Salah’s Quiet Night: Egypt’s AFCON Semi-Final Stunner—A Negative Stat That Speaks Volumes

Match context

Egypt’s captain Mohamed Salah endured a subdued showing as Senegal edged them 1-0 in Tangier, sealing a spot in the Africa Cup of Nations final in 2025.

Shock stat and what it means

Opta, the stats gurus, reported that Salah did not touch the ball inside the Senegalese penalty area for the entire match.

This marked the first AFCON game lasting 45 minutes or more in which Salah failed to touch the opponent’s box.

Salah, who has scored against 11 nations in AFCON history, has never found the back of the net against Senegal in six meetings across all competitions.

Egypt now waits for the Morocco-Nigeria loser to meet them in the third-place playoff on Saturday at AFCON 2025.

Punchline 1: If absence makes the heart grow fonder, Salah’s absence on the score sheet made fans love the ghost of the ball more than the goal it didn’t kiss.

Punchline 2: They said he thrives under pressure—tonight the pressure was the box, and the box went missing, not Salah.