Speaking on All to Play for, Shaun Wright-Phillips has been discussing some of Liverpool’s problems this season and the sale of Sadio Mane this summer.
The Senegalese star left Liverpool for Bayern Munich this summer, and Wright-Phillips believes that it’s not a coincidence that the Merseyside club’s form has dipped without Mane in the squad.
Indeed, the ex-Chelsea man says that he doesn’t think Jurgen Klopp realized just how much his team would miss Mane, noting that the attacker used to have a remarkable knack for scoring in tight games and getting Liverpool out of trouble.
KLOPP MISJUDGED MANE
Wright-Phillips gave his view on the sale of Mane.
“I think it’s also letting go of the wrong players too. I don’t think he realized how much Mane would be a massive miss. The number of important games he scored in when their backs were against the wall was unbelievable and I think they’re suffering from that as well,” Wright-Phillips said.
HINDSIGHT IS 20/20
It’s easy to say that selling Mane was a mistake now, but at the time it didn’t look like a fatal error.
Liverpool needed to cash in on one of their attackers in the summer and with Mane turning 30 and entering the final year of his contract he looked like a prime candidate.
Luis Diaz had already pretty much replaced him on the left wing, while Darwin Nunez was meant to be the new fresh addition to this frontline.
Now, it’s clear how important Mane was to this team, but at the time, letting him go for a big fee didn’t seem like the worst idea in the world.
