‘Manu is back’ – Tuilagi’s future closer to being decided after England star’s Champions Cup display

Sale Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson raved about the performance of Manu Tuilagi following their Champions Cup victory on Sunday.

The 32-year-old impressed as the Premiership outfit earned a 28-5 triumph over Stade Francais at the AJ Bell Stadium.

Tuilagi was physical and abrasive as the Sharks opened their campaign with a fine win against the Top 14 play-off contenders.

Injury troubles

The England centre has endured a number of injury troubles over his career, but Sanderson believes that the midfield powerhouse is close to his best.

“He looked so energetic. He seemed to get more physical, the more hits he took. He took one off the kick-off and he got one off that centre so he went, ‘Right, they’re having it’, came up with a pile-driver tackle and carried consistently hard all day,” he told reporters.

“Manu is back, which we are very happy about.”

Tuilagi was set to go elsewhere ahead of the 2023/24 season, but Sale managed to find enough space in the salary cap to keep him.

However, he only signed a one-year deal which means that his future is once again up in the air heading towards the 2024/25 campaign.

The Sharks have to weigh up the cost of keeping him to how much of the year he will be available for, given his international commitments and previous injury issues.

Sanderson admits that Sale have yet to decide their plans in terms of player retention, but insists that Tuilagi is doing his chances of a contract no harm in light of his display on Sunday.

“It’s not entirely down to me. We have a selection syndicate, with someone who holds the purse strings. But if he plays like that, yeah he will earn a new deal,” he said.

“I imagine he’ll want to get his life sorted and we’ll want to get our planning done before the Six Nations.”

First game back

Tuilagi played a key role in England’s run to the Rugby World Cup semi-finals, but he was playing his first game of the season for Sale after sustaining a broken hand during the global tournament,

Despite being out of action for over a month, the centre looks sharp and Sanderson believes that he could still play for a while yet.

“When we put Connor Doherty on with 15 to go, Manu looked up as if he was coming off and Connor said: ‘No, you’re staying on’. But it didn’t look like he wanted to come off,” the Sharks’ director of rugby added.

“He wasn’t moving slowly. He looks fit. It’s a really good sign that he’s probably got another couple of years in him.

“Manu is 32 and he’s playing his best stuff. This is as robust as he’s ever been. He’s still out there signing autographs. He’s absolutely loving it.”

READ MORE: England coaches watch on as Sale Sharks kick off Champions Cup in style