VANCOUVER, British Columbia — As a small group of reporters turned a corner in the bowels of BC Place, another even smaller group ahead began shuffling their feet with urgency.Word had filtered out from the mixed zone that Mohamed Salah, the legendary Premier League striker, was taking questions after scoring in Egypt’s first World Cup victory ever. And there Salah was, standing barefoot on a small podium, the Player of the Game trophy clutched between his hands.“The only thing I would say,” Salah said, before in fact saying many more things, “(is) we just gave it our best and we achieved something I think is very difficult in history to happen. We need to be hopeful to win the next game and be the first in the group. We just enjoyed the football and (gave) it all for our people.”Salah was speaking, having chosen to beat the rush of reporters. There were large pools of Egyptian media standing outside the mixed zone hugging each other, making FaceTime calls home to people with tears in their eyes and sending quick video hits back to their editors after Salah, The Egyptian King, scored his team’s second goal in a 3-1 win over New Zealand.How could they have known the greatest player in their country’s history was commemorating his World Cup moment with an open mic? How could they have known he was about to hold court with a fraction of the number of reporters who usually try to get him to speak in England? How could they have known that this rare occasion was about to unfold?In England, Salah usually blows through the mixed zone, eyes forward with nothing to share. Speaking with the media is clearly not a part of the job he enjoys. That was even more obvious through an increasingly trying final season at Liverpool, in which Salah played less than usual and looked disgruntled as his minutes dwindled.One of the greatest players in Premier League history typically only speaks when he has a point to make.On this historic night, Salah’s point was simple: he wanted to share joy.“We just do our best in the tournament to make the people happy in Egypt, and I think right now they are happy and proud,” Salah said. “The only thing I can promise them is just that we sweat and we run and we give it our best.”