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Sadio Mane has chosen the squad number he will wear for Bayern Munich following his high-profile move from Liverpool.
The 30-year-old forward joined Bayern Munich in a £35 million move (per BBC Sport) after spending six incredibly successful seasons with the Reds. There, he was prolific in whichever position across the front three Jurgen Klopp asked him to play.
The Bundesliga champions announced over the weekend on Twitter that Mane will wear the No.17 jersey, which on the face of it appears to be a completely random choice.
Mane wore 10 during his time at Liverpool, but that number has already been taken by winger Leroy Sane. Bavarian Football Works claims that Sane's father had suggested that the former Manchester City forward would be willing to offer his shirt number to Mane, but it never came to pass.
The announcement of the Senegalese international's pick also ended rumors that suggested that he could take 7 or 9, which belong to Serge Gnabry and Robert Lewandowski respectively. Both these players have been linked with moves away from the Allianz Arena this summer.
Sadio Mane takes the number 17 shirt that has been vacated at Bayern Munich by Michael Cuisance, who left the club in January to join Italian side Venezia.
Sadio Mane claims he achieved everything he could at Liverpool before move to Bayern Munich
Following his move from Southampton in 2016, Sadio Mane went on to win every major team honour available to him with Liverpool and now clearly feels it is time for a new challenge.
In his farewell interview with Liverpoolfc.com, the forward stated:
"From the first day I came to the club, I spoke to the boss when I was in Southampton and I think at that time we were not even in the Champions League. He called me and I said, ‘For sure.’ I just decided in my heart that I am coming to Liverpool because that is where I see myself and for me it was the right time and the right club to achieve everything.
"So, I can say of course we won a lot and I spent a great, great time there. An unbelievable time at Liverpool, we won a lot. Like I always say, my life is always [about a] challenge and when it came I said to the club that I want to leave, I want to go somewhere else to see a new challenge.
"It is not anything else, it is just a challenge because for me I want to always be challenging myself to get better and better."
