Sadio Mane had a brilliant, mind-boggling debut season, right?
But his second has been slightly underwhelming – struggling with injuries, form and having to play second-fiddle to Mo Salah…?
Wrong.
During the Senegalese flyer’s first season, he scored 13 goals and registered eight assists in 29 appearances.
This term, he’s scored 13 goals and registered seven assists in 29 appearances so far!
Statistically, Mane has maintained his level in terms of final third contribution, despite the Manchester City red-card and some hamstring problems.
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The issue in comparison is that now Liverpool’s attackers are being judged to much higher standards.
Mo Salah is on 31 goals and Roberto Firmino 22, so alongside his team-mates, Mane stands out less, when in 2016/17 he was the main man.
This shouldn’t detract at all from his efforts though, or his importance to the side.
Mane has four goals in his past two matches and seems to be in the form of his career. Hopefully he can do the job against Newcastle on Saturday, before the massive Premier League tie with Manchester United one weekend later.