Mohamed Salah was reunited with a young Liverpool fan after his new club, Trabzonspor, flew the boy and his family out for a surprise visit.
Isaac Kearney, who has Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, a rare genetic disorder, made headlines in 2024 when videos of him playing a toy guitar and singing Liverpool chants went viral.
He was invited to Melwood to watch Salah and his Liverpool teammates train and was also a matchday mascot at Anfield.
Trabzonspor invited Kearney and his parents to Turkey to reunite with his hero, and documented their journey as they boarded a Turkish Airlines flight, where he received gifts, including a jet-themed plate and a new Salah Trabzonspor jersey.
The video then cuts to Kearney surprising Salah, 34, at the club's training ground. Salah embraces the boy before the boy is introduced to Salah's new teammates.
Salah signed for the Super Lig side on a free transfer earlier this month after nine trophy-laden years at Liverpool.
He started on the bench for the season-opener against Kasimpasa before being introduced as a second-half substitute.
Despite creating several chances for teammates, Salah could not help his side find a second goal, and they had to settle for a 1-1 draw.
Trabzonspor get the chance to put that right on Thursday when they face Hungary’s Ferencvaros in the first leg of a Europa League play-off at home.
Salah is most associated with playing in the Uefa Champions League, having played in Europe's top competition 98 times for Basel, Roma and Liverpool.
He played in three finals, winning the competition in 2019. Salah scored from the penalty spot as Liverpool beat English rivals Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 in the final in Madrid.
Salah last played in the Europa League in April 2024.
He scored from the penalty spot in Liverpool’s 1-0 quarter-final second leg against Atalanta, but it was not enough to keep them in the competition as the Italian side won 3-1 on aggregate.
Salah has made 37 appearances in Uefa’s second-tier competition for Basel, Roma, Fiorentina and Liverpool. He has 10 goals and as many assists.
His best finish was a semi-final with Swiss club Basel in 2013 and again two years later during a loan spell at Italian side Fiorentina.
Trabzonspor have a balanced record in the Europa League. The Turkish club have 24 wins and the same number of losses plus 11 draws since the competition was rebranded from the Uefa Cup.
Only twice have they made it out of the group phase, though, in the 2013/14 and 2014/15 seasons.
“Thursday is really important; we play a match in Europe, and the opponent is far better than us,” Trabzonspor coach Fatih Tekke said following Saturday’s disappointing draw away to Kasimpasa.
Club president Ertugrul Dogan said Salah’s signing has gone beyond football, creating a wave of joy and excitement among the club’s supporters and residents of the city.
Dogan told Egypt's ON Sport channel that people in Trabzon, located in northeastern Turkey, have been “waking up and going to sleep to the name of Mohamed Salah”.
The president said persuading Salah to join "was not as difficult as I expected", and praised the Egyptian World Cup star's impact, saying Salah has "created a wonderful atmosphere with his teammates" since his first day at the club.
Meanwhile, a potential reunion between Salah and former Liverpool teammate Darwin Nunez looks to be off, with the Al Hilal striker now said to be mulling over a move to Saudi Pro League rivals Al Diriyah.
Trabzonspor had been in talks with Hilal over Nunez's availability regarding a loan move. Negotiations are thought to have broken down with the Turkish club unwilling to cover the cost of the Uruguayan's wages.
Trabzonspor, seven-time Turkish champions, finished third in the Super Lig last season and won the Turkish Cup.
