Eduard Bănulescu
Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are the top goalscorers for Europe’s champions. Together they have propelled Liverpool to their greatest season in decades.
It’s a strange predicament to have. But, fans of the Reds are often found debating: Who is better, Salah or Mane? Today, using detailed fantasy football stats courtesy of FootballCoin, we finally answer that question.
Our study will focus on each individual season starting with the year 2016, the first in which both players garnered international renown.
Salah vs. Mane: 2016/17 season
This was Sadio Mane’s first season with Liverpool, arriving for a fee of £34 million from Southampton. Initial expectations were for him to be a reliable option for the manager. Not necessarily the star starting player he later became. Initially, he played as a winger and, occasionally as a forward.
Mohamed Salah was yet to join Liverpool. The Egyptian had just signed a permanent deal with Serie A side AS Roma. The previous season he had shown himself to be arguably the team’s best player but was still a relative unknown to the majority of worldwide football fans.
Who had the better stats, Salah or Mane, during the 16/17 campaign?
- Mane played 27 matches, while Salah was active in 31 games for AS Roma
- Mane scored 13 goals, Salah scored 15 times
- The Senegalese forward had a total of 25 shots on target, while the Egyptian took 33 shots on target
- Mane created 38 chances, while Salah create 53 goal chances
- Mane had 278 successful short passes and 549 medium-length passes. Salah registered 413 short passes and 379 medium-range ones.
- Mane was caught offside 14 times, Salah, 23 times
- Both scored one goal by header and were largely ineffective in terms of tackling
Verdict: By and large, Mohamed Salah had a slightly better 2016/17 season than future teammate, Sadio Mane
Salah vs. Mane: 2017/18 season
Sadio Mane’s role in the Liverpool squad continued much in the same vein as it had during the previous season.
Mohamed Salah joined Liverpool for a reported fee of €42m, a club record at the time.
How will did their stats fare now that the two were playing for the same club?
- Mane was involved in 29 matches for Liverpool in the Premier League. Salah played in 38 games
- The goal tally reads: 10 for Mane and 16 for Salah
- Mane registered 25 shots on goal across the season, while Salah took a whopping 68 shots
- Mane was responsible for 40 chances, while Salah created 53 chances for Liverpool
- In terms of passing, Mane registered 155 successful short passes and 610 medium-range ones. By contrast, Salah contributed 575 successful average range passes and 151 short passes
- Mane was caught outside 12 times, while the flag was raised for Salah on 18 occasions
- Salah scored two goals through headers, but Sadio Mane was ore efficient in winning back possession
This was the year that Mohamed Salah truly announced himself to the world and gained popularity with most fans of the sport. Sadio Mane also found his way into Liverpool’s side more often and impressed through his natural skill and dedication.
Verdict: Salah may have had a slightly better 2017/18 season that Mane.
So far, we have seen how both Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah used the 2016-2018 period to affirm their considerable footballing talents to the world. Both players shone in fantasy football contests and on living room television sets across the world.
