A look at Bayern Munich star Sadio Mané’s role in loss to SC Freiburg

It has not been a banner inaugural season for Sadio Mané with Bayern Munich.

Plagued by a penchant for going offside, shutdown by an injury for an extended period, and unable to really assert himself at a position just yet, Mané is doing some damage to the Bundesliga’s “Farmers League” reputation (you mean these German clubs actually can actually play a little bit?).

One thing that did go right for Mané is that he somehow avoided having too many fingers pointed at him for his role in Bayern Munich’s DFB-Pokal elimination at the hands of SC Freiburg.

Jamal Musiala? Thomas Tuchel cast a little shade his way and some knuckleheads online put the heat on the phenom for a handball call that set up the game-winning penalty kick.

Tuchel? HELL NO! At least according to sporting director Hasan “Brazzo” Salihamidžić.

The Bayern Munich board? Sure, they took some heat for the decision to change coaches at a totally inopportune juncture of the season, but not nearly enough.

Thomas Müller? Tuchel intimated that the Raumdeuter should have done better with his chance at the end of the first half (the coach is correct on that).

But Mané, who entered the game in the 79th minute, only to pick up two sloppy fouls, including a needless yellow card that gave SC Freiburg a free kick in an advantageous position (while also not doing anything to boost the attack)? Nada.

It seems that Mané has developed a Teflon suit from some at Bayern Munich.

In previous years (and even this season as well), there was no such treatment for the star players. Robert Lewandowski was often slammed by fans on his off days. Leroy Sané, Serge Gnabry, Leon Goretzka, Benjamin Pavard, and Kingsley Coman have all taken heat for one reason or another. Right or wrong, Mané is getting a bit of a pass.

Now, I’m not saying Mané should be solely to blame for the loss to SC Freiburg. Make no mistake, the entire team suffered through a miserable performance. However, it is 100% fair to say that a veteran player at his level should be able to avoid that exact kind of careless foul in the waning minutes of an elimination game.

While many were lamenting Julian Nagelsmann’s ability to find a way to best utilize Mané, maybe some of the focus should have been on the former Liverpool FC’s star willingness to adapt. By all accounts, Mané is a professional who has endeared himself to his teammates off the field, but has he done what is needed to integrate his game with his teammates on the pitch?

I think that could be questioned.

By now, we’ve heard of an alleged confrontation with Nagelsmann and we know his struggles with offside calls. What we have also seen is that if you were to pick a Best XI for the Bavarians this season, the Senegalese attacker probably would have to find a seat on the bench.

So yeah, Mané probably did get off easy for his role in Bayern Munich’s loss to SC Freiburg — but he has gotten a bit of a free pass all season. For a player who was billed as a “star-for-star” replacement for Lewandowski, Mané has fallen short during this opening campaign.

Can he find a way to pick it up and redeem himself this season? Maybe, but he is going to have to find a way to figure out a position — and a way to operate better on the pitch with his teammates.

There would, however, be no better time for prime Mané to emerge at Bayern Munich, though, right? This is when the team will need that level of player the most. A resurgent Mané powering Bayern Munich the league crown and a Champions League title would be a storybook ending to what has been a difficult season.

We have a few weeks to see if that happens. For the sake of Bayern Munich fans everywhere, let’s hope we get to see Mané make good on his recent promise that we would see the Liverpool version of him “soon.”

Even for someone doubting his long-term prospects with the team, I predicted (here) that Tuchel will look to get Mané going by giving him a start against SC Freiburg on Saturday… will the coach see things the same way?