Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo will both take part in Liverpool pre-season training instead of competing at the 2024 Olympics.
The under-23 Olympic football tournament allows nations to call up three over-age players as part of their squads. While appeared at the 2012 edition, Endo was tipped to appear in his first tournament.
However, in what will be a huge boost for Liverpool, Salah and Endo will not feature for their countries in the football tournament at the Paris 2024 Games.
Egypt and Japan had considered calling up 32-year-old Salah and 31-year-old Endo, respectively, as part of the overaged players allowed in the team.
Mohamed Salah
But according to the Athletic, neither player will now be competing at the tournament and will instead be free to participate in Liverpool’s pre-season tour of America in late July.
Given that the Olympics is neither a FIFA nor a UEFA competition, Liverpool were not obliged to release players and let them compete.
Japan captain Endo had previously expressed a desire to play at the Olympics.
“I’m also kind of wondering what will happen,” he had previously told the Japanese television show ABEMA Sports Time. “Nothing has been decided yet but my stance is that if I’m selected, I’d like to go.”
However, in the end, no over-age players were selected for Japan’s squad while Salah was left out of the squad.
The men’s football tournament at the Olympics will run from 24 July to 9 August, with 32 matches being played in total to determine the eventual winner.
