Mo Salah to collect Liverpool awards AND Football Writers’ player of the year in London on same night

Mo Salah has decided Liverpool’s fans will come first when he is crowned FWA Footballer of the Year this week.

The 43-goal Egyptian forward has opted to attend his club’s seasonal awards ceremony Anfield on Thursday night, before flying to London to be honoured at the Football Writers’ Association’s annual gala dinner later the same evening.

Sunday Mirror Sport understands arrangements are being made for either a private jet or helicopter to whisk Salah 200 miles south once he has thanked Reds fans in person for the outstanding support they have given him this season.

He is expected to be named the club’s player of the season after a sensational debut season which will end with Liverpool facing Real Madrid in the Champions League final in three weeks’ time.

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But the 25-year-old also recognises the prestige that comes with being the first African player to win the FWA award in its 70-year history.

Salah will follow in the footsteps of 12 previous Liverpool winners of the writers’ award, including Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush, Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez.

Already voted player of the year by his fellow pros, Salah will now collect the writers’ award too (Image: PA)

He has already scooped the player of the year from the players’ union, the PFA.

Liverpool officials were mindful that Suarez was unable to collect his FWA prize in 2014 because he was already preparing for the World Cup finals with Uruguay.

So when Salah told them he wanted to be in Liverpool and London on the same night, they agreed to pick up the tab to fly him to the capital.