After Lionel Messi called Sadio Mane's final placing in the 2019 Ballon d'Or ranking "a shame", the African superstar has now reacted to his fourth-place finish.
Mane ended up behind Cristiano Ronaldo, Virgil van Dijk and winner Lionel Messi, but was the highest-ranked African star in the 2019 Golden Ball ranking.
Initial reports suggested that he snubbed the ceremony because he was upset with his final placing for the award, but the 27-year-old has now insisted he is proud of his position, which is the second-highest by any African player in Ballon d'Or history.
"I am very proud and happy to be named fourth in the world. I am looking forward, and why not number one, maybe?" he told Liverpool's official website.
"I will do everything possible to win the Champions League and Premier League with Liverpool, and we'll see what's going to happen."
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George Weah, won the prestigious prize in 1995, is the only African player who has finished higher than Mane, but the Liverpool superstar also praised his teammates after four of the Reds' seven nominees ended up among the top 10.
"That means we are a great team with great players and great quality," he added.
"The boys still have a lot to show and hopefully this season we can show it."
The Senegal winger has started the 2019/20 campaign in fine form, scoring 13 goals and assisting another seven strikes in 21 appearances for Liverpool so far.
