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It was never previously a debate. Mohamed Salah, since his arrival at Anfield and subsequent blistering start, has always been deemed as Liverpool's star man, the go-to guy, the one who others look to for inspiration.

Whilst he has since returned to his talismanic ways of old after an eight-game goal drought, others have stepped up whilst he went missing.

Virgil van Dijk, of course, and the two full-backs in Andrew Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold have become pivotal to Jurgen Klopp, but Sadio Mane has arguably been the club's best player this season and was the one who kept the title challenge alive during Salah's dry spell with 11 goals in 11 games.

That form has led to talk of a summer move to Real Madrid, but is he now the Reds' star man ahead of the Egyptian international?

Are the media letting Jurgen Klopp off lightly for his lack of silverware? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have their say in the video below...

Football FanCast's writers give their verdicts on the matter...

Harry Sherlock

"No. Mane is a pacy winger and he has a fantastic end product but Salah is perhaps the third best player in world football, behind… well, you know who. Mane does struggle to carry Liverpool at times and Salah regularly steps up. The question comes down to this: Who would the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid and PSG prefer? The answer, obviously, is Salah."

Matt Dawson

"It was going to take quite something for Mo Salah to replicate what he achieved last term and there's no doubting his ability, but for me, Sadio Mane has overtaken him as Liverpool's most important player. Mane has become more ruthless and he's been the man in the right place at the right time on so many occasions. His performance at the Allianz Arena against Bayern Munich on the biggest of stages showed just how valuable he is. Personally, I think Liverpool would struggle to replace him more than Salah."

Ben Goodwin

"No way. Take nothing away from Mane because he’s been sensational this season, but part of the reason he is afforded so much space is thanks to teams putting two, three or even more defenders on Salah. The Egyptian has created 10 clear-cut chances for Mane this season, double the next best link-up at Liverpool (Robertson has done so for Firmino five times). Salah is more clinical, more consistent and does much more for his team than just goalscoring."