Arne Slot gets a big boost as two Liverpool players will miss the Olympics and take part in pre-season

By premiernews On Jul 3, 2024

Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo will take part in Liverpool's pre-season training instead of competing in the Olympics.

In a huge boost for the club, the duo will not represent their countries at the soccer tournament. Paris 2024 Games.

Salah previously represented Egypt at the 2012 London Olympics.Credit: Getty

The Olympic under-23 football tournament allows nations to call up three over-age players to form part of their squads.

Egypt and Japan had therefore considered calling up the 32-year-old. Salah and Endo, 31 years old, respectively, as part of this quota.

But according to The athleticNone of the players will now compete in the tournament and will instead be free to participate in LiverpoolThe NFL preseason tour of the United States at the end of July.

Since the Olympics are not a FIFA or UEFA competition, Liverpool were not obliged to release their players and let them compete.

Japanese captain Endo had previously expressed his desire to play in the Olympics.

“I'm also wondering what will happen,” she had previously told Japanese television programme ABEMA Sports Time. “Nothing has been decided yet, but my position is that if I am chosen, I would like to go.”

However, in the end no over-age players were selected for the Japan squad and coach Go Oiwa admitted that the “restrictions” they were forced to work under had influenced the team's decisions.

The duo's omission comes after Spain's Stefan Bajcetic was also left out of his country's Olympic squad, leaving the 19-year-old free to focus on recovering from the injury that plagued him for most of last season.

Endo would have competed in his third Olympic Games if he had participated in Paris 2024Credit: AFP

Instead, Slot will have the opportunity to work extensively with the duo ahead of the new season.Credit: Getty

Having these players for pre-season is a big boost for Liverpool's new manager Arne's Slot who will take the reins of the club after the departure of Jurgen Klopp.

The Olympic men's football tournament will run from July 24 to August 9, with 32 matches in total to determine the final winner.

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This would mean any Premier League players involved in the tournament would be able to return to their club just a week before the new season kicks off on August 16.

Liverpool will be in action for the first time on August 17, when they travel to face newly promoted Ipswich Town in what will be Slot's first test.

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