Former Liverpool player Sadio Mane has been named among the top three best players in the world alongside Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe.
In an interview with ESPN, Iliman Ndiaye was asked to name the three best players in the world.
He opted for Erling Haaland of Manchester City, Real Madrid attacker Kylian Mbappe and former Liverpool winger Sadio Mane.
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Despite naming Mane as one of the world’s best, Ndiaye did not pick the ex-Red when asked to name the three greatest players of all time from the Premier League.
Instead, he selected Eden Hazard, who won the Premier League with Chelsea, Thierry Henry and ex-Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure.
He also said Michael Olise, Lamine Yamal and Ibrahim Mbaye are the most exciting wingers to watch.
Why Sadio Mane left Liverpool
At present, Cody Gakpo is being used as the Reds’ primary left winger under Arne Slot.
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Liverpool fans are not keen on Gakpo and may wish Mane was still at their club.
However, he decided to depart Anfield in 2022 to sign for Bayern Munich, where he scored 12 and assisted six in 38 matches.
He moved to Al-Nassr a year later and currently has eight goals and six assists in 21 matches for the Saudi outfit this term.
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Sadio Mane pats the Champions League trophy after Liverpool beat Tottenham Hotspur in the final at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid (Credit: Getty Images/Jose Breton/NurPhoto).
Mohamed Salah celebrates after scoring for Liverpool against Southampton in the Premier League at Anfield (Credit: Getty Images/Julian Finney).
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Jose Breton/NurPhoto/Julian Finney
On why he left Liverpool in the first place, Mane explained in an interview in November 2025, as per the Echo: “I think I’ve been in Liverpool six, almost seven years,” he said. “Six years, so, you know, I come from far and all my life has been a challenge.
“And of course when I came to Liverpool, Liverpool wasn’t even in the Champions League, you know how it is. And I came with all the other players, coaches, staff, and we made this team big. We won almost everything.
“Liverpool was like home. It was my comfort zone. Let’s try to try something (else) because I have almost won everything here.
“So my challenge is not because… of course some things can happen or blah blah, but for me that was not really important.
“The motivation for me to go somewhere, okay to see… to leave my comfort zone and to do something else in the other part. So that was my reason why I say, ‘Okay let’s try. Why not?’”
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