Salah's bodyguard lifts lid on saving star from threats that 'could kill him'
All gifts Mohamed Salah receives from his fans are checked by his security team in case they "make him sick or kill him".
The Liverpool forward's personal bodyguard Karim Abdou revealed as much during a recent podcast appearance. The draconian action is due to Salah's significant fame, as he is one of the most popular footballers on the planet due to his success on Merseyside.
Salah has won the Premier League title and Champions League, among other honours, since joining Liverpool from Roma in 2017. The Egypt international, 31, was recently the subject of a £150million bid from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad, such is his reputation.
Therefore, Abdou and the rest of Salah's security team can't afford to take any chances. Abdou has also revealed that his client received the most attention after Liverpool defeated Tottenham 2-0 in the 2019 Champions League final. Salah scored the first goal.
"He is a ghost," Abdou told the 5ASide Podcast. "He cannot be seen. One time, he went to pray in a mosque. Nobody knew where he lived and somebody followed him. He (the guy following) put in a WhatsApp group, 'Mo Salah lives in that address'."
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Abdou claims that 20,000 people who lived in the local community turned up after hearing the news before others drove to the address. Salah's bodyguard then claimed: "When he won the Champions League, that was the most crazy time."
Abdou explained: "It was Eid and that prayer is thousands of people in the street because it is like Christmas here... He was supposed to go and pray in the street with everybody and he just won the Champions League so everyone wants to take pictures with him.
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"Every single Egyptian media, TV, newspaper, it was like the final of the World Cup. They were lining up in front of his house. At the same time, I was at a hotel with the Egyptian national team. He (Salah) was supposed to finish the two days off and come there.
"Out of nowhere, he was inside the house and could not even open the door. They tried to escape him out the back door, but they couldn't."
Abdou then revealed their cautious approach. He said: "All gifts have to be scanned. We don't accept gifts, but sometimes if I take them from people they have to be scanned. You never know what is in the gift. It could make him sick or kill him, you don't know."
Abdou believes Salah receives so much attention because of how much he's helped communities in Egypt by spending "millions and millions for sick people". It's claimed he's bought ambulances, paid for weddings, covered people's bills and paid for surgeries.
Abdou continued: "People write on a paper and give it to him because people think he's going to solve all their problems."
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