June is here and June means transfer season for football fans all around the globe. Rumors are flying around and some clubs have already started their businesses. The Euros and Copa America is almost here and there won’t be much transfers during these periods, but there won’t be any shortage of transfer rumors.
The English Premier League just got better with the arrival of world class managers like Pep Guardiola, Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho at Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United respectively. The competition between the clubs will now be there during the off-season too. The clubs will be fighting over top talents from all over the world. And Millions will be spent by the big guns of England.
Due to the arrival of these managers, many of the football fans have forgotten that Jurgen Klopp will be looking to rebuild the Liverpool squad. But Liverpool fans have not lost a single bit of excitement. They are looking forward to see what their new manager will do during the transfer season.
There were reports that Mario Gotze will be leaving Bayern Munich this summer and Liverpool was one of the possible Destinations for Gotze to go to. Several Liverpool journalists reported that Mario Gotze is Klopp’s top target and it really looked like it was going to happen. But last week an unexpected twist happened. Mario Gotze, all of a sudden sacked his agent and claimed that he wants to work with Carlo Ancelotti at Bayern Munich. Of course, this may not be the end of the ‘Gotze Transfer Saga’ but Liverpool will be looking for alternatives now.
And as expected a new rumour popped up. ‘Sadio Mane To Liverpool For 25 Million‘ was the new rumor that was trending on Twitter and other social media. According to these reports, Liverpool have turned their attention from Mario Gotze to Sadio Mane. This rumour may be true or false, but there is nothing wrong with us talking about it right? So, let’s see if Liverpool really need Sadio Mane.
The Senegalese was bought by Southampton from RB Salzburg for a fee of 15 Million Euros in 2014. Sadio Mane didn’t take much time to settle in the premier league and quickly became an important player for the Saints. The 24 year old scored 10 goals during his first season in the premier league. He attracted interest from a number of top clubs from England in 2015 but somehow Southampton managed to keep him at the St. Mary’s. Mane was again an important player for Southampton this season and his 11 premier league goals helped Southampton to get European football next season. Sadio Mane has again attracted interest from several clubs and Liverpool is one of them.
Is Sadio Mane a suitable player for Liverpool?
In one simple word, yes. Sadio Mane is a suitable player for Liverpool. Sadio Mane’s key feature is his pace, flair and dribbling. If you look at Liverpool this season, you can see that they lacked pace from the midfielders (attacking and central). Adam Lallana, Roberto Firmino, Philippe Coutinho, Emre Can, etc were not able to provide enough pace from Midfield despite being key players for Liverpool. Current Manchester City player, Raheem Sterling, was able to shine at Liverpool because they always needed a pacey winger who can cause troubles for the opponent’s and that’s what exactly Sadio Mane can do. If you look at Liverpool’s Europa League final against Sevilla, you can easily spot lack of pace in midfield. Sadio Mane also has enough power that qualifies him to be a perfect premier league player. Mane has always played well against the big guns of premier league unlike the current Liverpool players who fail to perform in big games.
If you look at Liverpool’s current attacking players, you can also see that they are quiet ineffective in the wings. Philippe Coutinho, Roberto Firmino and Adam Lallana always has to wait for support from the Wing Backs. Mane, on the other hand, can make things happen on his own. He can burst into the box and cause havoc there. His flair has awarded him and his team quiet a few penalities which is another plus point. At the moment, Sadio Mane cannot be compared to any other current Liverpool player but he is definitely someone Liverpool need.
Now, is his 25 Million price tag justifiable?
Southampton bought Mane for 15 Million and ever since he came to the club he has been a very important player for them. His market value has risen from 15 Million to 20 Million. And also it should be noted that he is only 24 and is entering his prime. Taking all these factors into consideration, the 25 Million price tag of Sadio Mane seems justifiable.
Is it right to say that Sadio Mane is an alternative option to Mario Gotze?
No, according to many reports, Sadio Mane is Liverpool’s alternative option for Mario Gotze. These reports say that Liverpool have turned away from Gotze and now their attention is on Mane, but this does not make sense. Mario Gotze and Sadio Mane are non-comparable players. Their playing styles are extremely different and their preferred positions are different too. On the other hand, it might make more sense if Sadio Mane is called as Liverpool’s alternate option for Ousmane Dembele. Ousmane Dembele was targeted by Liverpool, but he was signed by Borussia Dortmund earlier this summer. Liverpool also had targeted Alex Teixeira during the January transfer window. So, it is easy to understand why Liverpool is in the market for Sadio Mane.
There are two key things to note. First is that, Mario Gotze to Liverpool is still a huge possibility. Second is that, Sadio Mane is not an alternative option for Mario Gotze. So it is possible that Liverpool might end up signing both of these players.
