Mohamed Salah scored his 150th goal for Liverpool and Luis Díaz opened his account as the Reds came from behind to beat Norwich City 3-1 at Anfield.

Jurgen Klopp's side were left stunned when Milot Rashica's deflected strike put Premier League strugglers Norwich in front in the 48th minute.

But two goals in the space of three minutes spared the second-placed side’s blushes, with Sadio Mane equalising through an acrobatic volley before Alisson's brilliant assist set the prolific Salah up to reach yet another milestone.

Recent signing Diaz sealed an eighth successive win for Merseyside club, which moved them six points behind leaders Manchester City ahead of their clash with Tottenham later on Saturday

Rashica had the ball in the back of the Liverpool net early on, but strayed offside before Kostas Tsimikas missed a good chance at the other end, failing to hit the target sliding in to meet Salah's cross.

Teemu Pukki wasted a glorious chance to put the Canaries in front when he dragged a left-foot shot wide from inside the penalty area with only Alisson to beat after Angus Gunn palmed away Virgil van Dijk's downward header.

Liverpool dictated the play and Salah had a header cleared off the line by the alert Mathias Normann as Norwich defended tenaciously in a goalless first half, which also saw Van Dijk have a goal disallowed as the linesman’s flag was up.

It was Dean Smith's side who sensationally drew first blood just after the break, when Rashica's drive from just outside the area struck Joel Matip's leg and flashed past a wrong-footed Alisson.

Klopp introduced Thiago Alcantara and Divock Origi just after the hour-mark and Mane equalised soon after with a brilliant overhead kick from close range after Tsimikas nodded headed across goal.

Salah then raced clear after controlling Alisson's accurate long ball with a great touch and turned sharply to outfox Gunn before calmly slotting home with his right foot.

Diaz put the icing on the cake nine minutes from time, dinking over Gunn with his left foot after Jordan Henderson picked him out with a sublime pass.

Norway did not add to their golden haul on Saturday at the Winter Olympics, but they cannot now be caught at the top of the medal table.

Nearest rivals Germany, four behind Norway's all-time record haul of 15 golds, are involved in only three of the five medal events on Sunday's final day of the Beijing Games.

Germany's 11th gold of the games arrived when Laura Nolte and Deborah Levi completed victory in the two-woman bobsleigh, ahead of compatriots Mariama Jamanka and Alexandra Burghardt.

It was almost a 1-2-3 for Germany, only for Americans Elana Meyers Taylor and Sylvia Hoffman to take bronze, with Kim Kalicki and Lisa Buckwitz having to settle for fourth place.

China sit third overall after Sui Wenjing and Han Cong delivered gold in the mixed pairs figure skating, fending off the Russian pair of Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov to earn the hosts a ninth triumph of the Games.

Norway's only medal of the day came in the men's cross-country mass start, which was shortened from 50km to 30km due to extreme weather, as Simen Hegstad Krueger took bronze.

Sweden won an eighth gold, a new Winter Olympics best for the nation, as their men's curling team, led by skip Niklas Edin, earned a 5-4 win over Great Britain in the final.

The silver put Team GB on the medal table for the first time, in a tie for 24th place, with either gold or silver to follow on Sunday in the women's curling.

Medal table:

1. Norway (G15 S8 B12, Total: 35)
2. Germany (G11 S8 B5, Total: 24)
3. China (G9 S4 B2, Total: 15)
4. United States (G8 S9 B7, Total: 24)
5. Sweden (G8 S5 B5, Total: 18)
6. Netherlands (G8 S5 B4, Total: 17)
7. Switzerland (G7 S2 B5, Total: 14)
8. Russian Olympic Committee (G6 S11 B14, Total: 31)
9. Austria (G6 S7 B4, Total: 17)
10. France (G5 S7 B2, Total: 14)

Mohamed Salah reached another Liverpool milestone on Saturday, netting his 150th goal for the club across all competitions.

Liverpool's talisman achieved the feat in the 67th minute of the Premier League clash with Norwich City at Anfield.

Salah raced clear after controlling Alisson's brilliant long ball with a great touch and turned sharply to fox goalkeeper Angus Gunn before calmly slotting home with his right foot. His goal gave Liverpool a 2-1 lead against the Canaries.

The 29-year-old Egypt international hit the 150 mark in his 233rd Liverpool appearance, making him the second-fastest player to do so for the team, after Roger Hunt (226 games).

Salah has reached the milestone quicker than Ian Rush (249), Robbie Fowler (261), Michael Owen (280) and Kenny Dalglish (390).

The Premier League's leading scorer this season, Salah took his tally to 17 for the campaign – and 25 across all competitions.

The Winter Olympics is wrapping up, and there were plenty of medals up for grabs on Saturday.

A youngster challenged over the experienced head in the men's freeski halfpipe final, while Irene Schouten clinched her third gold of the Beijing Games.

The Dutch speed skater has been a major success story and made it three of the best as she triumphed in the women's mass start, following her earlier wins in the 3000m and 5000m events.

"My dream was after these Games to be called an Olympic champion, and now I am a three-time champion. I am living the dream," said Schouten, who took bronze in the same event in 2018.

"It is a game. Not always the fastest wins, you need some luck. Today I had luck. I was fast, but I got some luck, too."

Schouten is the second woman to win three gold medals in speed skating at a single Olympic Winter Games, joining compatriot Yvonne van Gennip from 1988.

She has also joined Japan's Takagi Miho in winning four speed skating medals in Beijing. They are the fourth and fifth females to win four medals in speed skating at a single Olympic Winter Games.

In the men's equivalent, Bart Swings sealed Belgium's first Olympic Winter gold since 1948. 

Porteous bests reigning champion Wise

World champion Nico Porteous came out victorious on the slopes, claiming freeski halfpipe gold ahead of reigning Olympic champion David Wise, who was aiming for a third straight gold in the event.

Porteous is the first athlete from New Zealand to claim two medals in freestyle skiing. He took bronze in Pyeongchang.

At 20 years, 88 days, Porteous is the youngest gold medallist in men's freeski halfpipe, while Wise, who is 31 years and 234 days old, is the oldest medallist in the discipline.

Germany, ROC celebrate one-two combinations

The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) claimed four medals on Saturday.

Silver and bronze came their way in the pairs figure skating, with Chinese duo Sui Wenjing and Han Cong claiming gold.

The ROC's success came in cross-country skiing, with Alexander Bolshunov cruising to gold in the shortened men's mass start. It marked his third top prize of the Games.

Ivan Yakimushkin finished 5.5 seconds behind, with Norway's Simen Hegstad Krueger, who raced for the first time in Beijing having had to isolate due to COVID-19, finishing third.

Germany also had a gold-silver combination to celebrate in women's bobsleigh.

Success for Sweden

There was heartbreak for Great Britain, as their men fell just short in a thrilling curling final against Sweden.

Great Britain had to come from 3-1 down to force an extra end, but Sweden prevailed 5-4, meaning Britain's 98-year wait for men's curling gold rolls on.

"It's still pretty raw," GB captain Bruce Mouat told BBC Sport. "That's going to be the case for quite a while.

"I'm trying to think how great our week was and [feel] proud how we went about it. We topped the table and had a really good semi-final performance so I'm trying to think about the other things apart from that game."

Sweden's women, meanwhile, downed Switzerland 9-7 in their bronze medal game. 

However, Sweden's men could not claim ice hockey bronze, as they were thrashed 4-0 by Slovakia.

Xavi has reiterated his "absolute confidence" in Ferran Torres.

Barcelona signed Spain international Torres from Manchester City for €55million in December.

The 21-year-old had managed just four Premier League appearances for City in the first half of the campaign, scoring twice, as he suffered a fractured metatarsal while on international duty in October.

Torres has yet to score in three LaLiga starts for Barca, though he netted from the penalty spot to salvage a 1-1 home draw with Napoli in the Europa League on Thursday.

Yet that was the only one of the forward's nine attempts to hit the target as he passed up a series of glaring opportunities, appearing to be close to tears at full-time having accounted for 1.47 of Barca's 2.03 expected goals.

In six games in all competitions so far, Torres has scored twice, with those strikes coming from both of his shots on target. He has failed to trouble the goalkeeper with his other 15 attempts. 

Xavi, however, insisted after Thursday's game that he was sure Torres would find form soon, and ahead of Sunday's clash with Valencia in LaLiga, the Barca great reaffirmed his stance.

"We talked," Xavi told a news conference when asked about Torres. "There is absolute confidence in him. He is great and will be even greater.

"It is not blind confidence in him. He will make a difference. I have no doubts."

Torres has been thrust straight into Barca's line-up, with Memphis Depay having not featured since playing in the Supercopa de Espana defeat to Real Madrid on January 12.

The Netherlands forward, who has eight goals to his name this season, is now nearing a return from a hamstring injury, though.

"We are waiting for him. He is almost ready," Xavi said of Depay. 

"This week is the definitive one. He is a player who scores goals, [can play] a last pass. He will help us a lot."

Another option up front for Xavi to consider is Ousmane Dembele. Barca attempted to sell the France international in January, and the winger will leave at the end of the season.

However, Dembele has appeared as a substitute in Barca's last two matches and Xavi has confirmed he is in contention to start on Sunday.

"He could be a starter, or on Thursday [in the second leg against Napoli]," Xavi added. "When he has played, he has been involved. He is one more."

Barca have avoided defeat in their last eight LaLiga games (W4 D4), scoring in each of those matches (15 goals on aggregate), both their longest unbeaten and scoring runs in the competition this season.

Erling Haaland will not return for Borussia Dortmund this weekend, with Marco Rose calling on the other attackers to start pulling their weight. 

Dortmund have been without Haaland for their past three matches after the striker sustained a muscular injury in the 3-2 win over Hoffenheim on January 22. 

In his absence, BVB suffered heavy 5-2 and 4-2 losses to Bayer Leverkusen and Rangers respectively either side of a 3-0 win at Union Berlin. 

Rose revealed Haaland would not be ready to feature against the coach's former club Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Sunday. 

He laid down the gauntlet to the other attackers in the team, despite Dortmund having scored 57 goals - of which Haaland has contributed 16 - after 22 games this season. The only time they have managed more at the same point in a Bundesliga campaign was when they had 63 in 2019-20. 

"Erling is not ready for the game. He has participated in parts of training, but he is not yet fully operational," Rose told a news conference on Saturday. 

"Others have to step into the breach. It's not about wanting to sugarcoat anything. 

"We're now introducing Donny [Donyell] Malen to the Bundesliga and Dortmund. He's felt like he's taken one-to-two steps back in the last two games. Before that, I publicly praised him for his development here. 

"If Erling isn't there, others have to pull on the chains and prepare the gates. I have to say this, too; we won 3-0 in Berlin a few days ago. We kept a clean sheet after a long time." 

Gladbach will be aiming to make it three straight Bundesliga wins over Dortmund for the first time since 1981, but they have only triumphed once away to BVB in their past 16 attempts in all competitions. 

BVB will be without defender Manuel Akanji due to a muscle tear sustained in the defeat to Rangers, while Marius Wolf is a doubt and Thomas Meunier will not play. 

Sergio Aguero intends to go the World Cup in Qatar and hopes it will be as part of Argentina's backroom staff. 

Former striker Aguero experienced chest pain in a match against Deportivo Alaves in October and it was determined he had a career-ending heart issue. 

However, the 33-year-old still wants to be part of Argentina's campaign in Qatar this year and hopes a role can be found for him. 

"I'm going to go to the World Cup. We are going to have a meeting this week. I want to be there," he told Radio 10 in Argentina.

"The idea is for me to join the coaching staff. I spoke with [head coach Lionel] Scaloni and also with [Argentine Football Association president] Claudio Tapia. 

"We have to try to give it a go to see what can be done." 

Aguero joined Barcelona in the hopes of playing alongside close friend Lionel Messi after the pair helped Argentina end their 28-year wait for a senior international trophy at the 2021 Copa America. 

Yet the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner ended up completing an incredible switch to Paris Saint-Germain. 

Messi came in for criticism following his display in the Champions League last-16 first-leg victory over Real Madrid, which was decided by a solitary Kylian Mbappe goal after the 34-year-old had failed to convert a penalty.

"How are the French media going to kill Messi? Leo played well. Were they watching the game backwards? Leo always plays five levels above," said Aguero.

Barcelona are still adjusting to life without Lionel Messi, so says Frenkie de Jong, who has no intention of leaving the Blaugrana any time soon.

De Jong joined Barca from Ajax in 2019, arriving with high expectations as the Catalan giants planned to push on following their LaLiga success under Ernesto Valverde.

Yet over the subsequent two-and-a-half years, the club have suffered a significant dip in fortunes, with a lone Copa del Rey title and Messi's exit among the highs and lows since.

De Jong has played under Valverde, Quique Setien and Ronald Koeman before working under current coach and Barca legend Xavi.

He has been linked with a move away from Barca over the last season, but he remains thrilled to be at the club he wanted to play for as a boy, even if the silverware has not flown as freely as it might have done.

"I'm very happy I'm at Barcelona: from a young age I've wanted to be here, so in that way it has been a dream come true," the Netherlands international told The Guardian.

"But, of course, I would have liked to win more trophies than we did in my first two years. I expected more in that sense, let's put it that way. But other than that, I'm very happy here and hopefully for many more years."

Learning to live without Messi, who ended his career-long association with the club to move to Paris Saint-Germain last year amid financial difficulties, has been tough, though.

"I never took it into serious consideration, so when it happened it was a shock," De Jong explained.

"It was a heavy blow for everyone. We still miss him."

One club great that has helped shape De Jong this term is Xavi though, after the ex-Blaugrana star succeeded Koeman. 

"We're both midfielders, roughly in the same position, so in that regard he can teach me a lot," De Jong said. "Every coach has his own details, of course."

Barcelona play Valencia this weekend in LaLiga, as they look to solidify their hold on fourth-place ahead of champions Atletico Madrid.

Lionel Messi is set to make the 800th senior appearance of his illustrious club career after being named in Paris Saint-Germain's squad to face Nantes.

The Argentina maestro is joined by Neymar in Mauricio Pochettino's 22-man travelling party for the trip to Stade de la Beaujoire, where the Ligue 1 leaders would move 16 points clear at the top with victory on Saturday.

Should he feature, as would be expected, Messi will reach the latest milestone of his glittering career, over 17 years after Frank Rijkaard handed him his Barcelona debut against Espanyol in October 2004.

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner would make his 22nd appearance for PSG since joining from Barca on a free transfer, having scored seven times so far.

Messi, the Blaugrana's record appearance maker and scorer, played 778 times for Barca in all competitions, netting 672 goals.

Under Pep Guardiola, Messi played more games (219) and scored more goals (211) than with any other coach, while he is one of only two players to have netted 100 Champions League goals, with his tally of 125 behind only Cristiano Ronaldo's 140.

The 34-year-old is also approaching 1,000 career appearances, having won a record 158 caps for Argentina since his debut in 2005.

Meanwhile, Neymar is in contention to make his first start since suffering an ankle injury against Saint-Etienne in November.

The Brazil international, who returned as a substitute during Tuesday's Champions League win over Real Madrid, has endured a series of injury issues since his own move from Barcelona to Paris in 2017.

Indeed, he has failed to make over 20 Ligue 1 starts in a single season to date. 

Mikel Arteta has backed Arsenal's mentality when under pressure, but acknowledged that his side have brought difficulties upon themselves at points under his watch.

Arsenal welcome Brentford to Emirates Stadium on Saturday as they look to close in on the top four.

They will do so without Gabriel Martinelli however, with the 20-year-old's red card against Wolves the latest instance of an Arsenal player's dismissal under Arteta.

Speaking ahead of the Brentford clash, Arteta conceded that the way he chooses to play runs these risks, but added that he feels his team can weather the adversity that might result from the indiscipline.

"We have to face whatever challenges that we have in front of us," he said in a news conference. "Someday we have provoked those challenges ourselves, sometimes it has been someone external.

"Whatever is in front of us, we have to have that mentality and that attitude to say, 'Okay, let's face it' and 'let's go for it' and we can overcome it. This is how [Martinelli] wanted to play."

Arteta further added that his side should relish a bunker mentality, drawing comparison to the teams of Jose Mourinho and Alex Ferguson, and how they thrived under the spotlight.

"One hundred per cent, because I want the team to feel that they have the tools and they have the right mindset to face anything that is in front of us," he added.

"That's the only way that you are able to win."

Yet another red card for his side at Molineux sparked further speculation from the media over Arteta's methods, but the former Manchester City assistant added that he tends to encourage his side to block out the noise.

"We focus on what we can control [and] what we have to do," he stated. "Our focus doesn't change because we can't control what is out there."

While Arsenal do not lead the way for bookings in the Premier League, their red card haul over the past two years is noticeable for its sheer volume next to their rivals.

They have picked up a dozen dismissals since Boxing Day 2019, when Arteta oversaw his first game. That is five more than the next two sides, in Brighton and Hove Albion and Southampton (both seven), while their average total of fouls per red card sits at 65.4, a full 30 offences more than the second-ranked Bournemouth, at 98.5.

Arsenal sit sixth heading into Saturday's game, four points behind fourth-placed Manchester United but with three matches in hand.

The Gunners are unbeaten in their last 32 Premier League home games against promoted sides (W27 D5), since a 1-0 loss against Newcastle United in November 2010. They have only failed to score in one of those 32 matches, a goalless draw with Middlesbrough in October 2016.

Four-time NBA champion Manu Ginobili is among this year's finalists for induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

The San Antonio Spurs legend, who retired from the league following the 2017-18 season after 16 years with the franchise, was part of the side that triumphed in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014.

Ginobili also helped Argentina win an Olympic gold medal at Athens 2004.

The 44-year-old, who returned to Spurs as Special Advisor to Basketball Operations in September, was announced at a conference on Friday as one of 11 finalists ahead of the All-Star Weekend.

Former All-Star players Marques Johnson, Tim Hardaway and Michael Cooper are also on the list of nominees, along with coach George Karl and WNBA stars Lindsay Whelan and Swin Cash.

The Hall of Fame's class of 2022 will be announced at the men's Final Four in New Orleans on April 2, with the enshrinement scheduled to take place in September.

Since Ralf Rangnick took charge at Manchester United, much of the focus on them has revolved around – unsurprisingly – how they press, or don't, for that matter.

Of course, the overriding narrative when he was appointed fixated on how he was the supposed 'godfather of gegenpressing' and would definitely have United pressing more effectively than Liverpool in a matter of weeks…

Okay, there probably weren't many making such grand claims, but the point remains: United's off-the-ball work became the focus.

That meant their rather underwhelming attacking displays went a little unnoticed until Rangnick started talking about their expected goals (xG) after their 1-1 draw with Southampton.

As it turns out, since Rangnick's arrival, United have underperformed their non-penalty xG by 5.5 across all competitions, the worst of any Premier League team in that time. When you do consider spot-kicks, that gap increases to 6.1. Brentford are the second-worst in both metrics (4.31 and 3.67, respectively).

United simply aren't scoring as many goals as they should given the quality of the chances they're creating, but you can spin that into a positive.

Assuming they continue to craft opportunities at a similar rate, they should – in theory – level out with respect to xG. Considering recent meetings with Leeds United and their own woes, could Marcelo Bielsa's men be the tonic they need?

LEEDS LATE TO RIVALRY PARTY

Matches against Man Utd are, in all likelihood, the first games your average Leeds fan will look for when the fixture list is released ahead of the season. While the rivalry may not be as fierce competitively on the pitch as it once was, the two sets of supporters still despise each other.

These rivalry clashes haven't been especially kind to Leeds since their long-awaited return to the Premier League, though.

Over the three games, Leeds haven't won once and trail 11-3 on aggregate, with United demolishing them 6-2 at Old Trafford last season and 5-1 there in August. The 0-0 draw at Elland Road in April last season is as good as it's got – that's also the last time the Red Devils failed to score on the road.

Leeds suffered those two Old Trafford nightmares having previously only conceded five or more goals away to United in all competitions twice in their previous 50 visits.

Further to that, the 6-2 was the first time a Bielsa team had conceded six times in a competition match since he was in charge of Newell's Old Boys in February 1992.

It was also the first occasion United had scored at least six goals since "I'd 8-2 be an Arsenal fan" happened, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men having netted just three times in their previous six home league games.

Of course, last season's clash at Elland Road was the opposite of a goal fest. The main difference this time is that the game won't be behind closed doors, though Leeds weren't quite this defensively feeble then.

LEAKS UNITED

It is worth mentioning that, indeed, Leeds were not as leaky last season, as has been said. But even when they were in good shape, few would consider them among the tightest teams at the back.

Their 54 concessions in 2020-21 may not have been alarming in itself, with six teams letting in more, but at a rate of 1.4 goals conceded every game they were always likely to find themselves in a little danger if, A) they stopped scoring as often, or B) they didn't improve the defence.

Sure enough, injuries have played a massive part in Leeds' struggles this season, with most of their key players spending at least a short period on the sidelines.

That's been especially felt at the back. While Leeds' goals scored per game remains at a similar – albeit slightly lower – rate (1.5 down from 1.6), their concessions have rocketed from 1.4 every match to 2.0.

Only Norwich City (50) have conceded more Premier League goals than Leeds this season (46), and 26 of those have come in the nine matches since their last clean sheet in November. It's a diabolical run.

Granted, it would appear they have been somewhat unfortunate. Their expected goals against (xGA) (40.4) is 4.6 lower than their goals conceded (excluding own goals) record, suggesting they have on occasion been punished by particularly impressive finishing.

But their xGA remains the third-poorest in the league and, as the graphic above suggests, they've been conceding higher-value chances than they've been creating on average practically all season. That -0.74 differential on their rolling average between non-penalty (np) xG for and xGA heading into the weekend highlights just how much worse they are defensively than they are good going forward at the moment.

THAT ONE'S A KEEPER

An interesting underlying narrative ahead of this clash is the form of the respective goalkeepers.

David de Gea is arguably back to his very best, the Spaniard enjoying a wonderful season after falling out of favour in 2020-21 – it's as though Dean Henderson's emergence as a viable replacement spooked him into pulling his finger out.

Whereas Illan Meslier is – according to the numbers at least – having a very difficult season.

That's not necessarily to say Meslier is entirely to blame. In fact, he's not made any Opta-defined errors leading to shots this term, whereas De Gea has made two. Similarly, as Leeds' xGA shows, they give away a lot of chances and there's only so much a goalkeeper – and a young one at that – can do.

Indeed, Meslier was considered one of few positives from Leeds' recent 3-0 battering by Everton, yet the numbers don't make for such kind reading.

According to Opta's 'goals prevented' metric, Meslier should have stopped as many as 7.3 of the goals he has conceded this season, by far the worst record in the league (Vicente Guaita: 5.1). De Gea, on the other hand, has apparently been the most decisive keeper, actively preventing 6.9 goals and making a division-high 92 saves.

Meslier is ranked second for saves (80), but it would also seem he has let in several goals the average keeper might've been expected to keep out.

Intriguingly, United's rolling average in terms of np-xG for and xGA has their current differential as the exact inverse of that of Leeds, with Rangnick's side enjoying a positive 0.74 difference in favour of xG for, meaning they are creating better chances than they concede and are seemingly at their most cohesive in attack all season.

It's by far the biggest rolling average gap United have seen this term – at least in favour of xG for – and the 2-0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion in midweek looked like another step towards being a more ruthless attacking unit.

Creating chances hasn't really been a problem in recent weeks, the issue has been finishing them off. While rivalry meetings can be unpredictable, and a full house at Elland Road should at least ensure the hosts have a vocal backing, it wouldn't be in the least bit surprising if Leeds are proven to be the cannon fodder United need.

Milan head coach Stefano Pioli is confident his side can handle the pressure of being top of Serie A but concedes their "table position is not correct".

After beating Inter a fortnight ago, the Rossoneri capitalised on the Nerazzurri's 1-1 draw with Napoli last weekend, moving into top spot with a 1-0 home win over Sampdoria.

Milan and Napoli had set the early pace before Inter surged into the lead in Serie A prior to the winter break, with the Rossoneri returning to the summit by one point having played one game more than their city rivals.

"The league table is not correct, because Inter and Atalanta have to recover their matches," Pioli told a news conference prior to Saturday's league game with Salernitana.

"We are focused on us. The pressures are there and it is a privilege to have them, it means that we have risen up the level and it means that the team can handle them too.

"In my players I see a lot of positivity, a lot of confidence and concentration. We know that the season is long and that we have to push hard. For us tomorrow is a very important match, not a secondary one.

"We just have to think about giving our best and the best. We need great conviction in the things we do by giving our best."

Veteran Milan forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic has not played since picking up a knock in the January 24 draw with Juventus but hinted he was close to returning on Italian radio. Pioli, however, downplayed his chances of facing Salernitana as continues to battle a niggling Achilles issue.

"He is certainly better, if not tomorrow or Sunday he will start running again and then we will evaluate his condition," he said.

"We do not yet know when he will be able to re-join the group."

Pioli added that Croatian forward Ante Rebic would come into consideration to start against Salernitana after recently returning off the bench from an ankle injury.

"He is better. The minutes with Sampdoria helped him, he entered well even if he missed the winning play," he said.

"He is a very important player for us and he will give us his contribution."