Liverpool have rebuffed Bayern Munich's £25million opening bid for Sadio Mane, a new report has claimed.
The German giants are desperate to prise the Senegal hitman away from Anfield for a bargain price this summer in the wake of the 30-year-old's contract situation. Mane has just over 12 months remaining on his current Reds deal and is thought to be keen on a switch to Munich.
However, Mane's desired summer move doesn't appear to be any closer to materialising after Bayern's initial bid was knocked back by the Reds hierarchy. The £25m package - made up of an initial £21m fee and a further £4m in add-ons - is believed to be some way short of Liverpool's valuation of Mane, according to a new report from The Times.
The report outlines that Liverpool officials 'did not entertain' the offer, which falls far below their own valuation of Mane. It's also been claimed that the Reds have not given Bayern any sort of indication over the price they would be willing to sell the former Southampton star for.
Bayern remain 'eager' to seal a deal for the wantaway star, however, the onus is now on them to drive any deal forward with Liverpool seemingly unwilling to budge on their current stance.
Speculation over Mane's future has been rife in recent weeks following his contract stand-off with the Reds, who are also scrambling to resolve the future of Mane's attacking partner, Mohamed Salah. Mane had hinted that he was keen for a move prior to the Champions League final; teasing that he would announce his plans for the future shortly after the showpiece clash, which was won by Real Madrid.
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Although the Liverpool man has failed to deliver any concrete update since then, he did whip Reds fans into a frenzy on Friday after he appeared to claim that the majority of Senegalese people 'want him to quit' Anfield. However, Mane backtracked on those claims at the weekend and insisted that he was just joking.
Speaking to Canal Plus after he had bagged a hat-trick to become Senegal's all-time leading goalscorer, Mane said: "I spoke yesterday while joking with a bit of humour and it was everywhere. I think we'll stop there. Liverpool is a club I respect a lot. The fans adopted me since day one. Regarding the future, we'll see."
Mane has evolved into one of the Premier League's most prolific forwards since he moved to Anfield in the summer of 2016, bagging 120 goals in 269 appearances for Jurgen Klopp's side.
