Mohamed Salah has admitted that he has a tense relationship with a fellow Liverpool legend, though he insists that it has never become unprofessional.
Salah has spent a good deal of time in the football transfer news headlines lately due to the uncertainty over his future, with a move to the Saudi Pro League rumoured.
He ultimately chose to sign a new deal with Liverpool instead of moving to the Middle East, where he would have crossed paths with Al-Nassr’s Sadio Mane, a player that he admits he has a difficult relationship with.
“Yes, there was tension with Sadio. Mind you, we were professional until the end, I don’t think it affected the team,” Salah told France Football. “It’s human to want more, I understand that, he’s a competitor. Off the pitch, we weren’t very close, but we always respected each other.”
Pressed further on his relationship with the legendary Liverpool attacker, with whom he formed two-thirds of a thrilling forward line that also contained Roberto Firmino, Salah was asked if Mane’s comments about his supposed selfishness affected him.
“I don’t care,” Salah said. “People can think what they want, it’s their right. But I invite everyone to note that the person who provided Mane with the most assists is me.
“We can look at the facts, but it’s obviously easier to throw out phrases like that; it makes the headlines, I know how it works. As long as it remains within the limits of respect, that’s fine with me. But that doesn’t mean that this opinion is true. At the end of the day, I know what I did, and my conscience is clear.”
What did Mane say about Salah?
While Sane never publicly accused Salah of being selfish, there were moments on the field when their relationship was clearly tense.
In a 3-0 win over Burnley in August 2019, Mane was visibly angry after Salah chose to shoot instead of passing to him. The Senegal star was replaced soon afterwards and made his frustration clear to former manager Jurgen Klopp.
After the match, he claimed the incident was “forgotten”, but it’s clear that the pair struggled with their relationship regardless of this.
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