Mueez Ajao
– Egypt have lodged a complaint against Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier opponents Senegal, alleging their team were subjected to racist and offensive banners, particularly winger Mohamed Salah.
– Senegal advanced to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar in a penalty shootout win after their two-legged Confederation of African Football (CAF) playoff finished 1-1 on aggregate. Salah, who was heavily targeted by laser pointers during the shootout, missed his spot kick.
– The Egyptian Football Association said in a statement that it has made a formal complaint to FIFA, CAF, the match official and security official.
Also Read: African champions Senegal beat Egypt to book ticket to Qatar
– “The Egyptian team was subjected to racism after the appearance of offensive banners in the stands aimed at the players, specifically Mohamed Salah,” the statement read.
– “Moreover the Senegalese fans terrorised the Egyptian players by throwing bottles and stones at them during the warm-up, as well as attacking the Egyptian team bus, which caused glass shattering and some injuries, which was documented with pictures and videos attached to the complaint.”
– Hosts Senegal opened the scoring on four minutes when opposing midfielder Hamdi Fathi netted an own goal after a poor clearance. Both sides missed gilt-edged chances in the second half as the game entered extra-time and then, after further deadlock, penalties.
– In the shootout, the first four penalties were wasted before Ismaila Sarr put Senegal ahead and Bamba Dieng made it 2-1. Mane hit the decisive spot kick as the hosts prevailed to book a spot at the World Cup for the third time in the country’s history.
