The Egyptian King: Is Mo Salah the Greatest African Footballer of All Time?

Mo Salah: A Liverpudlian Football Legend

Mohamed Salah has solidified his status as one of the contemporary greats at Liverpool throughout his tenure at Anfield.

The Egyptian forward, acquired in 2017 from Serie A club Roma, has emerged as an offensive sensation on Merseyside, propelling the Reds to triumph in all domestic competitions, as well as the 2019 UEFA Champions League.

Despite Erling Haaland surpassing Salah’s record for the most goals in a 38-game Premier League season in 2022/23, the 32-year-old continues to etch his name in Liverpool’s history. Reds fans pray this will last for an extended period, as his contract concludes in 2025.

 Highest Scoring African Player in Champions League History

Egypt’s elite secured the decisive goal in a 2-0 home victory versus Bologna in the Champions League this past October. By achieving this, he overtook Didier Drogba as the highest-scoring African player in UCL history, amassing 45 goals in the tournament.

For context, the ten greatest African goal-scorers in the Champions League are:

• Mohamed Salah – 45 goals (83 appearances)
• Didier Drogba – 44 goals (92 appearances)
• Samuel Eto’o – 30 goals (78 appearances)
• Sadio Mane – 27 goals (64 appearances)
• Riyad Mahrez – 20 goals (55 appearances)
• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 17 goals (38 appearances)
• Seydou Doumbia – 15 goals (31 appearances)
• Vincent Aboubakar – 14 goals (23 appearances
• Sébastien Haller – 12 goals (14 appearances)
• George Weah – 11 goals (16 appearances)

By surpassing Drogba, Salah became the 15th-highest goalscorer in European Cup history and the 13th-highest since the inception of the Champions League in 1992. He is one goal shy of matching Eusebio and Filippo Inzaghi, while five additional goals would elevate him into the all-time top 10, equalling Thierry Henry.

Salah’s goal against Bologna made him the inaugural Liverpool player to score in five successive Champions League matches at Anfield. And if that doesn’t impress you enough, after assisting Alexis Mac Allister’s opening goal, he became the inaugural player to both assist and score in nine distinct Champions League matches for an English team, and his UCL assists also sit at 19 overall… Astonishing stuff!

Betting on Salah Rarely Fails

Mohamed Salah improves with age, having scored 8 Premier League goals in 11 matches this season and 3 further goals in the Champions League, EFL Cup, and friendly matches.

Salah’s current scoring average in the Premier League is 0.75 goals per 90 minutes. If he maintains this rate, he is expected to score several goals in his next three top-flight matches, sustaining his popularity among enthusiastic sports bettors.

When it comes to any time goalscorer and assist markets at popular online bookmakers, Salah sits atop the common go-to player alongside the likes of Erling Haaland. In fact, he has the most assists in the top 20 goal scorers of the Premier League currently (6) but also sits as the second-highest goal scorer (8), just below Haaland (12).

A Closer Look at Mo Salah’s Incredible Career Records

Salah has netted 223 goals for Liverpool across 369 matches in all competitions.

Salah achieved his highest goal tally during his inaugural season, the 2017/18 campaign, when he collaborated effectively with Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, culminating in a berth in the 2018 Champions League final.

Since then, he has secured every club trophy attainable by Liverpool, achieving their inaugural victory in the modern Premier League in 2020 and the domestic cup double in 2022. He secured the Champions League title in 2019 and advanced to another final in 2022.

Salah has secured eight trophies in total with the Reds, and at 32 years old, with Liverpool experiencing their most successful season since 2022, he is poised to continue accumulating trophies and setting records.

 Eighth-Highest Scorer in Premier League History

Salah continues to ascend among the EPL top 10 all-time goal scorers, yet attaining the No. 1 position necessitates a substantial extension at Liverpool. Alan Shearer is at the forefront with 260 EPL goals. However, at the current rate of his goalscoring, Salah may ascend into the top five by 2025.

Mo Salah is ten goals behind Thierry Henry, 12 goals behind Frank Lampard, 19 goals behind Sergio Aguero, and 22 goals behind Andy Cole. At the very least, a two-year extension would likely see him enter the top five all-time EPL goal scorers. Although eighth is an incredible achievement right now, we shouldn’t be surprised if a long contract extension at Anfield would see him challenge Wayne Rooney (208) or Harry Kane (213) for a top-three spot in this list.

 

Manchester United’s Worst Nightmare

Salah has scored 14 goals in 15 encounters against Manchester United, making them his most frequent victims throughout his tenure with the Reds. No Liverpool player has scored more goals against United than Salah, who notably achieved a hat-trick in a remarkable 5-0 triumph at Old Trafford in October 2021. He has additionally achieved three other doubles against them for good measure – good luck Ruben Amorim.

Champions League Hat-trick Record

The record time for a Champions League hat-trick is 6 minutes and 12 seconds, achieved by Salah during Liverpool’s 7-1 triumph against Rangers in October 2022. Substituted in the 68th minute at Ibrox, he scored in the 75th, 80th, and 81st minutes, further enhancing his impressive record.

 Salah: The Players Player

In May 2024, Salah became the Premier League’s inaugural player to achieve ten or more goals and ten or more assists in three successive seasons. The Egyptian attained that record in the most recent season with 18 goals and ten assists in 2023-24, following 19 goals and 12 assists in 2022-23 and 23 goals and 13 assists in 2021-22. Most impressively, he’s on track to achieve this for a fourth straight season.

We can continue highlighting Salah’s record-breaking statistics and achievements all day, but by now, you should’ve taken the hint. This man doesn’t need to be boxed into the continent of Africa to describe his prowess, as he’s one of the greatest players globally to have ever graced the pitch.

Final Thoughts: Is Mo Salah the Greatest Product of African Football?

Mo Salah underperformed on his initial attempt in the Premier League with Chelsea; however, Liverpool provided him with a second opportunity, which he seized. The Egyptian King swiftly emerged as one of the most formidable strikers in the league and continues to do so to this day!

Salah is undeniably exceptional. He’s a serial Premier League Golden Boot recipient and two-time African Footballer of the Year, PFA Players’ Player of the Year, and FWA Footballer of the Year, and he’ll likely have many additions to his trophy cabinet before retirement.

The stats show it, his continued success proves it, and he isn’t done breaking records yet. To say Mo Salah is the greatest African footballer in history would be an understatement: He’s one of the greatest footballers in history, period!