Mohamed Salah had the last laugh over Cameroon captain Vincent Aboubakar as Egypt booked their place in this weekendâs Africa Cup of Nations final.After a gruelling 120 minutes of football, the semi-final was eventually decided on penalties.Aboubakar, whoâd been critical of Salah in the build-up to this match, successfully converted the first spot-kick. However, Cameroonâs next three penalties were all missed, which allowed Egypt to set-up a mouth-watering final against Senegal this weekend.With six goals, Aboubakar is likely to finish as the tournamentâs leading goalscorer.
What did Vincent Aboubakar say about Mo Salah?
But eyebrow-raising comments he made about Salah in the build-up to the semi-finals came back to haunt him.
âHe doesnât impress me muchâ Aboubakar told Than24, per the Daily Mail. âI say it clearly because Iâm an honest person and I have my way of seeing things.
âIf he impressed me, I would say so. But he doesnât impress me much.
âHeâs a good player, he scores a lot but he doesnât produce a lot of stuff in the game.â
The 30-year-old striker, who plies his trade at club level for Saudi Arabian outfit Al Nassr, added: âOf course, heâs doing good stuff in the Premier League because heâs been in a team thatâs been there for years. Heâs a good player but not at the level of some like (Kylian) Mbappe.â
These critical comments felt wholly unnecessary, not to mention risky.
Salah and his teammates wouldnât have required further motivation to beat Cameroon and seal their place in the final, but Aboubakar may well have provided some.
Salah also appeared to be in no mood to stick around for a second handshake with Aboubakar after the coin toss and who can blame him?
Salah was buzzing after the match, Aboubakar was not
Footage from the mixed zone after the match showed a dejected Aboubakar was in no mood to talk about Salah, or anything else for that matter:
A buzzing Salah, on the other hand, came running through the mixed zone past the assembled group of journalists.
He said it felt âunbelievableâ to reach the AFCoN final with Egypt but that was his only comment.
The Liverpool superstar had just played 120 minutes of football but it looked like he was ready to run a marathon. Incredible.
Mohamed Salah vs Sadio Mane
Salah will, of course, now meet his Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane in the AFCoN final on Sunday evening.
Egypt and Senegal go head-to-head for the title of champions of Africa at the Olembe Stadium in Yaounde.
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