Senegal international Sadio Mane's exit from Liverpool has once again been cast into the spotlight, with a former Reds star insisting the Bayern Munich attacker left Anfield due to the club's decision to hand Mohamed Salah instead of him a new contract.
Liverpool are enduring a largely underwhelming start to the 2022/23 season, with their woes continuing on the weekend when they suffered a shock 2-1 home defeat to Leeds United.
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The Reds have been unable to replicate the heights they reached in the past few seasons, and now find themselves languishing in ninth place on the Premier League table with four defeats in 12 outings so far.
Amid the Merseyside outfit's struggles, one of the topics centered around the club in recent weeks is Mane's transfer to Bayern, with some of the team's former players having suggested that the decision to let him go was a big mistake on the Reds' part.
Jason McAteer, who made 139 appearances for the Anfield side, has now claimed that Mane's departure was purely down to the club's business model.
"We lost Mane because Salah and Mane's deals were about to come up," he said on a beIN SPORTS broadcast.
"They had to choose. Mane is 30 and doesn't fit into the business model.
"That [giving both a new contract] is not how their model works."
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Following his €32 million (R581 million) switch to Bavaria, the reigning African Footballer of the Year has netted 11 goals in his first 20 matches for Bayern, contributing with a further three assists in the process.
Salah, meanwhile, has registered the same number of goals as his former forward partner in two fewer games so far this season.
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