Mohamed Salah has recovered from a shoulder injury and will play in Egypt’s World Cup opener against Uruguay, coach Hector Cuper said on Thursday.
"I can almost 100 percent say he will play, save for any unforeseen factors at the last minute," Cuper said.
Egypt play Uruguay on Friday in Yekaterinburg in just the second game of the tournament, following Russia against Saudi Arabia in the opening match later Thursday.
The Liverpool star, who has been battling to recover from a shoulder injury sustained in a tussle with Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos during last month’s Champions League final, trained with the rest of the Egypt squad for the first time on Wednesday.
Salah, who turns 26 on the day of the game, is one of the biggest names at the World Cup and crucial to the north African side’s hopes of making it out of a weak-looking Group A also featuring the hosts and Saudi Arabia.
"We’re trying to make him feel confident. The doctors are giving him the options to play or not. I know Salah very well, he’s not fearful, we always know we’re running a risk when playing a match, that’s something we can’t hide.
"But if he does decide to play he’ll have full guarantees on his physical condition and I’m sure he will be fine. And if it does turn out there’s an issue at the last minute we’ll consider it and see if it can be resolved," Hector Cuper added.
Salah, who scored 44 goals for Liverpool last season.
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