African Cup of Nations 2019: Top 5 contenders for the Golden Boot

#3 Sadio Mane (Senegal)

Mane will have to transcend the rich vein of his club form into the vagaries of inter-continental football

We witnessed the best of Sadio Mane last season. The Reds winger was on a relentless run and even upstaged Mohamed Salah on various occasions to become Liverpool’s talisman.

He also shared the Golden Boot prize with his Reds counterpart for 22 goals in the league, but the strikes against Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Bayern Munich showed he can settle big games too.

Besides, his pace and technique was a serious threat to the defences, whereas Mane can be a thorn in the face during set-piece situations too. The Lions of Teranga will be hoping to capitalise on these abilities.

In a frankly negotiable group containing Tanzania, Algeria and Kenya, Mane would be licking his fingers. He will once again compete with Salah for the most prolific tag, as the Liverpool teammates are on a collision course in the semi-finals.