Veteran Manchester City player Yaya Toure recently claimed in an interview that he wished Sadio Mane, who recently joined Bayern Munich, to clinch the precious Ballon d’Or rather than the favourite Karim Benzema. Last season, Mane led Senegal to the Africa Cup of Nations championship while netting 23 strikes in 51 outings throughout all tournaments as the Reds won the domestic dual.
30-year-old, Sadio Mane will face challenges from players like Karim Benzema, Robert Lewandowski, Kylian Mbappe, and ex-Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah as Europe’s finest vie for the renowned personal prize.
Legendary Manchester City player Yaya Toure has forecasted that Sadio Mane will overcome Karim Benzema to capture the Ballon d’Or.
Before signing Bayern Munich in the summertime, the striker had a remarkable spell at Liverpool the previous year, netting 23 goals in 51 outings and leading his native Senegal with their maiden Africa Cup of Nations victory.
Toure asserted during an interview with RFI, “I hope he will have a good [World Cup] tournament and I hope he won’t just be ranked high but win the Ballon d’Or. Sadio Mane is a great player and a great person.”
Mane boosted Liverpool in reaching the Champions League finals in May, although Jurgen Klopp’s men eventually succumbed to Benzema’s Real Madrid, which might boost the Frenchman in the honour.
In the previous campaign, when Madrid clawed their path to the finale in Paris, the Los Blancos striker produced an unprecedented 15 strikes in 12 Champions League matches, featuring two hat-tricks in the knockout stages and three strikes versus Man City in the semi-final. The event will be held in Paris in October, as well as the nominees are anticipated to be revealed publicly in October.
