'Egyptian King' Salah set for World Cup swansong

Mohamed Salah has been included in Egypt's squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, marking what could be the final chapter for one of Africa's greatest international football careers.

For nearly 15 years, Salah has carried the hopes of a football-obsessed nation on his shoulders, transforming himself from a gifted winger into the face of Egyptian football.

His rise and pedigree as one of the Premier League's greatest-ever players and the driving force behind Liverpool's modern era of success also helped shift perceptions of African footballers globally.

It placed an Egyptian player firmly at the center of football's biggest conversations during a period when he was constantly in contention for some of the sport’s most coveted individual honors.

And as Egypt prepares for what could be Salah's final international tournament, attention is beginning to shift toward what comes next, and whether the Pharaohs are finally ready to move beyond an era defined almost entirely by the 33-year-old.

Since making his senior debut in 2011, Salah has become Egypt's all-time leading scorer, captain and leader, combining blistering pace, relentless consistency and decisive goals to drag the national team back onto football's biggest stages.

Perhaps his defining international moment came during the 2018 World Cup qualifiers, where he scored a dramatic late penalty against Congo to send Egypt to their first World Cup in 28 years, sparking nationwide celebration.

At the Africa Cup of Nations, Salah twice came agonizingly close to delivering Egypt's record-extending eighth continental title.

The Pharaohs finished runners-up in both 2017 and 2021, losing to Cameroon and Senegal respectively, with Salah often the inspiration behind these runs.

Even without major silverware, his impact on Egyptian football has been immense. His golden club career in Europe inspired a new generation of players back home to believe they could succeed on the world stage.

He won back-toback CAF African Player of the Year awards in 2017 and 2018, becoming the first Egyptian in 35 years to claim the honor after Mahmoud El Khatib in 1983.

Salah, nicknamed the 'Egyptian King', also finished runner-up for the award on multiple occasions, underlining his elite longevity and earning him continental recognition as Africa's outstanding player of his generation.

Even as new stars emerged from across the continent, Egypt's captain remained the benchmark for excellence and the standard against which African attackers were measured for much of the past decade.

However, his importance to the national team also exposed a long-running problem: Egypt frequently appeared over-reliant on him.

For years, much of the team's attacking identity revolved around Salah's movement, creativity and goals. When he struggled, Egypt often struggled too.

That reality now makes the transition into the post-Salah era both inevitable and necessary.

There are signs, however, that a new core is beginning to emerge.

Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush has increasingly looked capable of becoming Egypt's next attacking leader, offering pace, direct running and tactical versatility across the front line. Midfielder Emam Ashour and winger Ibrahim Adel are also widely viewed as some of Egypt's brightest talents while defensively, Mohamed Abdelmonem has also emerged as a reliable presence.

Still, replacing Salah will likely take time and the Pharaohs may never again have a player quite like him.