Sadio Mane was helped off the field in tears after he was booed by his own supporters in Senegal’s 1-0 victory over Equatorial Guinea on Saturday.
Mane was among eight Liverpool players in action for their national teams as the weekend kicked off, but his 90 minutes on the field were bittersweet.
The 26-year-old, who is yet to score in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, is under considerable pressure as Senegal’s talisman.
This came to the fore as they secured a win in Bata, when he missed a gilt-edged opportunity late on and was subsequently jeered by travelling fans, with the game decided by Luis Meseguer’s own goal.
Fortunately, Mane will now return to Merseyside to begin preparations for Saturday’s clash with Watford, as will Mohamed Salah after Egypt’s 3-2 victory over Tunisia on Friday.
Later in the evening, Andy Robertson started for Scotland in their UEFA Nations League clash with Albania in Shkoder.
Wearing the captain’s armband, the left-back played 90 minutes as Alex McLeish’s side won 4-0 at the Loro Borici Stadium through goals from Ryan Fraser, Steven Fletcher and a James Forrest brace.
Scotland will face Israel in Glasgow on Tuesday night, meaning Robertson will be among the last of Jurgen Klopp‘s squad to report back to Melwood.
Curtis Jones should return sooner, with the England U18s’ last game coming against Belgium on Monday afternoon.
On Saturday, he played 34 minutes off the bench as the Young Lions beat the Republic of Ireland 3-1 in Spain, with Tyreece John-Jules’s brace and a goal from Folarin Balogun enough to seal the win.
Jones’ fellow first-team youngster Rafa Camacho started as the Portugal U19s sealed a 5-1 win over Armenia.
The teenager came off with 25 minutes left to play as goals from Daniel Silva, Luis Lopes, Rodrigo Fernandes, Bernardo Sousa and Diogo Bras made light work of the hosts.
Elsewhere, both Neco Williams and Morgan Boyes started as the Wales U19s took another step towards the European Championship with a 2-1 win over Sweden.
Williams made a vital clearance in the six-yard box and Boyes hit the post in a strong performance from the academy duo.
Tom Clayton came off the bench as the Scotland U19s thrashed San Marino 5-0, playing the whole of the second half in a very comfortable win.
And finally, Edvard Tagseth was also introduced at the interval as the Norway U18s sealed a 1-0 friendly victory over China.
Sunday brings another big day for the Liverpool internationals, with England in action against Croatia in the UEFA Nations League at Wembley.
Joe Gomez returned to training on Saturday and should feature after missing the 3-0 win over the USA due to a precaution, while Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jordan Henderson and Dejan Lovren could also play.
Xherdan Shaqiri is likely to start for Switzerland as they take on Belgium, with both Simon Mignolet and Divock Origi—a late call-up for the Red Devils—hoping for rare game time.
And Naby Keita can help book Guinea’s place at the Africa Cup of Nations as they take on the Ivory Coast in his hometown of Conakry.
Meanwhile, Liam Millar will be looking for his first senior goal for Canada as they take on St Kitts & Nevis in a CONCACAF qualifier at midnight.
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