Richard Buxton Mane will run and run in race for perfection

EXCLUSIVE

THE race for the top is a marathon, not a sprint – unless you are Sadio Mane.

That’s the view of former Everton, Southampton and Holland fitness coach

Jan Kluitenberg.

The Dutchman spent a year at St Mary’s working with Senegal wing wizard Mane (left) and Virgil van Dijk before moving to Everton with manager Ronald Koeman.

He’s seen first hand the incredible steps both have taken to be the very best. Kluitenberg said:

“Before the game,

Sadio came to me and said ‘Jan, I want to do six sprints of 60 metres’.

“I said ‘Sadio, we trained the whole week. You need to be ready for tomorrow, so we don’t do it’. He said, ‘Well if you won’t help me, I will do it by myself’.

“I explained to Ronald Koeman, ‘Sadio wants to do some sprint exercises before the game tomorrow’. He said ‘Sadio knows his body so

control him in the things he wants to do’. I took some steps, but not 60 metres! But the sprints the day before the game were for him – something special to prepare his body.

“It was great to work with him. A good guy, really good professional and also a good heart.”

Mane’s drive for perfection is closely matched by Van Dijk, who Kluitenberg also worked with at Southampton and then later for Holland.

He said: “We had to push Virgil sometimes. There were moments when Ronald was really critical, but the reason was always to help him make the step up as a defender.

“He grew as a person, as a leader and I think the steps he made at Liverpool, working with players on a really high level and also in the Champions League gave him more experience.”