How Ramos turned Egyptians' long-awaited hooray into drama

CAIRO – 31 May 2018: As people gathered in squares, homes, cafés and bars in preparation for the Champions League final, one man was on minds of people the world over: Mohamed Salah. No-one could have predicted how the match would unfold. What is certain is from May 26, 9:15 p.m., the Egyptian people will never look towards Real Madrid’s Spanish defender, Sergio Ramos, in the same way again. Ramos’ name has been on the lips of fans around the world after robbing Mohamed Salah of his Champions League final dream, and possibly of playing in the World Cup with Egypt.

Egyptians, Arabs, Africans, Muslims and almost all fans of the beautiful game were praying for Salah to lead his team to win the most prestigious club title in Europe, and the world. Success would continue his path to secure nomination for the FIFA Player of the Year award at the Best FIFA Football Awards.



Salah has had a stunning debut season with Liverpool, scoring 44 goals in all competitions, including 32 goals in the Premier League where he was crowned top scorer, and awarded the golden boot. The 25-year-old shined this season at the UEFA Champions League, scoring 10 goals in all matches. His best performance came against his former club in the first leg of the semi-finals, where he scored two goals and provided two assists to lead his team to a 5-2 win. Before the game, the Egyptian King was expected to be a strong contender for the Ballon d’Or award, with the Champions League title being a notable marker.

Egyptian fans packed the famous squares in Cairo, where all seats in the cafes were reserved hours before the game, and they hoped for an amazing Ramadan night watching Salah concluding his blissful season. National pride was high, with this being the final game before re-joining the Egyptian national team’s camp in preparation for the World Cup.

Football fans around the world, except those loyal to Madrid, wanted to see a new champion lifting the world most prestigious club trophy. Real Madrid had lifted the trophy on three occasions in the previous four, drawing the neutral support towards Liverpool and their talisman.




Egyptian people consider Salah as the person who, at every moment of this season, has brought them joy and dreams. Not only did the Egyptian King score goals for the Merseyside club in both the Premier League and the Champions League, clinching more than 35 individual awards with Liverpool, he notably also helped Egypt qualify for the 2018 World Cup for the first time in 28 years. Egyptian players’ market value has shot up as clubs are now looking for their Salah replica.

Everyone said that Saturday would be a festive night, until the clock-hand hit 21:15 and a dark cloud passed over. Before the first 30 minutes of the match yet up, Real Madrid’s captain Sergio Ramos ended Salah’s fairytale. In a shameful move by Sergio Ramos, he intentionally wrapped the Egyptian's arm and pulled him down awkwardly on his shoulder. As soon as the action occurred, the severity of the situation could be seen. Salah tried to return to the field, but only lasted a short time before being substituted. Salah, Liverpool’s talisman in the final, ended up in tears and retiring early. His team lost the final and his World Cup hopes are endangered.




Despite Ramos’ history with Real Madrid is full of pride and trophies but his red cards’ record shows his aggressive way of dealing with opponents. Ramos is one of the most players in La Liga who sent off with a record 19 times; twice any other player in Real Madrid history.

Mostly, football fans saw Ramos’ action as deliberate; he knew what he was doing. Dragging Salah’s arm, holding it and dropping his body over has been viewed by many as absolutely despicable. Ramos’ name trended on Twitter and Facebook immediately right after the action, with people hurling abuse at the Spaniard. Salah’s visible agony and clearly devastated exit from the pitch aggravated fans who lashed out at the Spanish defender.

Egyptian people were furious about the action, with some galling him the "butcher" (gazar, in Arabic). They posted picture of Salah lying on the ground with gestures of pain, and the headlines:



"One night when the Egyptians cried, Ramos the butcher dislocated Salah's shoulder."

"May God be in charge, Ramos, who, in their opinion, hit Momo (Salah) on purpose to get him out of the game."

“Sergio Ramos is a thug. To clearly target a fellow professional player with the aim of injuring him early in a Champions League final, ahead of a World Cup... Words fail me.”

“No way of knowing whether Ramos on Salah was deliberate but if I wanted to dislocate someone’s shoulder, that’s how I’d go about it.”
Others expressed their relief after Salah’s preliminary medical report was optimistic about his chances of recovering in time for the World Cup of Russia 2018.

Salah said, as he told his family in a phone call early Sunday, that the preliminary medical checks showed that he does not suffer from a shoulder dislocation or any other serious injuries that will prevent him from joining the World Cup on June 14.

Egyptian Football Association (EFA) president, Hany Abo Reida, denied reports claiming that Salah will be absent for two months, stressing that nothing has been confirmed yet.

However, Liverpool’s medical staff believes that Salah will have to face three or four weeks of absence, which threatens his participation in the very important game against Uruguay , Egypt’s first game at the World Cup, scheduled for June 14 in Russia.