Arne Slot set to land huge Mohamed Salah boost ahead of Liverpool pre-season

Liverpool star Mohamed Salah is likely to be among those reporting for the first day of pre-season under Arne Slot on July 1. And the new head coach now appears to have received a further boost.

Salah was away with Egypt after the Premier League season ended, but only had to play two World Cup qualifiers - unlike club teammates at major tournaments who played at either Euro 2024 or the Copa America. The Egyptian King last played on June 10, and should therefore be ready for Liverpool duty in the coming days.

That was already a boost for Slot, who is having to begin his preparations without a number of big names like Virgil van Dijk, Darwin Nunez, Alexis Mac Allister and Alisson. But he's received some even better news, with Salah seemingly unlikely to be representing Egypt at this summer's Olympic Games in Paris.

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Unlike with other international competitions, FIFA does not require clubs to release players for the Olympics. Plenty of the biggest stars are often duly absent as a result, with teams pulling rank at a time when absences would majorly disrupt the start of the domestic season.

As such, Liverpool has always held the cards when it comes to Salah at the Olympics. But if the 32-year-old had elected to push for it, at a time when his contract is entering its final year and there is uncertainty over his future, it seems plausible that the club might have let him pursue that elusive trophy with Egypt.

However, the ECHO reports that Egypt is growing "increasingly resigned" to not having Salah as one of its three designated over-age players. With less than a month to go, the FA has still not made formal contact with Liverpool to discuss the possibility.

It's unclear what has led to this resignation. But it's claimed that the Egyptian FA is now "90 per cent sure" Salah will not be a part of Olympic plans.

That's despite the fact that Salah had reportedly been offered the chance to carry the flag for his country at the opening ceremony in Paris if he represented the team. The Egypt Daily News relayed that information last week.

Whether Salah will be present on day one of Liverpool pre-season remains to be seen. But he is now expected to be a part of the group that travels to the US later in July.

Liverpool.com says: The Olympics has the potential to be a sensitive issue. In an ideal world, clubs would release players for it, but the congestion of the rest of the calendar means they cannot be blamed for turning down requests.

Still, if Liverpool can avoid having to formally reject a request from Egypt, that would be good. It has always sought to stay on respectful terms with Salah's national team, and it would not be the best look if it had to put its foot down against the player's wishes.

For Slot, it's clearly a boost. How Salah's role evolves over the course of the campaign remains to be seen, but he's at the very least likely to be a starter at the beginning of the season, as one of the few world-class players set for a full pre-season.