Doubts over the fitness of Mohamed Salah has not dissuaded fans from believing the Egyptian superstar will finish the World Cup as the top-scorer.
The Liverpool forward is back in training after injuring his shoulder in the Champions League final at the end of last month, but Egyptian officials are keen not to rush him back and are being coy over his return date. He has an outside chance of facing Uruguay on Friday but a more realistic target is the games against Russia and Saudi Arabia, two matches against the lowest ranked sides in the competition when Salah could fill his goalscoring boots.
He had a hand in all seven of Egypt's goals in qualifying, scoring five and creating two — and football followers are expecting him to add to his international tally of 33 in 57 games.
He tops the table of who fans think will be the highest goal scorer at the tournament, with one in six (17 percent) fans across the 11 countries surveyed in a YouGov Omnibus/SMG Insight believing he will win the Golden Boot. His figures are boosted by significant support from home: 52 percent of Egyptian football followers say he will take the prize won by James Rodriguez in 2014. Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is in second place (15 percent) followed by Barcelona Lionel Messi in third (13 percent).
The Arab world is represented by four nations, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt — and there is huge optimism among football fans in the Middle East and North Africa that one of them could go all the way. One in five (21 percent) Moroccan fans with an opinion believe their side will win, despite sports data firm Gracenote giving them just a one per cent chance of lifting the World Cup. The Moroccans go into the tournament on the back of an 18-match unbeaten run. Likewise, 19 percent of Egyptians think their side will win and 14 percent of Saudi Arabians expect success (Gracenote put the odds for both teams lifting the trophy at 0%).
The most avid followers, according to the survey, can be found in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, where 41 percent and 40 percent respectively of those with an interest in football say they intend to watch “all or most” of the matches.
Mohamed Salah backed to finish World Cup as winner of the Golden Boot
Mohamed Salah backed to finish World Cup as winner of the Golden Boot
- Egyptian beats Ronaldo and Messi in top-scorer poll
- Hopes are high that an Arab nation could go deep into the tournament
Racist chants target Vinícius Jr before Real Madrid’s Copa del Rey clash
- A group gathering near the stadium in the city of Albacete chanted abuse about the 25-year-old
- “Enough of this racism, it’s completely shameful,” Albacete posted on social media
ALBACETE, Spain: Racist chants against Real Madrid’s much-abused Brazilian forward Vinícius Jr were heard outside the Carlos Belmonte stadium on Wednesday ahead of a Copa del Rey tie against second division side Albacete.
A group gathering near the stadium in the city of Albacete chanted abuse about the 25-year-old, who has repeatedly suffered racism in Spain during games.
“Enough of this racism, it’s completely shameful. It’s not the image that represents the people of Albacete or the club,” Albacete posted on social media.
Vinícius was named in Álvaro Arbeloa’s starting line-up for the round of 16 cup game, his first match in charge as Real Madrid manager since the exit of Xabi Alonso.
In May 2025, five people received prison sentences in a landmark first ruling in Spain that condemned racist insults in a soccer stadium as a hate crime after Vinícius was abused during Real Madrid’s 2-0 victory over Real Valladolid in 2022.
There have been 18 legal complaints of racist behavior against Vinicius since 2022. Real Madrid had no immediate comment on Wednesday’s latest incident.
Vinicius has in the past expressed disappointment with what he describes as inadequate responses from governing bodies.
