While I’m still boycotting the World Cup (and you should too), I can still be happy for Mohamed Salah, the Egyptian King. And I couldn’t be happier for Mo after he put in 120 minutes of grueling, high pressure football in the Round of 32, and capped it off with a perfectly taken chipped Panenka penalty.
Egypt won the penalty shootout 4-2, converting all four of their penalties to advance to the next round to face Argentina. And then he danced on the streets with fans in downtown Dallas. It’s good to be king.
“If somebody was going to do it, it would be me,” Mo explained after the match, on his decision to attempt the Panenka.
”I am more experienced than others, and I wanted to give them confidence. I decided [in the] last minute, I don’t know if it’s my last World Cup or not, but I had to do it.
“I told the guys before the game that this is the biggest stage you can play on, so enjoy it, and don’t let the pressure get to you.
“I’m glad that we managed to win the game. Bad luck for them, they lost on penalties. But I’m happy that we wrote history today.”
I’m also happy for Mo. And now I’ll go back to not watching the World Cup.
