Mamadou Sakho may be on his way out of Liverpool, after various reports from the English media claim that Reds’ manager Jurgen Klopp has grown frustrated at the Frenchman’s attitude during their pre-season tour in USA.
In fact, the 26-year-old’s future at Anfield has been left hanging in the balance, after Klopp sent him back to the UK from Liverpool’s USA tour.
Mamadou Sakho has been sent home from Liverpool’s pre-season tour of the United States https://t.co/LJ2QUTKeaS pic.twitter.com/fSrE1cgVPN
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) July 26, 2016
According to a report in English newspaper Daily Mirror, Klopp is all set to hold serious talks with Sakho, about the Frenchman’s future at Liverpool, after the German manager was unimpressed with the way the 26-year-old was pulling his weight around in training.
We got the first indication of the fact that Klopp may be dissatisfied with Sakho when Liverpool released a video of their players’ visit to Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, which is now a famous tourist attraction in San Francisco.
Sakho is seen interrupting an interview that Klopp was giving to LFC TV during the team’s visit to the prison. While it was all done in light humour, Klopp’s reaction left left everyone wondering whether Sakho could be on his way out of the club.
When jokingly asked by Sakho how long he could live in prison, Klopp replied, “Actually, I don’t have to think about it [living in the prison]. You should think about it. Because only one of us came late last night for the party [and flight] in Liverpool. It was not me. Ah, but it was you [to Sakho].”
Finally, Klopp concluded by saying, “We are here because we want to leave Mama [Sakho] here.”
While this interview is not a standalone reason for Klopp’s frusration with Sakho, reports suggest the 26-year-old, who is currently said to be nursing an Achilles injury, may be sold by Klopp, who favours the combination of Dejan Lovren and new signing Joel Matip.
The Frenchman was already under pressure from Klopp due to a provisional ban that was imposed on him by UEFA, after he failed a drug test last season. However, Europe’s apex football governing body did not extend the ban, as the illegal substance that Sakho had used was merely a fat-burner and not a performance enhancer.
Sakho, who is a fan favourite at Liverpool, might well have played his last game for the Reds, as his future at the club now hinges on ‘showdown talks’ with Klopp next week.
