Extending Sadio Mane’s contract must be a priority for Liverpool

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Sadio Mane is reportedly looking to earn on a par with Mohamed Salah, with both Liverpool stars yet to extend their contracts beyond 2023.

The former Southampton star was unreal against Arsenal and constantly looked as though he would get another goal.

Once a £130million-plus target for Real Madrid, Mane is proving yet again that he is the best in his position in the Premier League, and is showing that his struggles last season were an outlier as opposed to the new normal.

Earlier this year, Klopp said the attacker is ‘a complete player’ and now will need to put his money where his mouth is, as the Senegal star wants to earn the same as fellow Liverpool icon Mohamed Salah.

According to Goal’s Neil Jones, Sadio Mane’s agent is also working on getting a renewal for his client and, after several seasons of elite attacking displays and a return to top form, it is difficult to find a reason why Liverpool would not renew his deal.

Indeed, Fenway Sports Group has made it clear by not extending Georginio Wijnaldum’s deal that they aren’t interested in having an ageing squad on bloated wages.

While I maintain that not keeping Wijnaldum around was and is a mistake, Mane must absolutely be kept at Anfield despite his 30th birthday arriving before the end of the season.

However, it’s not the early 2000s when forwards peaked in their twenties. Sports science has done wonders for elite footballers and Mane is one of the least injury-prone players not just at Liverpool but in the league.

There is no doubt he can play for another three or four years at a similarly stunning level and his form this season is proof of that.

In fact, with three goals and an assist in his last four Liverpool appearances against the likes of Arsenal, Atletico Madrid and Brighton, he is a man in form.

Whether he’s now playing for an extended contract or if he’s simply back at the level he was pre-COVID, one thing is clear.

Keeping Mane, along with Mo Salah, has to be a priority for FSG, Michael Edwards, Julian Ward and Jurgen Klopp.

Letting him go would not only be disappointing, it would further deepen the hole FSG is in with Liverpool fans.