Trabzonspor president hails Mohamed Salah as one of football’s three greatest active players

Trabzonspor president Ertugrul Dogan has described Mohamed Salah as one of the three greatest active players in world football, insisting that the Egyptian forward joined the Turkish club because of the love and affection shown to him rather than money alone.

Dogan made the remarks while reflecting on Trabzonspor’s impressive 2-0 victory over Besiktas in the Turkish Super Lig, where Salah scored a goal and delivered an influential performance.

The victory strengthened the club’s confidence as they pursue their domestic ambitions and prepare for Thursday’s Europa League encounter against Scottish side Hearts.

Speaking to Turkish newspaper Sabah, Dogan expressed satisfaction with the victory over Besiktas but warned that the team must remain focused on their ultimate objective of winning the league title.

“We achieved a very important victory over Besiktas, but we have achieved many such victories before. We are happy with the win on Monday, but now we are back to reality and we aspire to win the league title. We have to remain calm,” he said.

The Trabzonspor president also praised the club’s recruitment strategy, insisting that they have assembled a strong squad capable of competing at the highest level.

“We have succeeded in building a really strong team, and now we want to go as far as possible in the European Conference League, but this goal will not be achieved by just talking, we have to take it gradually and progress step by step,” Dogan added.

He acknowledged that Trabzonspor have struggled to achieve notable success in European competitions in recent years but believes the current squad has the quality to challenge established sides.

“Trabzonspor has not achieved any notable success in European competitions in recent years. There are big teams in the Europa League, but we are capable of competing with them, and now we have our sights set on Thursday’s match,” he said.

Dogan reserved special praise for Salah, describing the former Liverpool forward as one of the finest players still active in the game.

“Salah is one of the three greatest players still active in football today,” he declared.

“When we started the initial talks to sign Mohamed Salah, he was thinking and saying to himself: Why should I join Trabzonspor? Money was not the first factor that convinced him to move to us,” he explained.

Dogan admitted that signing a player of Salah’s stature naturally required a significant financial commitment but stressed that the club’s emotional connection with the forward played an important role in the negotiations.

“If you are going to sign Mohamed Salah, you certainly have to pay the money required to sign him, but we convinced him that he enjoys a great deal of love in Trabzon that he has never seen before in his life,” he said.

“Mohamed Salah is really happy to be in the ranks of Trabzon, and his family is also happy and is with him in Trabzon, and the city really loves him,” he added.

The president’s comments underline the club’s determination to build a competitive team around experienced stars and emerging talents as they seek domestic success and a stronger presence in European football.

Trabzonspor will now turn their attention to Thursday’s European assignment against Hearts, hoping to maintain their winning momentum and take another step towards achieving their continental ambitions.