Ex-Egypt attacker Amr Zaki believes Mohamed Salah has had more success than him in the Premier League because of the stability a permanent contract offers.
The now 38-year-old had short loan stints on loan in England with Wigan Athletic and Hull City in 2008/2009 and 2010, respectively.
While with the former, he scored 10 goals in his first 22 matches before falling out with then-manager Steve Bruce and went on to score just one goal afterward.
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At Hull, he did not have much success, and left after making just six appearances.
However, Salah has been a hit at Liverpool, after getting limited playing time at Chelsea who opted to sell him to Roma.
Zaki has now explained why he feels Salah has had continued to have success in the Premier League after he was an instant hit as well.
"I know that my start in the Premier League was stronger than Salah’s start in the same league but the difference is that he had signed a permanent contract and wasn’t on loan like me. This gave him stability, whereas I played for Wigan on loan. Also [Salah] started his career and life in Europe," Zaki told Mehwar TV as quoted by Kingfut.
"The second difference is that Salah went to Europe from Arab Contractors. He didn’t have the fame and money that Al Ahly and Zamalek players get, so he had to fight to prove himself and make a name for himself in Europe.
"You will find many examples of players who went to Europe from outside the ‘big’ teams and were successful and continued their career outside such as El-Mohammady, Ahmed Hassan and Abdelzaher El-Saka.
"The third thing is Salah’s professionalism and the fact that he developed as a player overseas. Players who leave at a young age are given a chance by club presidents to actually succeed even if they’re from Al Ahly or Zamalek because they have not become stars yet.
"I hope that club presidents in Egypt won’t prevent players from going abroad and give them the full opportunity by selling them."
Zaki scored 30 goals for the Pharaohs between 2004 and 2013.