Liverpool news: Sadio Mane to miss Community Shield clash against Manchester City to focus on fitness

Sadio Mane will miss Liverpool’s Community Shield match against Manchester City as he continues his return to full fitness following the Africa Cup of Nations.

The winger only recently began his summer break following Senegal’s run to the final of the tournament, where they were beaten 1-0 by Algeria.

He has been given an extended break by Liverpool, who had a longer season than most due to the Champions League final taking place in mid-June.

Liverpool meet Manchester City in the traditional season curtain-raiser at Wembley on Sunday 4 August.

The match usually features the winners of the Premier League and the FA Cup, but City, who won all the available domestic competitions, will play Liverpool due to them finishing second in the Premier League.

Klopp confirmed Mane will not be playing and says the opening league game of the season or the Uefa Super Cup match against Chelsea could be a target for his return to action.

“He is in good shape,” he told the club’s website.

“Obviously they had a celebration in Senegal and I’m happy about that because it showed that they respect the competition and saw the second place as a success, which is nice.

“He is now on holiday, not the longest one – he will be back on August 5, after the Manchester City game. That means he had two weeks. There is four or five days to prepare for Norwich, 10 days for Chelsea [in the UEFA Super Cup].”

Liverpool began their pre-season campaign with wins against Tranmere Rovers and Bradford City before defeats against Borussia Dortmund and Sevilla on their tour of the US.