Champions League-winner Sadio Mane has been urged ‘to leave’ Liverpool and pursue a move to either Barcelona or Real Madrid in the summer transfer window according to Mandy Toure who founded the Generation Foot academy in Dakar where Mane used to train.
The current Senegal Premier League holders Generation Foot has been the training platform for Papiss Cisse, Diafra Sakho and current Watford winger Ismaila Sarr.
However, Liverpool’s irreplaceable figure is undoubtedly the most famous figure to have benefited from the Senegalese set-up. The former Southampton man is on the verge of claiming a first Premier League title with the Reds who currently 14 points clear of all their title rivals.
Mane, 27, recently finished fourth in the Ballon d’Or awards for 2019 Lionel Messi, the winner, and Cristiano Ronaldo as well as Liverpool team-mate Virgil van Dijk.
Liverpool forward Sadio Mane in action during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London on Saturday 11th January 2020. (Photo by Jon Bromley/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The former RB Salzburg forward has emerged as one of the deadliest forwards in world football after helping Liverpool to the continental treble that saw Klopp’s team claim the FIFA Club World Cup, the UEFA Super Cup as well as their Champions League triumph in June 2019.
Mane is currently the Reds top scorer this season with 15 goals in all competitions – he also has 11 assists for the runaway Premier League leaders.
Yet, despite Liverpool’s current status as champions of the world, Mane has been touted with a summer move to Spanish giants Real Madrid. The two parties have been engaged in flirtation in the past after he referred to the link as ‘a pleasure’ last summer.
The recently crowned African Player of the Year for 2019 is currently under contract with Liverpool until 2023, but Toure has encouraged Mane to pursue a move to one of La Liga’s two biggest clubs later this year.
Speaking to The Guardian, Toure said: “The fact Sadio has won the African Ballon d’Or will spur him on to win the European one too.”
“That’s his objective. Sadio always told me he would become one of the best players in the world.
“He said that to me and now he is among them but he has to leave Liverpool now.
“It’s his last year and he has to leave Liverpool when it’s up to go to Barcelona or Real Madrid.”
Liverpool forward Sadio Mane in action during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London on Saturday 11th January 2020. (Photo by Jon Bromley/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
What RTK has to say
Toure’s comments are nothing short of laughable. The idea of Mane leaving the best team in the world for two teams in a state of transition is absurd.
Eden Hazard has severely struggled since his £150 million move from Chelsea in the summer showcasing why Madrid isn’t the desirable destination it once was.
Meanwhile, Barcelona are in a state of crisis after dismissing manager Ernesto Valverde halfway through the season due to his failings in the Champions League that included their 4-0 collapse against Liverpool.
Mane is now arguably Liverpool’s most consistent forward player and it would be unimaginable for the club to entertain such nonsense. The club are no longer in a position that allows their most prized assets to be snatched from their grasp which is why Mane will not leave.
The team are looking to establish a golden age for the club with Klopp’s men on the verge of ending 30 years of hurt on Merseyside. Liverpool are the most attractive proposition in world football, Mane won’t be going anywhere.