Mohamed Salah slammed for returning to Liverpool during AFCON

Mohamed Salah has been slammed for returning to Liverpool for treatment on his injury while Egypt are still playing at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Salah was substituted with a hamstring injury during the first half of Egypt's 2-2 draw with Ghana on Thursday.

On Monday the Liverpool star watched from the stands as his teammates secure a place in the last-16 with a 2-2 draw with Cape Verde, but he is expected to return to Liverpool imminently for treatment.

It was first reported that Salah would rejoin the Egypt squad in time for the quarter-finals - should they get that far - but there are fears that his injury is more serious than first thought.

Ahead of the Cape Verde game Salah held a rare press conference in an attempt to defuse the club vs country tension.

However, many Egyptian supporters feel he is turning his back on his national team at the moment they need him most.

Now, legendary Egypt striker Ahmed Hassan has slammed Salah's decision to leave the national team camp.

"I’ve always backed Salah and I was very happy with his presence as captain of the Egyptian national team," Hassan told the Mirror.

"I had no problems with what he said, but it turned out that he was plotting his departure from the Egypt camp.

Mohamed Salah is currently injured (credit: Getty)

"Do the AFCON regulations allow a player to leave the national team’s camp and come back again? He had the possibility of bringing in someone from Liverpool’s medical staff to be with him during the competition. Again, he is the captain. He should stay with the team no matter what, even if he only had one leg to stand on.

"He even said himself that it’s the Egyptian national team, not Salah’s national team, and this is true. We have confidence in all the players who are there and they must fight for the title."

Egypt scraped into the last-16 after conceding a late equaliser to Cape Verde, but Ghana's late collapse against Mozambique saw them through.

The Pharoahs will play their first knockout tie on Sunday, January 28.

Topics: Mohamed Salah, Egypt, Africa Cup Of Nations, Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp

Alex Brotherton

Alex Brotherton is a Sports Trends Writer at SPORTbible. He has previously worked with publications including the Manchester Evening News, GOAL and BBC Sport. He is a football fanatic, but also dabbles in tennis and American football. He enjoys running, cooking and watching non-league football.

@alex_brotherton