Al-Nassr forward Sadio Mane has rated Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand above his former Liverpool teammate Virgil Van Dijk. The Senegalese believes the Dutchman is one of the best but is not better than the former England defender.Mane made this assertion during an interview with Ferdinand on the latter's Rio Ferdinand Presents YouTube podcast. While discussing Van Dijk, Ferdinand named the Liverpool captain as the best defender in football currently, saying:"He's the best defender now, definitely."Mane, reacting to his comment, replied:"He is after you. It's you and Van Dijk. You know it, I know it, there's no discussion."Ferdinand, a Premier League Hall of Famer, is widely regarded by many as one of the greatest centre-backs of his generation. Playing for Manchester United, the Englishman won a plethora of trophies, including six league titles.Van Dijk, on the other hand, has established himself as one of the best defenders in the game since his move to Anfield from Southampton in 2018. He played a vital role in the Reds winning their first league title in 2020 and captained them to another league crown in the 2024-25 season.Mane, meanwhile, shared the dressing room with Van Dijk at Southampton and Liverpool. They recorded three joint-goal participations in 199 matches played together for both clubs. He faced Ferdinand only once in 2014 while playing for Southampton, and the ex-defender was in the twilight of his career with Queens Park Rangers at the time.Sadio Mane on why he rejected Manchester United for LiverpoolIn the same interview, Sadio Mane revealed that he opted against joining Manchester United before moving to Liverpool in 2016. The Al-Nassr star disclosed that then-United manager Louis Van Gaal failed to assure him of regular football, which made him turn down a move to Old Trafford.He said:“(Louis) Van Gaal called me. He said, ‘Mané, how are you? What are you doing? How is…?’ I said, ‘I’m good.’ He said, ‘I want you to come to Manchester United.' I said, ‘Really?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ I said, ‘OK. Now I'm talking to my agent. We’ll see what is the best, because I know you're a good player and you can help the team, and we can help you also to become better players.’"“And then I said, ‘OK, so my question: you have (Memphis) Depay, you have (Wayne) Rooney, you have (Angel) Di Maria, you have (Robin) Van Persie, I think the same. So where am I going to play?’ That was my question, because me, I want to play. He said, ‘I know your talent, you’re good. But if you do good training, good impression, you will play. But we have another player which is also good," Mane continued.“I was not convinced about his explanation. And a few days after, the club called me. So I was waiting with my agent and my family. I talked to the coach, but he told me that I will play if I'm good; if not… But at the time, me, I was not ready, I can say," he added.Mane made 269 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 120 goals and providing 46 assists before leaving for Bayern Munich in 2022. He spent just one season with the Bundesliga giants and joined Al-Nassr thereafter.