Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane clash again as Liverpool star wants revenge after rant

Mohamed Salah has a score to settle after the Liverpool forward helped set up an AFCON semi-final clash with Sadio Mane and Senegal

Mohamed Salah is a man on a mission with a point to prove. The Liverpool forward fired Egypt into the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals on Saturday night.

He both a goal and an assist in a 3-2 win as the Pharaohs knocked out holders Ivory Coast. The 33-year-old is now the joint-second leading scorer in the tournament with four goals, level with Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen, while narrowly trailing Brahim Diaz of Morocco who boasts five.

Egypt will face off against one of the pair next weekend, in either the AFCON third-place play-off or final, with Nigeria and Morocco set to contest the second semi-final on Wednesday night.

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But first Salah and the Pharaohs must lock horns with Senegal, and a familiar frenemy in his former Liverpool team-mate, Sadio Mane. Both player and nation will be out for revenge.

The last time Egypt faced Senegal came back in 2022, as Salah was made to suffer heartbreak twice in quick succession.

First the two African giants locked off in the Africa Cup of Nations final. After a 0-0 draw, Senegal were crowned continental champions for the first time courtesy of a 4-2 victory on penalties, with Mane taking and scoring the decisive kick. With Salah down to take Egypt’s fifth spot-kick, he was unable to step up as a result.

The pair then twice faced off again the following month with a place at the 2022 World Cup on the line in the CAF knock-out third round.

After a 1-1 draw on aggregate, Senegal again emerged victorious on penalties, with Mane again scoring the decisive spot-kick in a 4-1 win. This time, with laser pointers shined in his eyes by opposing supporters, Salah missed Egypt’s first penalty in controversial circumstances.

While failing to qualify for the World Cup would have stung, that AFCON final defeat would have arguably hurt Salah more. Egypt are the most successful nation in the tournament’s history, being crowned champions of Africa on seven occasions, but their last victory came in 2010.

Meanwhile, Salah, who is now the joint-fifth leading goalscorer in AFCON history with 11 goals from five finals appearances, has tasted defeat in the final itself on two occasions, in 2017 and 2022 – with Mane lifting the prize that still eludes him as a result.

While long-serving team-mates at Anfield, it has been accepted that Salah and Mane were not particularly close and enjoyed an, at times, uneasy rivalry when scoring the goals that saw Jurgen Klopp’s side win every major honour.

This was most infamously present when the pair clashed during a victory over Burnley back in 2019, when the Senegalese took issue with the Egyptian opting to shoot rather than passing him the ball in the box before being withdrawn.

Mane recently opened up on the pair’s relationship when appearing on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast late last year as he looked to set the record straight.

“Great player. Good player. Great player. Everybody say the same (that there was a rivalry), you know, usually,” he said. “But it’s not… I don’t think it’s a bad thing.

“And me, I’m someone who is quiet, but I’m friendly with everybody in the team. I’m like this.

“So, I think Mo is also a very nice guy. He’s a nice guy. I think though, inside the pitch, you can see – sometimes he passes me, sometimes he doesn’t pass me; sometimes he passes me, sometimes he doesn’t pass me.

“But, you know, only Bobby was there to share the ball. Sometimes like this… And I still remember one game when I was really, really angry because he didn’t pass me, he should pass me.”

Both Salah and Mane are two-time winners of the African Footballer of the Year prize, with the former claiming the honour in 2017 and 2018, and the latter coming out on top in 2019 and 2022.

Meanwhile, while Mane finished second in the Ballon d’Or in 2022 behind Karim Benzema, Salah’s highest finish is fourth.

On Merseyside, Salah is one of Liverpool’s greatest legends. It was the he who the Reds fought to keep, making him the highest-paid player in the club’s history and who is still performing on the highest stage, while Mane departed for Bayern Munich in 2022 before moving to Saudi Arabia.

Yet in Africa, it is arguably Mane who is held in the highest regard, with one comment from Nigeria legend Jay-Jay Okocha proving rather telling following Egypt’s win over Ivory Coast.

“In Africa you might win whatever trophy with your club, if you don’t win anything for your nation, they don’t regard you as a legend,” he said when on punditry duties for Channel Four.

Consequently, when speaking after defeating Ivory Coast, the Liverpool forward made it clear just how much winning AFCON would mean to him.

“It is important for me to see the Egyptians proud of what I did in the game,” Salah said. “The secret of victory is that the players did everything they have in front of an opponent who has players at the highest level.

“I always tell my team-mates that I am proud to play with them. I lived the golden generation that achieved so much for Egyptian football, but I am more happy to play with this generation because it suffered in the shadow of the era of social media.

“Everyone wants to achieve something for his country, everyone is happy and wants to achieve victory for our country. I hope we succeed in the next match. I think this is the best camp in my life, everyone is happy and in good spirits.

“I think there is no-one in Egypt who wants to win the Africa Cup of Nations more than me. I have achieved everything except this title.

“And the pressure on the players will not benefit anything. I have been withstanding all the pressure for a while, there is no problem with bearing more pressure this week.”

You wonder if Salah had Jamie Carragher in mind with his reference to social media. After all, the pair became embroiled in a bitter exchange last month with the Reds forward alluding to criticism he had faced from the Sky Sports pundit when speaking out against Arne Slot and the club in the Leeds United mixed zone after being benched by his head coach.

Carragher fired back on Monday Night Football two days laterwith the Salah’s lack of silverware on the international stage one thing the former defender took aim at.

“I’d remind Salah and his agent that before he came to Liverpool he was known as the man who failed at Chelsea, that’s just a fact,” he said. “He’d never won a major trophy before he came to Liverpool.

“He’s also the greatest player his country have ever had in Egypt. Egypt are the most successful country in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and he’s going there in a couple of weeks.

“Salah’s never won the AFCON. That’s not me trying to put Mo Salah down as a player. I’ve just said he’s one of the best players in the world over the last eight years, very few better.

“But, what it tells Salah and his agent is that it’s not about an individual. You weren’t a big star before you came to Liverpool. You haven’t won anything with Egypt.

“All that tells you is that no matter how good a player you are, you need help from your teammates, your manager and fans. I think it’s really important that he remembers that. When he’s talking after the game, all it’s about is me, me, me.”

If Salah needed any additional motivation to win at AFCON, Carragher certainly provided it. Such words could be ringing in his ears as he looks to reach a third continental final.

Of course, the player-turned-pundit is not the only person the Liverpool star will be looking to prove a point too. In truth, Reds head coach Slot probably is too.

With Liverpool struggling during the first half of the season, Salah failed to reach his previous heights. Consequently, he found himself benched at the end of November, with the Reds putting together a 10-game unbeaten run in his absence from the starting XI.

Salah spoke out against Slot following a 3-3 draw at Leeds, having been left unused against both West Ham United and the Peacocks. He was subsequently dropped from the travelling squad for the Reds’ trip to Inter Milan before being reintegrated against Brighton & Hove Albion following amicable talks with the Dutchman.

And while he impressed against the Seagulls, and claimed an assist in a 2-0 win, he still had to make do with featuring off the bench before departing for AFCON duty.

Slot has since insisted the issue between the pair is now resolved, and he was keen to see Salah enjoy a successful AFCON. So far, so good.

But the 33-year-old, who has now scored more goals for Egypt than Liverpool this season (7-5), will be desperate to prove to the Dutchman that he is still deserving of star status at Anfield.

In his absence, the Reds have lost the likes of Alexander Isak and Conor Bradley to injury. With Liverpool’s options stretched as a result, it would be a surprise if only a place on the bench awaited Salah when he returned to Merseyside.

Admittedly, Salah’s future beyond this season still remains unclear following his clash with Slot.

But he departed for AFCON with a score to settle and a point to prove. With Mane and Senegal next in his sights, you cannot deny that, so far at least, the Egyptian King is delivering.

Liverpool can only hope such form continues when Salah returns to Merseyside, regardless of whether he has finally got his hands on the biggest prize that has so far eluded him throughout his career or not.