Mohamed Salah produced a standout performance in his first start for Trabzonspor, scoring a brace to help the Turkish side beat Istanbul Basaksehir 2-1 and claim their first win of the Turkish Super Lig season.
The 34-year-old joined Trabzonspor on a free transfer after leaving Liverpool, where he spent nine years and won numerous trophies. In the previous season opener, Salah was only a substitute.
In Sunday's match, Salah opened the scoring in the 8th minute, capitalizing on a rebound after Basaksehir goalkeeper Muhammed Sengezer failed to hold the ball. The visitors equalized through a penalty converted by Eldor Shomurodov in the 19th minute, but early in the second half, Salah restored the lead when he raced down the right flank, combined with Ernest Muci, and slotted the ball into the far corner.
Beyond his two valid goals, Salah also had two more efforts ruled out: one was disallowed due to a foul during the build-up, and another was flagged for offside when he scored from distance into an empty net in stoppage time after the opposing goalkeeper had gone up for a corner.
After this match, Salah and his teammates will turn their attention to the second leg of their Europa League playoff tie against Ferencvaros on Thursday. Trabzonspor lost the first leg 1-0 at home.
