Mohamed Salah
From TheChels.info - The Chelsea Football Club Wiki
| Mohamed Salah | |
| |
| Full Name | Mohamed Salah Ghaly |
| Date of Birth | 15 June 1992 |
| Place of Birth | El Gharbia, Egypt |
| Position | Midfielder Winger |
| Chelsea career | 2014 – 2016 |
| Debut | 8 February 2014 |
| Games (goals) | 19 (2) |
| Other clubs | El Mokawloon FC Basel ACF Fiorentina (loan) AS Roma |
Mohamed Salah Ghaly (born 15 June 1992 in Basion, El Gharbia,) is an Egyptian international attacking midfielder who signed for Chelsea in January 2014 from FC Basel. Known for his searing pace, [1] he was the first Egyptian to play for Chelsea.
He is currently on loan at AS Roma, who in October 2015 activated their right to make the deal a permanent one.
Contents |
Before Chelsea
El Mokawloon
Salah began his career with Egyptian Premier League side El Mokawloon Sporting Club, officially known as Arab Contractors SC, based in Nasr City, Cairo. He made his senior league debut in May 2010 and during the 2010-11 season, while aged 18, he broke into the first team. He started every match in 2011-12, although the season was cut short after the Port Said Stadium disaster in February 2012; a massive riot in which at least 79 people were killed and more than 1,000 were injured. The season was postponed and later cancelled.
FC Basel
Following the cancellation of the remainder of the Egyptian Premier League season, FC Basel, who had been monitoring Salah's progress, organised a friendly match against Egypt's Under-23 side. The match took place on 16 March in Basel, and despite only playing during the second half the young winger scored twice, helping his side to a 4-3 win. The Swiss side subsequently invited Salah to train with their squad, and on 10 April 2012 the club announced that he would sign for the club on a four-year contract.
Salah made 49 appearances in all competitions during the 2012-13 season, scoring 10 goals. His side won the Swiss championship, in addition to reaching the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League, where they faced Chelsea. Salah had scored against Tottenham Hotspur in the previous round, and also scored against the Blues, although his goal just before half time in the second leg turned out to be a mere consolation as Chelsea responded with three goals in the second half, progressing 5-2 on aggregate having won 2-1 in the first leg. The Egyptian international would face Chelsea again the following season in the 2013-14 UEFA Champions League group stage. Despite eventually topping the group, Chelsea were beaten in both legs by the Swiss champions, Salah scoring in both matches as the Blues suffered a shock 2-1 home defeat before losing 1-0 in Basel in the reverse fixture.
Ahead of the 2014 January transfer window, Salah's performances had reportedly attracted attention from Premier League clubs according to the English media, including Tottenham Hotspur [2] and Liverpool. [3] By mid-January the latter seemed poised to complete a deal for the 21-year-old, [4] but Chelsea entered the market for the player on 23 January and swiftly agreed a fee with Basel.
Chelsea career
On 23 January 2014 Chelsea announced that they had reached an agreement with Basel for Salah's transfer, with the fee reported to be in the region of £11m. The club confirmed that the deal had been complete three days later. [5] He made his debut as a substitute on 8 February, in a 3-0 win against Newcastle United. As a young player joining from overseas, manager José Mourinho stressed that Salah would require six months to adapt to English football, [6] and the Egyptian international was subsequently used sparingly. He scored his first goal for Chelsea in a resounding 6-0 win against Arsenal, scoring the final goal of the rout having come on as a second half substitute.
First team opportunities were scarce in the first half of the 2014-15 season, forcing Mohamed to look for alternative arrangements. He joined Fiorentina in a move that effectively saw him replace Juan Cuadrado (as well as the departing loanee Marko Marin and duly exploded into life, scoring a series of spectacular solo goals.
Statistics
| Season | Club | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| 2013-14 | Chelsea | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| 2014-15 | Chelsea | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 2014-15 | Fiorentina (loan) | 16 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 9 |
| 2015-16 | AS Roma (loan) | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 |
| Chelsea | 13 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 2 | |
| Total | 35 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 14 | |
(Correct as of Roma triggering their right to buy)
Goals
| # | Season | Date | Year | Competition | Opponent | Score | Result | Venue |
| 1 | 2013-14 | 22 March | 2014 | Premier League | Arsenal | 6-0 | 6-0 | Stamford Bridge |
| 2 | 2013-14 | 05 April | 2014 | Premier League | Stoke City | 1-0 | 3-0 | Stamford Bridge |
International
Salah represented Egypt at U-20 and U-23 level, competing in the 2011 FIFA Under-20 World Cup and the 2012 Olympics in London. Almost a year prior to the latter tournament he had made his senior debut, playing in a 2-1 defeat to Sierra Leone in September 2011. By the time he joined Chelsea at the age of 21 he had won 27 caps for his country, scoring 17 goals.
