The signing of Mamadou Sakho by Liverpoolwas seen as a serious sign of intent by Brendan Rodgers at the time, as the £18 million acquisition of the Frenchman was a club record for a central defender at the time. As a 14-time France international, and captain of PSG, there was much optimism that the defender would be a key part of the club for many years, and help bring the first Premier League title to Anfield.
However, after an up-and-down spell at Liverpool, which included a drugs ban in 2016, Sakho was eventually sent to the under-23s as his Liverpool career came to a dramatic end. Now playing for Georgian outfit Torpedo Kutaisi – and with an interesting side-hustle away from football – the defender has opened up on his Anfield exit.
Sakho’s Liverpool Departure
At the beginning of Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool tenure, things were looking bright for Sakho. Numerous great performances, particularly in Europe, had helped the Reds to the Europa League final, with Sakho even scoring a crucial goal during a famous comeback victory over Borussia Dortmund. However, in April 2016, just weeks before the Europa League final, Sakho was hit with a doping ban after a drug test revealed traces of a fat-burning substance, and the Frenchman was then suspended for an initial 30 days.
Sakho tried to fight the ban and get his career back on track, and in July 2016 was cleared of his violation and received an apology from the World Anti-Doping Agency which stated, “WADA accepts that Mr Sakho did not breach the UEFA Anti-Doping Regulations, did not cheat, had no intention of gaining any advantage, and acted in good faith.”
Following the trauma of the summer, Liverpool’s pre-season tour of the USA appeared a fantastic opportunity for Sakho to focus back on his football and cement himself in Klopp’s plans, but this never came to be. After being treated for an Achilles injury, the Frenchman was sent back to England, due to a disciplinary issue which was rumoured to be him nearly missing the outbound flight, skipping a rehabilitation session and being late to a team meal.
Klopp’s patience appeared to have worn thin, and Sakho was sent to the under-23 team, and never played for the club again. It was said that the player was unfit. However, Sakho aired his frustrations on his Snapchat story, where he claimed his banishment was based on a lie:
“[I am] Still working hard like [a] Scouse soldier! Still not talking [because] I want to speak on the pitch…I will speak soon for the people who support and me and don’t understand the situation. I accept my situation but I can’t accept the lie…The fans deserve to know the truth! Thanks for your support.”
The former PSG man – who was not the only man to fall out with Klopp at Anfield – eventually left Liverpool in January 2017, on loan to Crystal Palace, and impressing before that move was made permanent the following summer for a club-record £25 million.
Sakho’s Comments on Doping Ban
Speaking to the Liverpool Echo in 2025, Sakho gave a retrospective look on his banand also discussed how he viewed his relationship with Klopp years removed from their fallout.
“I was really confident that everything was going well before the doping story came out and changed the road of my career,” the Frenchman explained. “But yeah, I accept it. I believe in God. Everything that had to happen to me in my life and my story, I take it and I just look forward.
“When you’ve been accused for something that was wrong, and you fight for years to prove you didn’t cheat or you didn’t do anything wrong. And at the end, you clean your name.
“It was something really, really good for me to clean my dad’s name, and make my family proud also. So yeah, in the end, it was good to win because I was right.
“But of course, it was something that changed the road of my career, you know? But yeah, I accept it. What can you do? Nothing. Just look forward and be positive in life.”
On Klopp, the Torpedo Kutaisi man stated: “Good relationship because I’m not a negative man,” he said. “I always respect. I like his type of football. But football is football. So a few moments, you need to make some decisions and that’s it. It’s football.”
