Former Manchester United and Barcelona midfielder has claimed that Sadio Mane deserves the Ballon D’or this year after an impressive year for both Club and Country.
Sadio Mane had an impressive season with Liverpool and the Senegal National team. the Senegalese international scored 23 goals and provided 5 assists in 51 appearances for Liverpool last season. Mane also scored 7 goals in 11 appearances for the Senegal national team.
The 30-year-old attacker won the FA Cup and Carabao Cup with Liverpool and helped Liverpool reach the finals of the Champions and place second in the Premier League with only one point separating them from the Premier League Champions Manchester City.
Mane helped the Senegal national team win their first-ever African Cup of Nations (AFCON) earlier this year and was named the player of the tournament.
Sadio mane was also influential as Senegal defeated Mohamed Salah’s Egypt in a two-leg World Cup play-off to qualify for the World Cup.
Despite his impressive performance last season, Sadio Mane faces tight competition from Real Madrid Karim Benzema and former club teammate Mohamed Salah for the prestigious award this year.
What did Yaya Toure say?
In an interview with RFI, the four-time African footballer of the year said: “I see that [Mane] has chained a lot of matches, that he has suffered from very few injuries.
“He is hardly ever injured, he is very strong physically. He’s also a good guy, a good person that I know personally. I want the best for him.
“I hope he will have a good [World Cup] tournament and I hope he won’t just be ranked high but win the Ballon d’Or. Sadio Mane is a great player and a great person.
“Sadio Mane has just been transferred from a big club to a big club since he is leaving a big machine and a great coach in Liverpool for Bayern Munich.”
Yaya Toure also added that the Senegal National team has to want it takes to make Africa proud in the World Cup after qualifying for their third World Cup in the country’s history.
Senegal will join the likes of Tunisia, Ghana, Morocco, and Cameroon to represent Africa in the Qatar World Cup 2022.
The former Manchester City added: “And then there is the World Cup. He [Mane] knows he will be eagerly awaited. We see that Senegal has a fairly strong workforce with many players playing in big teams in Europe.
“We see Kalidou Koulibaly in Naples, an already established player, sought after by all the big clubs, who is among the best in the world. There is Gana Gueye who plays in Paris [Saint-Germain].
“It’s a bit like the Ivory Coast of the time when we played the [Afcon] and the World Cup. There is also Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy who won the Champions League… Next to him, Sadio Mane has all these interesting players.”
Sadio Mane completed a €35 million move from Liverpool to Bayern Munich and has been assigned the 17 Jersey number. Mane is expected to earn €250,000 a week and €19 million a year at Bayern Munich.
