Global soccer star Mohamed Salah, Egypt teammates dazzle for fans during open World Cup training session

Near the end of a two-hour open training session held Wednesday under partially cloudy and sporadically wet skies at Gonzaga's Luger Field, members of Egypt's World Cup team took turns finishing on goal, taking crosses from both sides of the freshly manicured playing surface.

Mohamed Salah, the 33-year-old global soccer icon and English Premier League record-holder, took one particular volley out of the air, belting a left-footed shot wide of the upright and into a crowd of fans watching some 20 feet behind the frame.

Reacting to the shot, one fan wearing a Liverpool shirt - the EPL club where Salah spent nine seasons, transforming into one of the game's biggest stars - jokingly quipped his life would've been complete had he been struck in the head and concussed by a wayward shot from the decorated Egyptian striker.

The full force of Salah was on display - in more ways than one - during Wednesday's practice, which was opened to a few-hundred fans and media members five days before Egypt's World Cup opener against Belgium at Seattle's Lumen Field.

Salah, as he's been for Liverpool and Egypt fans for much of the past decade, was the main attraction for fans who were able to score the limited tickets made available to the early afternoon session on Gonzaga's campus.

Most of the striker's touches were met with audible gasps during a scrimmage and the crowd of a few-hundred applauded when Salah duped teammate Emam Ashour dribbling down the right wing before pushing a pass across the face of the goal to Manchester City's Omar Marmoush, who easily drove the ball into the net.

Egyptian players left Northern Quest Resort and Casino and arrived at Luger Field slightly after noon, going through a warm-up jog before joining Gonzaga President Katia Passerini for a brief public address before beginning practice.

"Welcome to Spo-Cairo," one fan shouted from the metal bleachers.

Spokane will serve as the temporary base camp for Egypt, which is making its fourth-ever World Cup appearance and first since 2018. The team is coached by 59-year-old Hossam Hassan, who holds the country's career record for goals scored (69).

For the time being, that is.

Salah is two goals shy of equaling his coach's all-time mark and could tie or surpass it during group stage games against Belgium (June 15), New Zealand (June 21) and Iran (June 26) or in potential knockout games. Based in Spokane, Egypt won't be more than an hour plane flight from either of its World Cup locations in Seattle and Vancouver, B.C.

Egypt players went through passing and possession drills before breaking into two teams and starting a scrimmage that encompassed the majority of the two-hour training session.

Hamza Abdelkarim, an 18-year-old striker who plays for Barcelona's B team and enters this week's tournament as the youngest Egyptian player to make a World Cup roster, was the scrimmage's first scorer, finishing about 15 feet from the goal after a teammate's initial shot was deflected by goalkeeper Mahdy Soliman. Salah didn't score but had multiple shot attempts turned away by the crossbar during the scrimmage.

The session finished with players attempting to finish close-range shots off crosses and corner kicks. Between attempts, a group of fans broke into the signature chant Liverpool fans created for Salah early in his career: "Mo Salah! Mo Salah! Mo Salah! Running down the wing. Mo Salah la-la-la la-ahh, the Egyptian King!"

Salah, Abdelkarim and a few other Egypt players stuck around briefly after the practice to greet fans, signing autographs and taking photos. Players were not made available to speak with the media.

Among those in attendance were Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown, Gonzaga basketball coach Mark Few, Director of Athletics Chris Standiford and former Zags wing Jalen Warley, who's been in and out of Spokane recently while going through pre-NBA draft workouts. Gonzaga assistants Jorge Sanz and Zach Norvell Jr. came to catch the training session, as did General Manager Kurt Bambauer. Spokane Velocity coach Leigh Veidman attended with multiple members of the team's coaching staff.

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