Controversy in the Egyptian media about the reasons for Mohamed Salah’s departure from the national team camp

أثارت مغادرة محمد صلاح معسكر المنتخب المصري خلال فترة التوقف الدولي، حالة من الجدل في الإعلام المصري، وسط تضارب الروايات حول الأسباب الحقيقية وراء رحيل قائد «الفراعنة» قبل استكمال مباريات المعسكر.

وبحسب الرواية الرسمية المتداولة في الإعلام المصري، فإن مغادرة صلاح جاءت بناءً على اتفاق مسبق بين اللاعب والجهاز الفني بقيادة حسام حسن، يقضي بإعفائه من المشاركة أمام جنوب السودان بسبب إقامة المباراة على أرضية من العشب الصناعي، قبل أن يتم الاتفاق أيضًا على غيابه عن ودية جنوب أفريقيا المقررة في الرابع من أكتوبر (تشرين الأول)، بهدف منحه الراحة وتجنب الإجهاد.

Egyptian media reports indicated that the decision was taken before the confrontation with Angola, and that Salah left the camp after completing his mission and returned to Turkey to attend Trabzonspor training and prepare for the resumption of local competitions.

But other accounts presented a different picture of what happened inside the camp, as they talked about tension that followed the goalless draw against Angola, after Hossam Hassan expressed his anger at the performance of his players inside the locker room, and blamed a number of them, including Mohamed Salah.

وبحسب تلك الروايات، لم يكن صلاح راضيًا عن بعض المواقف التي شهدتها المباراة، خصوصًا بعد استبداله في الدقيقة 61، كما تحدثت تقارير عن عدم رضاه عن بعض التصريحات التي سبقت اللقاء، ما دفعه إلى التواصل مع رئيس الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم هاني ابو ريدة قبل مغادرته المعسكر في اليوم التالي.

Some reports went further, considering that the talk about the artificial turf pitch was not the only reason behind Salah’s departure, and that a state of anger was already present for the player, while other accounts confirmed that his decision not to play the match was known from the beginning of the camp and was not related to any unforeseen dispute.

On the other hand, a story appeared denying the existence of a major crisis between Salah and Hossam Hassan, as it indicated that the duo held a private session after the Angola match to discuss what happened, and that the session ended amicably, and that Salah did not leave the camp immediately after the match, but rather stayed until the next morning.

Between a story confirming that the departure was a technical and physical decision agreed upon in advance, and another linking it to what happened inside the locker room after the confrontation with Angola, controversy remained in Egypt about the truth of what happened, in light of the absence of a direct statement from Mohamed Salah explaining the reasons for his departure from the camp.