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 Fantasy Premier League managers playing their Wildcard in Gameweek 8 and over the coming weeks face a crucial question - is Mohamed Salah (£12.5m) an FPL must-pick?
Using <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/ai-team-rating">Hub AI</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/opta">Opta stats</a>, <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fixture-ticker">fixture ticker</a> and our powerful <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/predictions">predicted points</a> algorithm, we take an in-depth look at the Egyptian midfielder to help answer the question.

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<h2>How well is Salah performing this season?</h2>
Salah has three goals and four assists in seven games, scoring 44 FPL points - the fourth best tally for a midfielder.
His goal threat is strong, ranking joint-fifth overall for shots on target and fifth for expected goals (xG).
It is his creative potential that particularly stands out though. He ranks top for big chances created (nine), four ahead of Kieran Trippier (£6.7m) and second for expected assists (xA), 0.1 behind Bruno Fernandes (£8.4m).
He has racked up FPL points at a rate of 6.3 per game, ranking eighth.
But he is well down the list for value, in points per million terms, which is the dilemma would-be buyers face.
His points per million of 3.49 is well down the leaderboard, with Odsonne Edouard (£5.6m) scraping into the top 20 on 6.07 - nearly double that of Salah.
West Ham's Jarrod Bowen (£7.2m) in comparison beats Salah for both points per million (6.67) and points per game (6.9).
<div id="attachment_58429" style="width: 1292px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-58429" class="wp-image-58429 size-full" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Big-chances-created-gw7.jpg" alt="" width="1282" height="753" />
Mohamed Salah is out in front for big chances created
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<h2>Salah FPL captaincy options?</h2>
One of the positives of owning Salah is that he offers a genuine alternative captaincy option in some of the upcoming gameweeks.
Erling Haaland (£14.1m) beats Salah for predicted points in each of the next five gameweeks.
But Gameweek 10 in particular is a close call, with Salah facing Nottingham Forest at home while Haaland plays Manchester United away.
Hub contributor Chris Tan will give members the lowdown between the two each week in his <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/the-best-fpl-captain">best captain article</a>, however if you think you are open to taking the armband off the Norwegian, the case for Salah is strengthened.
<div id="attachment_58428" style="width: 937px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-58428" class="size-full wp-image-58428" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Salah-v-Haaland-captaincy.jpg" alt="" width="927" height="782" />
Mohamed Salah v Erling Haaland over the next five weeks
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<h2>Do you need Liverpool coverage? Fixture and team stats</h2>
Liverpool's fixtures are excellent. According to our <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/fixture-ticker">fixture ticker</a>, only Aston Villa better them overall between Gameweek 8 and 12.
They are predicted to score 10 goals in that time, with Manchester City the only ones predicted to score more.
And with a leading goal involvement of 44% while on the pitch, it bodes well for Salah's chances of being involved in plenty of attacking returns.
<div id="attachment_58430" style="width: 1264px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-58430" class="size-full wp-image-58430" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Fixture-ticker-GW7-12.jpg" alt="" width="1254" height="518" />
Liverpool are second for predicted goals over the coming weeks
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Turning to Liverpool's stats, they rank sixth for goals scored (16) and fifth for expected goals (14.75).
Brighton, Manchester City, Arsenal and Newcastle have better xG records, although it is early in the season with just seven games of data, plus Newcastle's league-leading xG of 15.61 is only marginally ahead of the Reds.
Importantly, the early stats suggest Liverpool will be among the best teams for goalscoring and this is unlikely to worsen with favourable fixtures coming up.
<h2>Can you cover Liverpool with players other than Salah in FPL?</h2>
With Cody Gakpo (£7.2m) injured and Diogo Jota (£7.8m) sent off in Gameweek 7, the options for Gameweek 8 have narrowed.
Luis Diaz (£7.5m) and Darwin Nunez (£7.4m) are the main alternatives.
Salah leads the trio in all key Opta stats apart from big chances and goals. It's Nunez who's the leader in these categories, with 1.33 big chances and 0.5 goals per appearance.
Security of minutes helps to justify Salah's price in comparison to Diaz and Nunez. He's played 596 minutes so far this season, compared to 460 for Diaz and 221 for Nunez.
Gakpo's injury should particularly help Nunez in this regard, although international duty in South America on Wednesday, October 18 could hinder the participation of both him and Diaz in Gameweek 9. Liverpool host Everton at 12.30pm on the Saturday.
It's also worth noting Diaz ranks a lowly 26th for predicted points among all midfielders and forwards over the next five gameweeks, with Nunez 32nd.
Looking to other attacking options over covering Liverpool and going without Salah looks a stronger plan - although <a href="https://www.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/predictions">predicted points</a> could change if expected minutes are adjusted later this week.
<div id="attachment_58432" style="width: 910px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-58432" class="size-full wp-image-58432" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Darwin-v-Diaz.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="731" />
Darwin Nunez v Luis Diaz
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<h2>Hub AI teams: With and without Salah</h2>
Our My Team tool produced a weekly best Wildcard team, featuring the optimum picks based on a five-gameweek forecast of predicted points.
Salah makes the team as things stand, although be sure to check back later this week as things could change based on team news and other information.
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But exclusively for this article, we've asked the AI to exclude Salah to see what can be achieved without him.
Starting with the main AI Wildcard team, Salah takes prime position in midfield along with Son Heung-min (£9.3m).
Bruno Fernandes (£8.4m) makes the cut, something to consider for those who are looking to sell their Manchester United midfielders.
<div id="attachment_58433" style="width: 819px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-58433" class="size-full wp-image-58433" src="https://cms.fantasyfootballhub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Best-Wildcard-GW8.jpg" alt="" width="809" height="821" />
Best Wildcard team for Gameweek 8 according to AI
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Here's how the AI would line up without Salah.
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