Despite long-standing claims he does not like football, winning matters to Arsenal defender Ben White.

The 26-year-old England international carries a reputation as someone who sees his sport as a job and something he has no passion for.

White, though, insists that is not the case and just because he does not go home and watch every live football match he can get his eyes on should not suggest otherwise.

“I know people say I don’t like football, but I go home and football is not on my mind. I can just be a normal person, relax. When I’m in here (training) it is intense,” he said.

“It’s come from since I was young. I want to win everything that I do. My missus and I play a lot of games at home and I won’t be letting her win. We play bat and ball a lot, Uno, this magnet game. That’s sort of it.

“I remember being young and always wanting to win and play aggressive and do as much as I could to win.

And if he is losing to his wife at any of those games, it is simple: “Yeah, the ball gets lost!”

White has become a key component of Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal side that, for a second year running, has Premier League title ambitions.

Arteta sees White as someone willing to go into battle for his team, something of a warrior, and White revealed he knows his duties ahead of every game is to win the one-on-one battle with the opposing winger.

“Before the game we have instructions of how they are going to do well in the game and what processes they have to be able to hurt us,” added former Brighton man White.

“(Against Newcastle) Anthony Gordon was one of them, my job was to stop him rolling inside so I had to get as tight as possible, otherwise foul him.

“He’s going inside if not. Every game, normally the winger is the best player so its always a challenge and I have to do my homework and try and stop him.

“I know I’m not going to stop everyone and I know I’m not the best one-v-one defender but I know I can do things to help the team in game situations against their winger.”

Arsenal ultimately ran out 4-1 winners against Newcastle on Saturday night, the latest in a string of impressive performances and eye-catching results for the Gunners.

“We haven’t got anything, so there is nothing to lose,” White replied when asked about Arsenal being the chasers in the title run-in against Liverpool and Manchester City.

“We are just going to go out there, do our best, and try and perform like we have the last few games.”

West Brom moved seven points clear of the Sky Bet Championship play-off chasing pack thanks to a narrow 2-1 win over top-six rivals Coventry.

Celtic loan star Mikey Johnston scored another wonder goal to hand Albion an early lead before Grady Diangana doubled their advantage.

Substitute Haji Wright scored from the penalty spot for Coventry, but it was West Brom who took the spoils to strength their play-off ambitions.

The hosts led after just seven minutes after Johnston showed again exactly why head coach Carlos Corberan brought him to the club.

Johnston picked up the ball out wide before dancing past a number of Coventry defenders and curling home beyond Ben Wilson.

Albion enjoyed much of the early pressure but, after a couple of warning strikes from distance, Josh Eccles almost finished off a neat short-corner routine from the visitors.

The ball was worked out to the edge of the area, however, his curling effort was mistimed and it dropped just wide of the post.

Kasey Palmer then went close from distance before the home side extended their advantage 10 minutes before half-time.

Tom Fellows got himself half a yard on Jay Dasilva and was able to cut a cross back to Diangana, who volleyed in off the inside of the post.

It was a clinical display from Albion in the first period – with their only two opportunities conjuring up a two-goal advantage.

Coventry made a half-time substitution, with Wright replacing Callum O’Hare, but it did not change the complexion of the game in the opening 10 minutes of the second half.

Diangana headed a Johnston free-kick wide before Conor Townsend’s effort from distance deflected over.

At the other end, a snapshot from Victor Torp drew a smart save from Alex Palmer as the visitors began to get a foothold in the game.

Coventry midfielder Palmer tested the West Brom goalkeeper and Torp went closer from distance before the Sky Blues halved the deficit with 18 minutes left.

Palmer was upended by Cedric Kipre in the box and substitute Wright stepped up to send the keeper the wrong way from the penalty spot.

Ellis Simms then spurned a chance to level shortly after, with Albion starting to shake in the wake of the spot-kick.

Simms fired over again as the clock ticked down as Coventry sensed a late equaliser.

Eccles saw an effort deflect wide as the Sky Blues pressured late on, but West Brom stood firm.

Jamaica's senior Reggae Boyz drew first blood against their Trinidad and Tobago counterparts, as they registered a 1-0 win in the first of their two-match friendly series at the Hasely Crawford Stadium on Friday.

Kaheim Dixon's 58th-minute strike proved the solitary goal of the contest which was played behind closed doors to facilitate preparation for the twin island republic's Carifta Games trials.

Dixon, the former Clarendon College stalwart, was the first Reggae Boy to score on debut since Justin McMaster's feat against Cameroon in 2022.

Reggae Boyz assistant coach Merron Gordon said their main objective to expose new talents were met as they fielded 13 debutants on the day.

"Games like these are always tough playing against Trinidad and Tobago, but I think it was a good game. Both teams, I think had the same objective which was to expose these players as much as possible and I think we got that," Gordon said in a post-match interview.

"When you see a player like Kahiem score a goal on his debut is amazing and these are the kind of things that we want for them to transition from schoolboy football into international football and I think he acquitted himself well, and young Jayden Hibbert in goal is a teenager as well so that augurs well for us," he added.

The Jamaicans started well, and were more threatening in open play in the early exchanges, before Trinidad and Tobago's Soca Warriors found their rhythm. Though the first half ended goalless, it wasn't for a lack of trying, as both teams had looks at goal.

In the 12th minute, Kaihim Thomas got the first effort off for the Soca Warriors from a distance, but Reggae Boyz goalkeeper Kemar Foster took flight to tip over.

Alex Marshall, who proved a menace to the Soca Warriors's backline, responded for the Reggae Boyz, but his effort was parried by Adrian Foncette, in goal for Trinidad and Tobago.

Jamaica's Reggae Boyz maintained the momentum on the resumption and again went close through Romeo Guthrie, whose shot was blocked by Foncette at his near post two minutes in.

The deadlock was eventually broken when Dixon produced an intelligent run down the right channel, dismissed a defender and tucked home.

They should have doubled the lead in the 65th when Sue-Lae McCalla found himself with space and time to fire home from Guthrie's corner, but somehow steered the effort wide.

Seconds later, Marshall and Dixon connected well with the latter driving his right-footer into the sidenetting.

The Reggae Boyz continued to apply consistent pressure but found the Soca Warriors defence in defiant mode, as a 69th-minute effort by Jason Wright from Andre Fletcher's pass, was charged down.

A minute later, Devante Campbell played a perfect pass across the face of goal, but Wright couldn't apply finishing touch.

Campbell also had a grand opportunity to get on the scoresheet in time added, when he found himself in a one-on-one situation with substitute goalkeeper Christopher Biggette, but his tame effort was swallowed up by the custodian, who left his line well.

Despite the scoreline, Soca Warriors Head coach Angus Eve, took heart from the performance.

"Not disappointed at all. Many of these players are playing at this level for the very first time and I think they acquitted themselves well and we were in the game for the most part, but we gave away a sloppy goal that proved the difference in the game. We want to give people exposure as you can see, we made minimum number of changes because we wanted to expose the young guys as much as possible. So, this is a good exercise for them to understand the pace of the game at this level going forward," Eve said.

The teams will meet again on Sunday at the Larry Gomes Stadium in Arima at 3:00pm Jamaica time.

NB: That game can also be seen live on SportsMax 

Lazio had three players sent off as Noah Okafor’s late goal secured a 1-0 win for AC Milan in a chaotic match at the Stadio Olimpico.

Milan grabbed their first win in four matches, a run which has seen their already faint hopes of a title challenge completely fade away, when substitute Okafor finally broke the deadlock three minutes from time.

The match turned in their favour when Lazio’s Luca Pellegrini needlessly got himself sent off with over half an hour still to play.

Lazio lost their heads in stoppage time and finished with eight men after Adam Marusic and Matteo Guendouzi were also dismissed.

Lazio, who travel to Bayern Munich on Tuesday looking to protect their 1-0 lead from the first leg of their Champions League clash, were inches away from taking the lead after 10 minutes.

Felipe Anderson flicked on a Luis Alberto corner and Matias Vecino prodded the ball narrowly wide of the far post.

They were denied a penalty moments later when Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan took a poor touch from a backpass and then wiped out Valentin Castellanos with his follow through, but nothing was given either on the field or in the VAR room.

Milan’s first chance arrived when former Roma right-back Alessandro Florenzi crossed for Olivier Giroud, but the Frenchman’s header was off target.

Giroud should have put the visitors ahead in first-half stoppage time after Christian Pulisic’s drive was pushed over the crossbar by Ivan Provedel.

Theo Hernandez swung in the corner, but Giroud’s header at the far post flew harmlessly over.

Lazio were reduced 10 men just before the hour when Pellegrini, who had been booked seven minutes earlier for a foul on Pulisic, was sent off for blatantly pulling back the former Chelsea man.

Moments later, Giroud played a one-two with Ruben Loftus-Cheek, but he could only hit his shot straight at Provedel.

Provedel showed great reactions to get a hand to a Loftus-Cheek volley, before the 10 men had a golden chance to go ahead when substitute Ciro Immobile somehow missed the target from four yards out.

Milan thought they had taken the lead with 13 minutes remaining when Rafael Leao fired home from a tight angle, but a lengthy VAR check ruled the effort out for offside.

The goal came after Provedel made another fine one-handed save to keep out Okafor’s initial drive.

But Lazio could not clear the loose ball and when it fell to Okafor again, the Switzerland international forward lashed it into the net.

The match ended in a farce with both Marusic and Guendouzi sent off at the death as Milan held on for a hard-earned victory.

Bayern Munich’s floundering Bundesliga title defence was dealt another blow after they were held to a frustrating 2-2 draw at Freiburg following Lucas Holer’s 87th-minute equaliser.

Thomas Tuchel’s men were on course for a much-needed comeback success at Europa-Park Stadion after eye-catching strikes from Mathys Tel and Jamal Musiala overturned Christian Gunter’s early opener.

But, with Harry Kane largely peripheral, Freiburg forward Holer hooked home late on to leave Bayern seven points adrift of leaders Bayer Leverkusen.

Xabi Alonso’s table-toppers can stretch their advantage to 10 points in Sunday’s derby at local rivals Cologne.

Bayern ended a three-match losing run, during which it was announced Tuchel will leave at the end of the season, thanks to Kane’s brace in last weekend’s 2-1 success over RB Leipzig.

The outgoing head coach made two enforced changes from that win as defender Kim Min-jae and 18-year-old forward Tel replaced the suspended Matthijs de Ligt and injured Leroy Sane.

Bayern began slowly and were punished with just 12 minutes on the clock.

Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer initially appeared to have rescued his side by producing a stunning save to repel Roland Sallai’s close-range header before touching the same player’s subsequent overhead kick on to the crossbar.

But the Bavarians failed to fully clear the danger and Gunter, whose season has been severely disrupted by two broken arms, emphatically capitalised by lashing a left-footed drive into the bottom right corner from the edge of the 18-yard area.

With England captain Kane struggling to make an impact, the away side were fortunate not to fall further behind.

Neuer denied Gunter his second from a tight angle before Vincenzo Grifo flashed narrowly wide.

After Thomas Muller and Kane each had penalty appeals waved away, Bayern were rewarded for a period of dominance with a spectacular 35th-minute equaliser.

France Under-21 international Tel did the damage, marking his first Bundesliga start of the season by delightfully curling home from the left corner of Freiburg’s penalty box following a partially-cleared corner.

Bayern could have led at the break as Musiala’s close-range poke was blocked by home keeper Noah Atubolu after Leon Goretzka and Raphael Guerreiro threatened.

Kane dragged a left-footed effort wide early in the second period before later seeing a header cleared off the line after Musiala wasted a golden chance.

Musiala soon made amends with a moment of magic, cutting in from the left and dancing beyond Kiliann Sildillia and Maximilian Eggestein to curl into the far corner.

The fine solo strike looked to be enough for victory but the visitors paid a heavy price for failing to kill off the contest when Holer fired home on the turn following a long throw into the box.

Bayern move on to the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Lazio looking to overturn a 1-0 aggregate deficit, while Freiburg prepare to begin their Europa League knockout tie with West Ham.

Kieron Edwards or Colin Wharfe will take the reins of a new Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) administration, after both confirmed their candidacy for the presidential elections scheduled for April 13, 2024.

Edwards, the Eastern Football Association (EFA) president, confirmed his nine-member slate, which includes Colin Murray, Osmond Downer and Jameson Rigues as vice-presidential candidates, while Wharfe, the CEO of the Trinidad and Tobago Premier Football League (TTPFL), announced a vice-president candidates list that includes Colonel Keston Charles, Renee John-Williams and Huey Cadette. 

Jude Bellingham is fit to face Valencia with Carlo Ancelotti confirming the midfielder will feature for Real Madrid on Saturday.

The England star has been sidelined with an ankle injury but is available for the LaLiga clash at the Mestalla.

Bellingham, who has 21 goals for club and country this season, has been out since suffering the injury against title rivals Girona in February and has missed Real’s last three games.

Ancelotti said: “He’s at 100 per cent. He hasn’t trained too much with the team but he’s done all he needs to on an individual basis.

“He’s in good shape, optimum physical condition and he’s comfortable with his ankle. He’s up for it and will play.

“The team has trained well and (Dani) Carvajal, (Eduardo) Camavinga, Joselu and Bellingham will all be back. We want to deliver a positive display. The key moments in the season come in March and April and confidence is high.

“We have options. Picking a starting XI is always tough. There are several players who are contributing very well and deserve to play. I haven’t had too many difficult decisions to make up until now because we’ve always had so many injuries.”

Real are six points clear at the top of LaLiga having lost just once in the league this season, to rivals Atletico Madrid in September.

They beat Valencia, who are ninth, 5-1 at home in November but have struggled at the Mestalla recently.

Real have only won one of their last five trips to Valencia, including last year’s 1-0 defeat, with Ancelotti wary of the threat their hosts have.

He said: “The closer we get to the end of the season, the more important the games become. Real Madrid have always struggled at Mestalla because it’s a tough place to go against opposition enjoying a good run. Of course, we’ll have to be at our best.

“The plan is to play a great football match and I’m sure Valencia are thinking the same. That’s what the fans and players want ahead of the game, an entertaining spectacle.

“It’s one of the biggest. But all are important, including the three points against Sevilla. Picking up points at this stage of the season is hugely important. Every team needs the points to fight for top spot, the Champions League places or against relegation.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers believes they have been their own worst enemies this season.

But he is optimistic his side can find the consistency of performance they will need during the title run-in.

The cinch Premiership champions delivered their biggest victory of the season on Wednesday when they thrashed Dundee 7-1 with the help of six first-half goals.

Previous league games since the winter break had all been tight and two draws saw Celtic lose top spot in the table to Rangers, who could go five points clear when they host Motherwell on Saturday.

Celtic travel to face Hearts on Sunday, possibly without skipper Callum McGregor, and Rodgers is looking for his side to build on their midweek display.

“I have always felt our biggest enemy this season is ourselves,” he said.

“If we perform to the level that we can do on a consistent basis, we are a very good team. It’s that consistency now of taking that performance into our next game.”

Rodgers has seen Alistair Johnston, Greg Taylor and Cameron Carter-Vickers return to his back four in recent games following injuries.

He is looking to utilise that settled platform in the final months of the season.

“When you arrive at 10 games to go, that’s when the fun begins, that’s when you are into the business side,” he said. “That’s what I am really looking forward to.

“We have obviously had inconsistencies up to this point. But we are still very much there, still very much in our hands what it is we want to do.

“To have these players coming back is great and really good timing.”

McGregor was replaced by Daniel Kelly at half-time against Dundee, with the 18-year-old scoring his first goal on his league debut.

“Callum came off at half-time during the week,” Rodgers said. “He felt his Achilles a little bit and his calf.

“I know from speaking to him, at this time of the year he does normally feel a little bit because he does play so much.

“So we just have to assess that and see where he is over the next 24 hours.”

McGregor has played further forward in the past two games after the return of Tomoki Iwata, who missed two months of action after picking up a knock.

The Japanese midfielder has seized his latest opportunity after making only 10 starts during his first 12 months as a Celtic player.

“He anchors that midfield for us and allows Cal to move on,” Rodgers said.

“He is a very good player but he has missed a lot of this season, moments where it looked like he was going to get his run in the team, he was out injured.

“So that’s been the challenging time for him and then it was just been about getting him up to speed and getting him in at the right time.

“I am really pleased for him because he has given his all in training and he has waited for that opportunity.

“This was a midfield that was very difficult for players to get into.

“If you look at Matt O’Riley, with all due respect, Matt wasn’t really starting last year. You had Callum, Reo Hatate and Aaron Mooy playing a lot of the games. He has come in and had a fantastic season, Matt, and Tomo has had to be patient.

“But I trust him, when he does come in. He plays the game simple, he is dynamic in winning the ball back and he has performed really well in these last two games.”

Mauricio Pochettino believes his Chelsea players have learned to “understand each other” after what he called the hardest week of his Stamford Bridge tenure.

The extra-time defeat to Liverpool in last Sunday’s Carabao Cup final denied his young side, who are 11th in the Premier League, the chance to lift silverware in what has so far been a trying season.

They were then given a scare by Championship side Leeds on Wednesday, requiring a last-minute goal from Conor Gallagher to win through to the FA Cup quarter-finals having fallen behind early and then been pegged back to 2-2 in the second half.

There has been much criticism of the nature of the loss at Wembley, coming after the team missed a host of chances during normal time and failed to win out against a Liverpool side beset by injury and featuring four inexperienced academy graduates by the end of the game.

Pochettino was asked whether the fallout from that defeat has given him his toughest spell in the job since taking over in July last year.

“Maybe yes,” he admitted. “We feel very disappointed. We had faith to win, we were so close. After 90 minutes we were the better side. The last 15, 20 minutes we created many big chances to score and win the game.

“Then the energy dropped and we didn’t keep the energy after 90 minutes. That’s why we lost the game. We’re all really disappointed because we put in too much energy to try to win. I think we deserved it.

“We met after the game (Sunday), in a different place away from Wembley. The players started to feel the good spirit. (They were) disappointed and (it was) painful.

“But Monday and Tuesday we were very open. All the players wanted to play. Some were tired with some problems, but everyone wanted to play against Leeds. That speaks highly about the squad.

“They are learning, to compete all together, to feel each other, to know how they behave in this level when it’s a final, with not too much experience.

“They start to understand each other, that’s the most important thing. After seven or eight months, we already know the profile of the players, how they behave.

“But it’s important for them to know each other, to know how they will react under high pressure and high stress.”

Defenders Thiago Silva and Marc Cucurella will be assessed ahead of Saturday’s meeting with Brentford at the Gtech Stadium.

Silva has missed the last five games with injury while Cucurella has not featured since early December.

However, Pochettino confirmed that a hamstring injury is likely to keep Christopher Nkunku out for around four weeks.

The 26-year-old had to wait until December to make his Chelsea debut after joining from RB Leipzig in the summer, having required surgery on a knee injury picked up in pre-season.

He has made only seven league appearances as he has struggled to attain match fitness, scoring twice.

“It’s bad luck to suffer again a setback,” said Pochettino. “It’s tough for a player that hasn’t played too much this season.

“He came from Germany with some problems. He was so good in pre-season. It’s a difficult season for him. It’s difficult to accept.

“I say it’s bad luck because I don’t have the information and knowledge about medicine to say why this type of injury happens.”

Pep Guardiola has stressed the importance of remaining calm ahead of this weekend’s Manchester derby.

The Manchester City manager wants to take the emotion out of Sunday’s crunch Premier League visit of United.

The encounter marks the start of a critical month for champions City in their bid to win a fourth successive title, with games against rivals Liverpool and Arsenal to follow.

City have held the upper hand over United in recent years, and the form of the Old Trafford side this season has been patchy, but Guardiola is well aware of the pitfalls of this fixture.

Guardiola said: “There have been good seasons (for United). With Jose Mourinho for one season and Ole (Gunnar Solskjaer) they finished second, fighting – not until the end – but they were (up) there.

“What I learn from my experience in these types of games is to be more calm, relax, don’t talk about many things, just focus on tactics and what you have to do to beat them, not about emotions – because emotions will be there, without doubt.

“That is why we relax and prepare for the game as best as possible, knowing the quality.

“For United to go to Wolves and beat them and Luton, and have the quality to beat Aston Villa a few weeks ago, so they have incredible quality.

“From one action, they create something special in set-pieces, transitions, and in open play. They have connections with players and they score goals. It always has been that way with United.

“When they play good, they win games. We are in March and they’ve just lost one game this year – last week at home – so the consistency they have is there.”

City are not only chasing another Premier League title but seeking to win unprecedented back-to-back trebles.

Their success has made them the dominant force in English football over the past decade, but Guardiola has warned there is no guarantee it will continue.

He said: “The 80s was Liverpool, 90s United and now we have won seven Premier Leagues in the last 11 or 12 years.

“But in 50 or 60 years, there has never been one country where one team always dominates and controls everything. We will try in this organisation to extend this as much as possible for many years.”

New United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has spoken of his ambition to knock City “off their perch” within three years after a prolonged period of relative decline at Old Trafford, under various managers.

“Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his people know the diagnosis of their club,” Guardiola said. “I don’t know anything about that club.

“If they said they need two or three years to be there, who am I to say the opposite? I’m pretty sure they will work to reduce the gap, but I’m not there, I don’t know the diagnosis.

“But I would say at big clubs you have to win and win, not just United.

“It’s not easy for United to come from an incredibly successful period with Sir Alex (Ferguson) and cope with that, that is not easy. Sometimes I can understand it. Today everyone has a lot of pressure.”

Philippe Clement revealed a specialist is looking into Oscar Cortes’ muscle injury, with no time frame yet for the Rangers winger’s return.

The 20-year-old Colombia international hit the ground running after joining the Light Blues on loan from Lens last month, with the Govan club having an option to buy in the summer.

Cortes scored his first goal for Rangers in the 5-0 thumping of Hearts at Ibrox last weekend but had to come off during the 2-1 win over Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on Wednesday night which kept the Light Blues two points clear of Celtic at the top of the cinch Premiership.

The Belgian boss confirmed striker Kemar Roofe and midfielder Ryan Jack would return to the squad for the home game against Motherwell on Saturday, but on Cortes he said: “Oscar will be out, I don’t know how long.

“We are looking into that with the doctor and specialist.

“It is a muscle injury, but I cannot say much more at the moment.

“I don’t want to speak about a half-empty glass.

“I am focused now on the players who are available for this game, because otherwise I would have lost a lot of energy in the last couple of months and that is useless.

“It is a pity for him and the team, yes, it is an opportunity for another player to show it and to do it, it works like that.”

Spanish-speak Caribbean nation Cuba joined Central Americans El Salvador and Guatemala on the verge of progression to the Concacaf Men's Championships following their latest victories in their respective qualifying campaigns on Thursday.

Group A

Cuba edged Belize 1-0 at the Estadio Nacional in Managua, courtesy of Aniel Casanova 12th-minute strike, to pull level with host nation Nicaragua on nine points at the top of the group.

The other contest on the day saw British Virgin Islands (BVI) register their second win in a 3-1 beating of Anguilla.

Azarni Callwood (18th, 23rd, 89th) scored all three goals for BVI, while Jared Smeins (28th), pulled one back for Anguilla.

Group B

Guyana registered their first victory of the campaign when they edged Turks and Caicos Islands 2-1, at the ABFA Technical Centre in Piggots, Antigua and Barbuda.

 Ezekial Rowland's brace (32nd, 55th) was enough to get the job done for the Golden Jaguars, while Emmanuel Martin (90th) got on the scoresheet for Turks and Caicos Islands. Both teams are out of contention where topping the group is concerned.

The feature contest of the day ended with a massive three points for El Salvador, who blanked Suriname, 3-0.

Christopher Argueta (17th), Nestor Delgado (24th) and Kiano Casamalhuapa (66th) did the damage for El Salvador, who now sit atop the group on seven points, one point ahead of Antigua and Barbuda and Suriname, on six points each.

This makes things interesting heading into Saturday's final round of games, as Antigua and Barbuda will lock horns with El Salvador in a top-of-the-table clash, while Suriname will have the easier task against Turks and Caicos Islands. 

Victory for Suriname could propel them to the top, but only if the Antigua and Barbuda clash with El Salvador, end in a stalemate. 

Group C

Host nation Guatemala assumed pole position in the group with nine points, after a 4-0 win over Aruba, at the Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores in Guatemala City.

Rudy Munoz (8th), Daniel Mendez (24th, 37th), Matthew Evans (45th) and Axel De La Cruz (85th) gave the home crowd much to cheer about.

Guatemala are now two points ahead of Curacao, with both set to meet in the decisive contest on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Barbados registered a morale-boosting 4-2 win over St Martin to take some positive from their failed campaign.

Barbados's goals came from Xavier Webster (1st), Ethan Taylor (77th) and Khalil Vanderpool Nurse (80th, 90+1), while Jaheem Joe (42nd) and a Warren Trotman own goal (72nd) got St Martin's goals.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes their current status as Premier League leaders has made a “statement” but knows the situation can quickly unravel.

Their lead over Manchester City is a point and two over third-placed Arsenal, but Klopp admitted maintaining their winning run was the only way to stay ahead of the chasing pack and their advantage was balanced on a knife edge due to injuries ravaging his squad.

There are similarities to two years ago when Liverpool also had 60 points after 26 matches – although that was only good enough to be three points behind City – and were chasing another quadruple.

On that occasion they finished with a domestic cup double but finished runners-up in the league by a point on 92 and lost the Champions League final.

However, with 10 first-team players still currently sidelined, Klopp said the two campaigns were not comparable.

“It is only one point above City and two points above Arsenal but that means nothing,” he said.

“Sixty points is a statement for that moment in the season but stay on 60 and I am not sure you qualify for the Champions League to be honest so we had better continue winning football games.

“It was a much more comfortable squad situation (two years ago). As far as I remember we could make massive changes between competitions.

“You cannot really compare it but it showed us you can fight for everything and win something.

“Some people will be happy with that and some will tell you it was not enough but for us, it was a successful season and let’s hope we can make a successful season out of this one.”

Leading scorer Mohamed Salah is set to return to training next week, probably two weeks behind schedule, but Klopp will have fellow forward Darwin Nunez and midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai available for Saturday’s trip to Nottingham Forest after missing three and six matches out respectively.

“I don’t think Mo is too far off. It’s like touch and go but I think next week at any point, it is possible,” added Klopp, who also expects to be able to call on midfielder Wataru Endo after his ankle injury at Wembley and left-back back Andy Robertson, who was ill in midweek.

Since their second league defeat of the season at Arsenal a month ago, Liverpool have won five successive matches – one of them being the Carabao Cup final and another an FA Cup fifth-round tie – with a depleted team.

But Klopp denied the result at the Emirates Stadium had given them extra incentive.

“The results are incredibly important but I wouldn’t call it ‘a response to the Arsenal game’, we didn’t use it in that way,” he said.

“I didn’t say ‘Look at that, now we have to show a reaction’. We always have to show a reaction. But first and foremost you have to show a reaction to yourself.

“It was a one-off: Arsenal were really good, we were not as good as we could have been and that can happen in a season.

“But if you can only reach your targets when you win all your games, it is really difficult – not even City did that even when they came close.

“You have to use the lesser good things as much as you have to use the good things and against Arsenal, unfortunately, there were a few more lesser good things.

“But we never used it, it was not ‘Come on boys, we have to show we are not as bad as we were that night’, not at all.”

Tottenham have been dealt a fresh injury blow with Richarlison ruled out for up to four weeks with a knee injury.

Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou has been without several players this season for prolonged periods, but appeared to have an almost fully-fit squad to pick from when Pape Sarr, Yves Bissouma and Son Heung-min returned from international duty last month.

However, Richarlison sustained a knee issue in the 2-1 defeat to Wolves a fortnight ago, while Pedro Porro (muscle) remains out to join Fraser Forster (ankle), Ryan Sessegnon (hamstring) and Manor Solomon (knee) on the treatment table ahead of Saturday’s visit of Crystal Palace.

“Destiny (Udogie) has trained but Pedro is probably another week away,” Postecoglou revealed.

“We do have a couple of (other) injuries. Richarlison is out for three to four weeks. He picked up a knee injury in the last game so he will be out for a little while.

“Richy is disappointed because he’s been a key contributor but again it is kind of how our season has gone. We get one back and lose another.

“With Sess, it is a tough one because through no fault of his own, he has worked hard to come back and it is always more challenging when it happens as a series of events.

“He hasn’t really had any reward for the hard work he has put in, in terms of his rehab, to at least get out there and play, to do what he loves, to show people his ability. It is a tough one for him but he’ll get all the support he needs.

“He has had his surgery now and is still a positive guy. He has been through this before, so hopefully that helps him to come back stronger and get out there playing.”

Jack Grealish is unlikely to be fit for England’s friendlies against Brazil and Belgium later this month, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said.

The City midfielder suffered a recurrence of a recent groin injury in the club’s FA Cup win at Luton on Tuesday.

Grealish was substituted after just 38 minutes of the 6-2 victory at Kenilworth Road, cutting short what had been his first appearance in four games.

He has been ruled out of Sunday’s derby against Manchester United in the Premier League and Guardiola said at a press conference on Friday he was unlikely to play again before the next international break.

Guardiola said: “I don’t think so. I haven’t spoken with (England manager) Gareth (Southgate) but I don’t think he will be ready.

“When he will come back, I don’t know exactly. He will not be fit for this weekend.

“I think he has to recover well. He has had a setback and he has to recover well for us to use him as much as possible.”

England host Brazil at Wembley on March 23 and Belgium three days later as part of their Euro 2024 preparations.

Grealish has had a difficult season having struggled for form and fitness and seen team-mates excel in his place.

The 28-year-old had been one of the most consistent performers during City’s 2022-23 treble-winning campaign.

Guardiola is confident he will bounce back from this latest problem.

The Spaniard said: “Yes, he doesn’t have an alternative. Setbacks in life are always there, it is how you overcome them.”