I was almost tempted to copy and paste the piece that I wrote last week on Mohamed Salah, but my strong(ish) willpower prevented me from doing so.
It’s been a pretty astonishing week for us, capped off by our stunning 2-0 victory against Chelsea yesterday, which encapsulated a performance that was composed, calm and professional, regardless of whether Chelsea had 10 men or not.
After I wrote last week that if there was any doubt about our Egyptian King being a legend, our Senegalese wizard has joined him for sure.
Sadio Mane scored a brace at Stamford Bridge which took his tally to 83 since his £34m transfer from Southampton in 2016. An astonishing feat in such a short timeframe.
What’s important to note about this is that before proceedings, he was behind Luis Suarez and Fernando Torres who both finished their careers with 82 goals. Mane leapfrogged both of those talented individuals and entered the top 20 all-time goalscorers at the club, drawing level with the great Albert Stubbins.
If he wasn’t already, then Mane is now a legend of this football club. With his goals, he has the trophies to back them up, helping us end our 30-year wait for a league title which has seen us at the butt of rival fans’ jokes for many years.
His impact during his first season and his growth throughout his time at Anfield has been sensational. While he was a very good Premier League player during the 2016/17 campaign, he is now a world-class talent and one of the best left-sided attackers in the world.
His rocketing market value illustrates his rise to fame and glory. In August 2016, he was believed to be a £27m player. Turn the clock four years and this had shot up to an eye-watering £135m, as per TransferMarkt.
The Senegal international has also been described as one of the most humble players in football, having been captured cleaning his local mosque in recent years and giving that gracious speech when he was crowned CAF African Player of the Year.
Not only is his professionalism exemplary, but his conduct away from the grass epitomises one of great influence and a guide to those around him.
