a place in the last 16 alive. Subsitute Rafa Mujica scored a hattrick, including striking twice in stoppage time, as Al-Sadd overcame a two-goal deficit to pick up a win that moves them onto five points from six matches in the western league phase of the competition. “I’m happy for the team, for the three points,” said Mujica. “We needed these three points. “For a striker it’s always important to score a goal for the confidence, but at the moment I don’t care about that, it’s important that we won the three points.” Al-Sadd still sit 10th in the 12 team standings – outside the qualification places for the last 16 – but they are now only two points behind eighth-placed Sharjah FC with two league-phase matches remaining. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad moved up to sixth in the standings with a 1-0 win over Nasaf from Uzbekistan in Jeddah. – Reuters

Congo’s Theo Bongonda (right) scores a goal in front of Benin’s goalkeeper Saturnin Allagbe (No. 16) during their Afcon Group D match yesterday. – AFPPIC

NICOLAS JACKSON scored twice as much-fancied Senegal began their Africa Cup of Nations bid with a convincing 3-0 win over Botswana on Tuesday, while Nigeria’s Super Eagles made harder work of their opening match against Tanzania before claiming a 2-1 victory yesterday. Elsewhere, there were also wins for the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tunisia as the first round of group matches continued in Morocco, often in torrential rain. Senegal, champions in 2022, are perhaps the biggest threat to Morocco’s chances of winning the title on home soil and the Lions of

the last Cup of Nations and are also hoping to qualify for the 2026 World Cup – they will do so if they win a playoff against New Caledonia or Jamaica in March. Senegal edged out the Leopards to top their World Cup qualifying group and the teams now renew their rivalry in Tangier on Saturday (11pm Malaysian time), while Benin and Botswana (8.30pm) will look to open their accounts as they clash the same day. Nigeria’s next Group C outing will be on Sunday (4am) against Tunisia, who top the section after easing to a 3-1 win against Uganda at the Rabat Olympic Stadium. – AFP

lads wanted the victory. They played really well.” Senegal are level on three points at the top of the group with DR Congo, who edged out Benin 1-0 at Al Medina Stadium in Rabat. Theo Bongonda of Spartak Moscow pounced to score the win ner on 16 minutes after the Benin defence left a long ball, while a Cedric Bakambu effort was ruled out for offside early in the second half. “It was a very difficult match. I didn’t really know anything about Benin but they are a really good side,” said Bongonda. DR Congo were semifinalists at

Teranga made light work of Botswana in their Group D opener in Tangier. Jackson, who is currently on loan at Bayern Munich from Chelsea, struck either side of halftime with Cherif Ndiaye completing the scor ing late on. It was a predictable outcome to the first match of the tournament for both teams as Senegal are 119 places above Botswana in the world rankings. “The players did the job. We know how important it is to start well in a tournament,” said Senegal coach Pape Thiaw. “You could see how much the

Sudan coach Appiah seeks to bring Africa Cup joy amid conflict

SUDAN’S coach James Kwesi Appiah aims to turn the Africa Cup of Nations into a source of joy amid war for the Sudanese people, vowing that every player will give their all to achieve success in the continental tournament in Morocco. Sudan has been in the grip of conflict between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces since April 2023, with around 150,000 people killed and almost 14 million dis

Sudan’s biggest teams – Al Hilal and Al Merrikh, as well as Al Ahli Wad Madani – will par ticipate in the Rwandan league next season. Sudan captain Bakhit Khamis said that while the situation at home was catastrophic, the side were happy to be in Morocco for the tourna ment. “The situation Sudan is going through is truly disastrous in every sense of the word. Thank God we managed to qualify,” he said. – Reuters

“We are here to make sure we do our best to entertain everyone who comes to the stadium.” The coach said that even as he carries out his tactical job, sometimes they learn that a team member has lost someone in their family due to the conflict. But they remain patient, he said, as they aim to make every Sudanese proud. “We all know there has been no league in Sudan for the past three years, but we make sure the team represents itself very well.”

placed, creating the largest displacement crisis in the world. Ghana-born coach Appiah, however, suc ceeded in steering the team to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations despite having to play all their qualifying matches away from home. “I’m happy that Sudan is part of such a big tournament,” Appiah said. “We all know there’s a war in Sudan, and I believe this tournament will put some smiles on the faces of all Sudanese.