Every time PFA Player of the Year Mohamed Salah scores, a roar booms around the streets and a city is consumed by unrestrained appreciation. This is not Anfield. This is not Liverpool. This is match-day in Cairo, and it is a scene replicated across Egypt at least 41 times this season.

In Bain El Sarayat in Giza, a predominantly student area of Egypt's capital, murals of Salah adorn the walls. The students congregate at cafes, such as Bondouk, a short distance from Cairo University, anticipating Salah's weekly goal dispatch. YouTube channels set up by Egyptian fans dedicated to the Liverpool forward are instantly updated. Social media trending is determined by his latest exceptional deed.

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah has taken the Premier League by storm. Credit:Peter Byrne

"Salah is a role model for young people. The good thing about him is that he started from the bottom and worked hard to succeed," says Islam Helmy, 20. "He comes from a village, and I'm from a village, too. I love him so much. I made my haircut and my beard just like him.

"One of the happiest moments in my life was when he scored the penalty in Congo [which qualified Egypt to the World Cup]. I was sitting in the stadium right behind the goal. It was hysterical cheering."