Liverpool's meritorious service has brought the motherland to the pinnacle twice in three months, and this year may represent the Golden Globe Awards for Africa's dream come true

Mane didn't have time to elaborate on what recent honours he had won for his country and was racing for the Champions League trophy for Liverpool. More than 36 hours after penalties helped Senegal secure a place in the World Cup finals, the Liverpool star returned to a familiar environment, checked in at the Liverpool Training Centre and prepared to enter the final two months of what could become a historic, trophy-laden season. Understandably, his steps would have been particularly relaxed, in stark contrast to Salah's mood. Salah had previously returned to Merseyside heartbroken when he saw his Egyptian team once again suffer a crushing defeat in international competitions. Mane has no such worries, having won his country with another penalty in the Africa Cup of Nations final in February. Two glorious moments in just three months were captured by this brilliant attacker.

The 29-year-old's legendary position in Senegal has been cemented, and the same should apply to Liverpool, where Mane has continued to perform at a high level for six seasons, playing a key role in Klopp's team's challenge and conquest of the world. As fans tell the story of this era at Anfield, Mane should be at the forefront and in the middle, alongside Salah, Van Dijk, Alisson, Jordan Henderson and others. There is no doubt that he has played as important a role as anyone else's success.

In many ways, he was an integral part of the team, Klopp's first 'transformative' signing at Liverpool, a £35m gamble that turned out to be one of the best deals of the century. Without him, it's hard to imagine how Salah, Van Dijk and others would have won. In Liverpool's all-time top scorer list, only 14 people have scored more goals than him. Mane's 112 goals ahead of Barnes, Kevin Keegan, John Toshak and Luis Suarez would just need six more goals to surpass the great Ian St. John. With up to 15 games left this season, he is likely to complete that feat before May. By then, though, he will be in the final 12 months of his contract, and for now, there is little sign of a renewal. It is understood negotiations between the club and his agent have been put on hold, which has led to more speculation that he may leave the Reds this summer. Liverpool sources played down the idea, but Barcelona and Real Madrid remain linked.

"This matter needs to be resolved as soon as possible," said former Liverpool and Senegalese midfielder Salif Dior, "we all want to see him stay, but I don't know what the club's plans for the future are." 'Dior is one of many who question Liverpool's treatment of Mane and he wonders if he really gets the recognition he deserves. For me, maybe he's waiting for the club to give more responsibility," he said, "and even though he's a star, even in Senegal there's a feeling that sometimes he may not get the love he deserves." It's a universal feeling. When contract negotiations start and things don't go ahead, there's a feeling that, well, maybe the club doesn't want to give him a new contract? I do not know. There's a lot of speculation, but in this case you're dealing with the club's star player and you need to let him relax. You need to tell him what you expect from him, whether you want him to stay, and then you can get out of there. ”

If Mane had left, he would have been missed. While the excitement about the newly signed Luis Diaz is understandable, and although Diogo Jota's goal-scoring ability has proven crucial, he is still a world-class attacker who is almost irreplaceable in terms of physical fitness, speed, comprehensiveness and goalscoring. Not many people can be as good as he is, and consistently so good. Liverpool still need him, so many have suggested he remains at Anfield after 2023. "He's been one of the best three or four players in the world for years," Dior said. "But maybe he doesn't get the respect he deserves from the outside world." For example, we are disappointed that he never won the Ballon d'Or. He won all the trophies, but people didn't vote for him. This is very disappointing. ”

To be fair, Mane did come in fourth place in the 2019 Ballon d'Or ballot vote, ahead of Salah and only behind Messi, Van Dijk and Cristiano Ronaldo. He also reached the top 30 in 2017 and 2018 and was named to the PFA Team of the Year three times. His teammates certainly know how good he is. Jordan Henderson said he was an "incredible player", Joe Gomez said staring at him in training was "the toughest job you could possibly hope to get", while Van Dijk said after scoring his 100th goal in the Premier League against Watford in October, "we should talk more about his talent".

"I agree, we should do this!" Dior said as he laughed and told his friend's story, "Maybe this year, with the Africa Cup of Nations, with everything Liverpool fought for, it will be the year he gets a real chance." I hope so because he deserves it. He represents not only Senegal, but africa as a whole. Recently, Liverpool fans admired a new, brightly coloured mural a few hundred yards from Anfield. In the photo, voted for by supporters, Salah stretches out his arms and poses in his familiar celebratory pose. The king of Egypt, so that the whole world can see, worship. Who knows, maybe one day, the shy, smiling Senegalese superstar Mane will be treated the same way? Considering what he has done for the club and everything that may happen in the future, it seems like a fair outcome.