Mohamed Salah suffered heartbreak on Sunday night as Egypt crashed out of the Africa Cup of Nations at the last-16 stage.
The hosts were surprisingly beaten 1-0 by unfancied South Africa as Thembinkosi Lorch punished a lacklustre display by Egypt in the 85th minute.
It puts Bafana Bafana through to just their second quarter-final since 2002, in which they will face Nigeria on Wednesday.
Salah was kept largely quiet throughout despite his superstar status and was visibly dejected at full-time as he fought back the tears.
And while Liverpool fans will be far from happy to see their talisman upset – Egypt’s exit could give the Reds a huge advantage ahead of the new Premier League season.
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They faced being without both Sadio Mane and Salah for the start of the campaign, but Salah now seems certain to be ready for their home game against Norwich on August 9.
Liverpool face away fixtures at Tranmere and Bradford to kick off their pre-season plans before a tour of the US which will see them face Borussia Dortmund, Sevilla and Sporting Lisbon.
They will then play further fixtures against Napoli at Murrayfield and Lyon in Geneva, Switzerland.
Liverpool’s final game before the start of the Premier League season will be against Manchester City in the Community Shield.
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Because City won both the Premier League and FA Cup last term, Liverpool will play against them by virtue of finishing second in the title race.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian FA took drastic action after the hosts were bundled out of AFCON.
Manager Javier Aguirre was sacked in the immediate aftermath, with president of the Egyptian FA Abo Rida also announcing his own resignation.
