Former Liverpool striker John Aldridge says that Sadio Mane is capable of winning the Ballon d’Or and doesn’t have to leave Anfield to do so.
A recent documentary on the Reds’ forward saw him pledge to win the highest individual honour in the game for the people in his home town in Senegal, but the Ballon d’Or has been dominated by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo over the last decade or so.
Mane finished fourth in the 2019 vote, after winning the Champions League with Liverpool and reaching the Africa Cup of Nations final.
He has been constantly linked with a move from the Premier League to La Liga over the last year or so, with Barcelona and Real Madrid suggested as being particularly keen on signing him, but Aldridge says a recent departure from Anfield to the Camp Nou should act as a warning for Mane.
“Not all who leave Liverpool go on to struggle. Look at Raheem Sterling at Manchester City,” Aldridge wrote in his Echo column.
“But Philippe Coutinho is a great example in recent times of where it can go wrong. “He was at the pinnacle of his career when he left Liverpool for Barcelona, but it has all since fallen somewhat flat.
“What’s more, Liverpool are a better team than either Barcelona or Real at present.”
Coutinho, who moved for up to £144 million, has largely failed to find his best form with Barca and has been on loan at Bayern Munich in 2019/20—with the German club also not certain to sign him permanently.
Moving to Spain shouldn’t be a prerequisite to win the award, says Aldridge—and he feels the Reds’ No. 10 is already in a place where he can achieve that ambition.
“Mane can win the Ballon d’Or as he’s a great player. And he has as much chance winning it while at Liverpool than anywhere else.”
