Many observers anticipated that Mohamed Salah would play a vital role in upgrading the soft power of Egypt. Since June 22, 2017, Salah has become a mega-star footballer after joining Liverpool.
After playing for the Reds for more than two years, Salah proved his significant role as a soft power player for Egypt.
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Mohamed Salah Performing Sujud[/caption]
“Mohamed Salah really and honestly inspired me. I’m a Nottingham Forest season-ticket holder, I can be myself but because I made the declaration of faith I’m a Muslim. I’m still me and that’s what I took from Mohamed Salah. I’d love to meet him, just to shake his hand and say Cheers” or Shukran,” a Liverpool fan said according to the UK’s Guardian.
The Guardian reported that a non-Muslim man converted to Islam thanks to Salah.
In 1990, the term of ‘Soft power’, was first coined by the academic Joseph Nye. It is the ability to harness international alliances and shape the preferences of others through a country’s appeal and attraction.
It also refers to the ability to win over the hearts and minds of people, to influence their thinking, and change their behavior through the spread of ideas, dialogue and cultural exchanges.
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Mohamed Salah is thanking God for his blessings[/caption]
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“I’m embarrassed to say this but my opinions on Islam used to be that the religion, the culture and the people were backward; that they didn’t integrate and wanted to take over. I always looked at Muslims like the elephant in the room. I had a hatred of Muslims,” the newly-Muslim man added.
“When Salah scores I think he’s scoring for the faith. When he won the Champions League I said to my friend that was a victory for Islam. After each of his goals Salah practises the sujood (prostration) and exposes a very Islamic symbol to the world. How many people watch the Premier League every week? Millions globally,”Ben Bird wrote for the Guardian.
Mohamed Salah and his wife, Maggi, married in 2013. Their daughter, Makka, born in 2014, is named in honour of the Islamic holy city of Mecca. Salah is a Muslim and often celebrates goals by performing the sujud.
Describing him as the best player in the Premier League, Saudi journalist Salman Al-Dossary, wrote a long inspiring opinion piece about Mohamed Salah's role as one of Egypt's influential soft power players.
"There is no doubt that Mohamed Salah’s actions on the football field, which have attracted millions of fans without saying a single word, are more powerful than millions of lectures, seminars, and, of course, ideological slogans," wrote Al-Dossary in April, 2018.
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