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What’s the story?
It comes as no surprise that Mohamed Salah, who scored 31 goals in 33 Premier League appearances so far, was given the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) Player of the Year award, earlier this week.
After this award, EA Sports ensured that there is a mammoth impact on Salah's FIFA 18 Ultimate Team ratings and have issued a new Player of the Year card for him.
Interestingly, his new overall rating of 98 is the same as that of the little magician from Barcelona, Lionel Messi.
In case you didn’t know…
Amazing performances on the pitch by Salah this season is the reason behind the considerable increase in rating. FUT transfer market is sure to be in a frenzy with Salah moving to the 2nd place behind one Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid.
The heart of the matter
Not only has Salah been given the highest pace rating (99), but he has also better dribbling stats (99) than both Ronaldo and Neymar (both at 98). He jointly holds the pole position in dribbling along with Messi.
The 25-year-old is currently ranked 3rd in the shooting department, with a rating of 98. The only players to be ahead of him in this area are Harry Kane and Cristiano Ronaldo (both on 99). A rating of 95 in passing means Luka Modric, Kevin De Bruyne and Lionel Messi are the only ones above him in this category, in the same order.
Salah has already received three Team of the Week cards, and three Player of the Month cards which means this is his seventh special this season.
What’s next?
The Egyptian international is the undoubted leader in pace and dribbling, and he just needs to work a little bit more on his passing and physical strength, in order to grab the top spot overall.
Both Leroy Sane, who won PFA young player of the Year, and Mohamed Salah are now available for the Squad Builder Challenges in the FUT.
Author’s take
Salah has become a force to reckon with in the virtual world as well. He is just one place from grabbing the overall top spot, which is presently held by Cristiano Ronaldo. The Liverpool winger will be a great addition to any FIFA 18 Ultimate Team.
Achieving this feat has only added to the Egyptian's confidence as he gets ready to play Champions League semi-final on Tuesday night (or the wee hours of Wednesday morning for Indian fans).
