Mohamed Salah protected by military after being targeted in pitch invasion
- Salah was targeted by pitch invaders late in Egypt's 2-0 win over Sierra Leone
- Officials in military uniforms escorted Salah off the pitch
- Punches were thrown as security attempted to remove the pitch invaders
By Tom Gott
Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah was targeted by pitch invaders late in Egypt's 2-0 win over Sierra Leone and was ultimately ushered away by officials in military clothing.
Trabzonspor forward Trezeguet had already struck twice to seal Egypt's victory when, in the 89th minute, a number of fans began rushing the pitch in Salah's direction.
The first fan, wearing a Liverpool shirt, appeared to calmly approach Salah before a handful of other supporters charged towards the 31-year-old, sparking a major response from the security on hand at Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Stadium.
Officials in hi-vis jackets flew on to the pitch to apprehend the invaders and were even seen throwing punches at fans who had been tackled to the ground, while Salah himself was escorted away by what appeared to be military officials.
A large group led Salah down the tunnel, with the Liverpool forward appearing to leave the incident unscathed.
Khaled Al-Dirandali, the vice-president of the Egyptian FA, admitted after the game he did not feel the fans wanted to hurt Salah.
"I felt worried after more than one fan came on to the field because the number of police on the field was small, but thank God, God covered them," he told OnTime Sports.
"It was not intentional because they wanted to shake hands with Mohamed Salah, but it could have caused harm."
Salah, who netted four in a 6-0 win over Djibouti earlier in the week, will be back in action for Liverpool when they take on Manchester City on Saturday at 12:30 (GMT).
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