Liverpool supporters have become used to seeing heroes of their recent success depart.
After Jurgen Klopp joined the club in 2015, the manager went about assembling one of the best squads in Liverpool’s storied history.
Almost nine years on and with Klopp’s own exit now looming, many of the players who defined his time at Anfield have already moved on.
One of those to have played one of the biggest roles was Sadio Mane. After being signed by Jurgen in 2016, the winger scored 120 goals for Liverpool, winning a clutch of trophies along the way.
But having spent six years with the Reds, Mane felt it was time to move on in 2022. His transfer to Bayern Munich didn’t work out however and he has since joined Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia. Now almost two years on from his emotional farewell, Klopp has opened up on whether he’s had chance to see his former No.10 since.
What has Jurgen Klopp said about Sadio Mane
Klopp’s Liverpool exit is going to hurt even more than any player leaving. The German has been the main man at the club ever since he arrived.
But life will go on. At one time, it was hard to see Liverpool without Mane, Jordan Henderson, Roberto Firmino and all the others who have left over recent times. The world continues to turn.
One of the nice things about these players is leaving, is seeing them come together again. With so many of the stars of yesterday now playing in Saudi Arabia, we’ve been treated to that a few times this season.
The same happened over at Anfield last weekend. With Brighton in town, Klopp had the chance to meet both James Milner and Adam Lallana. And speaking to Sky Sports about that meeting, the 56-year-old opened up on other former players he’s had the chance to see.
“I got this little reminder now after the Brighton game. It doesn’t happen that often that you see your former players. I’m not sure I’ve seen Gini Wijnaldum since he left, Bobby [Firmino] once, Fab [Fabinho], Sadio not,” said the manager.
“I saw Milly [James Milner] and Adam [Lallana] and it just feels so good to see the boys. That’s really what life is about, that’s how I understand it. And that’s why whatever happens until the end of the season I will be really happy in the future when I see boys from this team again and I can follow what they’re doing. But it’s more fun and better fun when you have a lot of positive memories.”
How is Sadio Mane getting on
It has been a bit of a difficult couple of years for Mane after leaving Liverpool. Although his departure was criticised at the time, in hindsight it was the right time for the Senegal legend to leave.
His spell at Bayern did of course end in the winning of a Bundesliga title, but it was personal failure for Mane.
Having since joined Al Nassr, Mane is now playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo. It has been a decent campaign for Sadio, although 14 goals in 40 games in all competitions this year is still not particularly impressive.
Still, whatever he goes on to do next, the 31-year-old will always be celebrated at Liverpool. We’d love to see Mane and Klopp meet up and discuss old times in the near future.