Senegal’s star Sadio Mane has dedicated his African Footballer of the Year award to his Teranga Lions mate and the entire Liverpool players.
“I am really happy and at the same time really proud to win this award,” Mane said at the award ceremony on Tuesday.
“I would like to thank my family, especially my uncle who is here today, without forgetting all the Egyptian people.
“Of course my national team coach Aliou Cisse, my teammates with the national team and the staff at the Federation.
“I also thank Liverpool Football Club, my teammates, the staff and everybody there.
“It is a big day for me. I don’t really know how to say it but I would love to thank all the Senegalese people.
“They have been with me all the time and they push me to do better.
“Also the people from my village.. I have come very far, Bambali is a very small village and I am sure they are watching on the TV.
“I am really happy and very proud to win this.”
Jurgen Klopp recently spoke about his current top scorer and revealed that he turned down a chance to sign the player while he was boss at Borussia Dortmund.
Klopp explained: “It was simply a wrong evaluation of my side.
“I thought at that time that it was a lot of pressure on Dortmund and this transfer it had to be right.
“It is not the only wrong decision I have made, this one I could correct some years later.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Salah has issued a message of congratulations after Sadio Mane claimed his first African Player of the Year award. Mane beat both Salah and Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez to the title having helped the Reds secure Champions League glory back in June.
The former Southampton man finished third in 2016 and 2017 before losing out to Salah in second place for 2018.
The 27-year-old received 152 more votes that his colleague and has been widely praised by the football community, including a message from Salah himself.
He posted on his Instagram story ahead of Liverpool’s trip to play Tottenham on Saturday: ”Congrats bro”.
That message was accompanied by a photograph of Mane holding his trophy, as they go in search of more silverware on the pitch in the remainder of the 2019/20 campaign.
