"There would be no problem” - Leroy Sane's father says Sadio Mane could inherit number 10 from German winger at Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich winger Leroy Sane is reportedly open to relinquishing his number 10 jersey at the Bundesliga club to new arrival Sadio Mane.
Mane, who lit up the Premier League during his six-year stint at Liverpool, recently joined Bayern Munich in a deal worth up to £35.1 million. The 30-year-old penned a three-year deal at the Allianz Arena.
After joining the Reds in 2016, Mane changed his initial squad number of 19 to 10 after the exit of Brazilian midfielder Philippe Coutinho. Donning the iconic number, he helped the club lift six trophies.
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Speaking to Radio Futurs Medias [via talkSPORT], Souleymane Sane claimed his son, Leroy, will have no problem giving up his number 10 shirt.
"Sadio Mane is known with the number 10 at Liverpool and the national team – while at Bayern Munich my son wears it. If Sadio wants the number 10, I’m certain there would be no problem for Leroy to give it to him."
The 26-year-old winger received the shirt number when he left Manchester City in 2020. Since joining the Bavarian giants, Sane has scored 24 goals and provided 27 assists in 88 appearances across all competitions.
On the other hand, Mane joins the Bundesliga champions after registering 168 goal contributions in 269 appearances for Liverpool. During his time with the Reds, he lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy in 2019 and won the Premier League title a season later.
Sadio Mane relishes 'right decision' to join Bayern Munich
With star striker Robert Lewandowski being heavily linked with Barcelona, all eyes are on Sadio Mane now, who has claimed that he joined Bayern for a "challenge".
Upon joining, he told the club's official website:
"I'm really happy to finally be at FC Bayern in Munich. We spoke a lot and I felt big interest from this great club right from the beginning, so for me there were no doubts. It's the right time for this challenge. I want to achieve a lot with this club, in Europe too. During my time in Salzburg, I watched a lot of Bayern games. I really like this club!"
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He further added:
"I was really, really clear in my mind. When I was told about the interest from Bayern we discussed it. I think it wasn’t even days, just seconds and I made my decision. I think it’s the right decision, the right time and the right club."
Bayern Munich will open their 2022/23 Bundesliga campaign away from home at Eintracht Frankfurt on August 5.