Speaking on The Athletic Football Podcast, Adam Crafton has been discussing Sadio Mane and his impending departure from Liverpool.
The Senegalese winger looks set for a move to Bayern Munich, and according to Crafton, the club have known about this potential exit for a few months now.
Mane has been in some of the best form of his career in recent times, and it seems as though he may have been putting himself in the shop window, with Crafton stating that the Reds have known that Mane wants to leave for a little while.
What’s been said?
Crafton was speaking about Mane’s departure and Darwin Nunez replacing him.
“I think it’s a statement because when you looked at them at the end of the season there were doubts about Mo Salah’s future, there were doubts about Mane’s future as well. Salah has committed to spend one more year there and Mane clearly wants to go and I think Liverpool have known that for a few months now,” Crafton said.
“They were framing it, even in May, saying that they would have a discussion after the Champions League final, but the conversations I was having sensed that the mood had changed, so they started planning, as good clubs should do.”
Prepared
It’s no surprise to see that Liverpool have been so prepared for the departure of the ‘phenomenal’ winger if they’ve known about it for months.
Almost as soon as Mane was linked with Bayern Munich, the Reds were in for Nunez, and now, it looks like both deals are going to go ahead.
This is the sign of a well-run football club, as soon as their star player has looked like leaving, they’ve moved to replace him.
Whether or not Nunez can adequately replace Mane remains to be seen, but at least the Reds won’t be scrambling for a replacement.
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