Sadio Mane plays down talk of a rift with Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp

Mane appeared to be visibly unhappy at the final whistle on Saturday evening and was in deep discussions with Klopp as the teams left the field

Sadio Mane has played down talk of a rift between him and Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool FC)

Sadio Mane has denied talk of a rift with Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.

The Senegalese was left out of the Reds' starting line-up for game with Chelsea at the weekend and was only used as a late substitute in the 1-1 draw at Anfield.

Mane appeared to be visibly unhappy at the final whistle and was in deep discussions with Klopp as the teams left the field.

But the man himself has moved to dispel and talk of a falling out between him and his manager.

"He [Klopp] asked me to play on the right side and one time I tried to ask for the ball in the number nine position," he told Sky Sports. "Mo [Salah] was on my side and the coach was shouting 'Sadio come onto the right side'.

"After the game I told the coach it was easier if you told Mo to come in because he was close to you. But it was friendly, it was not because I was unhappy or something else. There was no problem, I was just communicating and explaining that to him after the game."

Salah has been a revelation since his summer move from Roma with his 10 goals a Premier League high and Mane is delighted to be playing alongside him.

"He's doing very well for us and we are happy to have him in the squad," he added. "He is a very important player for us and I'm going to keep trying to help him score more goals for the team.

"He is a very, very good player for us and [if you give him] space he is unbelievable. No-one can catch him and also he is clever."