The Senegalese striker is another player who has been the reason behind Liverpool rise this season – he has already scored 4 goals in 11 appearances this season. Mane was instrumental in Liverpool’s run in the Champions League last season, scoring 10 goals in the tournament and 20 goals in all competitions in total. However, Mane did not win any silverware last season.
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The Senegalese looks determined to change all that this season and has been asked to carry additional responsibilities at Anfield as Salah is experiencing second season syndromes now. Yet, even with all his qualities and abilities on the field, it is hard to justify Mane’s inclusion in the Ballon d’Or shortlist.
Player who missed out: Paulo Dybala
It is true that the Argentinean had a forgettable 2018 FIFA World Cup, but he was phenomenal last season, scoring 26 goals in all competitions and winning the Serie A and the Coppa Italia with Juventus. He has also scored 4 goals from 8 games so far this season, yet cruelly misses out from the shortlist.
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About the author
Deepungsu Pandit
Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over six years at Sportskeeda. He has written close to 9000 articles for the website, and has garnered over 19.5Million reads.
Deepungsu holds a PG degree in Microbiology and an MBA degree in Total Quality Management. He has an extensive two-decade long writing experience, which includes a decade of sports blogging. His writing prowess has even led his work getting cited on the legendary Franz Beckenbauer's Wikipedia page.
Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.
Deepungsu has been a Manchester United supporter since the year 2000. Unsurprisingly, his favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson and the Scotsman helped him get through some of the toughest days of his life. Like the fiery Scot, Deepungsu also leaves no stone unturned when it comes to accuracy in articles and only relies on credible sources.
Despite believing in Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland to create an iconic rivalry, Deepungsu reckons no one can match the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo. He spends his leisure time writing about life on his blog, reading books, and playing the guitar.
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