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Soccer on the side: Salah stuns Europe and Chelsea
Published in Al-Ahram Weekly on 25 - 09 - 2013

The unbelievable Mohamed Salah stunned European and English football yet again as Basel defeated Europa League holders Chelsea 2-1 at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge in the biggest surprise of the Champions League this week. Obviously Salah introduced himself to the English fans last year when he scored against both Tottenham and Chelsea as Basel reached the semis of the Europa League. There was no repeat of last year's defeat for Basel at Stamford Bridge this year as Salah guided Basel to a 2-1 win over Mourinho and his men after coming back from a first half goal through Chelsea's Oscar.
Salah led his team's comeback when he scored an outstanding equaliser in the 71st minute with a sweet strike in the far bottom corner from the edge of the box after some exquisite passing between his in-form teammates. The brilliant goal from Salah motivated the whole team and pushed them forward looking for that shocking winning goal which came in the 81st minute via a great header from skipper Streller. A nervy last 10 minutes saw Chelsea come close to equalising on two occasions but Basel managed to cap a magnificent performance with all three points.
Salah who tormented the arguably best left back in the world in the last decade, Ashley Cole, throughout the game was chosen the official man of the match by Uefa after leaving the pitch in the last minute to a standing ovation from the ecstatic travelling fans.
Salah and Basel then turned their attention to the league and made sure there was no European hangover as they defeated Sion 3-1 away from home to go second of the table on goal difference. Salah didn't start this encounter but came off the bench to set up the third goal for Streller with a very nice pass that left the big skipper with an open net to ensure Basel will go home with all three points.
On the other hand, Al-Nenni missed both games through the injury he sustained with the national team two weeks ago but he should be back to full training this week. With the win over Chelsea, Basel go top of the group alongside Schalke who defeated Steaua Bucharest 3-0 at home in the other match of the group. Basel will need to avoid complacency and more of these kinds of performances of Salah to ensure they have a chance of making it to the next round.
Ahmed Al-Mohamadi's season is simply getting better and better with every game as the flying Egyptian scored his first Premier League goal this season and his second ever. Hull City travelled to face Newcastle at Saint James Park aiming to salvage at least a point from a very tough place to go. Newcastle took an early lead through Remy but Hull City battled hard and managed to find an equaliser before Remy added another goal for the hosts with all three goals coming in the first half.
Three minutes into the second half, Mohamadi was in the right place at the right time as he met a cross from the left hand side with a brilliant header that came off the post into the back of the net much to the delight of Mohamadi and the travelling fans.
Hull and Mohamadi grew in confidence after equalising and hit the ground running to ensure they won't go behind again hoping they would find a winning goal to snatch a famous win. Nigerian attacking midfielder Aluko then came up with a moment of brilliance as he was on hand to turn a loose cross into the back of the net with a splendid side kick. Mohamadi and his teammates defended fiercely for the rest of the game as they managed to hold their nerves to snatch an unlikely win against a very tough opponent. The win took Mohamadi and Hull to 11th place level on points with Hull City.
Still in England, Adam Al-Abd watched Brighton Beat Bolton Wanderers 3-1 at home to go 10th in the league seven points off the leaders Queens Park Rangers. Al-Abd is now without a premiership start for more than seven months.
In Belgium, Lierse recorded another rare win as they defeated Kortrijk 2-0 at home. Hossam Ghali and Ahmed Samir Farag both started the game in the starting lineup with Ghali in particular looking really impressive throughout the game. The skilful Egyptian managed to set up the second goal for his team in the 61st minute to seal the much needed win. Farag had a decent game on the left hand side and ran his socks off during his time on the pitch until he was replaced 19 minutes from time. The win takes Lierse to 10th place in the league table.
In Portugal, Ahmed Hassan Kouka played almost the full game as he was replaced in the final minute of injury time in his side's impressive 1-1 draw against Sporting Lisbon away from home. Kouka played a very decent game as he huffed and puffed during the whole time and made life so difficult for Sporting defenders. Kouka's teammates were as impressive as the Egyptian as they managed to come from behind to equalise and snatch a vital point against the Portuguese giants. The draw takes Rio Ave to fifth place in the league table.
In Italy, Ahmed Hegazi's Fiorentina recorded yet another good win as they continued their strong start to the season with a 2-0 win over Atalanta away from home. Hegazi missed the game and will miss probably the rest of the season as he suffered a recurrence of his knee injury. The win took la Viola to fourth place only two points behind league leaders Napoli and Roma.
Arab and African: In England, the unbelievable Yaya Toure scored a goal for Man City as they defeated their fierce rivals Man Utd 4-1 in the derby at Man City's Ettihad Stadium.
Hull City's Nigerian attacker Aluko scored one and set up another as Hull City swept Newcastle aside with a 3-2 win away from home.
Benin sensation Stephan Sessegnon scored his first goal for West Brom on his debut as they defeated Sunderland 3-0 at home.
Nigerian Midfielder John Obi Mikel scored his first ever Premier League goal as Chelsea defeated Fulham 2-0 at home with the strong midfielder scoring the second goal for his side.
The evergreen Didier Drogba scored a brace for Galatasaray in their derby against Besiktas before the home fans of Besiktas invaded the pitch in the last minute which persuaded the referee to abandon the game.
Moroccan star and former Liverpool player Nabil el Zhar scored a goal for Levante as they drew 2-2 away from home against Almeria.


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