Sadio Mane has admitted he felt 'jealous' when ex-teammate Philippe Coutinho left Merseyside to join Barcelona in 2018 and refused to rule out a move to Spain in the future.
The Brazilian playmaker signed for the catalan club for an eye-watering fee of £142m, and Liverpool will be hoping Coutinho doesn't come back to haunt them at the Nou Camp on Wednesday evening as they prepare to take him on in their Champions League semi-final.
Mane had nothing but praise for his old colleague when asked about him in the pre-match press conference.
“He is a great, great player and I’m a little bit jealous that Barcelona got him,” he said.
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“I would love to see him again, but we we are happy for him.
“I know him, he is a hard worker. Hopefully tomorrow he will still be in bed when we play!”
Mane himself has been linked with the likes of Real Madrid in recent months, and appeared coy when asked about the rumours.
“Very good question! You guys write it…” he said.
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“I respect La Liga is a good league, they have great players, but the Premier League is also a wonderful league and every single player would want to play there.
“So I have a chance to play there and I am very happy, so that’s cool.”
And Mane also revealed the Barcelona legend who he admired when he was learning his trade.
“Ronaldinho was one of my heroes. I really loved watching him play, especially here at Camp Nou,” he said.
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“I would have loved to play against him. Him not being here now is an advantage for us! I still love him. He is still my hero forever.
“I loved his skills, his smile for sure. Maybe when I’m not smiling on the pitch people think I am angry. I would love to have his smile, but we’re not similar like that.”
