Liverpool stroll past Watford 5-0 as Mohamed Salah single-handedly ensures a bumper haul for most Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers despite Gameweek 31’s reduced schedule.
The Egyptian was captained by 1.9 million (33.8%), 93 of the top 100 FPL managers and, as revealed by Ragabolly in his new article, 88.8% of the top 10,000.
A further 20,137 used their Triple Captain chip on him – 77.8% of the 25,883 played.
All that backing paid off as Salah delivered a first hat-trick in a Liverpool shirt, with four goals in total (from four shots), an assist and maximum bonus points bringing in a season’s best tally – by any player – of 29 points.
The records he’s accruing stretch ever further.
He’s now scored or assisted in 13 of his 15 home starts this season (17 goals and six assists), netted in his last six home Gameweeks (11 goals) and produced 14 double-figure scores in all.
For all these reasons, even without a double Gameweek to come, Salah surely has to be retained by all bar the bravest of managers.
Liverpool’s fixtures (cry eve BOU wba STK che BHA) are certainly strong enough to support more Salah hauls, but the situation is not so clear-cut for Liverpool’s other attackers.
More than 531,000 managers brought in either Roberto Firmino or Sadio Mane ahead of today’s deadline and both delivered.
The latter produced two assists for Salah, both somewhat fortunate as the main man did most of the work to score from them, but it was a fourth successive Gameweek of returns from Mane nonetheless.
Firmino, meanwhile, was denied a first-half strike by a smart Orestis Karnezis save, but got his goal with an audacious flick from Salah’s cross after the break.
The Brazilian now has three goals and two assists from the last five starts, but he is arguably now disposable as managers move for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Romelu Lukaku and Jamie Vardy ahead of their forthcoming double Gameweeks.
That trio are already among the top four most bought ahead of Gameweek 32, although Firmino is currently right behind them in fifth.
Firmino and Mane’s form could also have a bearing on those pondering the Gameweek 32 or 33 Wildcard.
Liverpool go to Palace next and have three of the next four away from Anfield.
Firmino has three goals and two assists from his last six away trips. Indeed, two goals and an assist have arrived over his last three, with the recent defeat at Manchester United his only blank in that run.
Mane has been less productive – he has just a single goal and two assists from his last six appearances on the road. That last strike away from home came back in Gameweek 22 at Burnley.
The other factor to consider is that Liverpool face their Champions League Quarter Final with Manchester City four days after the trip to Palace, with the second leg to follow the Merseyside derby in Gameweek 33. Rotation has not been a concern when considering the Liverpool front three for several months, but this period will certainly be a test for Klopp’s resolve in that respect.
Elsewhere, those managers who didn’t solely invest in the Liverpool front three enjoyed a clean sheet – the side’s 13th of the season – from the likes of Virgil van Dijk and the excellent Andrew Robertson, who boosted his reputation with a superb cross for Salah’s second goal.
That was the full-back’s second assist in four Gameweeks, although there was no such joy for Trent Alexander-Arnold’s 3.9% ownership as Joe Gomez returned to the starting line-up after a five-match absence.
Even Robertson’s first double-digit haul of the season is unlikely to save him, or any of his backline colleagues, as managers look for defenders with double Gameweeks to potentially boost their returns.
Substitute Danny Ings set up the final goal on a record-breaking FPL day when many managers ended up with 100+ points from just the four matches played.
