NEXT Sadio Mane confirms he’s ready to join Liverpool

The next Sadio Mane is ready to join Liverpool and he's just confirmed it.

It's going to be really interesting to see just how Richard Hughes evolves this attack during the summer transfer window. As Anfield Watch revealed exclusively, Liverpool are set for wholesale changes in attack.

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This is going to be an era-defining summer with Hughes very much commencing a new chapter in the club's history and the true beginning of the Slot reign at Anfield.

It will see the likes of Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota all put up for sale. At this stage, the future of Mohamed Salah is also moot, considering he is still yet to sign a contract extension.

The only player who is really safe and can comfortably say he will be in a red shirt next season is Cody Gakpo. He's become an integral figure under Slot and his role is unlikely to change.

But everyone else most notably the trio who are expected to be up for sale have not quite hit the ground running under Slot this season and their long-term futures definitely lie away from the club.

What this means for Liverpool's summer activity is that you should expect plenty of new arrivals. Hughes will be tailoring Liverpool's new attack to suit Slot's system, that's a bit different to Jurgen Klopp's and more concentrated on possession-based aspects rather than transitional.

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But some of the elements have remained the same and that is why Liverpool will be targeting a player who can follow in the footsteps of Sadio Mane at the club.

Assane Diao ready for next step

Mane was an icon and probably one of the most underrated attackers for Liverpool. He had the uncanny ability to beat players with ease using his electrifying speed and become a constant goal threat.

Alongside Salah and Roberto Firmino, Mane probably formed the most deadly trio in the history of the Premier League.

It's that trio that Hughes will now be looking to replicate and in order to do so, he could very well be looking at a Senegalese international once again.

Anfield Watch understands that Liverpool are long-term admirers of Assane Diao, who first caught the eye of the club's scouts when he broke onto the scene at Real Betis.

Since then he has moved on to Como in Serie A and has been linked with a move to Liverpool again.

According to Anfield Watch's understanding during his time at Betis, Liverpool scouts saw Diao as a 'project' player. Someone who could be ready for the first team after a couple of loan spells, rather than be an immediate option.

Diao pivotal in Serie A

Without a multi-club system in place, signing players on that basis is very difficult and that's why a move never worked out for Diao.

However, the Senegalese international has confirmed over the last few weeks that he's ready to make that step up to Anfield now.

Over the weekend, Diao scored and assisted a goal in Como's 3-1 victory over Monza in a monumental performance to help his side take an even closer step to avoiding relegation from Serie A.

Since his arrival, Diao now has seven goal contributions in 13 matches and has been absolutely pivotal in galvanising a team who were sitting in the relegation zone when he joined to now being 13th on the table picking up 15 points during that period, which is really impressive considering they picked up just 16 points during their first 18 matches of the season.

If there were question marks previously about whether Diao is ready for a step up to Liverpool, his impact at Como should have confirmed there can be no doubts about him any longer.

He could absolutely be a really valuable option for Liverpool. Capable of playing as a left-winger, he could be a brilliant replacement for Luis Diaz. But he's also suited to playing centrally and could drop into the middle to play as a no.9 or as a no.10 just behind the striker.

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It would be the perfect next step in the 19-year-old's career and he'd be following the footsteps of his country's idol in Mane. Not to mention he's a fan of Liverpool as well so a move would be a dream come true for the youngster, too.

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