Mohamed Salah a target for critics after Egypt's World Cup heartbreak

For Mohamed Salah’s Pharaohs and their millions of fans, it was nothing short of heartbreak made all the more painful because of the manner in which they lost to Senegal in a crunch World Cup play-off.

The Pharaohs lost to Senegal in a penalty shoot-out on Tuesday in Dakar after the two African powerhouses remained locked at 1-1 on aggregate after extra time.

The result gave Senegal a berth in the World Cup in Qatar later this year, while the Pharaohs must now wait another four years before they can have shot at a place in the planet’s most coveted tournament.

The Pharaohs’ loss left the nation of 102 million stunned and despairing.

Millions silently left the cafes, tea houses and eateries where they watched the match on television. Boys and girls in sports clubs were in tears; and an eerie quiet descended on Cairo after the match, replacing the hustle and bustle typical of a city notorious for its noise.

Sad faces could be seen everywhere in the sprawling metropolis and it was all that the city’s 20 million people talked about on Wednesday.

The post-match blues sharply contrasted with the buzz on the city’s streets in the hours before the match, when hawkers did a brisk business selling flags and hats in the black, white and red of the flag. Pundits on hour-long sports talk shows were brimming with confidence that it was going to be the Pharaohs’ day.

The loss, however, was that extra painful because it mirrored the Pharaohs’ loss to Senegal last month in the final of the African Cup of Nations in Cameroon.

Then, as on Tuesday, Senegal won in a penalty shoot-out after extra-time and it was Salah’s Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane who again took the winning spot-kick.

“It’s a sad day for Egyptian football and a sad day for