'If he scores another few then I’ll be Muslim too': Egyptian footballer Salah is adored in UK

At a time when Britain is fighting rising Islamophobia, when government policy has been to create a "hostile environment" for illegal immigrants, Muslim footballer Mohamed Salah is not just accepted in Britain, but adored, according to the New York Times.

A feature recently published in the Times describes the 25-years old Egyptian as a  figure of considerable social and cultural significance.

Miqdaad Versi, the assistant secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, told the paper "He is someone who embodies Islam's values and wears his faith on his sleeve.

He is the hero of the team. Liverpool, in particular, has rallied around him in a really positive way. He is not the solution to Islamophobia, but he can play a major role."

The Liverpool player has scored 43 goals in 48 matches in his first season at the club, carrying his team to its first Champions League final in more than a decade.

Salah has also been been voted England's player of the year both by his fellow players and by the Football Writers' Association.

"Salah sees no need to disguise his faith only fuels his popularity," the paper reported.

"People love the fact that he is not scared of kneeling in prayer in front of everyone in a non-Muslim country at a time of rising Islamophobia," Atta said. "It is like a victory to them," Ahmed Atta, an Egyptian soccer analyst told the paper.

"Muslims are under pressure" in Britain, said Abu Usamah Atthababi, imam of Al Masra mosque at a  district in  Liverpool.

"He can help to bridge the Muslim community and the rest of the city," Atthababi said. "He can show people that we are closer to Salah than we are to extremists."

One song in his honour has the lyrics, "If he scores another few, then I'll be Muslim, too".

“Mo Salah, Mo Salah, running down the wing,

Salah la la la la la la la, Egyptian king.”

“If he’s good enough for you, he’s good enough for me,

If he scores another few then I’ll be Muslim too.

If he’s good enough for you, he’s good enough for me,

then sitting in a mosque is where I wanna be.”

The Mosques of Merseyside will be crammed.