"One of the worst" - Paul Merson says Liverpool have made a major mistake

Former Arsenal player and pundit Paul Merson has criticised Liverpool for selling Sadio Mane this summer, saying it is one of the worst transfer decisions in recent years.

Mane joined Bayern Munich for an initial £27m fee from the Anfield club, where he spent six years after joining from Southampton in 2016.

He scored 120 goals in 269 matches for the Reds, including 16 in his final Premier League season.

And Merson feels that his presence is definitely missed after the Reds’ tough start this season.

“Mohamed Salah is still Liverpool’s main man,” he wrote. “But I’m worried about his form a little bit.

“Sadio Mane and Salah always played well alongside each other and pushed each on, they were like Starsky and Hutch!

“Mane’s sale was one of the worst I’ve seen in recent years, I’ll never get tired of saying this.”

However, in Liverpool's defence it was clear that Mane wanted to experience a new challenge in his career in Bavaria, and that there wasn’t much they could do to keep him around. 

And the problems they have been having have mostly happened in the midfield areas, with a concentration of injuries suffered.

A player of his output will obviously be missed, but the Reds will hope Diaz and Darwin Nunez will fill that void.