Sadio Mane may have only been a Liverpool player for a matter of months, but he already knows how to warm himself to Reds fans.
The former Southampton star moved to Anfield in a £30million deal earlier this summer, but he has revealed it could all have been very different.
According to the 24-year-old, several clubs – including his new rivals, Manchester United – were interested in his signature, but he turned them down for the chance to work under Jurgen Klopp.
“There was interest from a lot of clubs, not just United”, he told the Sun.
“But as soon as I knew Liverpool were interested, I just felt it was the right club with the right coach.”
Klopp tried to buy Mane two years ago when he was at Borussia Dortmund, so he is obviously a long-term admirer of the player.
Liverpool appointed the German coach partly in the hope that he would be a major factor in attracting players to the club and it’s evidently working.
It remains to be seen whether Mane can live up to the faith shown in him by Klopp, but as Liverpool’s biggest summer signing, the pressure’s on for him to get them back to the top four as soon as possible.
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