Mane was looking for an apartment for Sarr... but it was all in vain

Senegal was incredibly close to having two of their national team wingers playing for Liverpool but it looks like it just wasn't meant to be. Sadio Mane already proved himself in the Premier League, both in Southampton and in Liverpool and adding his countryman Ismaila Sarr to the ranks of the Reds would have probably brought the much-needed new energy in the attack. Similar to one Diogo Jota brought when he came from Wolverhampton. Now, the Portuguese is injured for a while already, Ismaila Sarr is still at Vicarage Road and Liverpool is going through a minor crisis when it comes to scoring. Why did the transfer of the Senegalese fail?

Sarr's agent revealed Liverpool agreed personal terms with the Watford winger over the summer but the transfer fell through due to the Reds' lack of funds. The 22-year-old winger was part of the Hornets side that was relegated from the Premier League last summer but ended up staying with Watford this season in the Championship as he failed to secure a summer move. Agent Thierno Seydi claimed that the Reds failed to stump up the 48.2 million USD (5.2 billion KSH) price tag required to complete the deal - even though Mane was helping his countryman find a place to live on Merseyside.

In Seydi's statement to Pan African Football, the agent said:

'With Liverpool, we were at the stage of signing the contract to bind the Reds to Ismaila Sarr. 'Everything was set, the monthly salary and the length of the deal. I even asked Sadio Mane to find him an apartment. 'But in the end, the English club were unable to put 40m euros on the table to finalise the deal.

Ismaila Sarr has contributed immensely to Watford during the current campaign - five goals and six assists so far in the Championship, with the Hornets holding on to the fourth place - nine points behind second-tier leaders Brentford. However, Sarr impressed Liverpool the season before in the Premier League by scoring twice in Watford's 3-0 win over Jurgen Klopp's side - which was the Reds' first league defeat of their title-winning campaign.

Apart from interest coming from Anfield, their biggest rivals in England - Manchester United - also wanted to bring the skilled winger to their squad. Seydi claimed the Red Devils approached Watford over a deal for the winger but they offered a simple loan deal with no obligation or option to sign the player permanently after this season.

'Over the summer, (Manchester United) wanted to sign the Senegalese forward. At the last moment, they offered a loan without any option to buy. 'Watford did not accept (it) because the loan would have to have been accompanied by an option to buy - with Manchester United having first refusal (to make the deal permanent).'

Liverpool and Manchester United's inability to produce the funds for Sarr shows how financially unstable the big European clubs are in this global pandemic.

'If the English clubs, which once dominated the transfer window, have difficulty raising funds - that reflects the depth of the crisis affecting football. 'Today, the damage is immeasurable with the financial and economic crisis facing clubs. Almost all clubs are in the red.' said Seydi.