Far too often footballers get a bad rap, sometimes rightly so, so it’s only right that we celebrate the good ones. One journalist has explained why exactly Liverpool’s Sadio Mane is one of them.
There are certain areas of the press and social media that just want to focus on the bad that footballers get up to, heck sometimes they haven’t even really done anything wrong but people find a way to criticise them- see Raheem Sterling buying his mum some taps.
Of course there are occasions when footballers deserve to be criticised but many of them are good people and do a lot for charity.
Sadio Mane it seems is definitely one of the good guys. The Liverpool forward is as classy off the pitch as he is on it.
BBC Sports profiled the former Southampton forward as part of their series looking at the nominees for their African Footballer of the Year award and he comes out looking very good.
Sadio Mane and @J_Gomez97 both available for #PSGLFC! ?#UCL https://t.co/SqwMjdGyh9
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 27, 2018
Journalist Mike Hughes, from BBC Radio Merseyside Sport, explained how selfless and classy Mane is in interviews, saying:
“After a match I try to get him to describe how big a part he’s played, but he is always eager to play down his role and bump up everyone else in the team.
“That just shows the character of the man.”
?⚡?☄????
Every Sadio Mane goal for the Reds… pic.twitter.com/9z9HqTOmvB
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 22, 2018
Mane might be a good shout to win the BBC’s award but the problem is that he’s up against his teammate Mo Salah, so it’s fair to say he won’t be winning.
Fortunately it doesn’t feel like he’ll be too devastated and will just talk about how his colleague deserves it.
John Gibbons from The Anfield Wrap podcast explained further why fans love the Senegal international, saying, “Fans like him because he’s humble. In Liverpool, the worst thing you can do is be too flash and too pleased with yourself. He’s not like that at all.
“He was shopping in an Asda in Hunts Cross wearing traditional dress when a fan holding a baby asks for a picture.
“Mane is then stood there holding the baby and smiling. It’s the fact he’s just in a normal supermarket. A lot of people who’ve met him said he’s very approachable and sort of a bit shy.”
“When Liverpool signed him, he was wide right and was probably player of the season. Then we sign [Mohamed] Salah and Sadio just moved to the left.
“He made no complaints and got on with it. He was asked to do more of a team role and played a bit deeper while Salah was the star.”