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Mohamed Salah tests positive for coronavirus again

Mohamed Salah tested positive while on international duty with Egypt on November 13; Liverpool forward set to miss Premier League match against Leicester City on Sunday, live on Sky Sports Premier League

Mohamed Salah during the Premier League match between Liverpool and West Ham United
Image: Mohamed Salah tested positive for coronavirus while on international duty with Egypt

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has returned another positive test for coronavirus, the Egyptian Football Association has confirmed.

The governing body said a medical swab taken from the 28-year-old came back again as positive on Wednesday, which is expected to rule the player out of Liverpool's match with Leicester in the Premier League on Sunday.

Salah, who initially tested positive for coronavirus on Friday, has missed Egypt's Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Togo on Saturday and Tuesday.

"Today, Mohamed Salah, the star of the national team and the English club Liverpool, made a new swab to detect the Covid-19 virus, but its result was positive," a statement from the Egyptian FA read.

UK government coronavirus rules dictate individuals must undergo a 10-day isolation period after a positive test.

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It is unclear whether Salah will be allowed to travel back to the UK on Monday, once the enforced period of isolation ends, or whether he has to test negative before he can.

Salah is the fourth Liverpool first-team player to test positive for coronavirus this season, following Thiago in September and then Sadio Mane and Xherdan Shaqiri in October.

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Image: Salah has scored 10 goals for Liverpool so far this season

Liverpool are without long-term absentees Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez, while right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold is also sidelined through injury.

Captain Jordan Henderson withdrew from the England squad for their Nations League match against Iceland on Wednesday.

Liverpool set to be decimated against Leicester

Analysis by Sky Sports' Richard Morgan:

Liverpool could be without a whole host of first-team stars when they take on Premier League leaders Leicester at Anfield - live on Sky Sports - on Sunday night.

Jordan Henderson, Andy Robertson and Rhys Williams are the latest players to join the club's lengthening injury list after picking up problems while recently away on international duty.

Henderson was withdrawn at half-time of England's 2-0 loss in Belgium on Sunday after experiencing tightness in a back muscle, while Robertson missed Scotland's 1-0 defeat to Slovakia earlier that day with a tight hamstring.

The Liverpool captain will now be assessed by the club's medical staff after returning early from the England camp, although Robertson played the entire 90 minutes of Scotland's 1-0 loss in Israel on Wednesday, and both players are expected to feature this weekend.

And Liverpool are also believed to be confident Williams will have recovered from the minor hip issue that saw the young central defender sent home from England U21 duty on Tuesday in time to be considered to face the Foxes.

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However, one Liverpool player who will not be lining up against Brendan Rodgers's side on Sunday is top scorer Mohamed Salah, who tested positive for Covid-19 while on international duty with Egypt on Friday, before returning another positive test on Wednesday that is expected to rule the forward out of the club's next three matches.

All of which adds to the current problems facing manager Jurgen Klopp, who has already lost centre-backs Virgin van Dijk and Joe Gomez to long-term knee injuries, while Liverpool's defence will also be missing regular right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold due to a calf strain sustained in their last league outing at Man City.

Meanwhile, Klopp may even be unable to use versatile holding midfielder Fabinho as cover in defence against Leicester, with the Brazilian still recovering from the hamstring strain he picked up against FC Midtjylland at the end of October.

Midfield is also a problem area for the German, with summer signing Thiago Alcantara still suffering the after-effects from the knee injury he sustained against Everton on October 17, although there is hope the playmaker may be fit enough to play some part against the Foxes.

However, the same cannot be said of fellow midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who injured his knee in pre-season training at the end of August and is still yet to resume training.

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