In a rather unfamiliar report, Togo head coach Claude Le Roy stated that Liverpool superstar Sadio Mane could play for Manchester United.
Since arriving at Liverpool back in 2016, Sadio Mane has set the Premier League on fire with his mazy dribbles, electric pace and deadly finishing in front of goal. The 26-year-old also helped Liverpool to the Champions League final last season and scored against Real Madrid but it was not enough for Liverpool to beat the La Liga giants.
But his performances for Liverpool are not quite on the same length as when he plays for his national side Senegal. Mane has come under the radar for underperforming with Senegal and not being able to give his best for his country when required. At the FIFA World Cup this summer in Russia, Mane managed just one goal for Senegal and he is yet to score for his nation in the AFCON qualifying campaign.
However, legendary French coach Claude Le Roy has explained that Sadio Mane is good enough to play for any club in the world.
Le Roy Heaps Praise On Mane-
Speaking to Stades (Star Africa), the 70 year old head coach for Togo stated that Sadio is a great player and capable of playing for rivals Manchester United or even European giants Real Madrid, “He’s a great player and he’d have his place at Manchester United, at Barcelona, or at Real Madrid. It would be a really good thing if I could have him with the [Togo national team].
And Le Roy also explained that playing in the Premier League could be different to playing for your national country and he understood the reason as to why Sadio is unable to play as well for Senegal, “Sadio is an excellent player and I tell you that all of Africa watches him play in the Premier League at the weekend as well as the Champions League. However, a club is different to a national team. We often criticise players for not shining so much with the national team, but at the clubs, players know each other. All the time, the players see each other training together, whereas in the national team, they only see each other periodically.”
Author’s Take-
I think that Le Roy has hit the nail right on its head by explaining how different Sadio must feel while playing for Senegal and Liverpool. Club football is usually played more often and regularly than when you play at international football and that is the main reason you cannot really gel well with your national teammates.
