Former Liverpool star Sadio Mane is the best Senegal player to have played in the Premier League, at least according to Everton’s Idrissa Gana Gueye.
Galsenfoot cover comments from the Everton midfielder today, made to Showmax in Senegal, in which he reluctantly plies his international teammate with praise.
Mane is currently playing for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia after joining them in 2023 following an ill-fated one-year spell at Bayern Munich.
Before that he had established himself as one of the leading players in the Premier League with Liverpool where he established himself as a star under Jurgen Klopp.
He managed 120 goals and 40 assists in 269 games for the club over a six-year period, winning the Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup, Champions League, Super Cup and Club World Cup in the process.
He is very much a Liverpool hero to this day, and often enjoyed himself against rivals Everton too, with five goals and two assists in 16 games against the Toffees.
Those clashes often saw him come up against international teammate Gueye who, despite his Everton leanings, can admit the former Liverpool star is his country’s leading light in England to this day.
“It may be hard for me to say, but Sadio is the best Senegalese ever to play in the Premier League, he just played with the wrong colour,” he said.
“He is the king of Senegal, and I am so proud of him. He represents the country in the best possible way. He scored many goals, won many assists and won numerous trophies. I am therefore very pleased to have him in Senegal and his career. He showed young Africans that anything is possible.
“He’s a great guy, a very good example for everyone. He is an excellent player, a great person and a very good friend. Even when he played for rival clubs, we were always talking to each other. He would send me text messages when we were playing against each other, and we’ve been in touch until now.”
