Liverpool’s efforts to get Sadio Mané home from the Africa Cup of Nations as quickly as possible were frustrated by red tape to further complicate his availability for the crucial game at home against Chelsea on Tuesday.
The club sent a private jet to Gabon on Sunday following Senegal’s exit from the competition but issues with the flight delayed Mané’s arrival back home until Monday evening, meaning he missed training.
There was better news for Liverpool fans when it was confirmed that Roberto Firmino’s court date had been put back 24 hours, clearing the way for the striker to be available. The Brazil international had been initially set for a magistrates court hearing on Tuesday after being charged with drink-driving on Christmas Eve.
Liverpool will have another training session on Tuesday and Jürgen Klopp will decide then whether to include Mané, at best as a substitute. The player was distraught after missing the critical penalty in a 5-4 shoot-out quarter-final defeat against Cameroon.
Asked when the forward would be available, Klopp said: “I don’t know exactly. The club did an outstanding job to bring him back as soon as possible and he is now on his way. We thought it would be possible yesterday: we had a plane there but he was not allowed to go in the plane so we had to wait.
“He will be here tonight but I spoke to him and it is all good so far. He will be in tomorrow morning and we have to make a decision. We have to look in his eyes and see whatever is possible.”
In Mané’s absence – his last game was the 2-2 draw at Sunderland on 2 January – Liverpool have won just once (against the League Two club Plymouth Argyle in an FA Cup replay) in seven matches and scored only five goals.
The 24-year-old’s return is being seen as an immediate solution to the malaise which has affected them in January. Klopp is delighted to have the club’s joint-top scorer this season back but is keen not to load too much expectation on him.
“It was a strange situation in the Senegal game against Cameroon and I wish not for one second he missed the penalty at the end but it happened so he is coming back,” he said.
“He is a quality player. It is easier if you have him in the team or around the team than when you don’t have him. That’s fair. But it is not that he can decide games by himself or we should expect this.”
