I'm actually starting to prefer him to Mo.
Agreed....and it's not even close.
The PL has figured out Salah
I watch games and see more of what he does poorly than what he does well. He's a turnover machine, a one trick pony (left boot dependent), and more reliant on loose ball goals and PKs to elevate his goal totals. His amazing quick turn to his left goal vs powerhouse Genk was incredible....... and a rarity the past 1.25 seasons. I see defenders close down on him with little fear because they know his only move is left.
I read board talk that describes Salah as world class yet I see a player who turns the ball over at an alarming rate and can't get shots on net with any consistency....hardly traits of World Class. His 2017-18 season was phenomenal, but the PL has adjusted to his limited goal scoring repertoire.
Who doesn't love his goal totals, trending negative as they are but lets also put his goal scoring into context. He's scored in only 3 of LFC's 11 PL games this season and his tally of 5 PL goals includes 2 PKs.
On the other hand, I see defenders step back from Mane because they fear his speed and ball control. I see a player win headers delivered to him from anywhere on the pitch. (Has Salah ever won a header from a ball delivered out of the defensive end? Answer....never).
Mane is delivering goals at the most important times in games....with no PK boost to elevate his numbers despite being the guy who often creates the PK.
He can create his shot with significantly more ease than Salah, run around defenders who can't match his speed, elevate for headers and find the back of the net, etc etc etc.
Is Mane perfect? Far from it. Tends to hold on to the ball too long IMO and has an occasional game where is head is off in another direction.
The term World Class is subjective but I certainly have Mane far closer to this ideal than Mo.
Athletically, there is no comparison.
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Warning!!!! Hypothetical in progress.
Easily triggered......you might want to switch over to
www.steviegerrardsbestin directfreekicks.com Strictly from a value perspective.....and I'm using transfer fee estimates from transfermkt.us ...
Salah....$171 mm
Mane....$136 mm
Let's play a
hypothetical assuming above fees are semi-realistic and a market exists for both.
LFC management decrees: "Sell either Salah or Mane....we want to deploy funds in a new direction"
Who does Klopp and his analytics team retain?
I argue LFC management would keep Mane 10 out of 10 times even if the values were identical.
Currently Mo is on a pace 10.35 non-PK goals and 6.9 PK goals = 17.25 goals in the PL this season.
Realistically, I don't think any team in Europe would pay $171mm for Mo these days.
Mane would be a steal at $136mm or $171mmm...IMO
To those posters who didn't look away and are no doubt butt hurt by such a hypothetical, buy a pillow to sit on.
mypillow.com is offering a 2 for 1 deal for the easily triggered, large cheeked supporters.