Will Mo Salah play in Gameweek 25? Brentford vs Liverpool team news and FPL tips
It says much about Mo Salah‘s performances this season that he is still the top-scoring player in Fantasy Premier League despite missing the last four gameweeks due to a combination of the Afcon and injury.
A return of 14 goals and eight assists in only 20 games means that Salah holds a six-point lead at the top of the charts ahead of the chasing pack of Ollie Watkins, Bukayo Saka, Son Heung-min and Erling Haaland.
Despite his spectacular form, Salah’s ownership in FPL has dwindled to under 20 per cent with managers deciding to reinvest their funds elsewhere after he suffered a hamstring injury while playing for Egypt in the Ivory Coast.
That decision to sell Salah has been vindicated as expensive alternatives like Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne have been in exceptional form in recent weeks. Salah’s Liverpool teammates Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez have also stepped up their output during his absence.
However, some FPL bosses will be hastily drawing up plans to get Salah back in their teams, possibly alongside Haaland and De Bruyne, ahead of Liverpool’s upcoming double gameweek against Brentford (h) and Luton (a) after pictures and footage emerged of him training outside on Tuesday.
With Liverpool contesting the Carabao Cup final with Chelsea on Sunday 25 February, Jurgen Klopp will presumably want to increase Salah’s match fitness which could lead to him featuring in the two league games before then.
Here’s what we know about Salah’s fitness ahead of the Gameweek 25 deadline at 11am on Saturday.
Back in training
Liverpool’s social media team certainly know how to drum up some excitement.
Over a third of the 60 pictures that were posted on the club’s website on Tuesday afternoon featured a freshly-trimmed Salah and most of them had him beaming from ear to ear.
Before ripping up your double gameweek plans to accomodate Salah, it is worth noting that while there were images of him running with the ball at his feet in light drills, there aren’t any of him taking part in full training.
That may be because they want to keep his recovery under wraps or it could be that he isn’t quite ready for full contact training, which puts into question his readiness for Saturday’s fixture against Brentford at the very least.
“Mo is going in the right direction,” Klopp said before Liverpool’s win over Burnley last Saturday. “We hope, but we don’t know, that he can be a part of part of training next week. But we have to see.
“He is going through all the paces now and it looks positive. It’s either next week or the week after. If you ask him, it’s next week.”
Those comments suggest that Salah could play in both matches or possibly just the second one against Luton on Wednesday 21 February, assuming his rehabilitation goes to plan.
Considering Salah commands a £13m price tag on FPL, it is advisable to hold off buying him until there is further information about his condition with Klopp next due to speak to the media on Friday.
Is Alexander-Arnold fit?
Salah’s return wasn’t the only notable feature of Liverpool’s photo album as there were none whatsoever of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who was substituted at half-time against Burnley with a knee injury.
It has since been confirmed that Alexander-Arnold will miss both matches plus the Carabao Cup final.
“Yeah, he felt it. He stuck it in the grass and we have to do an assessment,” said Klopp after the game.
“Nothing really bad, but he felt it again and we have to see, we have to assess it. Trent said it’s fine, but it’s not fine [because] he feels it so we had to be careful and took him off.”
Alexander-Arnold would have been FPL managers’ top defensive target for the double gameweek but they will now have to look elsewhere.
Virgil van Dijk (£6.4m) is the most obvious replacement from Liverpool’s backline given his security of starts with the fit again Andy Robertson (£6.4m) an exciting if riskier alternative option.
However, Alexander-Arnold’s injury also makes Conor Bradley (£4.1m) an intriguing, budget-friendly option. The 20-year-old has scored a goal and provided three assists in only two league appearances this season and is set to deputise for the England international at right-back.
Should you buy Salah?
It depends on whether you already have the big hitters and can afford to get him without ripping up your best-laid double gameweek plans to do so.
Haaland (£14.4m) and De Bruyne (£10.8m) are the priority purchases in the premium price category ahead of City’s double against Chelsea and Brentford, both of which take place at the Etihad.
Managers that have both Nunez (£7.6m) and Jota (£8.3m) in their squads probably have enough attacking coverage from Liverpool to get by without adding Salah too.
However, if you can easily bring Salah in (which is no mean feat) then it seems like a risk worth taking. This is the lowest ownership that Salah is likely to have all season which makes him the ultimate luxury differential.
The fixtures certainly add to the appeal. Brentford have kept only one clean sheet in their last 13 Premier League games, while Luton have the third-worst defensive record in the division.
For more FPL tips check out i‘s top five players to buy for Gameweek 25
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