“Firmino reveals Salah–Mane were never close friends after the infamous Burnley clash”

Liverpool’s 3-0 win away to Burnley in the 2019/20 season is remembered not just for the scoreline but for the flashpoint between Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.

During the match, Mane was visibly furious after Salah opted to shoot instead of passing to him when he was unmarked in a better position. After being substituted, the Senegalese forward hurled his training top to the ground and angrily gestured toward his teammate.

Speculation grew that their relationship changed after that day. Now, in his autobiography Si Señor: My Liverpool Years, Roberto Firmino—who completed the famous attacking trio—offers an inside view.

Firmino explains that their relationship was “complicated” and recalls that Jürgen Klopp even stepped in after the Burnley incident. He writes that tense episodes usually blew over quickly: in the very next game, they would be exchanging passes and celebrating goals together.

According to Firmino, Salah and Mane were never close friends and rarely engaged in long conversations, though they always maintained professionalism and never cut ties. He isn’t sure whether any Egypt–Senegal football rivalry played a role.

Firmino also admits Salah often frustrated teammates by failing to pass, though he personally learned to handle it. Klopp addressed the matter publicly with the squad, making it clear that when a teammate was in a better position, the ball must be played—a pointed message for Salah. Firmino adds that, over time, Salah improved greatly in this area.