Liverpool have rejected the Egyptian Football Association's request to call Mohamed Salah up for the Pharaohs' upcoming World Cup qualifiers.
Egypt have important games against Angola and Gabon at the beginning of September and were hoping to call upon their talisman’s services.
However, as reported by FilGoal, Liverpool will not be allowing Salah to travel for the fixtures. Egypt is currently on the United Kingdom’s red list, meaning the forward would have to quarantine for ten days upon his return to Merseyside.
A potential workaround, as reported by Neil Jones, could see Salah feature in his side's away match against Gabon but not play in the Angola game. The former is on the amber list so no quarantine would be required provided he does not test positive for Covid-19.
Back in March 2020 FIFA gave clubs the power to prevent their players representing their countries in an attempt to curb the spread of coronavirus. Salah is unlikely to be the last Premier League player denied permission to travel.
Liverpool will also try to stop Roberto Firmino and Fabinho jetting off next week as Brazil is also on the UK’s red list. They could be powerless to stop these players leaving, though, even if they are required to quarantine upon their return.
As reported by the Daily Mail earlier this month, the temporary amendment that allowed clubs to veto international call-ups expired in April. As a result, a whole host of South American Premier League players could travel next month.
The CONMEBOL World Cup qualification process is currently behind schedule after a whole host of games were postponed last March. As a result teams are under pressure to play and Brazil alone have named nine England-based players in their squad.
In the past footballers have often been handed exemptions from quarantine, as long as they committed to daily testing. This is unlikely to happen this time around, though, according to sources at the Department of Culture, Media & Sport.
Similar conflicts are likely to crop up during the October international break unless clearer guidelines are laid out.
Source: 90min
