Ronald Koeman dropped Sadio Mané for being late, and it was a mistake

“He was supposed to play from the beginning,” Koeman told the BBC. “We have rules we have to respect. I had a problem because Sadio was too late at the stadium.”

A need for rules and discipline is totally understandable. If Koeman lets Mané get away with showing up late, other players might think that they can break the rules, too, or that Mané is considered special and doesn’t need to obey. But aren’t these rules best applied on a case-by-case basis, to be explained away when, say, your best fit player shows up a bit late for one of the most important games of the season?

Southampton was fighting against Liverpool for a Champions League spot, yet Koeman handed Djuričić, who is still adapting to the league, his first start. Unsurprisingly, the Serbian looked a bit off the pace. While Elia’s had his moments for Southampton, he was brought in as cover and has been extremely streaky for his entire career. Meanwhile Mané, who’d scored four goals in his last five starts, remained on the bench.

The game finished 2-0, leaving Saints outside the top four; just one point ahead of Liverpool and two points ahead of Tottenham. Southampton were already facing a huge fight to stay in the top four, and they’re certainly not favorites to do it after losing at home to Liverpool.

Ultimately, we’ll never know if Mané could have changed the outcome of the game, but there’s reason to believe he could have. Southampton hung with Liverpool throughout the first hour of the match, but lacked quality around the penalty area as their front three struggled.

Koeman took a risk that Mané‘s absence wouldn’t be the difference between getting a result or not getting a result, concluding that keeping his players in line and upholding rules was more important than getting his best attacking player on the pitch. He was probably wrong. Next time, maybe he’ll apply his rules a bit more liberally.