Sadio Mane insists his public falling out with Liverpool team-mate Mohamed Salah has been “forgotten”, with the pair now “reconciled” and “good friends” once more.
Divisions in the Reds camp appeared to form during a recent Premier League trip to Burnley.
Jurgen Klopp’s side ran out comfortable 3-0 winners at Turf Moor, but it was events off the field which dominated the post-match headlines.
That is because Mane made it clear when being substituted during the second half that he was less than impressed by the selfish streak of fellow frontman Salah.
Those inside the Liverpool camp were quick to play down any suggestion of a rift between two-star performers, with game-day emotions blamed for the act of frustration.
Mane has now sought to bring the episode to a close, with the Senegal international having bagged a brace in a 3-1 victory over Newcastle on Saturday as Salah also got in on the act.
“With Salah? It’s forgotten,” Mane told Canal+.
“These are things that happen in football. Sometimes you have to say things face to face. Sometimes it happens that I am not given the pass.
“But we have reconciled and become the good friends we were before.”
Mane had looked to laugh off the incident in the wake of an outing at Burnley, with James Milner suggesting that a club colleague was merely disappointed not to see him introduced off the bench.
Salah then got in on the act prior to a meeting with Newcastle, with the Egyptian sharing a humorous twist on a viral social media video which showed him embracing Mane.
There certainly appeared to be no bad blood between the pair as Klopp’s side hit back from falling a goal down against the Magpies to secure a 14th successive Premier League win.
Liverpool stars of past and present consider the feud talk to now be over, with the likes of Reds legend Robbie Fowler having claimed that being a little self-centred is all part of prolific goalscorer’s make up.
He told The Mirror: “I’ve honestly never heard such nonsense as the stuff that has surrounded this so-called spat between Sadio Mane and Mo Salah.
“Everyone commenting and talking nonsense about being ‘greedy’ or destroying team spirit, have they never watched football before?
“Because you can’t be a top-class goalscorer without total belief you will score.
“That’s what goalscorers do. They train for it, their whole week on the training ground is spent practising, visualising, working out how to score for every position and the best always believe they can score – from five yards, from 20, from 40. Wherever. Even if it’s easier to pass for a tap-in.
“I look at Salah’s record and it tells me he’s going to keep doing it.”
