Sadio Mane based-Q&A with Read Southampton
With Sadio Mane set to be a Liverpool player sooner rather than later, we thought we’d try and get more information and analysis from the player from somebody who watches him play regularly, so we gave the guys over at Read Southampton a shout.
I spoke to Dan Emery, one of the editors of the site about Mane to get the lowdown on Liverpool’s latest signing from the Saints.
Before we talk about the player himself, how does it feel to see yet another Southampton first-team player leave for Liverpool?
Frustrating? yes. Annoying? yes. Heartbreaking? In a way. Unexpected? not at all. Liverpool is far and away the bigger club of the two sides, irrespective of the league positions over the last few seasons. If I was in their shoes, I would do the same.
If you had to describe Mane to somebody who hadn’t seen a lot of him, what would you say about him as a player?
He’s erratic. He can go months without doing anything but then go and score five in five. He’s very lively, even when he isn’t playing well, he still looks like he could do something with the ball. His movement is very good, although his finishing does need a lot of work; he misses far too many easy chances.
Mane isn’t your typical hugging the touchline winger, he tends to drift inside to a number ten role when deployed out wide, so expect a lot of that next season.
We all seem to think his pace is his main attribute, do you agree with that?
I think saying that would be a slightly unfair judgement on his actual footballing ability. His ability on the ball is certainly one of his biggest traits, but it is his pace that allows him to get into goalscoring positions, so it’s definitely up there, but he has many strengths.
It looks like Liverpool will deploy him on the right side of an attacking trio behind the striker, would you say that’s his best position?
It’s certainly the position he is most comfortable in. But, he did look very dangerous playing just behind the striker and suited a left-wing role too. Playing on the left or centrally allows him to open his body up when shooting, which is when his finishing is far more effective.
He is still useful on the right, but I would personally play him in on left or through the middle.
Have you seen enough from Mane to think that, with time and coaching, Jurgen Klopp could add more consistency to his game?
He will definitely improve, that’s for sure. Consistency is a common issue in younger players and he is only 24. His consistency hasn’t really improved in the last two seasons at Southampton, though. He is as unpredictable as when he first joined, however, he could improve under Klopp – just like Roberto Firmino seems to have done too.