Star striker Sadio Mané’s time at FC Bayern is running out. The 31-year-old national soccer player from Senegal was not part of the Munich squad in the 1-0 friendly win of the German record champions in Tokyo against the Japanese first division team Kawasaki Frontale on Saturday. Sales candidate Mané was still with the team, watched on the sidelines in the national stadium and then boarded the team bus again towards the Bayern Hotel. But after just one year, the early farewell is imminent.
Mané is about to move to the Saudi club Al-Nassr, for which the multiple world footballer Cristiano Ronaldo also plays for a lot of money. “Sadio Mane is in contractual talks about a change of club and is therefore not in the squad,” Bayern said before the friendly kicked off. Al-Nassr they did not call by name.
Coach Thomas Tuchel did not want to contribute to further clarification in the press conference after the game. “Everything is explained in the statement. No further explanations are necessary. He is here with us at the moment, but he has not played,” said Tuchel. Tuchel did not answer whether Mané was still flying to Singapore for the second stop of the Asia trip. “I’m waiting for tomorrow and reacting to things as they happen. You know what usually happens,” added the coach. National player Joshua Kimmich remarked meaningfully: “He has not played, which suggests that something is in the bush.”
According to media reports, only the last details between the clubs and with Mané have to be clarified. Mané’s agent Björn Bezemer was due to arrive in Tokyo on Saturday to complete the transfer to Saudi Arabia. The French journalist Malick Traoré from the TV channel Canal had written that Mané’s medical check-up was planned for Sunday in Dubai. Mané left the national stadium towards the team bus without comment.
Mané moved from Liverpool to Munich for 32 million euros a year ago. The world star was only able to meet the high expectations at first. “I think he played a very good first half of the season,” said Kimmich. Mané developed into a problem after an injury before the World Cup in Qatar. A move to Saudi Arabia should bring him an even higher salary and probably even a transfer fee for Bayern.
