‘That’s funny’ – Liverpool superstar reacts on whether Sadio Mane’s departure has led to their struggle

‘That’s funny’ – Liverpool superstar reacts on whether Sadio Mane’s departure has led to their struggle

Sadio Mane’s departure has been cited as a factor in Liverpool’s subpar season thus far by their standards.

Last season, the Merseyside giants placed second in both the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League.

In what turned out to be a fairly successful campaign for Jurgen Klopp, they also won the FA Cup and the League Cup.

PARIS, FRANCE – MAY 28: ( THE SUN OUT,THE SUN ON SUNDAY OUT ) Sadio Mane of Liverpool with Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool Dejected at the end UEFA Champions League final match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid at Stade de France on May 28, 2022 in Paris, France. (Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

However, following a promising start to the season in which they defeated Manchester City 3-1 in the Community Shield earlier this summer, things suddenly changed for the Reds.

Liverpool is currently eighth in the Premier League standings and essentially out of contention for the championship.

There have been rumors that Liverpool’s demise was caused by Sadio Mane’s signing during the summer transfer window. In the summer, the Senegal international decided to transfer to Bayern Munich.

The question of whether Mane’s departure contributed to Liverpool’s difficulties this season was posed to center-back Virgil van Dijk.

Following Liverpool’s 1-0 Premier League victory over Manchester City yesterday, Van Dijk spoke to the media and said that there are many factors contributing to Liverpool’s difficulties, but that Sadio Mane’s departure is not one of them.

Mane was a significant player for Liverpool, and the team did not want to lose him, he continued. The decision to embark on a different adventure was made by the player.

Van Dijk said (as quoted by Daily Mail): “That’s funny, but I don’t think it’s that personally.

“Obviously Sadio was a massive player for us, but he wanted to leave, it’s not that we wanted to let him go. We have players that have come in. Luis Diaz, outstanding.

“Darwin is getting to know how we really want to defend from the front and the importance of when we have the ball and when we don’t have the ball.

“It takes a bit of time in this case, but I don’t think that’s the exact reason why we are not performing.”

In other news, (Video) Watch Virgil van Dijk discusses the role of ‘massive’ Sadio Mane and how his departure affected the club