Sadio Mane’s modest beginnings in a small Senegalese hamlet highlight the extraordinary journey the forward for Liverpool has taken to become one of the top players in the world.

Mane grew up and was born in the village of:

Bambali, the capital of Senegal, lies 400 kilometres from Dakar, the country’s outermost point.The town has a population of only approximately 2000.

Sadio attending his high school (photo from 2018)

The village is surrounded by many mango trees, old homes, and wooden fences.

Since the community is situated along the Casamance River, farming and fishing are the main sources of income for the residents.

Every villager speaks French as their first language; it is also the native tongue of Senegal.

In Bambali, Mane constructed a school.

In Bambali, Sadio Mane constructed a mosque, a large hospital, and a school.

With the hospital, Mane hoped to give his hometown hope after his father died while he was only 11 years old from a lack of access to healthcare.

The mosque that Mane constructed; his father was the village’s previous mosque’s imam (religious leader).

With a population of over 15 million, the majority of people in Senegal are Muslims.

The people are able to collect water from the well within Mane’s home.

“Sadio Mane: Bambali’s Child” It says on the poster outside his house.

Senegalese joint families frequently live together; in the mansion Mane constructed, forty family members share a single roof.

Mane’s family is prepared to see Senegal vs. Tanzania in the 2018 AFCON. Everyone is still eager even though Sadio is missing the game.

A lot of the villagers are Reds fans now – especially after the winger gifted 300 Liverpool shirts to people in the village before the Champions League final in 2018.

Here, everyone knows Mane. He is viewed as a role model and brother by many.