Mohamed Salah will be a big miss for Liverpool throughout January, and potentially beyond, as he represents Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations.
The former Roma forward scored in his last Reds game before heading out to Cameroon, though his strike against Chelsea wasn't quite enough to lead Jurgen Klopp's side to victory in their Premier League match.
His country's progress at the continental tournament will determine how long he is unavailable to the Merseyside club.
Egypt were eliminated in the last 16 of their last AFCON tournament in 2019, with Salah playing the full 90 minutes of their 1-0 defeat to South Africa.
They are among the favourites for this year's competition, and the 29-year-old has sent a rallying call after being part of a squad which fell disappointingly short when Egypt hosted the tournament last time out.
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Egypt will begin their campaign on January 11 against Nigeria, before rounding off the group stage with matches against Guinea-Bissau and Sudan.
Top spot in the group would ensure they wouldn't face another group winner until the semi-finals at the earliest.
And Salah, who is one of three Premier League men in the squad along with Arsenal's Mohamed Elneny and Aston Villa's Trezeguet, rallied the squad and supporters in an Instagram post.
"The road is not easy, but we will fight to get back with the cup. Stay behind us #Encourage_Egypt," wrote the Liverpool man, who will captain Carlos Queiroz's squad in Cameroon.
Egypt were one of eight teams to make it through qualifying without defeat, finishing above Comoros, Kenya and Togo to secure their place at the tournament.
Salah scored twice in the final qualifier, a 4-0 victory over Comoros in March 2021, and is the highest international scorer in Egypt's current squad with 45 goals.
Salah's involvement at AFCON means he will be unavailable for Liverpool's Premier League match against Brentford and the FA Cup third round meeting with Shrewsbury Town.
He will also miss both legs of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal, despite the first leg being postponed amid a Covid outbreak which forced the Reds' training ground to close.
Depending on Egypt's progress in the tournament, he could also be unavailable for a league trip to Crystal Palace and a potential FA Cup fourth round game on the weekend of February 5.
The other two Liverpool players at the tournament are in the same group, with Mane's Senegal and Keita's Guinea due to face off on January 14 in between fixtures against Malawi and Zimbabwe.
Senegal were losing finalists in 2019, falling to Algeria in the final, while Guinea were eliminated by the eventual champions at the last 16 stage.