Bradley hails Salah following Zimbabwe treble

Ace forward Mohamed Salah is the ‘future’ of Egyptian football, coach Bob Bradley has said following the striker’s hat-trick in the 4-2 win over Zimbabwe. The Basel star, who helped his club clinch the Swiss League title last week, played brilliantly in the match and place Egypt just one step away from securing a place in the World Cup qualifying final round. “Salah is the future of Egyptian football. He was the best player today against Zimbabwe,” the former USA coach said after the match. “His performance was historic, especially since he scored a hat-trick while also contributing to the first goal by Aboutrika,” he added. “Salah is a perfect professional player both on and off the pitch. He will play a great role in guiding us to the World Cup finals,” said Bradley. The Pharaohs, who picked up the maximum 12 points from four games, are currently on top of Group G. They will qualify for the final playoff with two matches to spare if second-placed Guinea, who now have four points, fail to overcome Mozambique (two points) later on Sunday. The ten group winners will advance to a two-legged playoff that will determine Africa’s five representatives at next year’s World Cup finals in Brazil.