Kieran Trippier has backed young pretender Tino Livramento to establish himself as England’s right-back as he attempts to fend off his advances for both club and country.
Livramento, a £32million summer signing from Southampton, is likely to replace Trippier in Newcastle’s starting line-up for Monday night’s Premier League trip to Chelsea as the 33-year-old faces a spell on the sidelines with a minor calf injury.
However Trippier, who has been the standard-bearer for much of what the Magpies have achieved in the last two years, knows the 21-year-old is gunning for his places in both the Newcastle team and the England squad.
He said: “Tino, for such a young guy, is unbelievable. I’ve had loads of talks with Tino, firstly to try to help him. I know he’s my position, but I don’t want to be selfish.
“He’ll be unbelievable for Newcastle in the future and an England right-back as well. That’s how highly I rate him.”
That is a view shared by Magpies head coach Eddie Howe, who has been hugely impressed by Livramento’s performances to date at left-back, right-back and in midfield, a process which continued last weekend when he scored a superb solo goal in a 3-0 victory over Wolves after replacing the injured Trippier.
Asked if the youngster’s challenge had to be to oust the former Burnley, Tottenham and Atletico Madrid man on both the domestic and international stages, Howe said: “Of course. If you ask Tino, that will be his aim and if you ask me, I’d want every player to feel the same way.
“If you’re not in the team, your aim and ambition should be to try to get into the team, to try to prove you’re better than the team-mate that you’re competing against.
“If you have that in your squad, I think you’ve got a healthy squad, you’ve got a good balance between being a good team-mate and fighting for your place.
“Tino has shown all those qualities this year. He has been learning and developing behind the scenes, he’s been no doubt picking things up off Kieran and I’ve enjoyed seeing them both battle against each other.”
Trippier will miss the trip to Chelsea and the FA Cup quarter-final at Manchester City which follows it, as well as England’s friendly double-header against Brazil and Belgium as a result of the injury which has robbed him of the opportunity to atone for the error which cost his side a place in the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
Asked what had been going through his head as he uncharacteristically allowed Mykhailo Mudryk to score a late equaliser 12 days after he had gifted Everton two goals, he said: “Do you know what? I don’t actually know.
“It was a strange one, really. I was just making a mistake and then making another mistake. I haven’t got any excuses, really.
“It’s just you make a mistake and you want to try even better and then because you’re trying so hard, you make another mistake, and it’s not me.”
Liverpool confirm Slot as Klopp's replacement
Liverpool have confirmed Arne Slot will succeed Jurgen Klopp as their new head coach.
Klopp's glorious nine-year spell with the Reds came to an end on Sunday with a 2-0 victory over Wolves, after which the German sang Slot's name to the Anfield crowd.
Slot had previously confirmed he would be taking over, and Liverpool have now formally announced the news.
The Dutchman will officially take charge from June 1, subject to receiving a work permit.
Slot leaves the Netherlands after three highly successful seasons with Feyenoord, during which he led them to the league title in 2023 and was named Eredivisie Manager of the Year on two occasions.
More recently, he led the Rotterdam giants to KNVB Cup glory in April, overseeing a 1-0 win over NEC Nijmegen in the final of that competition.
Feyenoord rounded off their Eredivisie campaign with a 4-0 victory over neighbours Excelsior on Sunday, as they finished second, seven points adrift of runaway champions PSV.
Onana admits he is willing to take Man Utd criticism 'bullets'
Andre Onana says he is willing to take criticism "bullets" after a poor Premier League campaign for Manchester United.
The Red Devils recorded their lowest-ever finish in eighth place, with the manager and players coming under scrutiny for some of their performances.
One of those singled out was Onana, who joined United from Inter at the start of the season, after an error-strewn start to his life at the club.
Asked how he deals with the criticism coming from fans, pundits, and former players, Onana said it does not bother him.
"For me, I don't pay attention to it. I have come into this team to take bullets because we are under construction – at the moment, we are not the best," he told the Overlap.
"We have other teams who are doing better than us, and we have to be honest and recognise that. If things and when things are going wrong, don't go for the youngest player – I'm here to take it, Bruno [Fernandes], Casemiro and Harry [Maguire] are there, and we are used to it.
"When it's people who were sitting where I'm sitting, who won everything, sometimes it's bizarre – we are in the same boat. We try to follow your thing and what you did. For me, I don't mind, but other people may be affected. For me, to be honest, it's just a part of the game."
United conceded 84 goals in all competitions this season, their worst-ever tally in a single campaign.
Erik ten Hag’s side also missed out on a European place due to their league finish but have another opportunity to get one if they beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final on Saturday.
Onana is optimistic though as he views the season as a learning curve.
"I'm happy because we have good people around us, especially at this club, who helped me so much," he added.
"That's why I'm still smiling - because the first six months were difficult, but at the same time, it was a good moment to learn.
"After playing the final of the Champions League and the final of the Europa League, you think you are the best – life gives you an opportunity to learn and says, 'You are never too big'.
"You can have a good season, next year you have a bad season, but the year after an amazing season. The ups and downs and being here, you have to deal with them – especially being a goalkeeper."
Messi to lead Argentina in Copa America, Dybala left out of squad
Argentina are aiming to defend their Copa America title as Lionel Scaloni names a 29-man provisional squad ahead of the tournament.
Lionel Messi will once again captain the side, with Scaloni also choosing the experienced Angel Di Maria and Nicolas Otamendi in the squad.
Enzo Fernandez is called up, despite missing the end of Chelsea's Premier League season due to having groin surgery in April. Lisandro Martinez is also recalled despite only recently returning from injury.
A surprise omission to the squad is Roma’s Paulo Dybala, who has scored 16 goals across all competitions this season and earned three player of the month awards in an impressive season.
However, the forward could not force his way back into the squad after being limited to just two substitute appearances for Argentina in 2023.
Scaloni will have to narrow his squad down to 26 men, meaning three will drop out of the squad by June 12 before their Copa America opener against Canada on June 20.
Before the tournament, Argentina will play friendlies against Ecuador and Guatemala.
Argentina squad
Goalkeepers: Franco Armani (River Plate), Geronimo Rulli (Ajax), Emiliano Martinez (Aston Villa)
Defenders: Gonzalo Montiel (Nottingham Forest), Nahuel Molina (Atletico Madrid), Leonardo Balerdi (Marseille), Cristian Romero (Tottenham), German Pezzella (Real Betis), Lucas M. Quarta (Fiorentina), Nicolas Otamendi (Benfica), Lisandro Martinez (Manchester United), Marcos Acuna (Sevilla), Nicolas Tagliafico (Lyon), Valentin Barco (Brighton
Midfielders: Guido Rodriguez (Real Betis), Leandro Paredes (Roma), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool), Rodrigo De Paul (Atletico Madrid), Exequiel Palacios (Bayer Leverkusen), Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), Giovani Lo Celso (Tottenham)
Forwards: Angel Di Maria (Benfica), Valentin Carboni (Monza), Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Angel Correa (Atletico Madrid), Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United), Nicolas Gonzalez (Fiorentina), Lautaro Martinez (Inter), Julian Alvarez (Manchester City)
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
