Reds have fallen apart since Mane’s departure for Africa

THE prevailing stance is that football is a team game, in that the whole is greater than the sum of its individuals. Nothing wrong with that sentiment – it is the foundation upon which the sport’s success has been built across the ages.

But, every so often, there’s an example which demonstrates just how important one individual can be to a team. In such an instance, the player’s contribution to the team’s cause is so influential that things fall apart in his absence. To highlight just two examples: Look at English champions Leicester City’s struggles since selling the prized N’Golo Kante; and what would Cape Town City be without the brilliant Lebogang Manyama?

And, now, to get to my point, since Sadio Mane linked up with Senegal for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon, Liverpool have looked ordinary and toothless.

So pivotal has Mane been to Liverpool that they’ve fallen apart since his departure for the biennial continental event. At the weekend, Senegal crashed out of the tournament, losing 5-4 on penalties to Cameroon and, no doubt, Liverpool, manager Jurgen Klopp and the entire Anfield community are beaming broadly.

In Mane’s absence, Liverpool have crashed out of the League Cup, the FA Cup and their league title hopes have been dashed. It’s therefore no surprise the English club sent a private jet to collect Mane after Senegal’s defeat, and the intention is to hurl the speedy winger straight into action against log leaders Chelsea tonight. Klopp, though, faces the task of first lifting Mane up mentally before the clash at Anfield.

The 24-year-old missed the penalty that saw Senegal knocked out. He was distraught in the aftermath – and, if Klopp and Liverpool expect Mane to be firing tonight, to get their titles hopes back on track, then they’ll have to ensure that the penalty miss has been forgotten.

Liverpool have missed his pace, eye for an opening and finishing ability – and, with the Reds struggling for goals and wins, Klopp will be desperate for Mane to stamp his presence and personality on the team. As one clever Liverpool fan remarked after the Senegal defeat: “It’s our best result in January.”

The Mane-Liverpool scenario again brings into the focus the double-edged sword faced by top European clubs. They spend a lot of money on the best African footballers and then, every two years, at a crucial stage of the season, they have to lose the players to Afcon.

There’s no doubt that it has led to the recent reluctance to sign Africans, especially from the upper echelon of European clubs.

I have long been of the opinion that Afcon every two years is madness. The general feeling from Caf is that it does so to serve the development of the game on the continent.

While that belief had merit back in the 1970s and 1980s, surely, in the modern era, like the World Cup and the European Championships, it’s time to have Afcon played every four years. In this way, it will be able to build up the anticipation and the excitement to the event. Right now, in its current format, the interest in the competition is diluted because it’s played too often. (Or is it just another money-making exercise for Caf ?)