Sadio Mane, born on April 10, 1992, in Sedhiou, Senegal. Mane was born to a very religious Muslim family. He grew up in the area of Bambali, a small village in southern Senegal. The village where Mane lived only had a population of no more than 25 thousand people.
Little mane grew with his uncle because his parents could not afford all of his needs and desires. Little Mane grew up to be a kid who really likes to play football. He remembered when he used to play with his neighbors in the streets full of dust.
All of his life and development are greatly influenced by his uncle.
Mane was inspired to seriously play football when he saw his country become one of the contestants in the 2002 World Cup grand event. At that time, Senegal managed to advance to the quarter-finals phase. They also managed to defeat the French national team which at that time, had more power.
After seeing Senegal’s extraordinary struggle, Mane held a small tournament near his residence. Mane became the most superior player and got a lot of praises from the people around him.
His desire to seriously play football was once rejected by his family. They wanted Mane to pursue religious teachings instead. But after getting persuasion from neighbors and his uncle, both parents were willing to support Mane in developing his football talent.
His uncle and parents also sold all of their agricultural crops to finance Mane’s football education. Afterward, Mane was escorted by his uncle to attend local soccer training in the Dakar area.
However, Mane had an experience that he would never forget. When he was about to start the selection, Mane saw many children wearing good shoes. While he only wore worn shoes to take part in the selection.
A scout there even insulted Mane who seemed to have no preparation to take part in the selection. He was insulted because of his worn shoes. He was also insulted because he was wearing inappropriate pants. However, Mane kept his confidence and only focuses on his selection.
Sure enough, Mane managed to prove his quality and surprised many people. He also qualified for the team.
The most interesting thing here is that Mane again surprised many parties after he collected 130 goals in just 90 matches. He did it in two seasons.
Because his talents were considered special, Mane attracted French talent guides. This was the start point for Mane to climb up his professional career. The talent guide was shocked by Mane’s talent. He also mentioned that Mane was the poorest player in the team, yet was the most talented player.
Mane also got several facilities to fly to France. At that time, Mane joined the academy of Metz.
For your information, Mane did not tell his parents when he decided to pursue a career in France. He did it because his family still wasn’t 100% giving him permission to climb a higher level in the football world.
Mane only thought about playing football and surprised his parents.
Mane made his professional debut with Metz in January 2012. In his first season, he played 19 times. In August 2012, he decided to move to the Austrian club, Red Bull Salzburg. At that time, he was paid around 4 million euros.
On October 31, Mane scored his first hat trick for his team. Mane continued to play nicely and managed to bring Red Bull Salzburg to win the League.
The 2014/15 season, Mane attracted the interest of Premier League clubs, Southampton. At a cost of around 11.8 million euros, Mane officially became a team player based in St. Mary. On his first debut, Mane immediately offered a victory. At that time his team won with a score of 2-1 over Arsenal.
His growing game took him to the top position of Southampton’s top scorer.
In May 2015, Mane managed to score three goals in Southampton’s 6-1 win against Aston Villa. His hat trick became one of the fastest hat-tricks as he only scored it in 176 seconds.
Despite playing nicely, Mane had a problem with his club. He often came late and was considered an undisciplined player. He then left Southampton to join Liverpool, who at that time was willing to spend up 34 million pounds for him.
With the dowry, Mane officially became a Reds player in June 2016. The first person he invited when he officially became a Liverpool player was his mother.
With Liverpool, Mane made his debut in the Premier League against Arsenal. He successfully scored the fourth goal in the 4-3 team called The Kop. Because he continued to play brilliantly, Mane was awarded the best player of Liverpool on May 9, 2017.
The Year of 2017 also gave a little dark story for Mane. While undergoing the 2017 African Cup tournament with Senegal, Mane had a bad experience. He who at that time failed to execute a penalty kick was considered as the cause of Senegal’s failure in the tournament. The worse thing was that he also got some terrible threats at his house.
Many Senegalese fans had given terror to their homes. Because he felt threatened, Mane then asked the police to help guard his house for 24 hours.
After returning to Liverpool, Mane’s potential grew rapidly. He claimed if Jurgen Klopp changed it a lot. He became a formidable player and turned out to be a much better person.
Until now, Mane is still the mainstay of Liverpool’s attack line. Together with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, he successfully forms a deadly trio.
