Mohamed Salah has spent his career shattering records at Liverpool, but there’s one achievement that has consistently eluded him: AFCON glory. As Egypt marches into the knockout stages of AFCON 2025, their talisman is not only in red-hot form but also rewriting his own tournament history.
With two goals already in the group stage—matching his best-ever AFCON tally—Salah has shown that he’s arrived in Morocco with unfinished business. His 91st-minute winner against Zimbabwe was vintage Salah: positioned perfectly, clinical in execution, and delivered when his team needed it most. His penalty conversion against South Africa demonstrated composure under pressure, helping Egypt secure their passage to the Round of 16.
What makes this AFCON particularly intriguing for Salah is the context. Egypt, seven-time champions and the most successful nation in the tournament’s history, last won in 2010. For a player of Salah’s global stature, the absence of an AFCON trophy remains the glaring omission in an otherwise glittering career. He’s conquered Europe with Liverpool, broken countless Premier League records, and established himself as one of the greatest African players ever—yet continental glory with the Pharaohs has remained frustratingly out of reach.
The 2021 final still stings. Egypt fell to Senegal on penalties, with Salah watching his teammates miss from the spot before he could take his turn. It was heartbreak of the cruelest kind for a player who carries his nation’s hopes on his shoulders.
Egypt’s manager opted to rest Salah for their final group match, a strategic decision that speaks volumes about the long-term planning for this campaign. The Pharaohs aren’t just thinking about progressing—they’re thinking about peaking at the right moment. With Salah fresh and firing, they become exponentially more dangerous.
Benin awaits Egypt in the Round of 16, a match that Egypt should navigate comfortably on paper. But AFCON has taught us that paper means little when the knockout rounds begin. Egypt will need Salah at his brilliant best if they’re to navigate what could be a treacherous path to the final.
At 32 years old, Salah knows that opportunities to win AFCON are finite. This might be his best remaining chance to add the one trophy that would complete his African football legacy. Every goal, every assist, every moment of magic will be scrutinized not just for what it means in the present, but for what it could mean to his place in Egyptian football immortality.
The stage is set. The hunger is evident. Can Mohamed Salah finally deliver Egypt’s eighth AFCON title and cement his status as the greatest African player of his generation? The knockout rounds will provide the answer.
