There were scenes of chaos at Liverpool John Lennon Airport as Sadio Mané returned from the African Cup of Nations following Senegal’s exit in the quarter-finals.

Hundreds of thousands of openly weeping Liverpool supporters turned up to rejoice at his arrival, causing the entire airport to come to a complete standstill and scuppering at least three transfers.

Mané yesterday missed a penalty in a shoot-out defeat to Cameroon, securing his third cup exit in just four days thanks in no small part to the fine work of his club-mates back home.

As scenes of large crowds at airports dominated media across the world in the wake of President Donald Trump’s Muslim ban, hardly anyone batted an eyelid at the mass outpouring of relief upon Mané’s return.

One onlooker said: “It’s pretty much par for the course now, this type of thing, or at least it has been for the last twelve hours or so.

“You think Trump has shown how quickly things can escalate, but try losing at home to Wolves, Southampton and Swansea in the space of a week.

“It makes that scene in Anchorman look like the entire life cycle of a bristlecone pine tree.”

No tree was available for comment.