After the retirement decision: Mohamed Salah sends a message to Ahmed Hegazi

Mohamed Salah

The Egyptian king bids farewell to his companion

Mohamed Salah, the captain of the Egyptian national team, sent a touching message to his former teammate Ahmed Hegazi after the international defender announced his retirement from football, recalling the long journey that had bound the pair together since childhood.

The Egypt captain posted a series of photographs alongside Hegazi from various stages of their careers, adding a message on his social media accounts: "A long journey we have lived together since our childhood. We enjoyed and were happy with every stage of it, I wish you success in what is to come."

Salah's farewell follows an eventful career for the Egyptian defender that spanned more than a decade and a half. Hegazi turned out for a number of clubs inside and outside Egypt and wore the national team shirt on many occasions, becoming one of the most prominent Egyptian defenders of his generation.

Hegazi announced his retirement at the age of 35, stressing that his decision related only to hanging up his boots as a player, not to stepping away from the game he has loved all his life.

"Today I announce my retirement from football as a player, and not the retirement of my passion and love for it," Hegazi said in his farewell message. "Thank you to football for every moment, every challenge, every lesson, and every memory it made with me. My journey inside the pitch has ended, but my journey with football continues with the same passion, ambition and determination."

Across his career, Hegazi played for Ismaily and Al Ahly in Egypt, Fiorentina and Perugia in Italy, and West Bromwich Albion in England, as well as Al Ittihad of Jeddah and Neom in Saudi Arabia. His defensive strength and leadership on the pitch left a clear mark everywhere he went.

The defender saw out the final chapters of his career at Neom, joining in the summer of 2024 from Al Ittihad of Jeddah before the club announced the end of the contractual relationship last May.

Reports suggest Hegazi may stay on within the Neom set-up in the coming period, drawing on his long experience and leadership, with a move afoot to bring him in as part of the club's administrative or technical staff.