Koeman full of praise for Mané

Ronald Koeman praised Sadio Mané after the forward came off the bench to help Saints come from behind to beat Liverpool 3-2 yesterday afternoon.

Mané came on at the start of the second half along with Victor Wanyama and both helped Southampton overturn their 2-0 deficit. Mané had the chance to get one back from the penalty spot early in the second half but his spot kick was saved. Koeman praised the belief the forward and team showed to overcome that moment.

Koeman said: "These are key moments in the game. If you miss a penalty, maybe you go down because you don’t see any other chance to score. We kept the belief and the spirit in the game and we scored great goals.

"We had really good attacking football in the second half and we controlled Liverpool better than we did in the first half."

Mané scored for the first time since the two sides met in the Capital One Cup in December and Koeman praised the belief that the forward had in himself.

"It’s a difficult time for Sadio because every player likes to start always. He didn’t start today and last week. It’s not always about one player. He’s showed great belief in himself.

"That’s the Sadio we like to see - fighting, scoring, because hes a fantastic player."