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• Jurgen Klopp defends 'unlucky' Darwin Nunez amid Liverpool exit talk

  Jurgen Klopp insists he is not aware of any speculation regarding the future of Darwin Nunez as he defended the out-of-form forward.

  Nunez missed a good chance in last weekend's 4-2 win over Tottenham as his run without a goal extended to an eighth game in all competitions.

  The Uruguay international came in for criticism and later deleted all images of himself in a Liverpool shirt on his personal Instagram account.

  Rumours regarding a possible end-of-season exit for Nunez have circulated in recent weeks, with Barcelona supposedly among those interested. 

  However, when asked about the 24-year-old at Friday's press conference, Klopp said: "There is no speculation. That must be external. 

  "I'm not involved in that anymore. It's just the situation we're in. He was definitely not happy missing that chance [against Tottenham].

  "He has been unlucky in so many situations. He does everything right and the ball doesn't go in. There are no alternatives but going through it."

  Nunez has 31 goals and assists combined in all competitions this season - a tally only Mohamed Salah (38) can better among Liverpool players.

  He is in contention to feature for Liverpool against Aston Villa on Monday as the Reds look to end Klopp's tenure on a winning run.

  The German has just two games left in charge, with the contest at Villa Park followed by the visit of Wolves at Anfield six days later.

  Klopp risks having to watch that Anfield finale from the stands, though, as he will incur a touchline suspension should he receive a yellow card against Villa.

  Asked about that possibility, Klopp told reporters: "I've known this for a long time. I've only got two yellow cards [this season]. A few of my colleagues have already got suspended, so I've got calmer over the years.

  "I don't need to be on the touchline [for the final game with Wolves], but it would be cool. It will not be from my side, but I will try absolutely everything not to be involved in any discussions!"

• Arsenal's season a positive step even if title eludes them, says Parlour

  Arsenal will be better for the experience of pushing Manchester City close even if they fail to capture the Premier League title this season, says former Gunners midfielder Ray Parlour.

  Having dropped away during the run-in as City captured their third straight title in 2022-23, Mikel Arteta's side have kicked on this campaign and currently hold a one-point lead at the summit.

  However, City have three games to play to Arsenal's two, leaving the Gunners praying for a slip-up from the champions, who face Fulham, Tottenham and West Ham in their remaining fixtures.

  While Parlour finds it difficult to see City dropping points at this stage, he believes this season has been another positive step for Arteta's team, whatever the outcome.

  Parlour, an ambassador for NetBet, told Stats Perform: "I think it's been so positive this season. 

  "Even if they do come second, I think they've got better from last year and that's all you can keep doing, keep improving. 

  "We all know Man City are an absolute machine. Arsenal just have to keep trying to improve. It's a young team, they'll learn every year by going close, by playing big games. It can only be good for them. 

  "I'm sure they'll be looking in the market in the summer, trying to get the right people in. I think it's been positive.

  "The problem is you set the bar high and it's not going to get lower, it's got to go a little bit higher again. That's the hard bit, to keep maintaining the consistency, what you've done so far."

  City are unbeaten in their last 20 Premier League games (16 wins, four draws). They have won each of their last six while netting four or more goals in five of them – against Aston Villa (4-1), Crystal Palace (4-2), Luton Town (5-1), Brighton and Hove Albion (4-0) and Wolves (5-1).

  Parlour admits the champions' form is ominous and believes Arsenal will look back on last month's 2-0 defeat to Villa with plenty of regrets, saying: "All they can do is keep winning games. 

  "I look at Man City's run-in, I just can't see them dropping a point, that's my problem. Football's a funny game, so it can happen. I've seen Crystal Palace go to the Etihad and beat them, but it doesn't happen too often, especially towards the end of the season.

  "Arsenal have really pushed them all the way. They'll be kicking themselves a little bit with the Aston Villa game, but sometimes games don't go your way."

  Ray Parlour was speaking on behalf of NetBet Sports Betting.

• Bayer Leverkusen deserve treble, says Xabi Alonso after Roma late show

  Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso said his team deserve to win all three trophies available to them this season after they qualified for the Europa League final by seeing off Roma on Thursday.

  Leverkusen, who have already wrapped up the Bundesliga title and will contest the DFB-Pokal final on May 25, stretched their unbeaten run through all competitions this season to 49 matches, surpassing Benfica's long-standing European top-tier record set between 1963 and 1965.

  Once again, they did it the hard way after two Leandro Paredes penalties wiped out their first-leg advantage, with a Gianluca Mancini own goal and a stoppage-time strike from Josip Stanisic completing a dramatic comeback.

  Following their 4-2 aggregate victory, Roma will face Atalanta in the May 22 final in Dublin, after La Dea overcame Marseille 4-1 on aggregate in the other semi-final.

  "We'll play two finals in a week as a result," Alonso said. "We showed great character today after their second goal. 

  "I looked my players in the eye afterwards and saw that they wanted more.

  "We still have the chance to win three titles, and my boys deserve all three titles."

  Despite going 3-2 up on aggregate when Mancini put through his own net, Leverkusen refused to sit back as they looked to preserve their unbeaten record, which they did through Stanisic's 97th-minute strike.

  Asked whether that goal was one of the biggest moments of his career, the Bayern Munich loanee said: "Definitely one of them. 

  "We knew what was at stake, we really wanted to get to the final and I think you could see that over 90 minutes today.

  "I don't think we would have cared in the end if we lost and still progressed because we really wanted to get to the final, but it's even nicer this way."

  For Roma, the chance to reach a second straight Europa League final after last season's defeat by Sevilla on penalties slipped away in the dying minutes of the match.

  "When you manage to get it back from 2-0 down and go close to the miracle, knowing nobody has ever beaten them this season, it hurts to see us concede a goal like that. It hurts," Roma boss Daniele De Rossi told Sky Sports Italia.