Sadio Mane was always going to be a big loss for Liverpool when he left for Bayern Munich this summer. That being said, it was hard to foresee just how much the Senegalese star would be missed by Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp's side have struggled in Mane's absence this season, claiming just nine points from their opening seven Premier League games, as replacement Darwin Nunez has struggled to bed in to the team.
Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson thinks that the departure of Sadio Mane is directly to blame for Liverpool's recent tribulations.
Sadio Mane was "worst business ever" - Paul Merson
The surprising news of Sadio Mane's departure from Liverpool broke during the week of the club's Champions League final showdown against Real Madrid. The winger joined Bayern Munich for just under £30 million in July, in a massive bargain for the German giants - though some have suggested he has not settled in Germany.
Sky pundit Paul Merson thinks that the decision to allow Mane to leave was the worst decision Liverpool could have made. Citing his impact on the team in his weekly Sky Sports column, Merson called the decision to sell Mane the "worst business ever":
I've said it from day one, in my opinion, selling Sadio Mane was the worst business ever. The bloke scores big, big goals. Go through them, first goals, equalisers, winning goals in last minutes, big goals.
He led from the front with his closing down, and for me, what they sold him for, I just didn't get it. Darwin Nunez isn't in the same league at the moment. Not in the same league at all.
Their problems at the back start from the front. They're not closing down as a unit - you can go on about how talented that front three was, but they closed down from the front. It only took one more pass, and they'd score.
Now they don't - so teams get through that press, if there is one, then they're into a midfield three which isn't the best in the country, and then you're running at the back four.
It's hard to argue with Merson's assessment of Liverpool's attacking play. They have struggled for goals since Mane's departure, with new signing Nunez struggling to gel with the team, and star man Mo Salah strangely out of form.
Sadio Mane has just scored his 6th Goal for Bayern Munich this season ✅ pic.twitter.com/75Bk68v6Xx
— Bee Sports (@BeeSports_app) September 30, 2022
Merson went on to point out that Liverpool did not even get a decent transfer fee for Mane:
I'm not a stats person, so I'm just going off the top of my head - but for me, Mane was a big, big player for Liverpool. To sell him for £30m-odd, which in the world of the Premier League is a cup of tea, wouldn't they have been better off to keep him and let him go for free?
It's come back to bite them and could cost them a lot more than £30m by the end of the season.
It's evident that Liverpool sorely miss Sadio Mane this season - just how costly his departure will prove is yet to be seen.
SEE ALSO: Report: Fernandes And Martinez Raged At United Teammates At Half-Time Of Derby
