“As an athlete, in the end he was similar to Ronaldo” - Ex-Liverpool star compared to Cristiano Ronaldo by Alexander-Arnold
Trent Alexander-Arnold recently claimed that former Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane was similar to Cristiano Ronaldo. He said that the Senegal star was a proper athlete who was not just fast, but also had the jump and finish in him.
Speaking to Gary Neville on The Overlap, the Liverpool full-back revealed that he was happy to be facing Mane only in training and not on the pitch. He added that the forward was a threat all the time and said:
"He's the one player I have played against [in training] who I have thought I am glad I don't have to play against him. He was the perfect attacker you know. He had everything. As an athlete, probably in the end he was similar to Ronaldo, you know. He had the jump, he could get up, he was fast, he could finish. His finishing probably wasn't the same but he could finish with both feet. He was just a threat at all times."
Sadio Mane left Liverpool in 2022 and moved to Bayern Munich for a reported £35 million fee. He stayed at the German club for just one season before moving to Al Nassr and joining forces with Cristiano Ronaldo.
Sadio Mane rejected reunion with ex Liverpool teammate to join Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr
Sadio Mane claimed last year that he had the chance of reuniting with former Liverpool teammate Roberto Firmino at Saudi club Al Ahli. But the former Southampton star opted to join Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr.
He said (via AfricaNews):
"I spoke with (Roberto) Firmino for sure. He wanted me to come to the wrong club! I'm joking! He called me two or three times to convince me to come to Al Ahli because I had contact with them from the beginning. But, in this time when Al Nassr come then I chose Al Nassr. Of course, (Jordan) Henderson is also here. He sent me a message two days ago to wish me good luck with my team and I'm really, really excited to meet all of these great guys and also out on the pitch to face each other for the first time and hopefully I am going to win against you guys!"
Sadio Mane has played 34 times with Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr. The two have combined for five goals, with the former Liverpool star assisting the Portuguese forward thrice.