"They're not used to Erling's natural runs yet, like we're not used to Darwin's. They'll need some time for Erling, but that doesn't mean he can't score."
Jurgen Klopp's assessment of Erling Haaland and Manchester City on Friday could easily have gone against the Liverpool manager.
After all, add in a great goalscorer to an already great team and surely the result can only be more greatness? But in Saturday's Community Shield game – taking place at Leicester City's King Power Stadium – Klopp's words rang true, and instead it was City's Julian Alvarez and Liverpool's Darwin Nunez who each made their mark.
Liverpool ran out the victors in this latest instalment of English football's new number one rivalry, as City lost the season's curtain-raiser for a second successive year. It was new signing Nunez – named as a substitute when Haaland had been given the nod from the off for the Reds' opponents – who added gloss in a 3-1 victory that makes it advantage Klopp in the rivalry stakes for the coming season.
It was easy to forget, due to the vociferous atmosphere emanating from both ends, that this match amounts to what is essentially an exhibition, even if Pep Guardiola has often cited the Community Shield as a major trophy – one that Klopp had not previously won.
The intensity in the stands was matched by the players, especially in one spell midway through the first half when the tenacious Bernardo Silva sparked a flurry of robust tackles in midfield.
Liverpool dominated the opening stages, enjoying 57 per cent possession in the first 15 minutes and going close through Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson.
It has been an off-season of change for City. Kalvin Phillips and Alvarez have joined Haaland through the door, but Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling and Oleksandr Zinchenko have left, and a lack of fluidity to the Premier League champions' play was noticeable as they laboured to get out of first gear.
There was a moment prior to Trent Alexander-Arnold's 21st-minute opener, when Kevin De Bruyne spun clear of his marker and Haaland looked all set to burst through and square up Liverpool's stand-in goalkeeper Adrian, yet the Belgian's pass was just too close to Virgil van Dijk.
That summed up a hugely frustrating first half for City's new number nine, who only had three touches prior to the half-hour mark, all of which came in his own half.
Alexander-Arnold's strike, his 10th Reds goal from outside the area, led to red smoke bombs being thrown onto the pitch from a jubilant Liverpool end, and City at that stage looked punch-drunk.
Then, the chances came. First, Haaland drilled at Adrian while off-balance, before he just failed to get proper purchase on a cross from the left – Riyad Mahrez heading into Adrian's arms on the rebound.
In normal pre-season circumstances, Guardiola might well have taken Haaland off when he made his first changes just before the hour, but it was instead Mahrez and Jack Grealish who made way for Alvarez and Phil Foden. At the same time, Klopp introduced Nunez for his domestic bow.
Nunez's impact was near-instant, getting in behind City's line and drawing a desperate lunge from Ederson in the area, but the linesman flagged for offside rather than a Liverpool penalty. Soon after, City's goalkeeper made a brave stop to deny the former Benfica forward.
Where one substitute went close, another then hit the net. In an interview in the matchday programme, Alvarez insisted his focus was not on matching Haaland, but instead on improving his own game. It was the Argentine forward who bundled in City's equaliser after Phil Foden forced Adrian into a save, with VAR overturning an incorrect offside call.
If City and Haaland might need time to gel fully, then the opposite should be true for Alvarez, who was a livewire from the moment he came on, becoming the third Argentinian to score in the Community Shield, after former City strikers Sergio Aguero and Carlos Tevez.
Though where VAR had come to City's aid for Alvarez's goal, it helped Liverpool 10 minutes later, when a Nunez header struck the arm of Ruben Dias, which referee Craig Pawson deemed to have been in an unnatural position upon checking the screen.
For all the talk of new striker signings at both club, it was perhaps fitting that a familiar face in Salah stepped up for the penalty to remind everyone involved of his quality with a firm finish into the bottom-right corner.
Arguably the most important business Liverpool could have done in the close season was their July 1 move to tie Salah down to a new contract, and the 30-year-old has been directly involved in 13 goals for Liverpool against City, his most against a single side for the Reds.
Haaland had the ball in the net at the other end early in seven minutes of stoppage time, but it did not count – Foden had failed to keep it in. Moments later, Nunez stooped low to head in Robertson's cross. He is the fourth player to have scored on his competitive Liverpool debut under Klopp, after Salah, Van Dijk and Salah.
If there was any further evidence needed that this day would not be Haaland's, the 22-year-old hit the crossbar with the goal gaping with very nearly the last kick of the match to send Liverpool's fans into further delirium. It was the best chance of the match from open play, with an xG (expected goals) rating of 0.54. He was at least able to laugh it off as a bad day at the office, but goalscorers as prolific as him do not take misses like that well.
The former Borussia Dortmund player had just 16 touches over the 90 minutes.
Haaland's day will come, perhaps even against West Ham in City's Premier League opener, but on Saturday's evidence, Liverpool have adapted to their new striker swifter than their great rivals have theirs.
Darwin Nunez capped a memorable debut with a clinching header as Liverpool earned a 3-1 victory against Manchester City in the Community Shield.
The Uruguay international nodded home from close range deep into injury time to confirm the first silverware of the season heads to Merseyside after an energetic, enthralling encounter at Leicester's King Power Stadium.
Trent Alexander-Arnold's first-half strike had been cancelled out by Julian Alvarez with 20 minutes to go, before Mohamed Salah put the Reds back on top from the penalty spot.
It was then Nunez whose goal made sure Jurgen Klopp completed his career clean sweep of elite English domestic honours.
The new man was forced to wait for his debut, however, after being initially named on the bench, and Liverpool did not look to need him thanks to an energetic start out of the gates.
Alexander-Arnold unfurled a fabulous strike from the edge of the box in off the left post in the 21st minute, while miscued chances for City's star buy Erling Haaland left Pep Guardiola with a frustrating first half on his hands.
The introduction of Argentina star Alvarez from the bench proved an inspired move by Spaniard Guardiola, with the former River Plate man flicking home after Phil Foden's saved effort to level matters.
But when Ruben Dias was flagged for a handball from Nunez's header with full-time fast approaching, Salah was able to put the Reds back on top with his low spot-kick.
Nunez's big moment in stoppage time confirmed the result, while Haaland hit the crossbar in the dying moments to sum up his tough day at the office.
Max Verstappen felt he had the pace to at least qualify in the top three for the Hungarian Grand Prix and said an engine problem with his Red Bull was not serious.
Verstappen's team-mate Sergio Perez failed to make it out of Q2, qualifying 11th, and the championship leader will start 10th after a power unit issue on his out lap ahead of a second flying effort ended hopes of pole.
The Dutchman had looked ominously fast in Q2, having been behind the Ferraris in both of Friday's practice sessions.
However, he now has a recovery mission if he is to avoid nearest challenger Charles Leclerc eating heavily into his 63-point lead at the top of the drivers' championship at a Hungaroring circuit where it is notoriously difficult to overtake.
Leclerc will start third behind team-mate Carlos Sainz, who had appeared destined for pole until Mercedes' George Russell snatched it with a remarkable lap.
But Verstappen, having turned the air blue as he lost power, was composed when asked about his car's issues and the task ahead of him on Sunday.
He told Sky Sports: "I don't think it's a big issue but something we couldn't solve on track. It's very unfortunate.
"The turnaround from yesterday was amazing. There was a lot of analysing going to understand what was not really working that well yesterday.
"In a way, that's positive about today, we understood what went wrong and the car was so much better today in terms of handling on a track that doesn't really suit us.
"So that's a big positive for the rest of the year anyway that we can, even on a track where we're not that strong, be competitive, but of course I would have liked to start in the top three, and I definitely think we had the pace for it because even in Q2 we looked very strong.
"So yeah, good turnaround but unfortunately the little glitch we had makes us start 10th."
Asked about his prospects for the race and the choice between a one or two-stop strategy, Verstappen added: "It can be a tough one if you're stuck, I hope of course not too long. We have to just stay calm and wait for our moments to go forward.
"It [the strategy] depends also a bit on what is happening in front of you, behind you as well, so we just need to be on it and be flexible."
Caroline Garcia eased into the Poland Open final by dominating against Jasmine Paolini a day on from a superb win over Iga Swiatek.
Garcia defeated Swiatek in three sets on Friday, ending the world number one's 18-match winning streak on clay.
Paolini should have provided a far more straightforward task, and so it proved, as Garcia raced through 6-1 6-2 to make the title match.
The fifth seed will now face first-time WTA Tour finalist Ana Bogdan – a 7-5 7-5 victor against Kateryna Baindl – in that Warsaw decider.
Garcia will hope for better conditions for the showpiece, with rain having added another factor on Saturday, when the in-form French star was still recovering from stopping Swiatek.
"It's been a challenging week, especially today, with the big win yesterday, only a couple of hours to recover and be ready," Garcia explained.
"Conditions were very difficult, a lot of rain. I'm just very happy with the way I played, and I stayed very focused on the present, and it paid off."
At the Prague Open, Anastasia Potapova will face Marie Bouzkova in the final, the seventh seed playing the eighth seed.
Potapova had it largely her own way against Wang Qiang, who succumbed to a second-set bagel in going down 6-3 6-0, while Bouzkova also won in two but needed a tie-break in the opener against Linda Noskova, progressing 7-6 (7-4) 6-3.
Potapova faces a busy Sunday, as she had already advanced to the doubles final alongside partner Yana Sizikova.
Sebastian Vettel's retirement announcement ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix has been the biggest talking point on the grid, with the German's departure set to leave a significant void for Aston Martin to fill.
The four-time world champion played an integral part in Red Bull's rise to become an F1 powerhouse, winning back-to-back championships between 2010 and 2013.
Vettel's championships make him an F1 great, with only Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton (both seven) and Juan Manuel Fangio (five) winning more world titles.
In terms of race wins, Vettel is again near the summit with 53 victories, only behind Hamilton (103) and Schumacher (91), while he is one of only five drivers to secure at least 100 podium finishes – alongside Hamilton, Schumacher, Alain Prost and Kimi Raikkonen.
Those regular appearances in the front three have also given him an honour that only Hamilton can equal, with the pair being the only drivers in F1 history to have secured over 3,000 career points – with Vettel having 3,076 ahead of Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Singapore has been Vettel's favoured venue, with five victories and 195 points, and the Far East has been where Vettel has excelled in qualifying – securing pole position on eight occasions in both Singapore and Japan.
Throughout the course of his career, Vettel has raced for five different teams – starting with Sauber, where he scored points in his only outing for the team and then signed for Toro Rosso – securing his first pole and victory in August 2007 in Italy.
After 25 races with the Italian team, Vettel moved to Red Bull, for whom he appeared in 113 races, with only Mark Webber (129) and Max Verstappen (130 so far) featuring more for the Austrian outfit.
Vettel also boasts the most wins (38), the most pole positions (44) and the most fastest laps (24) for Red Bull.
In 2011, Vettel was on pole position for 15 of 19 races, an F1 record, and he won 13 races in 2013 – a joint-record alongside Schumacher.
Vettel's era of dominance came to an end at the start of F1's hybrid era, finishing fifth in the standings in 2014 with just four podiums from 19 races, and he subsequently joined Ferrari for the 2015 season.
The German continued to struggle, with just three wins and one pole position in his first year with the Italian side – although those wins were the most registered in a single season for Ferrari since Fernando Alonso in 2012 (also three).
Overall, Vettel raced 118 times for Ferrari and amassed 14 race wins, 55 podiums, 12 pole positions and 1,400 points.
Should all go to plan, Vettel's final fling in his F1 career will come in Abu Dhabi, the season finale and his 300th career race.
So far for Aston Martin, he has a single podium, in Azerbaijan in 2021, and has earned 58 points from 32 races.
Roberto Bautista Agut made light work of underdog Filip Misolic in the Austrian Open final on Saturday.
Bautista Agut entered the day's play not knowing the identity of his opponent, as Misolic's semi-final against Yannick Hanfmann had been halted in a third-set tie-break.
Misolic – a 20-year-old from Graz ranked 205th in the world – was the man to advance, continuing his dream run with a 6-2 2-6 7-6 (7-4) success.
But his fairytale campaign came to a disappointing conclusion soon after as he was quickly thrust into action against the ruthless Bautista Agut.
Misolic scarcely laid a glove on the third seed, unable to convert any of his three break points in a 6-2 6-2 defeat.
Bautista Agut insisted afterwards this had been no straightforward task as he celebrated his 11th ATP Tour title, but only his second on clay, following on from a 2014 victory in Stuttgart.
"I enjoyed the final," he said. "I think I managed the pressure very well.
"I knew I was a little bit the favourite today, but he had so many good wins this tournament and I knew it was going to be difficult. I played a very good match."
Misolic added: "I want to congratulate Roberto. I have watched you on television, and to play here against you in the final is an honour for me."
George Russell was left with an "incredible feeling" after he upset the odds to claim his first pole position for Mercedes at the Hungarian Grand Prix as Red Bull endured a dismal day.
Carlos Sainz, seeming more comfortable in the Ferrari with every race, appeared destined for pole from his flying lap at the Hungaroring.
However, Russell, having complained of a lack of grip throughout the practice sessions, came almost from nowhere to put together a remarkable final lap and take top spot with a time of one minute and 17.377 seconds.
He prevented a Ferrari one-two after the Red Bulls had been removed completely from the equation. Sergio Perez failed to make it out of Q2, alleging he was blocked by the Haas of Kevin Magnussen, and Max Verstappen then complained of a loss of power in the top-10 shoot-out. Championship leader Verstappen will start 10th, ahead of Perez in 11th.
Ferrari are still in a tremendous position to take advantage of Red Bull's woes, with Sainz set to start second ahead of Charles Leclerc in third.
"I'm over the moon. Absolutely buzzing," said Russell, whose team-mate Lewis Hamilton could only manage seventh amid an issue with his DRS.
"The lap time kept on coming. I came across the line and saw we went P1 and that was an incredible feeling."
Asked if it means Mercedes are back, Russell replied: "I don't know to be honest, we need to look and understand where that came from, there's a few ideas we had.
"There's no points for qualifying. Generally we had good race pace, but the Ferraris looked very fast on Friday, but we are going to be absolutely going for it [tomorrow], but either way that was a pretty special day no doubt."
Leclerc and Sainz appeared relaxed despite missing out on locking out the front row.
Leclerc will have the McLaren of Lando Norris for company on the second row, with the Alpines of Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso behind them in fifth and sixth.
"Mostly we are focusing on ourselves," Ferrari's Leclerc said when asked about Red Bull's problems. "I've been struggling massively with the tyres. I struggled to put a lap together.
"I'm pretty sure we've got the pace in the car to come back at the front. I'm pretty sure we can come back tomorrow."
Sainz looked much more assured than his team-mate but echoed Leclerc's sentiments after losing critical time in the final part of his final flying lap.
"Definitely feeling better and better every race and every qualifying session," Sainz said. "I felt like I had the pace to do the pole position, it went away from us.
"We have the [race] pace; the start and the tyre management will play a key role. The Mercedes pace is a bit of an unknown."
PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION
1. George Russell (Mercedes) 1:17.377
2. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +0.044
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.190
4. Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.392
5. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) +0.641
6. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) +0.701
7. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.765
8. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) +0.780
9. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) +1.002
10. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +1.446
Erling Haaland was named in Manchester City's starting line-up for the Community Shield clash with rivals Liverpool, who had Darwin Nunez on the bench.
Haaland joined City from Borussia Dortmund last month in what has been a busy transfer window for the Premier League champions.
The Norway striker scored his first goal for the club in a pre-season friendly win over Bayern Munich and Pep Guardiola has selected him to start in the traditional curtain-raiser for the English season, which is being played at Leicester City's King Power Stadium this year.
Haaland will play down the middle, flanked by Jack Grealish and former Leicester winger Riyad Mahrez.
Nathan Ake - linked with a move away from City in recent weeks - partners captain Ruben Dias at the back, with Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Rodri selected in midfield. Kalvin Phillips and Julian Alvarez, City's other new signings, had to settle for a place on the bench.
Nunez has been the big-money arrival at Liverpool this transfer window, but the former Benfica star was named among Jurgen Klopp's substitutes.
With goalkeeper Alisson injured, Adrian was handed a rare start for the FA Cup winners, who have Roberto Firmino leading an attacking three that also includes Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz.
Saturday's encounter marks just the second Community Shield game between City and Liverpool, with Guardiola's side winning on penalties in 2019.
It is the first time the Community Shield has been held away from Wembley since 2012, when City beat Chelsea 3-2 at Villa Park.
Mikel Arteta believes the arrival of Gabriel Jesus at Arsenal has already turned captain Martin Odegaard into a better and more influential player.
The Gunners' preparations for the new season concluded in style on Saturday with a 6-0 thrashing of Sevilla at Emirates Stadium, with Jesus' hat-trick coming alongside a double from Bukayo Saka and Eddie Nketiah's strike off the bench.
Jesus' quick start to life in north London has been a huge talking point since his signing from Manchester City, with the Brazilian netting seven pre-season goals.
Odegaard, meanwhile, was named as Arsenal's permanent captain ahead of the win against Sevilla, and Arteta is confident the addition of Jesus will help the former Real Madrid playmaker hit new heights.
"Gaby makes Odegaard better. We needed someone to make him look better. The connection is there," Arteta told a news conference after the win.
"Jesus plays with that intensity to win the ball and play in the opposition half. You can't do that if players don't work.
Novak Djokovic hopes he could still be allowed to play at the US Open despite refusing a coronavirus vaccination.
The 35-year-old Wimbledon champion has his route to Flushing Meadows blocked by red tape at present, with the United States refusing to allow unvaccinated foreign visitors to enter the country.
US tennis authorities have pledged to adhere to government rulings surrounding coronavirus protocols, despite including Djokovic on their entry list.
For Djokovic to be allowed into the United States, it appears he would require a change of policy from law-makers, or he would have to be considered suitable for an exemption.
Among those who would be eligible for such an exemption are "persons whose entry would be in the national interest".
Djokovic said in a statement on Saturday: "I am preparing as if I will be allowed to compete, while I await to hear if there is any room for me to travel to US. Fingers crossed!"
With 21 grand slam titles, Djokovic sits second on the men's all-time list behind Rafael Nadal, who has 22 victories at the majors.
Djokovic was not allowed to play in Australia, where issues surrounding his visa ended with him being deported from Melbourne on public health grounds due to not taking the vaccine.
The three-time US Open winner senses a pull of public support for his situation, as he insists he will not consider receiving a vaccine.
In his message on Saturday, Djokovic said: "I just wanted to take a moment and say to all of you how grateful I am to see so many messages of support and love from all around the world these days.
"I wasn't expecting it, and that's why it feels so mindblowing. Just wanted to say THANK YOU.
"It feels special that people connect with my tennis career in such a loving and supportive way and wish for me to continue to compete."
He has found backing from John McEnroe, the American tennis great, who told Tennis 365 in July: "I hope someone finds a way to sort this out. It's crazy that Novak misses the US Open at this stage."
Djokovic lost to Daniil Medvedev in last year's men's singles final in New York, when the current entry rules were not in place.
Senator Marsha Blackburn also spoke out, saying last week that it was "absurd that Novak Djokovic is not allowed to enter the USA".
Joao Felix scored a late winner and Fred was sent off as Atletico Madrid beat a Manchester United side lacking the goalscoring prowess of Cristiano Ronaldo 1-0 in Oslo.
Ronaldo has been linked with a move to Atleti after making clear his desire to leave United in this transfer window.
The La Liga club have since insisted their business is finished and Ronaldo is due to play for United in Sunday's friendly with Rayo Vallecano.
Saturday's warm-up ahead of the start of the new season next weekend was largely light on incident until the closing stages.
Anthony Martial and Anthony Elanga spurned promising opportunities for the Red Devils in the first half.
Saul Niguez failed to hit the target with a header and Harry Maguire did the same at the other end in the second half.
The game looked destined to end goalless until substitute Joao Felix drilled a low shot beyond David de Gea before Fred was dismissed in injury time for a second bookable offence.
Sebastien Haller will undergo chemotherapy treatment after his testicular tumour was revealed to be malignant.
The forward, who joined Borussia Dortmund from Ajax this close-season, was diagnosed with a tumour earlier this month after complaining of feeling unwell at BVB's training camp in Austria.
Haller last week underwent surgery in the first stage of his treatment.
Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl had confirmed Haller would be missing "for a few months" but added further treatment plans were still being discussed.
And a Dortmund statement on Saturday confirmed Haller's diagnosis and the need for chemotherapy.
The statement, which updated that Haller would be absent for "several months", said: "We ask for the understanding of the media and fans that, beyond the information mentioned, we will not disclose any medical details regarding the treatment of Sebastien Haller today or during the coming months."
Kehl added: "Sebastien will now receive the best possible treatment. The chances of recovery are very good. We wish him and his family a lot of strength and optimism and are with him with our thoughts at this difficult time."
Sebastian Vettel's hopes of a successful first race since announcing his Formula One retirement suffered a setback as he crashed in third practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The four-time world champion this week confirmed he will end his F1 career at the end of the season.
His move to Aston Martin in 2021 has not delivered the desired results, with Vettel claiming just one podium since his switch from Ferrari.
But Vettel was impressing amid heavy rain at the Hungaroring, only to lose control of his rear tyres and spin into barriers at turn 10.
That saw the session briefly red-flagged before it was brought to a conclusion by the Williams of Nicholas Latifi surprisingly posting the fastest time on intermediate tyres on a drying track.
It is the first time Latifi has been quickest in an F1 practice session.
His team-mate Alexander Albon was third, sandwiching the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, with the changeable conditions setting the stage for a fascinating qualifying session.
The session was largely defined by Mercedes' struggles for grip. George Russell did find enough to go fifth fastest, but Lewis Hamilton could only manage 11th.
Christian Horner expects a "lengthy process" before Porsche completes a deal to buy a 50 per cent stake in Red Bull's Formula One team.
Said to have been looking for a return to the sport since 2017, Porsche is set to purchase half of Red Bull Technology, according to a document published by Morocco's Conseil de la Concurrence.
That would allow Porsche and Red Bull to work in unison on a powertrain in time for the change in regulations in 2026.
However, the deal - once thought to be announced at this month's Austrian Grand Prix, Red Bull's home race - may be drawn out by the FIA delaying confirmation of the exact specification of those regulations, according to Horner.
"There's some major caveats that we need to get past first before things can get anywhere near progression," Horner said.
"That primarily focuses on what are the final technical, sporting and financial regulations for the power unit going to be.
"Are they going to be fair and equitable for the newcomers versus the current incumbents?
"That is the first piece of the jigsaw that needs to be completed."
Removing the MGU-H component of the hybrid engine and more significant use of sustainable fuels are thought to be among the factors on which Porsche's involvement rests.
"It's something that I know the FIA are working hard on. Hopefully in coming weeks we'll get to see that," added Horner.
"At that point then, we're able then to try and have a further discussion with the guys at Porsche.
"It's going to be a reasonably lengthy process, I would assume.
"The most fundamental thing is, what are those regulations for 2026, and are they attractive enough for an entity like a Porsche or an Audi to come into Formula 1?
"We're really only at a discussion stage and there's so many caveats based on regulations.
"Red Bull has demonstrated its commitment to Formula One, its longevity in the sport.
"Anything that we look at is very much with the long-term in mind. We're not looking at a short-term solution.
"Strategically, it would have to fit obviously within the long-term plans that Red Bull have for its commitment in Formula One."
Porsche was involved in F1 as a team between 1959 and 1964, claiming one race win and five podiums. As an engine supplier, it helped McLaren to three successive drivers' championships between 1984 and 1986 as well as two constructors' titles. It supplied engines to Footwork for the first six rounds of the 1991 season but has been out of the sport since.
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