Salah left the field in tears when he was forced off with a shoulder injury in the first half of that game and said he would relish the opportunity to face Madrid again.

“I want to play Madrid, I have to be honest,” Salah told BT Sport.

“City is a really tough team. We played against them a few times this season.”

But I think, if you ask me personally, I prefer Madrid, because we lost in the final [to them], so I want to play against them and hopefully we will win it.”

Salah, who provided the assist for Fabinho’s crucial goal early in the second half against Villarreal, felt Liverpool’s comeback in Spain underlined their strong mentality.

Neil Mellor reflects on Liverpool’s 5-2 aggregate win over Villarreal that sees them reach their third Champions League final in five years
“It was tough in the first half but then we went to the dressing room. The gaffer talked and we talked to each other as well.

That shows character and personality in the dressing room. It shows that we are a top team. That’s why we can strike back after losing 2-0 in the first half. I think it makes the win more exciting.”

Asked if he is motivated by the possibility of winning the Quadruple, he added: “For sure. Maybe not at the beginning of the season because I always focus on the Premier League and the Champions League but now we are close for everything, so why not?”

Salah finished seventh in the voting for the Ballon d’Or and is the highest-ranked player on that list not to make the cut. Out of the 23-man squad, which also includes three goalkeepers, six defenders, and six midfielders, 10 of those listed currently play in the Premier League.

Chelsea’s four listed players are made up of Edouard Mendy, Jorginho, N’Golo Kante, and Romelu Lukaku, while Liverpool, Manchester United, and Manchester City all have two players apiece in the squad.

Arch-rivals, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, also made the list.  The two superstars have 14 World XI awards and will be aiming for a 15th when next month’s team is revealed.

This year’s FIFPro shortlist was brought down from 55 players to 23, in order to adjust it to a tournament squad, with the final XI due to be announced on December 17.

The organisation explained, “FIFPRO and FIFA asked professional footballers worldwide to vote for the World 11, We requested them to pick the three players who in their opinion were the most outstanding players during the 2020/2021 season in the following lines: goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and forwards.”

WORLD XI: SEE FULL 23-MAN SQUAD BELOW. 

Goalkeepers:

Alisson Becker (Brazil/Liverpool FC)

Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy/AC Milan/Paris Saint-Germain)

Édouard Mendy (Senegal/Chelsea FC)

Defenders:

David Alaba (Austria/FC Bayern München/Real Madrid CF)

Jordi Alba (Spain/FC Barcelona)

Trent Alexander-Arnold (England/Liverpool FC)

Dani Alves (Brazil/São Paulo FC/FC Barcelona)

Leonardo Bonucci (Italy/Juventus FC)

Rúben Dias (Portugal/Manchester City FC)

Midfielders:

Sergio Busquets (Spain/FC Barcelona)

Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City FC)

Bruno Fernandes (Portugal/Manchester United FC)

Frenkie de Jong (Netherlands/FC Barcelona)

Jorginho (Italy/Chelsea FC)

N’Golo Kante (France/Chelsea FC)

Forwards:

Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid CF)

Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Juventus FC/Manchester United FC)

Erling Haaland (Norway/ BV Borussia 09 Dortmund)

Robert Lewandowski (Poland/FC Bayern München)

Romelu Lukaku (Belgium/FC Internazionale Milano/Chelsea FC)

Kylian Mbappé (France/Paris Saint-Germain)

Lionel Messi (Argentina/FC Barcelona/Paris Saint-Germain)

Neymar (Brazil/Paris Saint-Germain)

For the first time in the history of the awards, Globe Soccer has included three new categories in recognition of the world’s best female footballing talent, namely Best Women’s Player of the Year, Best Club of the Year and Best Referee of the Year.

See the full list of nominees and categories below

AWARDS

Best player (men)

Alisson Becker, Liverpool

Bernardo Silva, Manchester City

Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus

Lionel Messi, Barcelona

Mohammad Salah, Liverpool

Sadio Mane, Liverpool

Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool

Best player (women)

Ada Hegerberg, Lyon

Alex Morgan, Orlando

Amandine Henry, Lyon

Lucy Bronze, Lyon????

Marta Vieira da Silva, Orlando

Megan Rapinoe, Reign???????????

Sari van Veenendaal, Atletico

Best club

Ajax Amsterdam?????????

Liverpool ??

Olympique Lyonnais Feminin

Best coach

Djamel Belmadi???????????

Erik Ten Hag????

Fernando Santos

Jurgen Klopp??

Massimiliano Allegri

Others

Best sporting director

Best agent

Best revelation

Best goalkeeper

Player Career Award x 2

Coach Career Award

Best Referee

Sport Business Award

Kooora — Best Arab Coach Award

Kooora — Best Arab Player Award?

Van Dijk is accompanied on the shortlist by Liverpool team-mates Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane following their Champions League win.

His fellow Netherlands internationals Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt are also nominated after helping their country to the Nations League final.

Full list

Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus, Portugal), Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona, Netherlands), Matthijs de Ligt (Juventus, Netherlands), Harry Kane (Tottenham, England), Eden Hazard (Real Madrid, Belgium), Sadio Mane (Liverpool, Senegal), Kylian Mbappe (PSG, France), Lionel Messi (Barcelona, Argentina), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool, Egypt), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool, Netherlands)

It is believed that the Egyptian will stay at Anfield this season but will consider his options next year, with his sights set on one big final pay day.

Salah has scored 71 goals in 104 appearances for Liverpool since arriving from Roma in 2017, aslo winning a Champions League.

Salah was stretchered off during Liverpool’s 3-2 win at Newcastle with a head injury on Saturday, as Firmino is still nursing a groin injury.

Salah’s absence will make it a more difficult task for Liverpool, who will be hoping to overturn a 3-0 deficit from the first leg at Camp Noun.

In a press conference that was held today (Monday), Manager Jurgen Klopp, has confirmed that Salah would be out of the clash.

He said the “It’s not a precaution, it’s a concussion, he would not even be allowed to play, so that’s it. He feels ok but it’s not good enough from a medical point of view, that’s all. He’s desperate, everything, but we cannot do it. He can play at the weekend.”