LIVERPOOL – Liverpool Muslim star Mohamed Salah has won the Premier League Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year award for 2017-18, beating Manchester City trio Kevin de Bruyne, Leroy Sane, and David Silva in the vote by his fellow players.
“It’s an honor and especially as it’s voted by the players. I am happy and proud,” Salah said, BBC reported.
“I didn’t have my chance at Chelsea. It was clear I would return and show everyone my football. I think I left and came back a different person, man, and player.”
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said he was “happy to have the opportunity” of being Salah’s manager and added it was an “unbelievable honor” to win the award.
“It’s been a fantastic ride but we still have games to go,” Klopp said. “But please grab the trophy and come home. We play on Tuesday!”
Salah has scored 31 goals in 33 Premier League games for Klopp’s free-scoring Liverpool side and leads the race for the golden boot.
Hailing from a Muslim-majority country, Salah is a devout Muslim who often prostrates to God on the field after scoring goals – a trend in sports that Egyptian players have started since 2006 during the African Cup of Nations in Egypt- hence nicknamed the ‘Prostrating Pharaohs’.
Last month, the traveling Liverpool fans in the streets of a Portuguese city in midweek struck up a new chant to the tune of the 90s hit “Good Enough” by Dodgy with the line: “If he scores another few, then I’ll be Muslim too!”
A recent report by Football Against Racism in Europe (Fare) found that the success of Liverpool Muslim star Mohamed Salah has significantly decreased hate and race crimes in the English Premier League.
Salah is not the only Muslim player in Liverpool and Premier League. More players can be found in the report below.