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FIFA 18 Ultimate Team: Mohamed Salah Record-Breaker Card Tops TOTW 35

Rory Marsden@@roomarsdenX.com LogoFeatured ColumnistMay 16, 2018

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - MAY 13:  Mohamed Salah of Liverpool in action during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Brighton and Hove Albion at Anfield on May 13, 2018 in Liverpool, England.  (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Michael Regan/Getty Images

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah has picked up just about every individual accolade going in 2017-18, and he has now received a record-breaker card in FIFA 18 Ultimate Team's Team of the Week 35.

It comes after he scored his 32nd league goal of the season against Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday to become the first player ever to pass 31 goals for a 38-game Premier League season.  

In-form cards have been handed to Real Madrid's Gareth Bale, Manchester City's Leroy Sane and Nice striker Mario Balotelli in the latest Team of the Week, while Erik Lamela and Manuel Lanzini are also included.

EA announced the full team Wednesday:

EA SPORTS FIFA @EASPORTSFIFA

🗣️ It's #TOTW 35 featuring 92 Gareth Bale 🎯, 87 Leroy Sané 💨 & 86 Mario Balotelli 🤩! #FUT #FIFA18 https://t.co/KzPRXqcUiX

EA SPORTS FIFA @EASPORTSFIFA

In addition to the 23-man #TOTW squad: record-breaker Mo Salah 🕴️! #FUT #FIFA18 https://t.co/jRQju6R7Q2

     

Mohamed Salah, Liverpool

Salah has looked on course to break the Premier League's 38-game scoring record for some time after reaching 31 goals for the campaign with his strike against West Bromwich Albion on April 21.

However, he then went two top-flight games without finding the net, leaving just the final game of the season for him to etch his name in the record books.

It took him only 26 minutes to fire home a low finish for Liverpool's opener against Brighton at Anfield and set the Reds on their way to a 4-0 victory that secured them a top-four finish.

It saw him eclipse the previous joint record of three of the Premier League's most celebrated former players, per Sky Sports Statto:

Sky Sports Statto @SkySportsStatto

Mohamed Salah has scored his 32nd PL goal, setting a new record for most goals in a 38-game season in the competition. The previous record of 31 goals was held by Alan Shearer (1995-96), Cristiano Ronaldo (2007-08) & Luis Suarez (2013-14) #PL https://t.co/Z3GpKsOyXT

The Egyptian's record-breaker card boasts an overall rating of 93, with shooting at 96, dribbling at 97 and pace at an incredible 99.

           

Gareth Bale, Real Madrid

MADRID, SPAIN - MAY 12:  Gareth Bale of Real Madrid warms up prior to the La Liga match between Real Madrid and Celta de Vigo at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on May 12, 2018 in Madrid, Spain.  (Photo by Quality Sport Images/Getty Images)
Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

Welshman Bale has not enjoyed the best of seasons at Real this season, often limited to appearances from the bench of late by manager Zinedine Zidane.

However, he has still managed to net 15 goals in 25 La Liga appearances, two of which came in a 6-0 drubbing of Celta Vigo on Saturday.

Real's domestic season has been all but over for some time, but they have the UEFA Champions League final coming up against Liverpool on May 26.

Bale, 28, will have done his chances of starting against the Reds in Kiev no harm by netting two fine goals against Celta, per Yahoo Sport UK's Andrew Gaffney:

Andrew Gaffney @GaffneyVLC

Gareth Bale has 15 league goals for Real Madrid this season. Isco, Benzema and Asensio have scored 18 combined. 'Having a bad season.' #LaLiga #RMFC

His excellence is reflected in a 92-rated card, which sees him in the 90s for pace, shooting and dribbling.

         

Mario Balotelli, Nice

Still one of the most interesting footballers in the game, Balotelli's in-form card sees him rated at 86 overall, with shooting at 90.

The Italian remains a superb finisher and netted his 17th and 18th Ligue 1 goals of the season on Saturday in a 4-1 defeat of Caen.

It means Balotelli, who will be out of contract in the summer, has now scored four goals in his last three games.

Per Get French Football News, he took his time to thank the Nice fans after Saturday's victory:

Get French Football @GFFN

Mario Balotelli walked the entire Allianz Riviera pitch last night to thank all the OGC Nice fans for their incredible support during his 2 year stint: "We are all going clubbing tonight." (J+1) https://t.co/jptvZDPFiv

Though the 27-year-old is still a controversial figure he could secure a move in the summer after a fine 2017-18 campaign.