It’s easy for one tiny moment to get blown up out of proportion, but there was something noteworthy about Sadio Mane refusing to shake the manager’s hand after the game last night.
Mane has struggled for form at times this season and he was replaced in the starting line-up by Diogo Jota who went on to have a key impact in the game, so it’s likely that a season’s worth of frustration had built up and manifested itself in that moment.
It seems more surprising because he always appears to have a good relationship with Klopp, and it was addressed by the manager in his press conference today.
Obviously it wasn’t ideal and it’s a bad look if this happens consistently, but it appears to be a one-off thing and Klopp was quick to play it down and show his respect for the forward:
Klopp on Mane: "If somebody shows me 5 million times respect and one time not, what is more important? I hope for you that your boss, if you one time don't show him respect, doesn't forget the other stuff."
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) May 14, 2021
We all deal with frustration in different ways and it’s possible that Mane just needs the season to end so he can recoup and come back stronger next year, but it doesn’t look like there are any real issues here.