Premier League: Liverpool's main Mane is back! A happy Mane is a happy Liverpool

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Bengaluru, February 16: Sadio Mane's supporting role in Liverpool's 2-0 win against Mane's former club Southampton undeniably brought joy to Reds manager Jurgen Klopp.

"Finally, you are back!"

Barely four days after that, the Senegalese bagged a hat-trick in the 5-0 thrashing of Porto in the Champions League Round of 16.

Must be back indeed.

The 2016-17 season was a cracker for Mane.He scored some scintillating goals, one of which was a solo goal on the opening day against Arsenal. Who can forget the moment when Mane ran to Klopp after scoring and the German took him around piggy-back? The entire Liverpool attacked revolved around Mane.

And when Mane departed for the African Cup of Nations in January 2017, Liverpool suffered a slump. It probably underlined how important he was to Liverpool.

This year, on the other hand, has not been kind to Mane. His colleague on the other side of the wing, Mohamed Salah, has shone for Liverpool and the spotlight is no longer on him.

Injury and a change in position has affected the Senegalese forward's campaign. In his debut season, Mane played on the right wing. This season, he has had to play on the left to accommodate Salah. Mane still claims that this has not affected him and that he is effective anywhere in the front line. That apart, injury too has taken a toll on Mane this season.

What promised to be a brilliant second season for Mane started off with a stutter when he was sent off against Manchester City for that tackle on goalkeeper Ederson. The three-match ban must have affected the forward as it was the beginning of his slump.

His momentum stalled further when he was injured in October and his return in November was quite frustrating. Fans noticed that he was not up to speed and there were voices of discontent when he didn't pass to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain against Everton.

Liverpool drew that match on December 10 last year and the talking point was Mane's poor shot. Frustration continued as he didn't start for the game against Chelsea and his post-match on-field confrontation with Klopp showed signs of a frustrated player.

But that stunning goal against Burnley at the start of 2018 turned it all around. Signs of discontent were still present as evident from the muted celebration. However, after the goal against Manchester City, things started to look good for the star forward.

And now that he has a hat-trick against Porto, Mane is high on confidence. A happy Mane is a happy Liverpool.

Having all the three forwards fit, happy and firing is necessary for Liverpool to push further and succeed this season.