Sadio Mane hails Liverpool star as 'one of the best players in the world'

The Reds attacker has heaped praise teammate Roberto Firmino and rates him as one of the world’s finest players.

Roberto Firmino is an ‘unbelievable’ player who is right up there with the very best, says Sadio Mane.

The 30-year-old, who joined Liverpool in 2015 from Hoffenheim, has been a prominent figure in Jurgen Klopp’s side. He isn’t renowned for his goalscoring ability – especially compared to fellow forwards Mane and Mohamed Salah.

That said, the Liverpool squad rate still rates Firmino as highly as any other world-class footballer.

“I think that is part of football, where people always speak about the players who are scoring the goals but I have always said – and I will say it again – that without Firmino we wouldn’t be the same,” Mane told the club’s matchday program before Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Brighton.

“In the five years I have been playing with him you can see how many passes and how many assists he has provided and then you can look at his defensive work for us too and his work between the lines to make the space for us to make everything easier.

“So I think he is unbelievable. We know ourselves how good Bobby is and how important he is for us but it’s sometimes only after a hat-trick that more people will talk.

“But certainly within the squad, we know that he is one of the best players in the world.”