BBC pundit Ian Wright has said that Sadio Mané is at the “end of his tether” after reacting angrily after he was substituted late on in Liverpool’s 3-0 win against Burnley at the weekend.
There has been speculation that the £100k-a-week star [Spotrac] was upset at teammate Mohamed Salah not passing to better-placed players during the game.
Talking on BBC’s Monday Night Club, Wright said, “I’m not going to talk because as a striker I’ve thought, ‘would I have squared him in?’ and I hope I would have but in the moment I can see why he’s angry there.
“And he was so angry, he was furious, that was the ‘I’ve had enough moment’. That’s what we saw on the bench at Burnley.
“He’s had enough of him, when he could have had the tap-in. We’ve got a stat… he’s created 43 chances for him, Salah only 25. That says to me he’s tired of it not being reciprocated.
“For him to react that angrily, he’s at the end of his tether. It’s plain to see.”
Is Salah selfish?
Without a doubt. This isn’t the first game that you could look at him and think that he should have passed to a teammate rather than trying to score himself.
But all good attackers are selfish to a degree. Ian Wright admitted as much. The trick is getting the balance right and ultimately doing the best for the team and by your teammates.
If Liverpool keep winning then it’s a problem that Jurgen Klopp could probably have let slip.
However, the focus is now on Salah after the Mane reaction. Liverpool’s success is built on the ‘power three’ playing in harmony. This is the first real sign that all isn’t well under the surface.
TiF tactics – Salah v Mané
Both players scored 22 goals in the Premier League last season, but Mané has been the main scorer in 2019. Salah has scored 12 goals in the Premier League in 2019 and provided five assists for his teammates. Mané has scored 16 goals but only provided two assists.
Looking at their stats on WyScout, Salah has made an average of 25.4 passes per 90 minutes, with 1.73 to the final third, 4.19 to the box and 5.67 forward passes.
Mané has made 33.75 passes, 3.54 to the final third, 3.54 to the box and 8.36 forward passes.
However, the whole point of the Liverpool front three is that they all offer something different. Roberto Firmino scores less than either Salah or Mané but has been hailed as hugely important to the side.
Ultimately, though, Liverpool are chasing the Premier League title and they need all their players to be getting on. A rift between two of their front three isn’t good news whichever way you look at it.