Christiano Ronaldo was obviously absent when Al Nassr kicked off their Saudi Pro League campaign against Al Ettifaq on Monday.
Ronaldo came off with an injury after scoring a brace against Al Hilal in the Arab Super Cup final where Al Nassr won the trophy.
Mane opened the scoring against former teammate, Jordan Henderson’s club, with both players wearing the captain’s armband.
Mane scored the first goal of the match inside four minutes for Al Nassr when the Senegal forward tapped the ball in from a cut-back.
Al-Etihhad leveled the game early in the second half when goalkeeper Nawaf Alaqidi fumbled a cross and the ball fell kindly for Robin Quaison to score.
Six minutes later, Steven Gerrard’s team took the lead as Alaqidi sent a cross straight to the feet of Moussa Dembele, who scored from close range.
The referee added 14 minutes of injury time but Al Ettifaq held on for the win. Mane scored but he was flagged for offside.
Ronaldo may join Al Nassr for their next game in the new season should the injury be a mild one.
