Mo Salah has been on fire this season. The Egyptian has racked up an astronomical 21 goals and 17 assists in merely 28 games across all competitions for the club from Merseyside. This has ensured that Liverpool stay top of the Premier League and Champions League standings, even when we head into January.
Salah is averaging a goal or assist every 61 minutes, which showcases his impact for his side in spite of this potentially being his last year of contract at the club.
But why is the winger’s hairline taking away all the thunder instead of Salah’s red-hot form? Buckle up as we deep dive into that context today.
Salah’s Photo That Sparked Headlines and Hairlines.
It all started when one football fanatic on X, who goes by ‘MuskCaughtAP‘, posted an image of the Egyptian speedster with the caption ”Oi, the transplant expired already.”
This image has Salah’s head, mainly from the top angle, showcasing his struggles with his hairline with evident patches of no hair on the winger’s head. This sparked a wildfire of comments and discussion over X, especially considering the Egyptian just had his hair transplant done a few months ago.
For those unaware, rumors and first sightings around the Egyptian’s hairline surgery came out in the open when Salah reported for International Duty for Egypt back in June 2024.
The winger was seen arriving for International Duty with a sporty bald-shaven look with significantly less hair than previous seasons. This sparked a chain of reactions across X, with mainly Liverpool fans hinting that the winger is going through treatments and backing their star man.
One fan said, “PL isn’t ready for hair transplant, Salah” hinting funnily that this version of the Egyptian with soon-to-be full-grown hair might just be the best one to come yet.
Further, this sparked so much reaction that even Liverpool FC also had to come out and release an official statement regarding this in June 2024, especially when Salah went for International Duty by stating,
Far more important than the hair is that Salah was back among the goals, a nice little confidence-booster before getting a little bit of a break. Hopefully, he will return raring to go in the first pre-season under Slot.
But you may be wondering, Where did Salah undergo this treatment, and what’s the treatment like?
According to rumors and reported by Sule Hair Transplant, Salah went to Turkey to start his transplant procedures in early 2024, probably after his season finished last year with Liverpool. Turkey is well-known for offering high-quality and affordable cosmetic treatments, making it a leading destination for hair transplants globally. This reputation has fueled speculation that Salah might have utilized Turkey‘s expertise for his own procedure.
Fans over Instagram and X were quick to notice this pattern and had their own say as well. One fan over X said, “Bro went Turkey,” while another fan over Instagram shared the same observation by stating, “He went to Turkey, lol.”
This is after other famous footballers like Wayne Rooney, former Liverpool player Dietmar Hamann, Arsenal’s Rob Holding, and David Silva have all reportedly undergone hair transplant procedures in Turkey in the past. Renowned hair care medical center ‘Hair of Istanbul‘ in Turkey has facilitated surgeries for these footballers.
Salah most likely underwent a hair transplant using the FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) technique, a widely used and low-risk procedure. This method involves taking individual hair follicles from a donor area, usually the back of the head, and transplanting them into areas with thinning or no hair. The result is a natural and fuller appearance.
Due to the FUE procedure, Salah appears to have less hair than he did last season. At first, when he uploaded these images in June 2024, Liverpool fans thought he just chose a new hairstyle. However, this change matches what usually happens after a hair transplant. It’s normal for people to lose some hair in the treated area before new hair starts to grow back.
Right then, now that we have a solid background of Salah’s hair debacle, let’s answer the more burning question: Is the new image of Salah’s hairline that has been shared over X real, a hoax or a mix of both? And more importantly, what have been the fan reactions to this image? Let’s find out.
Million Dollar Question: Is the Salah image real?
When MuskCaughtAP posted the image, it garnered significant traction, with the post now having over 4 million views and 44k likes. Many fans were initially quick to jump on to the bandwagon of Salah’s potential failure of his transplant.
One fan said, “No wonder he wants that big money contract He needs to go back to turkey” hinting that the reason behind Salah’s constant requests for a new contract is his poor transplant surgery.
Another fan joked, “It was fun while it lasted” ahh hair” while another fan said, “That’s why he didn’t score he get to his old form” hinting that maybe his minor recent slump is down to his sudden disappearance and rapid decline of hair. Another rival fan added to this by saying, “After Christmas, not only his stat padding but also his hairline receded.”
Other fans had more scientific reasoning behind their comments.
One fan said, “You clearly don’t know how transplants work.” hinting at the fact that usually post-surgery, the hair for the initial period declines a bit in the treated area, only for it to grow back faster with more density. Another fan added to this rationale by saying, “Do people not realise how they work?”
But what is the truth? Is it just a normal thing to lose more hair freshly off after a transplant, or is Salah actually losing his hair even more, permanently?
The answer to that is neither. The image that has been doing the rounds is actually a screenshot from the popular game FC25 by EA Sports. This game has face scans and real game faces of players from last campaign, which explains the outdated face scan and thus the outdated hairline of Salah from last year, before his hair transplant surgery.
Fans did not take a long time to spot this and had their own say, as well in terms of being deceived.
One fan stated, ‘Fooled the masses with a FIFA screenshot,’ suggesting that the X account used Salah’s FC25 image to farm engagement on his post and gain traction. Another fan added to this sentiment and said, “Thought you were slick we see the premier league badge this is FIFA”
Another fan said, “People looked at this picture and salah’s shoulder and concluded it’s a real picture; humanity is gone!’ suggesting how easy it is over social media to post inaccurate information and get people to believe it.
So there you have it—a single photo of Mohamed Salah was enough to spark debates, jokes, and headlines all over the internet. Whether it’s about his game or his hairline, Salah has proven yet again that he’s always in the spotlight.
