New Bayern Munich forward Sadio Mane has revealed that he was willing to risk his life in order to play for Senegal, even offering to sign a ‘death contract’ to do so.
Suffering a serious knock on the head in Senegal‘s African Nations League clash with Cape Verde, Mane wanted to play in their subsequent quarter-final.
But Liverpool requested that the player was given five days’ rest to recover due to concussion protocol, and the Senegalese medical staff also wanted him to sit the game out.
Mane, though, was determined to play and even offered to sign a contract to state that any accident, even up to his potential death, would be his own personal responsibility.
Mane’s death contract
Mane told Pro Direct Soccer France what he had to do to get back on the pitch. Despite disagreements from all sides, Mane did not change his mind.
“When I was injured against Cape Verde and had a concussion, I never spoke about it that day,” Mane stated.
“Liverpool put pressure on the federation and wrote a letter to FIFA saying I needed at least five days of rest, which meant I would miss the quarter-finals.”
After getting a refusal from the coach and doctors, Mane turned to the federation president. He was not going to change his decision to play in the quarter-finals, but he understood the fear and concern that surrounded him.
This prompted him to offer to sign a contract in which he would absolve everyone of any blame, should the worst come to pass.
“I knew I shouldn’t play, but I said ‘let’s have a contract’. It will be my responsibility, I will sign it’,” Mane stated.
“If I die, they can say it’s my fault. It’s nobody’s fault. They said, ‘Sadio, you can’t play’ but I said, ‘no, no, it’s out of the question.'”
Seeing the striker’s stance, nobody knew what to do. In the end, the medical staff offered up one more alternative.
Mane was tested on the day of the game and waited for the results to determine whether or not he could be on the pitch for the match. He ended up playing 90 minutes.
“I didn’t sign the contract, but I was ready to do it. The doctor said: ‘Let’s do a scan on the morning of the match’,” Mane stated.
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