Gary Neville has explained why a player Liverpool sold would have been a nightmare to face.
Under Jurgen Klopp, there have been plenty of special players who graced the turf in a Liverpool shirt at Anfield.
During his nine years at the club, Klopp had the ability to turn his players world-class. Always, an excellent motivator, Klopp gives his players the kind of confidence and belief that few managers are capable of instilling.
It’s also a testament to his quality that while his rivals signed ready made world-class players, at Liverpool it was mostly Klopp who turned his players into world-class stars.
Including a superstar who has since departed Anfield for pastures new, but who Gary Neville has spoken really highly of recently.
Gary Neville on why Sadio Mane would have been a ‘nightmare’ to face
Sadio Mane was an excellent player when Liverpool signed him from Southampton. But there were questions marks whether he was really worth the money the Reds paid for him.
In the ensuing years, Mane would prove those doubters silly and he would make his transfer fee seem like an absolute bargain.
Under Klopp, he became one of the best players in the Premier League and probably an extremely underrated player.
Now speaking on Sky Sports’ The Overlap with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Gary Neville has explained why he thinks Mane would have been a nightmare to face.
“How good was Mane by the way? His runs, he would have caused me a massive problem,” Neville said.
“Same,” Alexander-Arnold agreed. “He’s the one player I have played who I have thought I am glad I don’t have to play against him.”
“He would have caused me nightmares. He would have been my worst nightmare,” Neville said.
“He was the perfect attacker you know,” Alexander-Arnold added.
“He had everything. As an athlete, probably in the end he was similar to Ronaldo, you know. He had the jump he could get up, he was fast, he could finish. His finishing probably wasn’t the same but he could finish with both feet. He was just a threat at all times.”
How is Sadio Mane getting on at Al Nassr?
After struggling at Bayern Munich last season, Mane arrived at Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia last summer. He is teammates with Cristiano Ronaldo at the club, and has enjoyed a great season.
In total, he has 15 goals and nine assists in 38 matches for the club in all competitions. That’s more like the kind of numbers he posted during his time at Liverpool.
He is still very much causing plenty of problems to defenders, and demonstrating glimpses of what he was like in his prime.