Bayern Munich’s CEO Oliver Kahn has reasoned why Sadio Mane may not have been able to reproduce his Liverpool form at the Allianz Arena yet. Sadio Mane ended his six-year affiliation with Liverpool last summer when he left for Bayern. The newly crowned Africa Cup of Nations winner from Senegal was not only expected to improve the Bavarians’ attacking options, but also to take the lead role in the team’s post-Robert Lewandowski era.
The former Southampton forward was one of Jurgen Klopp’s first additions as the Reds’ boss, as he went on to make a huge impact on the team during his time there. Alongside Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, and Sadio Mane was the driving force behind the Reds’ Champions League victory in 2019 and Premier League title win the following season. The trio formed one of the greatest attacking partnerships in Premier League history.
‘He’s still in search of himself a little’ – Bayern CEO outlines Sadio Mane’s struggles
A long-time Liverpool associate, Sadio Mane was anticipated to score a flurry of goals in a new, fluid system with many hybrid attackers by head coach Julian Nagelsmann and sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic. He was also supposed to set the bar for others around him. Bayern anticipated that Mane’s enthusiasm, work ethic, and mentality would inspire his new teammates, Kingsley Coman, Serge Gnabry, and Leroy Sane, who the team felt were a touch too inconsistent.
The Senegal star won the DFL Supercup in his first competitive match for the club, giving his time at Bayern the best possible start. Mane scored his team’s second goal in the 5-3 victory over RB Leipzig. Before to the World Cup, he scored six goals in the league and contributed two assists, but got injured just before the tournament and was unable to represent Senegal in Qatar.
But, since making a comeback in late February, the 31-year-old has gone goalless in each of his eight outings across all competitions, raising concerns about his effectiveness. Sadio Mane was seriously considered to win the Ballon d’Or when he came in Bavaria to great fanfare last summer. However, those hopes are fading away, with chief exec Oliver Kahn believing Mane will “explode” into form soon in Germany. The ex-goalkeeper told Sky Germany:
“He’s still in search of himself a little. He’s a player that needs a lot of encouragement. He’s not used to the type of competition for places we have here. It wasn’t like that at Liverpool. We hope he will come through for us sooner or later.”
In his first season, Sadio Mane has six goals in 20 Bundesliga games while primarily playing on the left flank in a versatile 4-2-2-2 formation. Yet, from October on, Nagelsmann was compelled to start using veteran Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting as an orthodox striker. Upon his return, Mane registered the most intense sprints of any player on the pitch during the 1-0 victory away to Freiburg on Saturday, which was a positive indication, but he’s still far from his devastating best.
Even though Choupo-Moting is out with a back injury, Mane wasn’t in the starting XI in Bayern’s 3-0 loss to Manchester City in the Champions League quarterfinals at the Etihad. Thomas Tuchel, who just took over for Nagelsmann, alluded to the softer aspects before to his first game in charge when he noted that Sadio Mane was still getting used to his new surroundings. The 31-year-old has scored 11 goals in 31 games for Bayern in all competitions, but he hasn’t scored since October.