Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk hailed Joel Matip after both men found the net in a 6-0 thrashing of Leeds United, saying he wishes he had his defensive partner's technical ability.

Between two Mohamed Salah penalties, Matip strode forward to open his account for the season with a superb goal, while Van Dijk later completed the scoring after Sadio Mane had struck twice against the strugglers.

The dominant victory moved Jurgen Klopp's men to within three points of the Premier League summit, while Van Dijk and Matip contributed to Liverpool's 14th Premier League clean sheet of the campaign – only leaders Manchester City (15) have more.

However, it was Matip's dribbling ability that came in for praise from his partner, after the German defender's fantastic goal.

"It [dribbling out from the back] is a big quality of his," Van Dijk told the club's website after the win. "I wish I had that quality at times.

"He just can go without any fear at all and hope for the best a little bit.

"But he has that quality. It's a big strength of his and obviously it's useful because it drags other players from their position. Today, obviously, the space was there to make that run and finish it off. 

"I said to him before the game I felt it coming because he had an assist for Diogo [Jota, in a recent 2-0 win over Leicester] and I said, 'A goal is next!'

"So I'm obviously very happy for him."

Marie Bouzkova is through to the quarter-finals at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara after beating Lucia Bronzetti in straight sets.

The Czech, ranked 96th in the world, will play either number three seed Sara Sorribes Tormo or Magdalena Frech in the last eight after sealing a 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 win against Bronzetti.

Anna Kalinskaya is also through after following up her impressive first-round win against eighth seed Qinwen Zheng by beating another Chinese opponent, Xinyu Wang 6-4 0-6 6-4.

The Russian had a mixed outing and looked to be on the ropes after losing the second set, but recovered and will go up against either fourth seed Camila Osorio or Hailey Baptiste in the quarter-finals.

One last eight match that has been finalised will be between Qiang Wang and Anna Karolina Schmiedlova after they beat Harmony Tan and Anastasia Potapova respectively.

Wang overcame her French opponent – who had eliminated second seed Madison Keys – 6-4 6-2, while Schmiedlova also won in straight sets against Potapova, 6-3 7-6 (7-5).

Even if not quite the force they once were, Manchester United still like to show their fans their ambitions match up, especially in the transfer market.

Interim manager Ralf Rangnick has the job of ensuring the Red Devils qualify for next season's Champions League and is currently on course, with them sitting fourth in the Premier League.

However, the club supposedly remain confident of adding big names at the end of the season regardless of a top-four finish.

TOP STORY – MAN UTD WANT MORE ENGLAND STARS

Manchester United believe they can attract big names to Old Trafford at the end of the season, even if they may not have Champions League football to offer.

According to ESPN, the Premier League club have an ambitious list of targets that includes England pair Declan Rice and Harry Kane, and they believe the 2016 signing of Paul Pogba – when they were in the Europa League – is proof the name of the club is enticing enough.

It remains to be seen what that means for whomever the incoming permanent manager is by then, but they will likely not say no to additions of that calibre.

ROUND-UP

- Atletico Madrid are plotting a move for Georginio Wijnaldum from Paris Saint-Germain, according to Fichajes.

- Calciomercato claims Inter wish to add Torino defender Bremer to their ranks next season and may already have an agreement with the player.

- Meanwhile, Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele is being pursued on a free transfer by both Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain, 90min reports.

- The Catalan giants could get one in return though as they have offered a two-year deal to Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta, according to Sport.

- Marca is reporting Tottenham are looking at Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper Unai Simon as a potential long-term replacement for Hugo Lloris.

- Roma could reignite their interest in Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka at the end of the season, Calciomercato says.

Rafael Nadal sealed his 12th consecutive win of the new season after a straight sets victory over Stefan Kozlov at the Mexican Open.

Nadal's 12-0 record to begin the year is the best of his illustrious career, and he never looked in any trouble as he eased to a 6-0 6-3 win against the American to advance to the quarter-finals in Acapulco.

The Australian Open champion's next opponent will be Tommy Paul after he beat Dusan Lajovic 7-6 (8-6) 2-6 7-5.

"A little bit of a strange match," Nadal said following his win. "Kozlov has a different style than most other players, so you need to be very careful. Sometimes you are able to win points in a row, but then if you start to play at his rhythm, it's very difficult because he has great control from the baseline and he's very smart."

Number one seed Daniil Medvedev is also safely through after comfortably defeating Pablo Andujar 6-1 6-2, and he will now go up against Yoshihito Nishioka after his victory against Feliciano Lopez.

Stefanos Tsitsipas managed to finish his match against J.J. Wolf in less than 48 minutes as he romped to a 6-0 6-1 win, while his quarter-final opponent Marcos Giron had a much tougher time of it getting past eighth seed Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (7-9) 6-4 7-6 (7-4).

Cameron Norrie also came from a set down to beat John Isner 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 6-4, and the sixth seed will now face Peter Gojowczyk after the German received a walkover following his compatriot Alexander Zverev being "withdrawn" from the singles competition after attacking the umpire's chair at the end of his defeat in the doubles.

Meanwhile, in the Chile Open, second seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas beat fellow Spaniard Carlos Taberner 6-2 7-6 (7-4) and will face eighth seed Facundo Bagnis in the quarter-finals after the Argentinian secured a win against Hugo Dellien 6-2 6-2.

Thiago Monteiro fought hard to get past third seed Federico Delbonis with a 3-6 6-4 6-1 victory, and will go up against seventh seed Sebastian Baez in the last eight, who defeated Juan Ignacio Londero 6-3 6-3.

Juventus have confirmed reports Weston McKennie fractured the second and third metatarsals in his left foot against Villarreal.

McKennie had to be substituted late in Juve's 1-1 Champions League draw on Tuesday.

Reports soon followed of a double break for the United States midfielder, and the Bianconeri confirmed those claims on their return to Italy.

McKennie is expected to miss eight weeks, ruling him out of next month's World Cup qualifying triple-header with the USMNT.

Alex Sandro is set for a shorter lay-off, although Juve will also be without the left-back for the time being.

He took a blow to his calf and is to be evaluated again in 10 days.

Meanwhile, 20-year-old forward Kaio Jorge was set for surgery having sprained his knee, capping a day of miserable injury news for Juve.

Los Angeles Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth has revealed he received a call from Wayne Gretzky after his Super Bowl LVI win as he considers retirement.

Whitworth has been in the NFL since 2006, when he was drafted in the second round by the Cincinnati Bengals.

But he had to wait until this year to finally get his hands on a Super Bowl ring, beating his former team the Bengals with the Rams.

It was widely expected Whitworth would call time on his career if the Rams won the title, yet one of sport's great names has given him food for thought.

Whitworth told NFL Total Access: "You definitely think about [winning a second Super Bowl], especially with Matthew Stafford coming back and Cooper Kupp and some of the special players – Aaron Donald being the biggest one, which we'll hopefully hear soon is going to be back.

"I've already seen him in the weight room working out, so I think that's a positive sign.

"It's a special group of guys, so you wouldn't want to miss that, that's for sure.

"I'll never forget after we won the game, the 'Great One', Wayne Gretzky, called me, because I live near him. He said, 'Hey Whit, there's only one thing better than winning one, and that's winning two'. I said I can't argue with you.

"It's going to be tough. One way or another, it's going to be a tough decision. There'd be a lot of great guys I'd be missing out on."

Jason Kenny, Great Britain's most successful Olympian, has retired from cycling to go into coaching.

Kenny has taken up a new role with British Cycling, bringing to an end his esteemed career as a competitor.

The 33-year-old won seven gold medals and two silvers across four Games, most recently triumphing in the keirin at Tokyo 2020.

But Kenny told the BBC: "A massive part of me would love to continue and try to get to Paris [in 2024] and I'm a little bit sad in a way to not do that.

"The opportunity at British Cycling to be a coach might not be there in three years. I thought I'd take it now."

Laura Kenny, his wife, has collected five golds and a silver since her Olympic bow at London 2012.

Kieran Trippier considers Jan Oblak the best goalkeeper in the world and would love to see him in the Premier League – perhaps even at Newcastle United.

Oblak has long been regarded among the very best around in his position, although his form for Atletico Madrid has deteriorated this season.

Having won the LaLiga title alongside the 29-year-old in 2020-21, however, ex-Atletico defender Trippier still holds him in high regard.

"From my time playing with him, the amount of points he saved us and his shot-stopping, for me, he's the best in the world, for sure," Trippier told 5 Live, speaking ahead of Atletico's game against Manchester United on Wednesday.

Oblak joined Atletico from Benfica in 2014 and has remained in Madrid ever since, but Trippier added he was "really surprised" a Premier League club had not made a serious move for the keeper.

"I think he'd be unbelievable in the Premier League, but obviously it's who could he go to? That's the question," the Newcastle man said.

"I've had conversations with him before about the Premier League. He's always asked me questions. Of course, I'd love to see him in the Premier League one day."

Big-spending Newcastle were then put forward, with Trippier asked if he was acting as the club's LaLiga scout.

"You never know," he replied with a laugh. "You never know what could happen."

Atletico's 1-1 draw with United was their first Champions League match since Trippier's January departure, but the England international is keen to return to the competition with Newcastle.

"Right now, the most important thing is staying in the league. We need to focus about now," he said. "Of course, it's a process, it's about building season by season.

"Newcastle want to be playing Champions League football, but the most important thing for us is Saturday against Brentford and then building a game at a time and then see where we are at the end of the season.

"It's about building, it's a project. Of course I want to be playing Champions League football and hopefully I can be with Newcastle."

Major League Baseball has warned the 2022 season will be shortened and players will lose money if the lockout is not ended by Monday.

Monday represents the February 28 deadline the league has set as negotiations continue with the MLB Players Association over a new collective bargaining agreement.

That deadline had already been publicised to allow Opening Day to take place on March 31.

But with talks still unsuccessful to this point, MLB said on Wednesday there would be no room for manoeuvre with that date.

And if that deadline passes and games are missed, the league does not plan to compensate players.

"A deadline is a deadline. Missed games are missed games," a spokesperson said. "Salary will not be paid for those games."

Aleksandar Mitrovic sensationally secured the Championship's single-season scoring record in February with his 32nd and 33rd goals of the campaign for Fulham on Wednesday.

Since England's second tier was rebranded as the Championship in 2004-05, Ivan Toney's 31 goals last season for Brentford had represented the benchmark.

However, Mitrovic's remarkable season continued in Fulham's 2-1 win over Peterborough United, his 30th appearance of 2021-22.

The Serbia international's opener from the penalty spot passed Toney's mark, before his second extended his own record and ensured the league leaders took all three points.

Mitrovic, who also played in the division for Newcastle United before joining Fulham, now has 75 Championship goals in just 116 appearances.

That compares favourably with his rather underwhelming return of 24 goals in 104 in the Premier League.

The last player to score more in the second tier was Portsmouth's Guy Whittingham, who hit 42 in 1992-93, although even that pales next to George Camsell's ludicrous 59 Middlesbrough goals all the way back in 1926-27.

Perhaps with those two now in his sights, Mitrovic said: "I've had quite a few records, but this feels nice. I broke the record with the Serbia national team as well, and now today here. I feel good, I feel great in this team."

Fulham boss Marco Silva added: "The best team on the pitch deserves the three points; congratulations for our players and now let's talk about Mitro. Congratulations for him.

"The numbers speak for themselves. I cannot say anything more. 33 goals at the end of February with 14 games to play – they are fantastic, fantastic numbers.

"What I like more from him is that he's always demanding more and more and more. He knows that from tomorrow I will demand more and more from him. The team-mates will do the same as well.

"But first we are happy, because it's not just Mitro's number, it's something more, it's something that reflects our philosophy as a club, as a staff."

Diego Simeone insisted nothing has changed in his approach to the Champions League tie with Manchester United, despite Atletico Madrid conceding a late equaliser.

Anthony Elanga came off the bench to net United's leveller in the 80th minute in Madrid on Wednesday, meaning the last-16 clash is all square heading into the second leg at Old Trafford on March 15.

Atleti outshot United 13-7 and finished with an expected goals value of 1.6 to United's 0.5, but the hosts only aimed one effort on target – Joao Felix's early opener.

Marcos Llorente hit the bar for the hosts, but a mistake from Reinildo allowed Elanga to capitalise and net United's 500th European Cup/Champions League goal, with Antoine Griezmann then going agonisingly close to restoring Atleti's lead late on.

Last season's LaLiga champions are winless in their past seven home Champions League matches (D4 L3), since beating Salzburg 3-2 in the 2020-21 group stage, extending their longest run without a win on home soil in the competition.

However, Simeone believes going to Old Trafford with everything on the line is the perfect litmus test for his stuttering side.

"We are the same as before the game started. Nothing changes," he told a news conference. 

"We are going to play in their field with their environment, they will surely have more drive and that will generate a higher rhythm than is usually seen in the Premier League. 

"What better than going to play a fantastic scenario to put everything to the test.

"From a well-executed action by them, they found a mismatch and surgical precision, they got the goal. We saw [from Atletico] a strong team that competes, that was able to take the victory and we hope to continue on this path."

Asked if Atleti's poor home form in the competition could be their downfall, Simeone added: "No, because it's football. You can't continue in the Champions League without winning a game, but from the round of 16 onwards it can be done [at home]."

Simeone's immediate focus will now switch back to LaLiga, with Atleti sitting fifth as it stands ahead of Saturday's home match against Celta Vigo.

Kieran Trippier has no doubts about Joao Felix's quality after his "unbelievable" header for Atletico Madrid against Manchester United, but he suggested the forward still has work to do to meet Diego Simeone's exacting standards.

Joao Felix's superb diving header gave the Spanish champions the lead in their Champions League clash with the Red Devils, before substitute Anthony Elanga netted to leave the tie finely poised at 1-1 at the halfway point.

The opener represented Joao Felix's 24th goal for Atletico in all competitions but just his second headed goal for the club, with his only previous such effort coming against Cadiz back in November 2020.

Tripper, who left the Wanda Metropolitano for Newcastle United in January, was not surprised by his former team-mate's sublime goal, however.

"It was unbelievable. He can do so many things like that. He has the quality," Trippier told 5 Live.

"We need him to step up, we need him to be the difference. I was surprised they brought him off, because I think that changed the dynamic of the way Atletico Madrid were playing."

Ajax head coach Erik ten Hag acknowledged he left Benfica with "mixed feelings" after his side twice let leads slip in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash.

Dusan Tadic opened the scoring at the Estadio da Luz to join Kylian Mbappe and Riyad Mahrez as the only players with 10-plus goals and assists in the competition since the start of the 2018-19 season.

A topsy-turvy four minutes then followed for Sebastian Haller, who became the first player to score a goal and an own goal in a Champions League knockout match since Dries Mertens in March 2017.

His second finish, at the right end, carried on his fine scoring form. He became just the fifth player to score in seven straight games in the Champions League, and first to find the net 11 times in his opening seven appearances.

However, a late Roman Yaremchuk header after an unconvincing Remko Pasveer save ensured the tie was left hanging in the balance at 2-2 heading into the return leg, much to Ten Hag's frustration.

He told Dutch outlet Ziggo Sport after the game: "I am here with mixed feelings because we gave away the goals too easily, while we created five clear-cut chances ourselves.

"If one of those goes in, it would be 3-1 and we would have won. You are really not going to get ten finishing chances at European level. We should have handled the opportunities better."

Ten Hag also expressed his annoyance at the defending for the second equaliser that allowed Goncalo Ramos to counter and unleash a vicious strike that Pasveer parried, with Yaremchuk heading in the follow-up.

"If you are leading 2-1, you cannot let yourself be countered," he continued. "At least one more defender should have stayed back."

Captain Dusan Tadic, who has been involved in 28 goals (10 goals, 18 assists) in just 31 appearances this season, also echoed his coach's thoughts.

"We had the chances to win. That didn't happen and that's why I'm a bit disappointed," Tadic told Dutch television channel RTL 7.

"We have to rectify this at home. I think we should have done more, especially when we were leading 2-1. Unfortunately, that did not work."

Ajax will look to make amends for squandering the advantage when they host Benfica on March 15.