Southampton manager Ronald Koeman will hold talks with Sadio Mane today regarding the midfielder’s future at the club.
The Saints are adamant the midfielder will not be sold this month, amid reports of strong interests from Premier League clubs Manchester United and Chelsea.
Southampton are going through a bad-spell at the moment, managing only one win in their last nine games in all competitions, and their hopes of challenging for the top four spot has taken a further blow, after they suffered a shock 1-0 defeat against Norwich at Carrow Road on Saturday.
Mane was dropped from the defeat to Norwich for missing a pre-match meeting – a sign of showing disrespect to the club – but he will not be fined by the South-coast club.
The Senegal international has been hauled up for being late for pre-match meetings before, but his lack of focus in training has fuelled suspicion that he is agitating for a move in the January transfer window.
“He’s an important player for us,” said Southampton midfielder Steven Davies, as quoted by The Times. “Sadio is the type of player who can create something out of nothing and there’s not too many of them around. He plays a massive role. That was the decision the manager made, and everybody within the squad knows the situation regarding that.”
Is he angling for a move to Manchester United? Well, United reportedly wanted him (lodged an official bid) in the summer, but do they still need him now? Southampton claim there has been no renewed bid or formal approach from Manchester United as yet.
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