"The lasers were not cool" - Jurgen Klopp talks about controversial Senegal v Egypt game
Jurgen Klopp has commented on the now infamous laser situation that helped stop Mohamed Salah's Egypt from qualifying for the 2022 World Cup.
Speaking at his pre-Watford press conference, as cited by Anfield Watch's Twitter account, Klopp spoke about how he was happy for Sadio Mane but disappointed for Mo after the Senegal v Egypt World Cup Qualifier.
"I am really happy for Sadio and I am very disappointed for Mo," said Klopp.
"The lasers were not particularly cool. But I am happy for Sadio. They are mates who play against each other, but they are both top professionals and they will both deal with it.
"It was emotional but they will deal with it right now. Senegal are probably the best team in Africa."
Anfield Watch Verdict
The Senegal v Egypt game was a bit of a mess, especially from a neutral point of view. Every time a player went down, especially an Egypt player, a stretcher came on and just took them off the pitch without the doctors or physio's going over.
Also, the lasers. How can we talk about this game without mentioning the Senegal fans turning Salah into the incredible hulk.
It was a shame that it happened but unfortunately, laser pens are a bit of a staple in North African football. Egypt fans themselves have done it in the past.
I think that's why we haven't seen too many complaints from the Egyptian camp regarding the lasers.
However, Egypt did put in an official complaint to FIFA regarding racism and violence directed toward their players.
We saw after the game finished that Senegal fans were hurling objects at Mo Salah who had to be protected by security.
It was sad to see the game end this way and Salah's club teammate, Mane, definitely wouldn't have wanted it to happen after another historic moment for his country.