'Magnus Carlsen is best endgame player ever': Liverpool star Mo Salah speaks on chess and the world No.1 player

It’s no secret that football star Mohamed Salah is a fan of world No.1 chess player Magnus Carlsen and the Liverpool forward has now labelled the Norwegian Grandmaster as the “best endgame player ever”. Salah in a recent interview also revealed that he closely followed the controversial FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championship in New York where Carlsen was initially disqualified for wearing jeans and later shared the Blitz title with Ian Nepomniachtchi.

Salah was asked by Viaplay’s journalist about the jeans controversy in an interview that was done before Liverpool’s draw against Manchester United . However, the 32-year-old Egyptian stayed away from the controversial topic but spoke highly about Carlsen and his chess capabilities.

“I like him (Carlsen) a lot. I like the way he plays. The best endgame player ever,” Salah said. “I do, I do. I wish him the best,” Salah said when asked about following the FIDE World Rapid & Blitz Championship.

Salah says playing chess helps him in football

Salah, who has scored 18 goals and made 13 assists for English Premier League table-topper Liverpool so far this season, also said that playing chess helps him take away his mind from the game of football.

“I think so. It takes your mind away from football. I like to watch it, and I like to play,” Salah added. “I play chess, I am addicted to chess. Every day, literally every day," he said.

Salah is known for his love for chess and has often shared photos on social media of him playing chess. He had earlier expressed a desire to play a match against Carlsen.

“I’m addicted to chess. No one stands a chance against Magnus, but hopefully, we’ll play one day. I’m 1400 [Elo rating],” he said.

Carlsen, who is also a renowned football fan and admirer of Salah, had said last year in October that he would want to meet the former Chelsea footballer .

“I’m a huge football fan and definitely a fan of Salah. I’ve not met him yet but I would certainly love to – as well as other sports people who I admire who play chess,” the 34-year-old said.

Carlsen faces match-fixing allegations

Meanwhile, Carlsen has also been in the news recently for the wrong reasons after sharing the Blitz title. A leaked video showed him talking with Nepomniachtchi about playing out draws till FIDE (International Chess Federation) agreed to a draw . The Blitz title was eventually shared for the first time ever after the three matches in sudden death ended in a draw, raising match-fixing allegations.

Carlsen, however, said on social media that his conversation with the Russian GM Ian was a “bad joke”.