Head coach Collin Benjamin says Namibia are “hungry” to make more history at the Africa Cup of Nations as they seek to upset Angola.
The Brave Warriors are through to the knockout stages of the tournament for the first time after finishing the group stage among the best third-placed teams.
Group D winners Angola are favourites to become the first nation to reach the quarter-finals ahead of Saturday’s last-16 clash in Bouake.
But Benjamin cannot remember a time when Namibia were not underdogs and believes there is a steely determination among his squad.
“We have some good technical players with big hearts and there is the signature of the coach,” he said, according to cafonline.com.
“It’s the determination, it’s ambition, it’s mentality, these boys want to succeed and they understand everything about the team.
“We want to be part of the best 16 teams in Africa and definitely we are among the best 16 – it is a motivation in itself.
“I don’t remember if Namibia will go into any game with the odds favouring us, it will always go against us.
“Our coaches are educated to know that players are playing at good levels and they are hungry.”
Angola are bidding to progress to the last eight for the first time since hosting the tournament in 2010 on the back of wins over Mauritania and Burkina Faso and a 1-1 draw with Algeria.
Head coach Pedro Goncalves is confident of ending the Black Antelopes’ lengthy wait for a quarter-final.
“It has been a historic moment for us and we have a bigger game tomorrow, perhaps the biggest game in the last 14 years of the Angolan national team,” said the Portuguese.
“For sure, it will be very tough but I have confidence tomorrow everybody will do a great job.
“Namibia is a very powerful team, they are very brave.
“We need to be considerate in our passing. We have to be balanced because if we lose our balance, Namibia can be dangerous for us.”
St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson has bracketed Steven Davis alongside George Best in the pantheon of Northern Ireland greats following the midfielder’s retirement on Thursday.
Davis is most closely associated with Rangers where in two spells at the Ibrox club he won four titles, as well as lifting both the Scottish Cup and Scottish League Cup on three occasions.
The 39-year-old played 140 times for Northern Ireland – the UK male international caps record – while former Manchester United and Northern Ireland winger Best is generally accepted to be one of the best players ever to have played the game.
Robinson, capped seven times for Northern Ireland where he played alongside Davis and who was assistant to Michael O’Neill at Euro 2016, said of his former team-mate: “He’s, if not the best, then he’s right up there.
“He should be mentioned in the same bracket as George Best. In terms of his longevity and what he has contributed to Northern Irish football.
“Obviously two completely different players, two completely different positions but in terms of recognition I think he will be recognised in that bracket as one of the greatest players ever to play for Northern Ireland.
“He is such a talented boy and what he has done for Northern Irish football.
“He went to the Euros, he was a great captain for Michael O’Neill throughout his time and provided so much for the young players coming through and he has been an inspiration and for someone I have worked with – he is arguably the best player I worked with on the training pitch.
“Never caused a minute’s problem, easy maintenance, easy to manage but a super, super talented boy.”
The Nicholas Pooran-captained MI Emirates on the back of a superb bowling spell from Akeal Hosein, registered their third win on the trot, as they slammed Sharjah Warriors by 106 runs in a lopsided International League Twenty20 (ILT20) encounter at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.
After being sent to bat, MI Emirates led by top scores of 42 by Andre Fletcher and Kusal Perera respectively, and 37 from Pooran, posted 180-7 from their allotment, before Hosein bowled with skill and accuracy to grab 4-23 in restricting the Warriors to a paltry 74.
Scores: MI Emirates 180-7 (20 overs); Sharjah Warriors 74 all out (12.1 overs)
Hosein first accounted for fellow West Indian Johnson Charles (one), who for the first time since the start of the tournament, failed to get in on the runs. The Trinidad and Tobago left-arm spinner then snared another three wickets -Joe Denly (six), Basil Hameed (zero) and Daniel Sams (zero) -in the eighth over.
In fact, Hosein thought he had a fourth in the over and, by extension, the first hat-trick in ILT20 history when he had Englishman Chris Woakes adjudged leg-before-wicket. However, the decision was later overturned on review, as the ball pitched outside the leg stump.
New Zealander Martin Guptill (17), Sri Lanka's wicketkeeper/batsman Niroshan Dickwella (22) and England's Lewis Gregory (10), offered minimal resistance in the Warriors dismal innings.
Earlier, 'Spiceman' Fletcher and Sri Lankan Perera put together a 92 second-wicket stand that was the foundation of the MI Emirates innings. Fletcher slammed four fours and two sixes in his 31-ball 42, while Perera had three fours and three sixes in his 25-ball 42.
Pooran chipped in with a 37 off 29 balls, which includes a solitary four and two sixes, with Australian Tim David being the next best scorer with a 16-ball 20.
Pakistani Muhammad Jawadullah was the pick of the Warriors bowling with 3-31 from his over overs.
With the win, MI Emirates remain atop the standing on six points, the Warriors are fifth on two points.
Jamie Snowden rekindled his love affair with the Grand Military Gold Cup as Farceur Du Large provided the trainer with a fifth victory in the Sandown feature.
Formerly a captain in the King’s Royal Hussars, Snowden landed the prize four times in six years as a jockey between 2002 and 2007, with three of those wins provided by champion trainer Paul Nicholls.
Having enjoyed spells as pupil assistant to the Ditcheat handler and later as assistant to Nicky Henderson, Snowden began his own training career in 2008 and is fast approaching the 400-winner mark.
With Major Will Kellard in the saddle, Farceur Du Large was an 11-1 shot to get the Snowden name back on the Grand Military Gold Cup winner’s board and found plenty for pressure from the final fence to see off the challenge of 85-40 favourite Rose Of Arcadia by four and a quarter lengths.
Farceur Du Large was making his debut for the Snowden stable, having been bought for £16,000 from Gigginstown House Stud in August with this race in mind.
“It was a very good race to me as a jockey during my short service time in the army. To come back and win it as a trainer is great as it is where it all started off,” said Snowden.
“If it wasn’t for these kinds of days I wouldn’t be where I am today. I remember a day at Sandhurst when I was on officer training and there was a knock on the door of the guards’ room I was in. I was ushered up to the commandant’s office thinking I was in trouble.
“It turned out that the jockey that was supposed to be riding the Royal Irish Hussars horse the following day was stuck in a mortar attack in Northern Ireland and I got the call up.
“The following day instead of going into the gas chamber (for a training exercise), I went into the commandant’s car to Sandown to ride the winner of the Grand Military Gold Cup. I then ended up at the Royal Lodge (Windsor) having a drink with the Queen and Queen Mother.
“Throughout my whole army career I ended up riding horses from that one day, and it has catapulted me into the position that I am in today.
“It is not the most prestigious of races we have been lucky enough to win, but in my heart it is a very special race.”
Kellard, 32, saluted the crowd after passing the post in front and was clearly elated.
He said: “That is my first winner full stop. I’ve been riding since about 2015. I’ve finished second in this, and I’ve come third in it. I’ve come second in point-to-points. I’ve hit the crossbar that many times so it has been a long time coming. It is some feeling.
“I would have been happy to keep on riding around here and never ride a winner, but to win the Grand Military Gold Cup is something else.
“I hope we come back here in a few weeks for the Royal Artillery Gold Cup. I’m still serving so it is a challenge to fit it all in, but to ride a couple of times around here each year makes it all worth it.”
Major Charlie O’Shea partnered Georgi Girl (7-2 favourite) to victory in the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle.
Having won the Grand Military Gold Cup on the same card two years ago aboard Rolling Dylan, O’Shea again hit target as he guided this Philip Hobbs and Johnson White-trained mare to a 19-length victory.
O’Shea said: “They said to me coming in that she was in good order and the stable is in top form. The hard work was done before me - I had loads of horse turning in.
“Johnson gave me a call a few weeks ago and said ‘why haven’t you been to ride out as we have got a couple of nice horses for you’. I said I would come in and this was the payback.
“When a yard like that does all the hard work for me, I just turn up, steer her around and come in grinning.”
Gary Moore enjoyed a double on the card, with Ballybentragh (6-1) initiating the brace when landing the Cardinal Wolsey ‘National Hunt’ Novices’ Hurdle for his ebullient owner-jockey David Maxwell.
The point-to-point recruit coped well with conditions on his debut under rules and proved two and a quarter lengths too strong for the 30-100 favourite Southoftheborder.
Moore said: “He has always worked like a nice horse and he loves his jumping. I’ve not had him that long to be honest with you and a lot of the credit must go to Noel Fehily, who has pre-trained him with David Crosse.
“I’d like to think he can improve a bit for today. He is a lovely, big horse and he should be jumping a fence. He will go chasing next season.”
Moore doubled up with the Niall Houlihan-ridden Kotmask, who comfortably justified 3-1 favouritism in the Long Water Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase.
Harry Cobden booted home the last two winners of the day, landing the Hampton Court Handicap Hurdle on Havaila (100-30) and the Anne Boleyn Novices’ Handicap Hurdle on Gyllen (5-1).
Jurgen Klopp will play no part in appointing his successor at Liverpool but is confident they will secure a “top manager”.
The club are currently without a sporting director but in 2015 Fenway Sports Group president Mike Gordon led the recruitment of Klopp.
A similar scenario is in place this time around but Klopp will not offer his input, saying: “No, why should I?
“It looks like I do all the work but I don’t, I can’t. That means all what we built in the last eight and half years is an incredibly strong structure behind the scenes so everything goes in the right direction.
“That’s the good news. That is one of the reasons why I can leave.
“My responsibility was so big that my idea was always to put everything in place to help with everything that this club gets stronger and stronger and we did that not to perfection but as good as we could.
“So many people work here with only one idea: to find a perfect solution for Liverpool and I am pretty sure that will happen.
“And the last thing they need is advice from the old man walking out who tells them ‘By the way, make sure you bring him in’. I will definitely not do that. I don’t want to be the passenger who is disturbing that process.
”They will get a top manager here, there will be good football.”
Former Reds midfielder Xabi Alonso – the current boss at Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen – has emerged as the immediate front-runner to take over from Klopp.
Liverpool chief executive Billy Hogan accepts it is a pivotal decision but believes they can get it right again.
“We will go through that process as we have done in the past and the same process that brought us Jurgen almost nine years ago,” he said.
“It is something we will do in private with the people here, with Mike Gordon in particular and when we get to a place when we have further news we will discuss it at that point but it won’t be a running commentary.
“We prefer to operate when we are ready to talk about things. Until that point, we won’t talk about other people or get into the name game.”
Hogan would also not commit to a timescale.
“From our perspective, I wouldn’t want to set an expectation,” he added.
“Number one because this is a process we have to go through and have done in the past.
“We make sure we look at all the information and all the data, we’ve done our proper due diligence and then make a decision and have an announcement at that time.
“I can’t commit to a timeline on it. It will go on in the background and we will ensure we are doing everything possible to make sure we make the right decision for the future of this football club.
“It is not to be a distraction. This is about making sure this campaign continues and the team continues to perform.”
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists even an unprecedented quadruple could not convince him to backtrack on his shock decision to quit at the end of the season.
The German stunned the footballing world by announcing he will depart at the end of the campaign with two years of his contract still to run, having already communicated his plans to owners Fenway Sports Group in November.
What made the news so surprising is that the club are arguably close to being back to the peak of their powers, with a five-point lead in the Premier League and a Carabao Cup final to come next month, while they have qualified for the last 16 of the Europa League and are one of the favourites for the FA Cup.
But, unlike Sir Alex Ferguson, who in the summer of 2001 announced his retirement only to backtrack at the end of the season, Klopp will not be moved from his stance, whether his team win it all or finish empty-handed.
“No! Alex Ferguson did that? I respect Alex a lot and I don’t know what drove him,” said the 56-year-old, unaware of the former Manchester United manager’s U-turn.
“I really thought a lot about it and because of our relationship – mine with the club – the situation is always clear.
“I have to make the decision at one point, because nobody else will, because of the trust and respect we have for each other and the owners knew I would take the decision.
“I don’t want to hang around and do the job somehow. I thought it through properly.
“I want everything this season, but it wouldn’t change my mind – and if we don’t win anything it wouldn’t change my mind.
“It’s a decision I made independent of any kind of results.”
Klopp has cited his waning energy to lift himself for the daily demands placed on him as the reason why he is calling it a day.
After finishing fifth the previous season, during which Klopp looked physically and emotionally drained, the Liverpool manager returned after the summer insisting he was re-energised and refreshed.
But as soon as plans started to be made for transfer targets and the next pre-season the German knew something was not right.
“My managerial skills are based on energy and emotion and that takes all of you and needs all of you. I am who I am and where I am because of how I am, with all the good and bad things, and if I cannot do it any more, stop it,” he said.
“You have to be the best version of yourself, especially for a club like Liverpool. I cannot do it on three wheels, it is not allowed, and I have never wanted to be a passenger.
“It was not my idea (to quit prematurely) when I signed a new contract, I was 100 percent convinced we would go until 2026.
“I under-estimated or judged it wrong because I thought my energy level was endless because it always was – and now it is not. Then we have to change.”
Klopp plans to take a year off and then see how he feels but has ruled out a return to management in England.
“Whatever will happen in the future I don’t know now, but no club, no country, for the next year, and no other English club ever,” he said.
“I can promise that, even if I have nothing to eat that will not happen.
Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso has emerged as the early favourite to succeed Klopp, although another former Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard, currently at Al-Ettifaq, has also been linked.
Alonso insisted on Friday his focus was solely on his current role and that he was in “the right place”.
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has hit back at Barcelona in a row between the rival clubs over refereeing standards.
Title-chasing Real controversially beat bottom side Almeria 3-2 in LaLiga last weekend after a number of contentious VAR calls went in their favour.
Commenting on what occurred, Barca boss Xavi claimed his side could not expect such luck with refereeing decisions.
“I already said in Getafe that it was going to be very difficult to win this league,” said Xavi, whose side are seven points behind second-placed Real. “There are things that we do not control, everyone has seen it.”
Barca president Joan Laporta went even further in his criticisms, suggesting the whole competition had been “corrupted” by the Almeria controversies.
Ancelotti responded on Friday with a thinly veiled reference to the ongoing investigation into Barcelona and alleged historic payments to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, the former vice-president of Spain’s referees’ committee.
“I don’t like to get into this kind of controversy,” told reporters Ancelotti at a press conference carried by the club’s website to preview Saturday’s game at Las Palmas.
“There’s been a lot of talk this week and I think the same as I said before. We don’t have to divert the issue, everyone knows what has happened in Spanish football over the last 20 years.
“That’s the problem of Spanish football, not the league being adulterated, because it isn’t. Spanish football has had a problem and the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office and the Guardia Civil are carrying out investigations and we have to give them time and patience.”
Ancelotti expects his team to rally after being questioned this week in the aftermath of the dramatic Almeria game, in which Real fought back from 2-0 down to win in the last minute.
He said: “We will try to perform at our best in a game that could be difficult because Las Palmas play very good football and defend really well. It’s going to be a demanding game.
“We’re motivated to get back to playing at our best and be more solid at the back. This week has been good for us, we’ve rested. The team is in good shape.”
Ancelotti will have to make one notable change to his line-up, with England midfielder Jude Bellingham suspended after clocking up his fifth LaLiga booking last week.
Ancelotti said: “We’ve been able to make up for the absence of important players many times and we’ll do the same again.”
Aaron Wainwright has handed Welsh rugby a major pre-Six Nations boost by agreeing a new contract with the Dragons.
The Wales back-row forward, who looks set to line up at number eight in next week’s Six Nations clash against Scotland, has agreed what the Dragons described as “a multi-year” deal.
The 26-year-old would undoubtedly have courted considerable interest elsewhere, given his Test experience of 43 caps and outstanding displays during the Rugby World Cup in France.
“Lots of positive conversations have gone on between Dai (Dragons head coach Dai Flanagan), myself and the club,” Wainwright said.
“I am looking forward to the next few years. I love the Dragons, I am a home boy.
“I love turning up to Rodney Parade, seeing fans out on the terraces, and that’s what I want to keep doing, turning up on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday and playing well, trying to make them happy.
“I am happy to have re-signed and I am excited to see what the next few years have to hold.”
Wainwright made his Wales debut in 2018 and he has developed into a player whose consistency of performance is an invaluable commodity for head coach Warren Gatland.
Only six players – and just two forwards – have more caps than him in Wales’ 34-strong Six Nations squad, and he is comfortably the senior back-row figure.
With Taulupe Faletau sidelined for the whole Six Nations, along with flanker and co-captain Jac Morgan, through injury, Wainwright will head up Gatland’s back-row resources.
A move from blindside flanker can be expected, unless Gatland hands uncapped Cardiff number eight Mackenzie Martin an opportunity and leaves Wainwright in the number six shirt.
“It is a fairly young group at the moment. It is definitely exciting, and it is about how we build on that,” Wainwright added.
“When I came in for my first campaign, some of the back rows in the squad – Tips (Justin Tipuric), Lyds (Dan Lydiate), Taulupe (Faletau) – it’s trying to be a figure to them like those boys were to me. I am just trying to be the best role model for them.
“I am not always the loudest of talkers. I hope to do it through my actions.
“We have been pushing each other in training, and everyone has fitted in well really quickly. We’ve only had three days of training, but information is being taken on really quickly.”
Scotland have not beaten Wales in Cardiff since 2002 – current head coach Gregor Townsend was their fly-half that day – losing 11 successive Tests in the Welsh capital.
But they have been strongly backed to end that sequence, particularly given Wales’ inexperience and the absence of players like Faletau, Morgan, Louis Rees-Zammit, Liam Williams and Dan Biggar.
The squad’s cap total is 735, but 438 of those appearances have been made by just seven players – Wainwright, Josh Adams, George North, Gareth Davies, Tomos Williams, Elliot Dee and Adam Beard.
Nicky Henderson’s Jonbon bids to continue a fine season in the My Pension Expert Clarence House Chase at Cheltenham on Saturday.
The eight-year-old has won both starts this term, taking the Shloer Chase by nine and a half lengths ahead of Edwardstone on his seasonal debut in November.
He then went to Sandown for the Tingle Creek, beating the same rival again to claim a two-and-three-quarter-length victory on heavy ground.
Nico de Boinville took the ride on both occasions to deputise for Jonbon’s usual rider Aidan Coleman, who is out injured, but De Boinville himself is now on the sidelines and James Bowen has been called up in his absence.
The contest was scheduled to take place at Ascot last weekend but when the meeting was called off due to frost, Cheltenham became the alternative host, scuppering an anticipated clash with Willie Mullins’ El Fabiolo.
Frank Berry, racing manager to owner JP McManus, said: “Nicky is very happy with him and we’re hoping for a good run and that all goes well. We’re looking forward to him.
“It will be nice ground there and it can only be a benefit to him to get some more Cheltenham experience.
“James is riding really well and riding plenty of winners and we’re looking forward to seeing him riding him.”
Henderson added via his Unibet blog: “It is a job well done by the Jockey Club and the British Horseracing Authority to get this race restaged and we are very happy to be taking part.
“Unfortunately, it’s not the clash we all wanted with El Fabiolo, but Jonbon is there and in great form at home.
“James has done plenty of schooling on him, primarily because we had him on standby for Ascot in case Nico wasn’t back in time, but as it was the race was off anyway. Hopefully this will set him up nicely for the Festival.”
Jonbon will face four rivals, amongst them Gary Moore’s Editeur Du Gite – fourth behind him in the Shloer and the winner of the Desert Orchid last time out.
Elixir De Nutz, third in the Desert Orchid and the winner of the Haldon Gold Cup, is also running for Joe Tizzard and Freddie Gingell.
Richard Hobson’s Fugitif, winner of the December Gold Cup at the track, is set to be ridden by Gavin Sheehan as Dan Skelton’s Nube Negra completes the field.
Jurgen Klopp has promised Liverpool fans he will never manage another English club after he leaves Anfield in the summer “even if he has nothing to eat”.
The 56-year-old German has shocked the football world by announcing he will stand down as Reds boss after nearly nine years in charge at the end of the season, having steered the club to six major trophies including the Premier League title in 2020 and the Champions League in 2019.
At a press conference on Friday he also:
:: Said he would play no part in choosing his successor.
:: Insisted he would not make a U-turn on his decision to quit as Sir Alex Ferguson once did at Manchester United.
:: Talked about how he could not sustain the energy levels needed for top-level management beyond this season, insisting “you have to be the best version of yourself”.
Klopp allayed any concerns among Liverpool fans that he could return to manage one of their rivals.
“Whatever will happen in the future I don’t know now, but no club, no country, for the next year, and no other English club ever,” he said at a press conference on Friday afternoon.
“I can promise that, even if I have nothing to eat that will not happen.”
Speculation has already turned to who could succeed Klopp at Anfield, with Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso – a former Reds midfielder – installed as the early bookmakers’ favourite.
Alonso insisted on Friday his focus was solely on his current role and that he was in “the right place”. Former Reds captain Steven Gerrard, currently with Saudi Arabian side Al Ettifaq, has also been linked.
Klopp insists he will have no input whatsoever to Liverpool’s recruitment process to find his successor.
“The last thing they need is advice from the old man walking out, telling them ‘make sure you bring him in’ or whatever – I will definitely not do that,” Klopp said.
“I wish this club the very, very, very best.”
Patrick Mullins is confident the unbeaten Lossiemouth is “fairly ready to rock” ahead of her seasonal reappearance in the Unibet Hurdle at Cheltenham on Saturday.
The five-year-old was the outstanding performer in the juvenile division last season, winning four of her five starts including the Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.
Lossiemouth is already a hot favourite to double her Festival tally in the Mares’ Hurdle come March and trainer Willie Mullins has purposely delayed her comeback until this weekend to ensure there is plenty of petrol left in the tank for the spring.
“With last year’s juveniles, they had busy seasons, so Willie was keen to work towards a spring campaign with them and not over-race them,” said Patrick Mullins, assistant to his father.
“Lossiemouth has been in full training all season, so while there will be small improvement there, she has plenty of graft under her belt and is fairly ready to rock.”
Mullins acknowledges Lossiemouth’s task is far from straightforward, with another top-class mare taking her on in the form of Harry Fry’s Love Envoi.
The latter was second to the brilliant Honeysuckle in the Mares’ Hurdle last season and finished second in the rearranged Fighting Fifth at Sandown on her reappearance last month.
It promises to be an informative afternoon on the Mares’ Hurdle front, with two of Lossiemouth’s stablemates, Ashroe Diamond and Gala Marceau, locking horns at Doncaster.
Mullins added: “It’s funny that the first two in the betting at Cheltenham are two mares on a day that there’s a good mares’ race (at Doncaster) as well, so I think that’s a sign of how well the mares’ programme is working.
“Love Envoi obviously sets the standard having run Honeysuckle close last year, so it will be fascinating to see where we measure up, stepping out of juvenile company.
“It’s always a tricky year from four to five so this is a big test, but it will let us know where we stand for March.”
Love Envoi’s original target was a £100,000 conditions event on the opening day of Lingfield’s Winter Million Festival last Friday, but the abandonment of that card forced a change of direction.
“We had planned to run at Lingfield over two and a half miles, but sadly we lost that and fortunately this is only a week later and a very good prize,” said Fry.
“It’s a good job this race is there in its new spot in the calendar from our point of view, because I don’t know what I would have done otherwise.
“It’s over two miles and she won over this course and distance when winning the Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle two seasons ago. She should have slow underfoot conditions and we’re hoping to see her take a big step up from her reappearance at Sandown, where she looked ring-rusty.
“She has definitely looked sharper in her work at home and in her schooling, so hopefully that will translate to what we see on the racecourse on Saturday.”
The five-strong field is headed by the Paul Nicholls-trained Rubaud, who won a Listed prize at Kempton and the Elite Hurdle at Wincanton on his first two starts of the season before predictably being outclassed by the magnificent Constitution Hill in the Christmas Hurdle on Boxing Day.
Nicholls told Betfair: “Rubaud is a gorgeous horse who keeps improving and won four on the bounce before he was put in his place by Constitution Hill at Kempton over Christmas. He still kept on well to finish second that day and is in calmer waters now.
“Rubaud has to give weight to all his rivals and the drier the ground, the better he will run, though he is slightly better racing right-handed.”
Nicky Henderson’s First Street and the long-absent Guard Your Dreams from the Nigel Twiston-Davies stable complete the quintet.
Lando Norris has signed a new ‘multi-year’ contract with McLaren, the team have announced.
The 24-year-old had previously committed until the end of the 2025 Formula One season but the new, unspecified deal will take his association with the team, which began six years ago, beyond that.
McLaren will hope the news ends speculation linking Norris, one of the most highly rated drivers on the grid, with a move to Red Bull.
Rumours he could leave McLaren gathered pace after a slow start to 2023 but results improved and the season became his most successful to date.
He finished sixth in the world championship after recording six second-placed finishes and the turnaround convinced him to stay.
Having now started 104 races and earned 13 podium finishes, his next challenge is to secure a win and he feels he is in the right place to do that.
Norris said: “Considering we were able to do what we did last year, considering it’s a team that I’ve been with from the beginning, it’s a team that I want to continue my story with in terms of reaching my goal of winning races and winning championships.
“McLaren is the team that I want to do it with. They’re the ones who brought me into Formula One and gave me this opportunity.
“So, in some ways, I feel like I owe it to them and I’m just very much part of the family and very much enjoying where I am. I don’t want to join a different team and not enjoy it.
“I’m excited to be part of that family, especially on the trajectory that we’re on.”
Despite Red Bull currently being the dominant force in the sport, Norris insists that a change of team was not something he seriously considered.
He said: “Really nothing from any other side was convincing enough to ever want to make me even have a proper look at another team.
“As much as I do want to just be in a team that’s the quickest one, there’s also that element of ‘I’m also here because I love racing and I love to have fun and enjoy all of that’.
“Really, for me, that’s my number one thing. I’m doing what I love and I want to be with a team that I love and enjoy every moment with.
“There’s not many things that can be guaranteed or assured of with any team. So it comes back to, where will I be happiest and where am I most confident that I can actually achieve a world championship?
“In the beginning of last year, maybe it wouldn’t have been McLaren but now I think I’m more confident than ever in saying it’s going to be.”
With team-mate Oscar Piastri having signed a contract extension in September, McLaren’s line-up is now confirmed until at least the end of 2026.
The lack of detail concerning the term of Norris’ contract could lead to speculation over whether an exit clause exists but the team have no intention of elaborating.
Chief executive Zak Brown said: “Sometimes you discuss it, sometimes you don’t. We see no reason to advertise any details of anybody’s contract.”
Jurgen Klopp will leave Liverpool at the end of the 2023-24 season.
In an emotional announcement, released via Liverpool's media channels on Friday, Klopp confirmed this campaign would be his last at the helm at Anfield.
Klopp, who is under contract at Liverpool until 2026, claimed he is running out of energy, and after nearly nine years in charge, he will be leaving the club as a legend.
While Liverpool will hope to round off the German's time in charge with a second Premier League title, and possibly further trophies – they are already in the EFL Cup final – the Reds will also have to face the daunting prospect of what comes next.
Regardless, Klopp is set to leave as one of the club's most successful managers.
With the help of Opta data, we break down Klopp's time in charge.
An Anfield giant
Bill Shankly, Bob Paisley, Kenny Dalglish. Klopp will take pride and place among the list of great managers to have taken charge of one of England's most successful clubs.
Since replacing Brendan Rodgers in October 2015, Klopp has taken charge of 466 matches, winning 283 of those. His win percentage of 60.7 makes him the best Liverpool manager in that metric, at least as far back as Opta's records go.
Klopp has lost just 78 games, while drawing 105. His team have scored 972 goals, an average of 2.1 per match.
Not that it has always been easy. In his first season – 2015-16 – his win rate was 44.2 per cent. However, it has never dropped below 50 per cent in a single campaign since then, with the low mark coming last term (50 per cent).
Klopp is the only Liverpool manager to win each of the top-flight, European Cup/Champions League, FA Cup, and League Cup with the club, while he has five major honours as it stands, which ranks him behind only Dalglish, Paisley (both six) and the great Shankly (13).
His Liverpool side peaked between 2018 and 2020. After reaching the Champions League final in 2017-18, the Reds won their sixth European Cup the following season, before then breaking their Premier League duck in 2019-20, albeit they wrapped up that title behind closed doors. They had also won the Super Cup and Club World Cup earlier that term.
The FA Cup and EFL Cup were both won in 2022 en route to what could have been a historic quadruple.
Liverpool still have four trophies left to play for this season. They sit top of the Premier League as it stands; they will face Chelsea in the EFL Cup final; they are into the knockout stage of the Europa League and they have a home tie against Norwich City in the fourth round of the FA Cup coming up on Sunday.
Klopp's best season based purely on win percentage came in 2021-22, when Liverpool won a remarkable 73 per cent of their games in all competitions, only to fall short of pipping Manchester City to the title on the last day of the Premier League season, before losing to Real Madrid in the Champions League final.
A European master
Klopp started as he meant to go on when it came to European football with Liverpool, leading the Reds to the Europa League final in his first season in charge.
Though they lost to Sevilla on that occasion back in 2016, Liverpool have gone from strength to strength in continental competitions. They were undone by Gareth Bale's magic and Loris Karius' error in Kyiv in 2018, but left all in Europe in their wake when they overcame Tottenham in Madrid a year later, having signed Alisson to ensure they had a top-class goalkeeper between the posts.
Liverpool were back in the showpiece match three years later. Again, it was Madrid they faced, and again Los Blancos came out on top – Vinicius Junior's goal and Thibaut Courtois' heroics enough to deny Klopp his second Champions League crown.
Klopp will not manage Liverpool again in the Champions League, meaning his 61.5 win percentage (40/65) in the competition will be maintained. His Liverpool team have scored an incredible 144 Champions League goals - an average of 2.2 per game.
Unbeaten runs, Guardiola rivalry and dominating the derby
The rivalry between Klopp's Liverpool and Pep Guardiola's Man City has been the lifeblood of the Premier League over recent seasons.
While Liverpool are not exactly cash-strapped, they do not have the state-backed wealth that City enjoy, yet Klopp has managed to keep the Reds highly competitive – on two occasions, they have finished just one point below City with points tallies that in almost any other circumstance would have surely seen them win the title.
Since Klopp's first Premier League game, Liverpool have taken 671 points, a tally that trails only City (716), while the Reds have a positive goal difference of 367 (675 goals for, 308 goals against).
As it stands, Klopp is the Premier League's third-most successful manager based on points per game, with his 2.12 ranking behind only Alex Ferguson (2.16) and Guardiola (2.34).
His next victory in the top flight will bring up his 200th as Liverpool manager, from what will be his 318th such match in charge.
Only Guardiola (18 with City between August and December 2017) has been on a winning run as long as Klopp has in the Premier League, with Liverpool having rallied off 18 straight wins between October 2019 and February 2020. The Reds had previously gone on a 17-game winning streak between March 2019 and October 2019, a run that was ended by a 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
Liverpool went on a 44-game unbeaten streak, meanwhile, between January 2019 and February 2020. Arsene Wenger (49 games between May 2003 and October 2004) is the only Premier League manager to have gone more successive matches without defeat.
Klopp has gone up against Guardiola on 24 occasions, making City the team Liverpool have faced the most in his time at the club. He has claimed 10 wins (41.7 per cent), lost six times and drawn eight games.
Of the four other 'big six' clubs, Chelsea rank as Klopp's least favourite, with just a 27.3 per cent win record from 22 matches (six victories). Klopp has faced Manchester United, meanwhile, on 18 occasions, winning seven times (36.8 per cent).
Meanwhile, Klopp has dominant form in the Merseyside derby. From 18 such meetings, Liverpool have lost just once to Everton, with that defeat coming at Anfield, behind closed doors, in 2021. The Reds have beaten the Toffees 11 times under Klopp (61.1 per cent).
Of the current Premier League sides, Klopp has claimed 12 victories over Bournemouth from 15 meetings, with that win percentage (80) his best against any side he has faced over six times.
Superstar Salah, fearsome front threes and flying full-backs
The story goes that Klopp was not initially in favour of signing Mohamed Salah from Roma back in 2017, but his arm was twisted by Liverpool's then-recruitment guru, Michael Edwards. If that is indeed true, then Klopp will no doubt be thrilled he was swayed to bring in the Egyptian.
Salah has scored 204 goals in 332 appearances for Liverpool, 84 goals more than any other player under Klopp (Sadio Mane – 120 goals from 269 appearances).
Only Roberto Firmino (355) has played more times for the Reds in Klopp's tenure than Salah, whose 306 starts puts him out in front. The 31-year-old has totalled up 27,037 minutes, over 2,000 more than next-best Firmino (24,903).
Salah also tops the charts for goal contributions (286), having added 82 assists on top of his strike tally.
Firmino and Mane, Salah's partners in crime in what was arguably the most feared forward line in world football, chipped in with 182 and 157 goal contributions respectively.
Meanwhile, Klopp has given more debuts to teenagers than any manager in Liverpool's history (42). One of those teenagers was Trent Alexander-Arnold, who along with Andrew Robertson, became pivotal to Klopp's heavy metal football.
The flying full-backs have been assist machines: Alexander-Arnold has created 78 goals in 298 appearances, while Robertson has crafted 63 from 275 games.
Just Firmino and Salah have played more minutes under Klopp than Alexander-Arnold (24,323) and Robertson (23,498).
What's next?
Whoever replaces Klopp has big shoes to fill, and this might well end up being Salah's last season at Anfield too, as Saudi Pro League clubs circle.
Xabi Alonso and Julian Nagelsmann have been some early names touted around, but until the end of May, it will be all about the Kop bidding goodbye to Klopp.
He deserves a hero's farewell.
Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri insists his side will face a “good challenge” when they take on struggling Empoli.
Juve are top of Serie A after losing just once in the competition all season and recording five straight wins following a 1-1 draw at Genoa in mid-December.
In contrast, Empoli are 19th in the table after four wins and four draws from 21 games, although their most recent match saw Szymon Zurkowski’s hat-trick secure a 3-0 win over Monza in Davide Nicola’s first game in charge.
“It’s an important match tomorrow,” Allegri told a pre-match press conference.
“We are well physically and mentally, but a good challenge awaits us too. Empoli deserves respect, they have quality players and coach Nicola’s arrival has given them solidity, so it won’t be an easy match.”
Juve can extend their lead over Inter Milan at the top of the table to four points on Saturday, with Simone Inzaghi’s side not in action until a trip to Fiorentina on Sunday.
The top two sides then meet at the San Siro on February 4 in a game which could go a long way to deciding the destiny of the Scudetto, although Allegri is not ruling out the challenge of AC Milan.
“After Inter-Juventus there are still many games to play, and let’s not forget Milan who scored more points than last year, have overcome a difficult period and can get back into the title race,” he added.
“The important thing is to stay balanced, keep the bar high and try to provide continuity.
“The Scudetto-winning points tally? It’s difficult to say right now, we’re up against a strong team in Inter who are favourites and have scored a lot of points. Being close to them is a great thing given that we’re on a different path.”
Federico Chiesa remains sidelined through injury and Allegri said he will decide whether to play or rest captain Danilo.
New signing Tiago Djalo has been assessed by the club’s medical staff after completing his move from Lille, the 23-year-old having not played since suffering an ACL injury last March.
“I feel good. My knee is fine,” Djalo said on Thursday. “Now it’s a question of opportunity. I’m ready. I’ll give everything for the team.
“I trained with the squad yesterday and this morning. My knee is recovering well. We’ll decide with the coach what to do. I’m very calm about it.
“I’ve come here to take an opportunity and make myself available to the coach. I know I have the attributes needed to help out. It’s just a matter of getting opportunities.”
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