Sell Salah to get Haaland in FPL - or own BOTH?

The Scout on whether you should own one or both of Mohamed Salah (£14.5m) and Erling Haaland (£14.3m) in 2025/26 Fantasy Premier League.

Managers are rushing to bring in Haaland for Manchester City’s very favourable home encounter with Burnley this weekend.

Indeed, the Norwegian is the most-bought player ahead of Saturday’s 11:00 BST deadline, earning 659,000+ new owners.

Many managers are using the Salah funds to facilitate the Haaland switch, with his 321,000+ transfers out making Liverpool's Egyptian the most-sold player in Gameweek 6 ahead of the Reds' trip to Crystal Palace.

How have Haaland and Salah performed this season?

Haaland has hit the ground running this season, with six goals across the first five Gameweeks taking him to the top of the player standings on 46 points. 

That has also earned him a rise in cost of £0.3m, and combined with the £14.5m price tag of Salah, takes up a considerable £28.8m of your budget.

Watch the experts debate what to do with Salah and Haaland

Similarly to Haaland, Salah has also blanked just once. Yet he’s managed only two goals and two assists to total 30 points. 

He's also collected just two bonus points, compared with the 12 of Haaland, who has proven far more reliable for big hauls. Indeed, whereas Salah's season-best score was nine points against Burnley, Haaland has matched or bettered that in three of his five appearances. 

Haaland v Salah attacking stats, GW1-5

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Who is more likely to score or get an assist?

As the underlying numbers show, there’s no competition when it comes to goal threat here.

Haaland has had more or less THREE times the number of shots in the box than Salah, bettering him by 20 to seven. 

The most damning statistic of all here is big chances, which are situations where the player is expected to score.

Haaland leads the Egyptian by a massive 10 to one, with Salah’s only such opportunity being his converted penalty against Burnley in Gameweek 4.

Notably, the Norwegian has almost matched his premium rival for big chances created, trailing by three to two.

Ultimately, that means Haaland has been involved in a total of 12 big chances, compared with the four of Salah.

Haaland v Salah threat, GW1-5

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How do Haaland and Salah compare with other players?

Haaland’s 10 big chances is not only a league-leading total, it is TWICE that of every player apart from the six of AFC Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo (£7.7m).

Indeed, it’s fairer to assess him against CLUBS rather than players, such is his advantage right now.

As you can see from the table below, only six clubs have managed more than 10 big chances this season. 

One of them is Man City, which essentially shows that Haaland has been involved in all but two of their 14 big chances in 2025/26.

This only helps to underline why the Norwegian – providing he is fit, of course - is the one MUST-HAVE in Fantasy right now.

Clubs with most big chances, GW1-5

However, that does not mean to say that you have to pick Haaland over Salah, as there are plenty of value picks in midfield and at the back to help you accommodate both.

Nonetheless, if you’re looking for a more balanced squad and prefer having just the one big-hitter, you can get a better idea of the best Salah alternatives by looking at big-chance involvement for other midfielders in order to refine your search.

How does Salah compare to other midfielders?

As the table below shows, Salah is one of eight midfielders who have been involved in at least four big chances in the first five Gameweeks. 

Bournemouth's Semenyo has provided the standout goal threat, with his total of six big chances at least TWICE the total of any other player in this position apart from the four of Burnley's Jaidon Anthony (£5.5m). 

Chelsea's Enzo Fernandez (£6.7m), Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes (£9.0m) and Everton's Jack Grealish (£6.8m) are also among the key names here.

The former two have each had three big chances and created another one of them. Although he didn't make his full Everton debut until Gameweek 2, Grealish's one big chance and three big chances created are both identical to Salah.

Midfielder attacking stats, GW1-5

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A further focus on those same players helps to highlight other standout statistics for those seeking a Salah replacement.

Semenyo has climbed to the top of the midfield standings on the back of three goals and two assists. He has also bettered Salah for shots in the box, by 12 to seven, and for chances created, by eight to six.

In addition, the Bournemouth star also collected two defensive contribution points against Newcastle United last weekend, highlighting his further routes to returns. 

Further down the price range, Semenyo's team-mate David Brooks (£5.0m) and Brighton & Hove Albion's Yankuba Minteh £5.5m) have each recorded more shots in the box and chances created than Salah, as well as matching his four big-chance involvements.

The creativity of Fernandes and Grealish also catches the eye here.

Despite failing to collect an assist, the Portuguese has created a league-high 15 chances this season. 

The Scout's GW6 Wildcard squad

Notably, he sits just four points behind Salah despite being involved in only two goals and missing a penalty. Fernandes leads the Egyptian by four points to zero for defensive contributions and by five bonus points to two. 

Grealish, meanwhile, has created a league-high 13 chances since making his full Everton debut in Gameweek 2. 

Midfielder stats and output, GW1-5

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Why ownership and captaincy matter

When discussing Salah and Haaland, the issues of ownership and captaincy, in particular, may ultimately determine how you view the situation. 

Salah is the second most-popular player in Fantasy, found in over 51 per cent of almost 12million managers' squads.

That hefty ownership means the Liverpool star has been the No 1 captain choice in FOUR of the first five Gameweeks - the one exception was the Reds' home match against Arsenal in Gameweek 3.

On each of those four occasions, at least three million managers handed the armband to Salah, earning double his points total.

In a season that has frustrated many managers early on, it's one of the few guarantees that Salah will remain heavily-backed with the armband in the vast majority of Gameweeks.

Haaland has also ranked among the top two in all five of the opening Gameweeks. Yet there's still a significant difference between the two - the Norwegian has been captained by over two million managers in only one of the first five Gameweeks. 

Haaland v Salah captain stats, GW1-5

So, should managers own Haaland, Salah or both?

Haaland's numbers cannot be ignored and his goal threat is so superior to every other player right now he is simply a must-have - providing, of course, he is passed fit to face Burnley.

In Salah's case, the underlying statistics are anything but impressive and show that Liverpool are yet to gel in their new 4-2-3-1 formation.

But as his high ownership and armband popularity show, going without the Liverpool star will carry a big degree of risk. If Salah delivers a big haul, any non-owners are likely to tumble down the rankings. 

Ultimately, it simply comes down to what type of Fantasy manager you are.

Owning both, and captaining Haaland according to the fixtures, is the most risk-averse strategy.

If the underlying statistics drive your decisions, owning only Haaland would allow you to spread the funds more evenly. By backing midfield talismen such as Fernandes, Semenyo and Grealish, you can also afford big-hitters up front such as Viktor Gyokeres (£9.0m) ahead of Arsenal's great schedule from Gameweek 7.