Last summer, the transfer of Sadio Mané to FC Bayern was still celebrated everywhere as a coup with a signal effect, but the hype surrounding the long-time Liverpool star has now completely evaporated. According to the latest statements from club boss Oliver Kahn, the question arises as to whether both sides can still find each other at all.
When Oliver Kahn visited the “Sky90” talk format on Sunday evening, the CEO of FC Bayern would have preferred to only talk about Munich’s brilliant 4-2 home win in the German classic against BVB the night before.
But the former national goalkeeper was repeatedly faced with critical questions: about the controversial leave of absence of coach Julian Nagelsmann, about his public quarrel with ex-teammate Lothar Matthäus and also about the mysterious poor form of attacker Sadio Mané.
His assessments of the Senegalese were unexpectedly profound. “He’s still looking for himself a bit at Bayern Munich,” revealed Kahn. Last summer’s newcomer is a person who needs a lot of encouragement: “We would like him to explode.”
FC Bayern: Thomas Tuchel is not (yet) counting on Sadio Mané
After all, FC Bayern spent around 32 million euros last year to win over Mané after an extremely successful era at Liverpool FC.
The experienced national player on Säbener Straße has only rarely been able to build on his often inspiring performances with the Reds – also because of an inflammation of the fibula head, which put Mané out of action for several months and cost him his participation in the World Cup in Qatar.
Since he’s back, the offensive man seems strangely self-conscious. Even under Julian Nagelsmann, Mané mostly only came off the bench, which allegedly resulted in a cabin trouble, and even after the change of coach, his shares don’t seem to have risen. The new trainer Thomas Tuchel only replaced the 30-year-old in the closing stages against Dortmund.
Competition at FC Bayern too big for Sadio Mané?
Meanwhile, Kahn and his colleagues in the Bayern management continue to puzzle over why Mané has not yet found his place with the record champions.
In England, the veteran has proven his skills again and again, emphasized Kahn, who did not want to give up hope: “Maybe he will show us soon.”
From the club’s point of view, the “quality” of the competition in Munich is new to Mané. “He doesn’t know that. He wasn’t used to that at Liverpool either,” explained Kahn and added: “We hope that sooner or later he will prevail.”
In fact, Mané had always been undisputed under star coach Jürgen Klopp, together with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino, the Senegalese formed an internationally feared attacking trio for years. He almost never received pressure from the second row.
At Bayern, on the other hand, world-class players such as Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sané, Serge Gnabry and Thomas Müller are also applying for starting eleven mandates.
Especially on the left flank, where Mané is known to feel most comfortable, the crowd is enormous. That’s why the 2019 Champions League winner had to play in the unloved nine position several times.
“Profile sharpening” as a rescue for Sadio Mané?
Mané has been waiting for his own goal in the Bundesliga since October. In his first 14 appearances in the German top flight, he was directly involved in nine goals, in the new year he only added one (admittedly extremely remarkable) assist in the 5-3 win over FC Augsburg.
A rate that satisfies neither Mané nor his superiors. More is simply expected of a professional who, according to “L’Equipe”, should earn 24 million euros a year by 2025.
After all, there is hope that, according to “Sport Bild” information, Tuchel is planning to “hone his profile” at Mané. In other words, the problem child should be assigned a permanent position, ideally on the left wing. Predecessor Nagelsmann had previously misunderstood or overused his all-rounder qualities.
Speaking of misunderstandings: At Bayern Munich, they are still confident that Sadio Mané will soon make the breakthrough he is hoping for in Munich. Doubts about his basic qualifications are out of the question anyway.
“I know him from England. There are no doubts about his quality and what he can bring us. Even in old age it always takes time to acclimatize after a change. It’s about trust and patience,” said Tuchel on the Press conference before the DFB Cup game against SC Freiburg on Tuesday evening (8:45 p.m.).
One thing is certain: neither the German industry leader nor Mané himself are happy with the current situation. A cooperation over the agreed three years should only be possible if the big earner finally makes himself indispensable.
Heiko Lütkehus