FPL GW16: Best Replacements for Salah, Mbeumo & Sarr Before AFCON
With every FPL manager receiving five additional free transfers before Gameweek 16, this is a key moment to replace players who will be unavailable during AFCON or through injury. Mohamed Salah, Bryan Mbeumo and Ismaila Sarr are among the most transferred-out players this week, and choosing the right replacements will shape your rank over the next month.
This guide highlights the best FPL replacements for Salah, Mbeumo and Sarr, including the strongest pick from their own club, the best alternative from elsewhere in the league and a low-owned differential who can help you climb mini-leagues.
Use these resources while planning:
- FPL GW16 Rankings & Projections
- FPL GW16 Injury News Tracker
- Predicted Lineups for GW16 (Updated Daily)
- Fixture Difficulty Ranker (AFCON Planning)
Best FPL Replacement Options for Mohamed Salah (AFCON + GW16 Guide)
Salah has caused controversy at Liverpool with his comments about Arne Slot, resulting in him not even traveling to Italy for their recent match against Inter. Salah hasn't featured in two of the last three gameweeks, so he should have been out of your FPL team already.
Liverpool Replacement: Dominik Szoboszlai
Dominik Szoboszlai has been one of the most crucial players for Arne Slot this season. He's played 90 minutes in every match in both the Premier League and Champions League in a variety of positions: deeper in midfield, right-back and now as the right winger when Salah hasn't been in the squad.
He scored against Leeds in GW15 and also took the penalty against Inter in the Champions League on Tuesday. His performance against Leeds took him above Salah in FPL points this season.
Best Non-Liverpool Salah Replacement: Bukayo Saka
Saka is the main premium midfielder this season with Salah's underperformance, and despite a few games missed through injury, he's on 64 points with 31 of them coming in the last five games. In that period, he's scored three and assisted once.
Arsenal have a strong run of fixtures starting with Gameweek 16 home against Wolves. They then face Everton and Aston Villa in Gameweeks 17 and 18. Saka leads the GW16 FPL Rankings against Wolves and is a great captaincy option.
Best Differential Salah Replacement: Cole Palmer
Palmer has played 232 Premier League minutes this season and is yet to score in a game he's started. He made his first start since his returning from injury last weekend against Bournemouth where he received 58 minutes.
His transfer would be a risk, but he should be kept in the back of your mind as he builds fitness and in turn, racks up minutes on the pitch.
Best Bryan Mbeumo Replacements in FPL (AFCON Departure)
Mbeumo has been a great signing for Manchester United, scoring six goals and providing one assist. He'll be missed in a squad that still has an injured Benjamin Sesko and Amad Diallo, who is also leaving on AFCON.
Best Manchester United Replacement for Mbeumo: Bruno Fernandes
Bruno Fernandes is the highest-scoring midfielder in FPL despite playing in a deeper midfield role. He's scored four goals and provided six assists with three of them coming in the most recent game against Wolves.
His last three games have supplied 33 of his 85 points and Mbeumo's absence could see Fernandes push further forward. Without Mbeumo, there's also a chance for more set-piece work for Fernandes.
Best Non-United Mbeumo Replacement: Phil Foden
Phil Foden started the first 10 games of the season with only one goal and one assist. Of his 77 points scored this season, 44 have come in the last three games, correlating with multiple price bumps.
He's scored five goals and provided one assist in the last three league games, making him the highest scorer in FPL in that period. Chelsea are Manchester City's only game against a team that finished in the top six last season until Gameweek 25.
Best Differential Mbeumo Replacement: Anthony Gordon
Gordon is a little cheaper than Mbeumo, but those savings could be useful to distributed throughout the remainder of your squad. His minutes have not been as secure as in recent years, due to a couple injuries and a deeper squad, but he's scored in the last three games from the penalty spot in all competitions, and also picked up an assist against Leverkusen in the Champions League.
He's scored seven goals and provided two assists across all competitions, though with only two of those goals coming in the Premier League.
Best Ismaila Sarr Replacements in FPL (Injury + AFCON)
Ismaila Sarr picked up an injury against Manchester United in Gameweek 13. He, like Salah, should have been out of your team before now, and with an added free transfer, that should definitely be the case now.
Best Crystal Palace Replacement for Sarr: Yeremy Pino
Pino came into the Crystal Palace team as an Eberechi Eze replacement late in the transfer window. He's started 11 of his 13 games at Palace but only scored and assisted twice. The positive for potential FPL managers is that both of these goal involvements have come in the last four matches.
Best Non-Palace Sarr Replacement: Yankuba Minteh
Minteh has scored 69 FPL points this season, though he's been quiet recently with only eight points in his last three games. This season, he's scored once and provided seven assists in FPL, more than any other player in the Premier League.
Liverpool in Gameweek 16 is a difficult fixture on paper, but based on their defensive numbers this season, there could be space for Minteh to exploit for FPL returns.
Best Differential Sarr Replacement: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Dewsbury-Hall has picked up 48 points in his last five matches and has scored four goals and provided three assists this season. Three of these goals and two assists have come in the last five games. Everton have tough games in the next two matches against Chelsea and Arsenal, but the fixtures open up after this with a game against Burnley and Nottingham Forest in the following two.
When Should You Sell Salah, Mbeumo and Sarr in FPL?
Salah: Sell immediately. No minutes in GW15 + confirmed AFCON departure.
Mbeumo: Sell before AFCON; price will likely fall and United's attack spreads goals.
Sarr: Sell now. Injured + AFCON + reduced minutes trajectory.
