Senegalese attacker Sadio Mane has boosted his bid of winning the FIFA Ballon d'Or after he scored the only goal of the game to lead Liverpool to a 1-0 win at home to West Ham United in the Premier League.
Mane has had a good year till date and he's already an early contender to win the FIFA Ballon d'Or. Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski is the reigning Ballon d'Or winner after winning each of the last two editions.
Liverpool star Mane began the year by winning the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Cameroon. The former Southampton and Red Bull Salzburg attacker was the star of the Senegal team that won the AFCON tournament for the first time in their history. Senegal won the AFCON tournament by beating Egypt in the final via penalties. Mane was named the best player at the end of the tournament.
Mane returned to Liverpool as an AFCON winner and soon added the Carabao Cup title to his trophy collections after the Reds saw off Chelsea in the final at the end of last month. Liverpool and Chelsea played out a goalless draw in 120 minutes before substitute goalkeeper KepaArrizabalaga missed his spot kick during penalty shootout to hand Liverpool the first Carabao Cup win in a decade.
In league terms, Mane has now scored three goals in his last two games. The attacker scored two goals in thesecond half of the Leeds United game which ended in a 6-0 win for Liverpool. Mohamed Salah also scored twice during the game, while the defensive duo of Joel Matip and Virgil Van Dijk were also on the scoresheet for the Reds as they ran riot against Leeds United. Mane made three goals in two league games with the winning goal in the 1-0 home win over West Ham United.
