Paul Merson feels Liverpool made the ‘worst £30m ever’ by selling Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich. The Senegal sensation secured his transfer to the Bundesliga giants last summer.
But rather than cashing in on the forward as his Reds contract would have expired in 2023, the Arsenal icon feels Jurgen Klopp should have kept Mane for another season. Even if the 30-year-old then moved as a free agent, Merson is adamant he would have made up for it.
Instead, Klopp accepted a £27.5m bid from Bayern Munich for Mane’s transfer, which can net Liverpool £35m after add-ons. The winger also gained a three-year contract in Bavaria to join the record Bundesliga champions. While the Reds have since struggled to perform.
Mane had cost Liverpool £34m to sign from Southampton back in June 2016 after just two seasons at St Mary’s. Yet the 92-cap international more than proved his worth at Anfield in the years that followed. Mane is also now proving his worth at the Allianz Arena this term.
The Bambaly-born dynamo offered Liverpool 120 goals and 48 assists in 269 appearances in all competitions. His haul also included 90 goals and 36 assists over 196 Premier League games. He never scored fewer than 10 goals during a single top-flight campaign at Anfield.
Merson slams Klopp for allowing Mane’s transfer from Liverpool to Bayern Munich
Even in Mane’s final season, the winger offered Liverpool 16 goals over 34 Premier League games to earn his transfer to Bayern Munich. He has since offered 11 goals and four assists as an FCB player over 23 games in all competitions. But he has not played since November.
Mane missed the World Cup due to a leg injury which needed surgery to fix a tendon in his fibula. He is now a couple of weeks away from returning to full fitness. But Merson has not forgotten his impact at Liverpool or Klopp’s error allowing Mane’s Bayern Munich transfer.
“It was the worst £30m ever,” Merson said on Sky Sports News (11/02, 13:43). “Honestly, you’d have been better off keeping him for another year and letting him go for free.
“He’d give enough to the club for him to go free, anyway, for them. 100% [he would have made a significant difference]. People have short memories.”
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