Turkey: Mo Salah welcomed by fans chanting ‘Allahu Akbar’ after move to Trabzonspor

Egyptian football star Mohamed Salah signed a two-year contract with the Turkish club Trabzonspor this week, triggering a social media frenzy across the country.

The “Egyptian King” will reportedly receive a €5m ($5.6m) signing bonus and a guaranteed annual salary of €17m ($19.6m), bringing the total value of his salary and signing bonus to €39m ($45m). Media reports also suggest that he will receive a 20-percent share of future sales of jerseys bearing his name. Trabzonspor have not publicly commented on the details of the deal.

Salah arrived in Istanbul on Wednesday morning wearing a Trabzonspor jersey bearing his name and the number 10. In a prerecorded video filmed aboard his private jet, he repeated the club’s slogan: “For us, everywhere is Trabzon.”

He was later welcomed by a large crowd of Trabzonspor supporters in Istanbul, where he joined fans in chants and slogans.

Some supporters shouted takbir, invoking the name of God, as he exited the airport.

*Fans shouting: "Ya Allah, Bismillah (with God's name), Mohamed Salah" *

Trabzonspor is Turkey's fourth-biggest football club and is based in the Black Sea province for which it is named.

The club formally announced the transfer in an official statement on Tuesday.

It also posted a short animation showing a giant pyramid near the Black Sea, surrounded by a vast forest.

Trabzon is particularly popular with Gulf and Arab tourists during the summer because of its lush green hills and striking natural scenery.

Salah’s arrival in Turkey even drew supporters of rival clubs. A Galatasaray fan was spotted at the welcoming ceremony but was later forced to remove his jersey. During a live broadcast featuring Besiktas fans, one supporter could clearly be heard shouting, “Salah has arrived!” and celebrating the news.

The excitement surrounding Salah began days earlier, amid rumors that Trabzonspor was negotiating his transfer.

A truck displaying videos and memes featuring the footballer drove around Trabzon throughout the day earlier this week.

The transfer was widely seen as a surprise following Salah’s highly successful nine-year career at Liverpool. He had been a free agent since leaving the club this summer.

Since joining Liverpool from AS Roma in 2017, the Egyptian star scored 257 goals in 442 appearances and won the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, two League Cups, Fifa Club World Cup and Uefa Super Cup, cementing his status as a club legend.

The architect behind such a momentous transfer has also been a subject of debate. Some commentators credited Berat Albayrak, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s son-in-law, who is also from Trabzon.

Others pointed to former Transport Minister Adil Karaismailoglu.

There has also been widespread speculation about how the transfer was financed. Many social media users have suggested that the deal was made possible through sponsorship from Turkish electric-car manufacturer Togg, Turkish Airlines and telecommunications provider Turkcell.

Salah is expected to fly to Trabzon later today.