Two years after being on the bench for Rochdale in the National League, Mane is already becoming a household name.
Soon after moving to England he started to admire Manchester City pair Sergio Aguero and David Silva and tried to copy Neymar after watching YouTube clips.
Having joined City Select Academy, Mane played for Manchester Cobras as a youngster as well as Moston Brook FC.
There was little time for much more, yet he still gave parents a run for their money.
“They’d say I was a bit cheeky as a child, but I was a young kid,” he said. “Every kid can be cheeky and I’ll say I was hard work for my parents. Most of the time I feel like I’ve grown up, I matured.”
Mane still goes home on a Sunday, when fixtures allow, to go to church and his maturity is showing on the pitch too after joining Rochdale’s academy in 2023 aged 15.
It was run then by Tony Ellis – now Wolves‘ head of northern recruitment – with Mane asked to sign after his first training session.
“He lit the place up. He’s technical, his attributes were ridiculous for such a young boy,” recalled Ellis, who also recommended the frontman to Wolves.
“The way he received the ball, the way he drove, his decision-making. Just a technically good footballer.
“He was happy in the environment, always had a ball, always communicating with players and staff.
“When you’d finished the session, he’d be the first one to go and put the cones away or get the balls. He gained the trust of staff and players really, really quickly.”
Mane still feels the debt he owes Ellis that led to being an unused substitute at 16 for Rochdale against Dagenham in February 2024, and then joining Wolves that summer following a successful trial.
