Sadio Mane demerits Salah after leaving Liverpool for Bayern Munich

Sadio Mane returned to controversy after signing for Bayern Munich over suggestions he has a personal rivalry with former Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah. The two strikers were the main men in Jurgen Klopp's attack for five years before Mane completed a £35m transfer to Bayern Munich this summer. Understandably, the duo were desperate to outshine each other and, at times, could not hide their frustrations: an incident at Burnley in 2019 summed this up.

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However, Mane and Salah have repeatedly insisted there are no bad feelings between them and that, in fact, they pushed each other to great heights at Anfield. Egypt captain Salah, 30, sent a heartfelt message to his departing team-mate in June, during which he hailed his former colleague as a "brother".

In a new update, Senegal talisman Mane spoke about how he sends a text message to his former colleague and insisted there is no footballer he is on bad terms with. The 30-year-old was speaking after fending off competition from Salah and Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy to be crowned African Player of the Year 2022 after another brilliant season for Liverpool and an Africa Cup of Nations triumph with his country after beating Egypt. in the final.

"People sometimes say there is a rivalry between me and Salah but, to be honest, I don't see myself having a rivalry with any player," Mane told GOAL ahead of the ceremony in Rabat, Morocco, on Thursday. "We have good relations, we text each other. I think the media always try to [aggravate] things."

He added: "You know I don't only have [relations] with one player, but with all the players I have played with in the world. You can ask whoever you want at the club, or wherever I go. I have good relationships with all the players.

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During their time as teammates, Mane and Salah led Liverpool to Champions League and Premier League glory. As a partnership, they went out in style, lifting the EFL Cup and FA Cup during their final season as teammates, only missing out on an unprecedented quadruple by the narrowest of margins.

While Salah signed a new contract to stay on Merseyside until 2025, Mane made it clear he was eager to face a new challenge after six successful years with the Reds. That put Bayern on red alert and the German giants saw two bids rejected before tabling a successful bid to seal the deal and hand Mane a three-year contract.

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