Liverpool Rumour Mill: Mané Wants Merseyside Return

Sadio Mané left Liverpool a hero last summer. He headed off to Bayern Munich to take on a new challenge with the support and well wishes of the Liverpool faithful.

The move hasn’t turned out well for either party. Liverpool’s results have fallen off a cliff this season. However, that seems like good luck compared to Mané’s situation in Germany. After a poor performing season, the Senegalese captain has lost his starting position in the team.

After a heavy loss to Manchester City in the Champions League midweek that coincided with the death of one of Mané’s family members back home, things boiled over into an altercation in the locker room. It ended with Mané punching teammate Leroy Sané after he took issue with the way Sané spoke to him.

This ended with Mané receiving a fine and being officially banned for one game by the club. The unofficial ‘ban’ might continue indefinitely, though, with the club reportedly considering offloading the player this summer to try and recoup some of his £27million price tag.

Now, according to rumours, Mané is eyeing a return to his former club and his glory days. With the Reds struggling and clearly planning some summer transfer moves, the question becomes whether Liverpool believe it would be worth reinvesting in the 31-year-old winger.

While it wouldn’t be the first time that Liverpool have famously snatched up a player whose violent outburst got him banned at his old club — hi, Luis Suarez — this time it seems unlikely to happen.

Most importantly, Liverpool need to focus on their midfield. When fit, they have plenty of options in Mané’s preferred position on the wing. His age would also be a factor in this decision. Mané rose to superstardom through his technical abilities and creativity both on and off the ball. One of his biggest assets is his speed — a necessary requirement for the front three in Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp’s frenetic style of play — and that’s likely to start to go as he ages.

Furthermore, similar baseless rumours also went around about Gini Wijnaldum when he struggled at PSG after leaving Liverpool.

But as TLO’s resident Sadio Mané stan, I can’t help getting stars in my eyes imagining his triumphant return.

What do you think? Would you have Mané back if you could? Would it be worth it to have him as another option on the wing?