Football pundit Robbie Savage believes that Liverpool losing Sadio Mane to injury for an extended period will have a bigger impact than if they had to sell Philippe Coutinho.
Due to the red-card which he received against Manchester City, Mane has already had to miss three Premier League matches and he is now set to be on the sidelines until November following a hamstring injury which was sustained while he was on international duty with the Senegal national team.
Mane enjoyed a terrific first season with the Reds, scoring 13 goals and establishing himself as a key member of the side.
“I fear it will hurt [manager Jurgen] Klopp to lose Mane for six weeks even more than if he had lost Coutinho to Barcelona during that transfer tug-of-war in August,” Savage told The Mirror.
“When Coutinho was out injured before Christmas last season, Liverpool stayed in the title race – but when Mane went to the African Cup of Nations in the New Year, their season fell apart.
“They were knocked out of both domestic cups by Wolves and Southampton, lost at home to struggling Swansea in the league, lost at Hull and dropped points at rock-bottom Sunderland.”
