Sadio Mane is one of the elite, says Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp

Klopp has been impressed by the midfielder’s consistency and work rate so far this season

Jurgen Klopp believes Sadio Mane is deserving of his elite status within English football, having seen a marked improvement in the player in recent weeks.

Klopp has been impressed by the midfielder’s consistency and work rate so far this season, and is convinced the 26-year-old is ready for the next level as a world-class footballer.

“Now he’s much more secure that this is his level,” said Klopp. “The players surprise themselves sometimes. ‘Wow, really? That’s how good I am?’ We all need to show our best and get used to it.

“It’s quality. We have to make sure we can show that every week. Who scores the goals is not too important, but it was very important for us and very nice for him that he could do it in the last game.”

Mane already has three goals from two goals this season and is now among the favourites to finish as the Premier League’s top scorer.

But it’s the player’s efforts away from goal which has seen Klopp waxing lyrical about him.

“Sadio is a very consistent player for us. His work-rate is great,” Klopp added.

“We have a very strange 4-5-1 formation with Sadio as a midfielder, Bobby [Roberto Firmino] being a midfielder more or less and Mo [Salah] being a striker, even though he plays in a little different position.

“We talk about the defensive work-rate they put in, that’s really important.”