Son of the imam of his native village of Bambali, Mané, barely a teenager, had fled to try his luck in Dakar.

Brought back a few days later to his village, he ended up returning to the capital of Senegal a few months later.

"In the village you are going to be a farmer, there is no other job to do. My childhood dream was to write history and win all the trophies", declares the twirling attacker, who sometimes plays with grapefruit, for lack of a balloon, in the Rakuten TV documentary "Sadio Mané: made in Senegal".

There, the teenager was spotted by members of Génération Foot, the partner club of FC Metz, which he joined in 2009.

Arrival in the middle of winter

"He did exceptional things, he had generosity and a positive attitude. His technique and his ability to eliminate were his strong points and it became obvious that he had to sign for Metz. So I offered the club to sign him. bring in", recalls to AFP Olivier Perrin, former director of the Moselle club's training center and today director of operations for Génération Foot.

Liverpool striker Sadio Mané overflows Aston Villa defender Matty Cash, during the 16th day of the Premier League, December 11, 2021 at Anfield Road Stadium Oli SCARFF AFP / Archives

Mané arrived in Metz in the middle of winter, on January 4, 2011. "The first thing that surprised me was the wind", Mané recalls in the documentary.

The beginnings are complicated for the young player, who hid an injury for fear of being sent back to Senegal.

"He didn't put one foot in front of the other, he didn't show what he could do and I didn't understand why. I thought it was the cold, but in fact it was that he had pubalgia When we discovered him, he had surgery and after he quickly went up to the pros and has always remained there, "explains Olivier Perrin.

Mané will only stay a year and a half in Metz, which will have to resolve to let him go in the summer of 2012 after relegation to National.

"The club needed money to recover, so he was sold for 4.1 million euros to Salzburg and his compatriot Kalidou Koulibaly (central defender today in Naples) for 2.5 million to Genk", recalls Perrin.

The striker then continued his progression in Austria: "He was a very technically gifted boy but he liked the show more than efficiency. In Salzburg he had a coach (Roger Schmidt, editor's note) who helped him to 'improve in the finish', judges Perrin.

Liverpool striker Sadio Mané opens the scoring against Crystal Palace's Spanish goalkeeper Vicente Guaita, during the 5th day of the Premier League, September 18, 2021 at Anfield Road Stadium Paul ELLIS AFP / Archives

But the Lorraine trainer had no idea that his protege would become one of the best players in the world, even if he was steeped in talent.

The Ballon d'Or, his "absolute goal"

"You never know if a player will be able to go to a very high level, because he is a man above all and you never know how he will evolve, improve," said Perrin.

"For example, in Metz he had no head game".

How to explain then that he reached the heights and is one of the candidates to win the Ballon d'Or in October, after being crowned African champion with Senegal in February?

Striker Sadio Mané is about to lift the African Cup of Nations trophy, after Senegal's victory in the final against Egypt (0-0, 4-2 pens), on February 6, 2022 at the Stade Olembé in Yaoundé (Cameroon) CHARLY TRIBALLEAU AFP/Archives

"He is constantly looking for improvement. If he has not been good, he will review his game to see how to improve. He has the ability to question himself and that, not everyone has it. not", underlines the trainer.

"Like Ronaldo or Messi, he leaves nothing to chance, whether in his daily work, food, sleep or his ability to prepare even on vacation".

Saturday in Saint-Denis, Mané will find France which allowed him to launch his career.

The Senegalese will play his third Champions League final there, after a defeat in 2018 against Real Madrid, and a success in 2019 against Tottenham.

Senegalese Liverpool striker Sadio Mané lifts the Champions League trophy after the Reds' 2-0 victory over Tottenham on June 1, 2019 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid Ben STANSALL AFP / Archives

"My absolute goal? is the Ballon d'Or. In life? you have to dream, the dream is allowed to everyone," said the left winger often refocused at the forefront this season.

There is no doubt that a coronation on Saturday in Saint-Denis, ten years after his departure from Metz, would bring the Senegalese closer to his Grail.

© 2022 AFP