Sadio Mane has revealed how Jurgen Klopp called him to apologize ahead of the Senegalese forward’s move to Liverpool, and why he treated Manchester United so poorly.
Sadio Mane has revealed that Jurgen Klopp has apologized for failing to sign him to Borussia Dortmund ahead of his move from Southampton to Liverpool. The Senegalese forward spent eight glorious years at Anfield after Klopp signed him from Saints for £34m in 2016.
But the pair seemed destined to be together in the Bundesliga years earlier. When Klopp took the reins of Dortmund in 2014, he found Mane’s high-pressing style of play suited to him, having previously played for Red Bull Salzburg.
However, a deal ultimately did not materialize at that point and Mane instead joined Southampton, with Klopp moving to Liverpool the following year to replace Brendan Rodgers. “I met Klopp. He tried to bring me to Dortmund but it didn’t work out,” Mane explained on Thursday’s Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.
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Two years later, the pair met in the Premier League, but Klopp remained adamant about working with Mane, even though it was in England rather than Germany. Mane added: “So when he was at Liverpool and I was leaving too, I went to Southampton and I said, ‘Okay, I’ll see you again’.”
“He called me and said, ‘Listen, it didn’t work out. It’s my fault. So what do you think? Do you want to work again or?’ “Then he goes to see (Mauricio) Pochettino (Tottenham). I said, “Okay, please agree with everything my agent said.” I’m coming to Tottenham. ‘And when I got home three days later, I got a call from Klopp. I say, “This is my crop.” This is right…this is what I want.
“I say, ‘I’ll keep my word. Make sure some clubs want me. But no, I’ll go there.’ And at the time, Liverpool weren’t even in the Champions League. Tottenham were playing the Champions League.”
He also claimed that Klopp had apologized for not signing him for Dortmund in 2014. “I got a call from Klopp. First of all, I said, ‘Coach…’ and he said, ‘How are you doing? It’s my fault that you didn’t come to Dortmund, because I wanted to come to Dortmund. I met him first. I wasn’t happy.’
“And he apologized for this. And he said, ‘We’re going to build a team that no one wants to play against. And if we grow together, you’ll be in every game.’
After signing for Liverpool in the summer of 2016, Mane made 269 appearances in all competitions for the Reds, scoring 120 goals and providing 46 assists as he won the Premier League title, FA Cup, League Cup and coveted Champions League at Anfield.
However, had he signed for Manchester United, his career could have gone in a completely different direction. Asked why his move to United fell through, he added: “I got a call from Manchester United at the same time. I was talking to (Louis) Van Gaal.”
“When they couldn’t get me, they bought[Anthony]Martial because he called me – Van Gaal called me. He said, ‘Mane, how are you doing? What are you doing? How are you…?’ I said, ‘I’m fine.’ He said, “I want you to come to Manchester United.”
“I said, ‘Really?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ I said, “Okay.” I’m currently talking to my agent. We’ll see what’s best because I know you’re a good player and can help the team, and we can also help you become a better player. ”
However, Mane explained that there was a wealth of talent in his position and that Van Gaal’s answer to a question ultimately dissuaded him from the idea of signing for the Red Devils. “And I said, ‘Okay, here’s my question. You’ve got (Memphis) Depay, you’ve got (Wayne) Rooney, you’ve got (Angel) Di Maria, you’ve got (Robin) Van Persie, I think the same way. So where are you going to play?’ That was my question, because I want to play.
“He said, ‘I know your talent and you’re good. But if you train well and make a good impression, you’ll play. But we have another good player.’ I wasn’t convinced by his explanation. Then a few days later I got a call from the club. So I was waiting with my agent and my family.
“I spoke to the coach and he said if you’re good, you’ll play, if you’re not, you’ll play… But I can tell you I wasn’t ready at the time. I was young and needed more help. And I needed another year or two to be where I wanted to be, because I was still at Southampton. I wasn’t consistent.”
“And we said, ‘Okay, let’s take a look.’ Probably Tottenham, so we have a meeting with Tottenham. At the same time, I got a call from Pochettino. ‘I want Sadio to come to Tottenham’s training ground.’ Then a week later I go to Tottenham’s training ground.
“And I… looked at the facilities, met the coach, talked to him. And I was more convinced than the Man Utd project because Man Utd had too many… The problem was they had too many big players.”
Mane will part ways with Liverpool in 2022 and sign with Bayern Munich. However, after just one season with Bayern, he moved to Al Nasr of the Saudi Professional League, where he still plays.
Listen to the full Rio Meets Sadio Mane interview on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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