Sadio Mane's transfer agreement to join Man Utd as agent discusses his next steps

Manchester United supporters may wince every time Sadio Mane's name surfaces during the transfer window.

The Senegalese star famously snubbed the Red Devils to join Liverpool in 2016. To make matters even more painful, a deal for the Africa Cup of Nations winner appeared to have been rubber-stamped, until Jurgen Klopp picked up the phone.

Instead, they had to watch Mane become a Liverpool legend, while their alternative targets did not come close to matching the ex-Southampton forward's numbers. In the eyes of most United fans, he will be one of the ones who got away.

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In a past interview with the Daily Telegraph, Mane revealed his bags were more or less packed and ready to move to Manchester from Southampton. He said: "I have to say, I was really close to going to Manchester United.

"I had the contract there. I had it all agreed. It was all ready, but instead, I thought, 'No, I want to go to Liverpool'. I was convinced to go with (Jurgen) Klopp's project. I still remember the first time I got the call from Klopp. He said, 'We have a big project at Liverpool and I want you to be part of it'.

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"Then he asked what position I wanted because he could see at Southampton I played on the right side and I used to play on the left. I said I prefer left, and then he said, 'But (Philippe) Coutinho is on the left!' So I said, never mind, I will play on the right. I could see myself in all the positions."

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