Sadio Mane is a brilliant footballer and very proud to be Senegalese.
Speaking with New Balance ahead of the commencement of AFCON, our No.10 confirmed his desires of winning the trophy as well as sharing his nickname.
It’s great to see the passion he has and the obvious importance he has placed on winning a trophy that he has never managed to win before, finishing as runner-up in 2019.
The 29-year-old said: “When I was a kid, they called me ‘Ballonbuwa’ (ball wizard) but I was always more of a ‘Gaynde’ (lion).
“Ruthless, explosive, a hunter. I have been hunting my whole career but no matter what I have caught, I was still hungry.
“My people have waited a long time, I would trade it all to win this one.
“This is my time – the lion roars”.
It has been filmed as part of an advert but is clearly influenced by the man who has spent six years on Merseyside under Jurgen Klopp and will be hoping to add to his trophy haul at the beginning of February.
Best of luck to him and thankfully he can’t actually trade any of our trophies for his big prize.
You can watch the full video on Mane’s Instagram page: