Jurgen Klopp claims Manchester City could not have won the Premier League had they endured the same sort of injury crisis Liverpool have, and says clinching a top-four spot will mean as much as winning a trophy.
Liverpool ended a 30-year wait for top-flight glory in memorable fashion during the heavily disrupted 2019-20 campaign but it has been a disappointing title defence.
The Reds have been blighted by injury issues, particularly at centre-back where Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez each sustained season-ending injuries and Joel Matip has missed large chunks of the campaign.
Liverpool s struggles were highlighted by a record run of six consecutive home league defeats between January and March, leaving thoughts of Champions League football next term looking fancif…
What the papers say
Potential ins and outs at Manchester United continue to attract plenty of attention with Scott Mctominay again linked with a move away from Old Trafford. The Daily Mirror reports the Scotland midfielder, 26, is a potential alternative for Bayern Munich if they are unable to lure Joao Palhinha, 28, from Fulham in the January transfer window.
Israel youngster Oscar Gloukh is being linked with a move to Old Trafford, according to The Sun. Arsenal and Liverpool are also believed to be tracking the 19-year-old attacking midfielder from Red Bull Salzburg.
Brighton are poised to swoop for Boca Juniors teenage left-back Valentina Barco, reports The Sun. The Seagulls are expected to make a fresh move for the 19-year-old Argentine before the transfer window op…
Brazil preserved their perfect record in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying after Richarlison and Neymar s second-half strikes broke Ecuador s stubborn resistance in a 2-0 victory.
Richarlison and Neymar combined for the decisive 65th-minute goal as Brazil made it five wins from five matches on the road to Qatar 2022 in Porto Alegre on Friday.
With all eyes on the upcoming Copa America, due to start in Brazil on June 13 amid reports some of the Selecao players do not want to compete, Richarlison broke the deadlock with a powerful strike behind closed doors.
Neymar sealed the win with a re-taken penalty in the 94th minute to send Tite s men four points clear atop the qualifying standings.
It was a clash between the two top-scoring teams in World Cup qualifying,…
Mesut Ozil has been cut from the Fenerbahce first-team squad with immediate effect, the Turkish giants announced on Thursday.
No explanation was immediately forthcoming for the decision to drop former Real Madrid and Arsenal star Ozil from the club s plans.
The same action was taken regarding Turkey midfielder Ozan Tufan.
Fenerbahce issued a statement that read: Our football A team players Mesut Ozil and Ozan Tufan were excluded from the squad as per the decision taken.
Ozil was substituted at half-time in Fenerbahce s game against Konyaspor on Sunday, with the team trailing 1-0 at that stage. They recovered to win 2-1, with Tufan entering the game late on as a substitute.
In an Instagram post on Wednesday, Ozil revealed he had taken a short ge…
I was studying players and I wrote down some names like Haaland from Borussia Dortmund, when he was still playing in Norway, Braida told Marca.
But at the club they told me no, that he didn t have the Barcelona profile. I also suggested other players from Italy, like [Nicolo] Barella, who is now at Inter, or [Nicolo] Zaniolo, who plays at Roma.
But if you don t have the responsibility to do this because it has been given to others, you can t do anything. I was isolated.
Haaland is set to make his 10th Champions League appearance against Zenit on Wednesday.
The Norway international is already guaranteed to have scored more goals than any other player in their first 10 in the competition, with Haaland having netted 11 goals in nine games so far, averagi…
After missing out on the title by one point last season, Dani Carvajal says Real Madrid will not be giving anything away this term.
Madrid pushed Barcelona all the way to the final day of 2015-16 but were unable to topple the Catalan giants, with both sides winning their final matches.
Zinedine Zidane s team maintained their 100 per cent record at the start of the new campaign with a 2-0 victory over Espanyol on Sunday, a result which saw them equal Barca s record of 16 successive LaLiga victories achieved in 2010-11.
Carvajal is desperate for Madrid to drop as few points as possible having missed out by such a small margin last term.
It s a nice record to equal the 16 victories, but we must keep thinking game by game, said the right-back.
Now w…
Garry Monk praised the work ethic of Nathan Dyer after the winger scored the only goal in Saturday s Premier League win over Burnley.
Dyer struck midway through the first half at the Liberty Stadium to maintain Swansea s perfect start to the Premier League season.
Monk has strengthened his side during the close-season but he was most impressed by Dyer, one of the longest-serving players in his squad.
The 26-year-old has been in South Wales since 2008 and his consistent willingness to improve is something that Monk believes sets him apart from other players.
Nath s a great guy, said Monk. He s a real good worker, he listens and he wants to improve.
We want to try and work with him in that way, but you also have to make sure that they ve got the f…
Arsenal are interested in signing Ollie Watkins from Premier League rivals Aston Villa in the January transfer window, according to . The report has claimed that Arsenal Sporting Director Edu is in talks with the agent of Watkins and is trying to get a deal done for the striker in the middle of the season.
Watkins has made 115 appearances in the Premier League so far in his career. The striker has scored 41 goals and given 15 assists in those matches. The 27-year-old has scored one goal and given two assists in six Premier League matches. The Englishman scored 15 goals and provided six assists in 36 Premier League starts for the Villans last season.
Arsenal are fifth in the Premier League table at the moment with 14 points from six matches, four points behind leaders an…
Stefano Pioli faces the tough task of getting a struggling Inter back on track. (Photo: Getty Images)
In 2010, Inter made history as the first Italian club to win the coveted Treble. Flash-forward six years later and the Nerazzurri are a side in turmoil. Since Jose Mourinho s departure, they have gone through eight coaches. That number rises to nine if one includes Stefano Vecchi s brief tenure as an interim boss. With the appointment of ex-Lazio boss Stefano Pioli, Inter are now on their tenth manager and fourth this season alone.
It goes without saying that Inter have been in rapid decline since 2010. Once mentioned in the same conversation as Europe s biggest clubs, the Nerazzurri now don t even garner an afterthought. They have had to sit and watch as Juventus re-es…
Hoffenheim striker Eren Derdiyok will join Turkish outfit Kasimpasa in July, it has been announced.
The Swiss frontman spent last season on loan at former club Bayer Leverkusen, scoring one goal in 18 league appearances though 14 of those were from the bench.
And it was confirmed by Hoffenheim on Monday that the 25-year-old was on his way to Kasimpasa, who finished sixth in the Super Lig, for an undisclosed fee.
Derdiyok began his career with Old Boys in his homeland, before signing for Swiss giants Basel in 2006.
A move to Leverkusen followed in 2009, but he was offloaded to Hoffenheim after scoring 25 goals in 90 Bundesliga appearances.
He failed to hold down a first-team spot at the Rhein-Neckar Arena before his temporary departure last year, and has not…