In an era where most footballers lead lavishly and focus on amassing wealth, Sadio Mane has proved to be different.
A few days ago , Mane left many supporters in awe after posting images and clips of himself playing in the rain on a muddy field with locals in his hometown of Bambali.
The Bayern Munich star was joined by legends Papius Cisse the former Newcastle man,Ex Liverpool forward El-Hadj-Diouf and international teammate Mbayen Diagne with some locals from his home village.
Back to the source with a gala match in Bamabali pitch where it all started. A big thank to you my brothers papa si Demba cisse,Mbayen Diagne,Desire saber and without forgetting my life boy idol sacred El -Hadji Diouf. He posted
This act was just an addition to the different acts of humility sadio has done throughout his career career we take a look at some of the acts he has recently done.
Home town (Bambali)
Many African footballers after attaining wealth and gaining fame they would forget about their roots. Some never even making a home return at any point purchasing expensive houses in nations like France but despite the fame and wealth, Mane clearly hasn’t forgotten his roots.
The 29-year-old is well aware of the levels of poverty in his home village of Bambaly . This made him to facilitate the construction of a hospital there.
After this the forward then donated £250,000 to fund a new secondary school and was spotted visiting the construction site to check on its progress.
During the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, he personally paid for 50 Senegalese fans to join the felloe supporters in Cameroon to watch a semi-final victory.
“Why would I want 10 Ferraris, 20 diamond watches, or 2 planes? I built schools, a stadium, we provide clothes, shoes, food for people who are in extreme poverty.
I prefer that my people receive a little of what life has given me.” He once posted on his Twitter
FA Cup final
After winning any trophy every individual would think of running around shouting and in celebration and taking selfies and all.
However Sadio Mane delivered something differently. After winning his first FA Cup with a penalty-shootout victory over Chelsea in May 2022, his first thought was not about himself and his victory but with the disappointed fellow Teranga lion and Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
As Liverpool’s players were wildly celebrating Mane ran over to console his international team-mate.
Generous donor
After suffering a concussion during Senegal’s quarter-final match against Cape Verde in the just concluded 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, Mane was rushed to a nearby hospital in Cameroon.
While being treated for his own injuries, the winger still displayed his selflessness and made an incredible gesture to a distraught family.
“I think I told you about the generous gesture that Sadio Mane made in Bafoussam in favour of a family,” said a guest on the set of a Cameroonian channel Equinoxet.
“The latter was in distress because a motorcycle had hit their child who had broken bones and injuries all over his body; he was close to death and his parents could not afford to pay for treatment.
“And Sadio, who was in this hospital, finds this grieving family and asks them what is going on. We explain the situation to him and he gave them 400,000 FCFA which relieved this family.”
But this wasn’t the first generous donation of sadio. During the the outbreak of noval covid 19, the Ex Liverpool man donated £41,000 to health authorities in Senegal.
His incident with Ederson
Mane was given a straight red card against Manchester City in September 2017 after catching Ederson’s face with a high boot.
The forward so much regretted the incident and apologized on his social media platforms before trying to get in touch with the goalkeeper.
“We don’t know each other, but I would love to have his number and send him a proper message. I think it is OK now, though,” Mane told ESPN.
“Honestly, after this incident, I was not OK. I was thinking about the red card, obviously, but we are human beings and we have to be nice to each other.
“If I could do better to ignore [avoid] the collision, I would do my best to do so. But he also did the same. I can’t do anything now.”
Ballboy incident
Despite sadio mane scoring twice and attaining the man of the match award as Liverpool did beat Chelsea in the 2019 UEFA super cup final, it was the forward’s heartwarming gesture off the pitch that impressed everyone.
While sitting on the bench, he called over one of the ballboys giving him his shirt and a hug, and the young lad was very delighted.
Water bottles
Mane displayed his humility with another selfless act while on international duty with Senegal in November 2019.
After getting off the team bus, the winger was seen helping members of staff carry water bottles into the stadium. Most footballers would just walk past without giving any help but he again proved to be different.
Sadio Mane helps offload items from team bus.
Mane and his look alike
After helping Senegal defeat Congo 2-0 and as he was getting back on the team bus,he spotted a lookalike outside the team bus wearing a Mane Liverpool shirt.
Mane asked security to bring the fan onto the bus, so he could meet the rest of the team and have a brief chat before taking a photo together.
The mosque incident
After scoring the opener in Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Leicester in 2018, Mane would have been expected to have a rest. But surprisingly he did something else.
As a devoted Muslim, he was instead seen helping to clean the toilets at his local mosque in Liverpool just a few hours after the final whistle.
“Sadio requested that no video was sent out. He wanted to remain discreet and wasn’t doing it for publicity,” Abu Usamah Al-Tahabi told the BBC.
“He comes to the mosque often. At his house, he has a Bentley – but he comes to us in a not-so-fancy car, so he is incognito.
“He’s not a person looking for fanfare. There’s no arrogance.”
Ismaila Sarr
After Liverpool faced Watford in December 2019, Mane requested Troy Deeney to look after the 21-year-old, who he plays alongside with Senegal.
“Sadio is talking to me all the time. He advises me to do this, do that. He is a big brother for me,” Sarr told BBC Sport.
“When I arrived, he sent messages saying ‘welcome to the Premier League, welcome to England’ and we also talk when we are in the national team.
“He gives me tips, I try to execute them and to implement them. ‘If you don’t play, be calm, carry on, do your job, it will be OK,’ that is what he says. So I try to do the same.”
In a world where many footballers think about bragging and standing at the top ,sadio mane has proved be different always knowing his roots and his people.
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