When you think of Sadio Mane, no doubt the first thing that springs to mind is his goals. The Senegal international has been in prolific form for Liverpool since joining from fellow Premier League side Southampton, scoring 74 goals in just 151 games, and providing a further 33 assists.
But one thing the winger showed on Saturday evening against Tottenham that will perhaps get overlooked, was his defensive work – and it was a facet of the game that perfectly symbolised why Liverpool are marching on to securing the Premier League title.
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As per Sofascore, the 27-year-old won an impressive seven total duels, which was only second behind Georginio Wijnaldum, and made four tackles too – the joint-most with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson. The fact that Liverpool’s wide-man, who has been in fine form this season with 15 goals in 28 games, was selfless enough to do the dirty work for the greater good of the team shows the kind of mentality Jurgen Klopp has built at Anfield.
On numerous occasions Mane could be seen haring back to stop Spurs from counter-attacking, with one particular phase of play that saw the star halt a home side’s move drawing praise from Gary Neville on commentary duty for Sky Sports.
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With Serge Aurier providing Tottenham’s width down the right-hand side, Mane did his fair share of helping out with the defensive responsibilities to ensure Andy Robertson didn’t have too much of a difficult task. It was unsurprising that the Spurs man lost possession 11 times over the entire game, the third-most of any player for the home side.
Whilst goals may ultimately be what defines Mane as a player, his sheer relentlessness in helping out his team and sacrificing his own game (he had just two shots on goal and three attempted dribbles), is what makes him an absolute dream for Klopp. No ego, or worrying about how to claim all the glory. Just ensuring that he did everything he could to stop Spurs from hurting his side and claiming all three points.
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