Liverpool forward Sadio Mane is yet to sign an improved contract with the Merseyside club, according to the latest reports. Mane's current deal still has two and a half years left to run, so while there is no immediate concern, it's a situation that could become problematic for Liverpool in the future.
Mane is one of several players to swap Southampton for Anfield, arriving for £34m in 2016. Since then, Mane has become an integral part of Liverpool's attack, forming one of the most feared attacking triumvirates in European football alongside Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino. Mane bagged 20 goals last season, and already has seven goals in thirteen appearances so far this campaign.
Already this year, Firmino and Salah signed contract extensions tying them to the club until 2024 and 2023 respectively. As reported by The Echo, whilst there is no immediate urgency to tie Mane down to an improved deal, it is something Liverpool will prioritise soon.
“Sadio Mane is under contract until 2021. Liverpool made it clear towards the end of last season that they would be willing to reward his progress with a new long-term deal and preliminary talks were opened,” said James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo.
“Clearly, those discussions have yet to reach a conclusion but Liverpool don’t seem overly concerned about the situation. Mane is clearly happy at Anfield and the Reds have a good relationship with his agent Bjorn Bezemer.
“With Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino having penned new long-term contracts this year, Mane is the next priority.“If the situation remains unresolved come next summer then a degree of concern would be understandable but I don’t see it as a big issue currently.”
Liverpool will be wary of letting a key player's contract run down to long, after they lost midfielder Emre Can on a Bosman transfer to Juventus this summer.