Pep Guardiola is grappling with a midfield conundrum for Manchester City’s visit to an Arsenal side he believes have established themselves among the Premier League elite once again.
While Guardiola issued a positive update over the injured Kevin de Bruyne, the Belgian will be missing for Sunday’s clash while midfield general Rodri serves the last game of a three-match domestic ban.
Kalvin Phillips and Mateo Kovacic have been deployed in the holding role in the Spaniard’s absence although City lost on both occasions – at Newcastle in the Carabao Cup and at Wolves in the league.
Guardiola lamented how difficult Rodri is to replace and will decide closer to kick-off how best to plug the gap in a fixture many observers view as significant in the title race.
“(Rodri is) maybe the best or in the top two or three best holding midfielders in the world,” Guardiola said. “He’s not here and we’ll have to find a solution with our players and how we want to play.
“When you have an absence as important as him you have to have a solution. I am not going to deny how important Rodri is, like how Kevin is, but when they are not here we cannot start to cry.
“He is not here, we will find solutions and decide how we are going to press and play.
“The moment in my mind when a player is not there, he is completely out and I don’t think about it. He is not there.”
Defeat at the Emirates Stadium would be the first time City have been beaten in successive league games since December 2018 – and Guardiola is wary of an Arsenal team managed by former protege Mikel Arteta.
Arteta, a former assistant of Guardiola’s at the Etihad Stadium, has led Arsenal out of the doldrums. The north London club endured a few years out of the top four but they were the closest challengers last season to City, finishing just five points adrift of Guardiola’s all-conquering treble winners.
The Gunners are now hot on the heels of current league leaders City and represent a stern test for a side bidding to bounce back from last weekend’s surprise 2-1 defeat at Molineux.
“Arsenal is back to where they were when they fought with Sir Alex (Ferguson’s Manchester United) team,” Guardiola said. “When I arrive here they were not there and now they are back.
“In the calendar you see when you have to go to the Emirates Stadium. The recruitment they have done is exceptional, with (Declan) Rice and (Kai) Havertz.
“Absolutely (they are City’s main title rivals), along with Liverpool from what we’ve seen.”
Guardiola confirmed John Stones is unavailable for selection this weekend – despite the centre-half being named in England’s squad for matches against Australia and Italy later this month.
“No, he’s not ready to play,” Guardiola said. “Maybe for the national team, but not us.”
De Bruyne is another absentee, with the 32-year-old sidelined since the opening game of the season in August after undergoing hamstring surgery that was expected to keep him out for up to four months.
While he is still a way off a first-team return, Guardiola is optimistic of having De Bruyne back sooner rather than later.
“Kevin comes in at different times, either before training or for his treatment,” Guardiola said.
“After training he sees physios and so on. Of course I see him every day and he’s getting better, and his mood is good. Hopefully sooner than expected he will be back.”
Erik Ten Hag admits Manchester United’s level of play since winning the Carabao Cup has been unacceptable.
The Red Devils take on Brentford on Saturday looking to avoid a run of three successive defeats for the second time this season.
But results had already tailed off at the end of the last campaign, with Ten Hag’s win percentage dropping from 69 per cent prior to the victory over Newcastle at Wembley to around 50 per cent since.
The positivity that had accompanied the Dutchman’s first season in charge has rapidly evaporated, and he said: “We dropped in levels. We have to get back to those levels.
“There are reasons for it but still it’s not acceptable and we have to fight against it. Every team we put out has to be on one page and the routines are not always there. They have a good foundation in the way they play, keep the foundation, support each other and we will do better.”
United have endured another miserable week, with a Premier League loss to Crystal Palace followed by a 3-2 home defeat by Galatasaray in the Champions League, where goalkeeper Andre Onana again struggled.
Ten Hag believes his side are being punished for lapses, saying: “Consistency, that is the problem we are struggling with.
“In parts of the game, I will say in big parts of the game, we do a lot of things right but then there are moments where we are struggling and in such moments we can’t survive.
“In this moment, you have to do the right things, so be consistent and do the job, be consistent in the communication, and when you do that you keep the right organisation and do it like before.
“Definitely you can mark such a moment as when we score a goal or concede a goal and when decisive moments go against us, we lose a bit as a team. Over big parts, in 95 per cent of the game, we are a team, so keep going all the way through and we have to step up.
“Most important in such moments is you keep on one page and it starts with communication.”
Rasmus Hojlund’s double against Galatasaray was the bright spot but Marcus Rashford again struggled.
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The England forward has gone seven matches without a goal for club and country, with his only effort so far this season coming against Arsenal at the beginning of September.
Ten Hag has no doubt it is just a blip, though, saying: “It’s normal you are not always right at the same levels. Everyone knows the qualities of him and if Rashy does the things right and the team does, it’s up to him.
“We have seen in the last weeks he is coming in good positions, he is struggling, but it will pass. Everyone knows the qualities, everyone at Man United backs him, the whole team supports him and believes in him, I am sure with that it will change and this will pass.
“Strikers, when they don’t score for a moment, they need one goal, then they step over. When he is doing the right things, and he is doing the right things, the momentum will come and he will be on fire.”
Antony could make his return to Premier League action having coming off the bench against Galatasaray but Jadon Sancho remains out of the picture.
New VAR guidelines introduced in the wake of the controversy involving Liverpool will be in use in the Premier League this weekend.
Miscommunication between VAR Darren England and referee Simon Hooper led to a Luis Diaz goal for Liverpool being wrongly disallowed for offside at Tottenham last Saturday.
Audio of the incident was released on Tuesday, with referees’ body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) saying it would develop a new VAR communication protocol in an effort to avoid similar mistakes being made in future.
The PA news agency understands that protocol will now be in force right away.
PGMOL said the protocol would “enhance the clarity of communication between the referee and the VAR team in relation to on-field decisions”.
VARs will now also confirm the outcome of the checking process with the assistant VAR before confirming the final decision to the on-field officials.
England mistakenly thought the on-field officials had ruled Diaz to be onside, which meant that when he told them ‘check complete’ they believed he had upheld their on-field decision and restarted play with a free-kick.
Once play had restarted, there was nothing the VARs could do to revisit the decision under existing protocols.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp called for the match to be replayed on Wednesday, something the Premier League is understood not to be prepared to consider.
The league did release a statement on Tuesday, though, saying the Diaz incident had highlighted “systemic weaknesses” in the VAR process and said a wider review would take place “to seek consistently higher standards of VAR performance”.
PGMOL and the Football Association will also review the policy allowing English officials to cover domestic league matches overseas.
England and his assistant Daniel Cook had been part of a team of officials who had taken charge of a match in the United Arab Emirates on September 28, arriving back in the UK the following morning.
Celtic captain Callum McGregor has urged his team-mates to show they are hurting from their Champions League disappointment and take their frustration out on Kilmarnock.
Brendan Rodgers’ side thought they had gone in front late on through Luis Palma against Lazio on Wednesday, only for an offside decision to against them following a lengthy VAR check.
Their pain was exacerbated by conceding a goal five minutes into stoppage time as Pedro sealed a 2-1 win for the Italians.
Celtic are looking to bounce back at home to Killie on Saturday and extend their lead at the top of the cinch Premiership.
McGregor said: “There is only one thing guaranteed in football and that’s disappointment so the team that handles disappointment the best is generally the team that will go and be successful.
“So we have to show that, we have to show that we are hurt, recover well and come Saturday we put on a performance of high-energy, high-intensity football and show people that we are hurting, because we definitely did enough to deserve something out of the game on Wednesday night.
“Handling disappointment is part of football so we need to get back on the horse on Saturday.”
It was a second Champions League defeat for Celtic and their only domestic loss of the season, which came in the Viaplay Cup at Rugby Park, is on McGregor’s mind ahead of the visit of Derek McInnes and his team.
“You keep notes of those ones where you either drop points or you get beat,” the midfielder said.
“We want to try and put the record straight, for sure that will be on our mind come Saturday.”
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp admits they have not had time to properly assess where World Cup-winner Alexis Mac Allister fits into their side.
The Argentina midfielder has started all seven of the club’s Premier League fixtures since arriving from Brighton in a cut-price £35million deal, but has been deployed in the nominal holding role after the departures of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho to Saudi Arabia left them short in that department.
Mac Allister has shown he is far more effective further forward in one of the attacking midfield positions, and while he has done a job for Klopp, it appears unlikely he is the long-term solution.
He was even substituted at half-time of the win at Wolves, having flown back from Bolivia after the international break after looking well off the pace.
Nevertheless Klopp is satisfied with what he has had from the 24-year-old so far.
“We didn’t even look for his best position yet. We just use him,” he said.
“He is a fantastic player, I love everything about him: super-smart tactically and off the pitch as well, so that is really nice to work with.
“If we as a team defend well, he can play definitely the number six. Did I know that before? I had a guess but I was not sure because I did not know exactly how all the other boys would do defending.
“Because we defend more compact and better than in our bad phases last year, we have small spaces and then it is really good because he sees the situations really well.
“We have a really good footballer and it is really cool but best position? He is too young for me to know it but he is a midfielder, I can tell you that.
“He is a midfielder and I am happy about having him.”
Mac Allister is one-third of a midfield rebuild this summer with Dominik Szobozslai the other mainstay after his £60m arrival from RB Leipzig.
Forward Cody Gakpo, another new signing Wataru Endo – the one genuine number six in the squad – and Curtis Jones have filled the other space in midfield in Premier League matches this season.
However, the gradual emergence of Ryan Gravenberch, a deadline-day arrival from Bayern Munich, points towards the 21-year-old staking a claim to be the third man alongside Mac Allister and Szobozslai, who are destined to be locked in for the long term.
The Dutchman scored his first goal in the 2-0 Europa League victory over Union Saint Gilloise as his integration into the side – he has started three non-Premier League games but has only been a substitute at weekends – continues to grow apace.
For a relative youngster, Gravenberch has a certain presence on the pitch and Klopp expects him to grow further with more experience.
“Raw power – I am not sure a lot of people would have described him in the past like that,” said the manager.
“He is technically incredibly good. The first touch is insane, the speed is top class, really good shooter.
“Yes he came late and yes we play slightly different and yes he needs time to adapt, and that is what we can give him, thank God.
“He is completely happy with that and in the groove; he realises in each training sessions he is treated completely like others, if he starts or not.
“He gets even more information in specific moments. He can see what the other boys do in similar positions, he can watch it, he learns, he is a smart boy, everything goes in the right direction and that is really nice to see.
“He has had assists in the other games and now he has his first goal. Now it is good, long may it continue, he is very important for us.”
Eddie Howe wakes every morning happy with the “life-changing” decision he took to become Newcastle’s head coach.
The 45-year-old accepted the Magpies’ offer of employment in November 2021, just weeks after Amanda Staveley’s Saudi-backed consortium had completed its takeover.
Staveley and her partners will celebrate two years at the helm on Saturday with the club having been transformed to the extent that they sent shock waves across Europe on Wednesday evening with a 4-1 Champions League rout of Qatari-funded Paris St Germain.
Asked where he would rank his decision to take on the job, Howe said: “I knew when I took the job – the moment came when I was offered the job and I was going to say yes – that it was a life-changing moment for me.
“Thankfully it has been a great journey so far. I have loved every second of it.
“I said when I arrived I was very proud to be Newcastle manager and I’ve never woken up without that feeling. The feeling that I am doing something very special in my life is always there and it’s never something I take for granted.”
Howe’s decision thrust him into the centre of a geopolitical minefield and he has found himself repeatedly facing questions over the Saudi regime and its links to the club through the Gulf state’s Public Investment Fund, which holds an 80 per cent stake, and accusations of ‘sportswashing’.
PIF governor and Magpies chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan has made no secret of his ambition, saying in the Prime Video documentary ‘We Are Newcastle United’ that he ultimately wanted to establish the club as number one in the world.
Howe, who met the chairman briefly after the PSG game, has been consistent in taking a measured approach to development despite hefty, if astute, investment in the squad since the takeover.
But asked if there was any reason why the Magpies could not be the biggest club in the world, he said: “No, but we’re not the world’s number one club at the moment.
“We’ve got to try to work towards that, and these things take time. There is no magic wand. Being smart, making good decisions and working hard every day…
“If that is the ultimate aim, then we will try our best to try and get that.
“We have to be calm and recognise we are in the early stages of the season. We’ve got a lot to prove before we can say anything about what we’ve done. We’ve just put ourselves in a good position in our Champions League group and we are still formulating our Premier League position.”
That process will continue with Sunday’s visit to West Ham, a game for which Anthony Gordon is suspended after reaching five bookings for the campaign, while Callum Wilson and Joelinton remain doubts and Sven Botman is out.
Lionel Messi's World Cup success with Argentina should be enough to win him the upcoming Ballon d'Or, says former England striker Jermain Defoe.
Messi finally achieved World Cup glory with La Albiceleste in Qatar last year as Argentina beat France on penalties in the final to win international football's top prize for a third time and the first since 1986.
Messi won the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player, finishing with seven goals and three assists from seven appearances, playing every single minute of Argentina's campaign to lead them to silverware.
Defoe believes Messi's talismanic displays in Qatar make him the rightful winner of the upcoming Ballon d'Or, having already claimed the coveted award seven times before, two more than any other player has managed.
Speaking to Stats Perform at the Legends of Football event, in aid of Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy, Defoe said: "Messi won a World Cup, so it's difficult to see past that.
"I think what he's done for the game – him and [Cristiano] Ronaldo, and other players as well – but because he's won a World Cup, and not only winning the World Cup but the way he performed in the tournament.
"Because the pressure was on, and it's probably his last, so to do that, go out the way he has, in terms of World Cups – I think you just have to give it to him."
Messi's World Cup heroics cap glittering career
Many felt Messi needed to win the World Cup to confirm his place as the best football player of all time, and he responded with a magnificent campaign in Qatar before Argentina ultimately took the crown.
Messi scored twice in the final, finishing just one goal behind Golden Boot winner Kylian Mbappe, who netted a hat-trick on the losing side as his side finished runners-up.
His extraordinary tournament saw him score in the group stage, round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final, the first player to ever achieve that feat at a World Cup, while his 26 appearances at the tournament is also a record, after he surpassed Lothar Matthaus.
Messi's goals made him the first ever South American player to score in both the World Cup and Champions League final, and he joined his idol Diego Maradona as the only two players to score five or more goals and create 20 or more chances in a single World Cup tournament.
The now-Inter Miami forward became the first player to win the Golden Ball at two World Cup editions, while his 26 goals for Argentina at major tournaments is the most of any South American player in history.
Whether all that will be enough for Messi to win the Ballon d'Or will be revealed on October 30 at a ceremony in Paris, with the likes of Manchester City's Erling Haaland and Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior expected to challenge.
Tino Livramento has returned to the England Under-21s squad for the first time in over 18 months.
The Newcastle defender has not featured since March 2022, having suffered a serious knee injury a month later which ruled him out for over a year.
He has made four appearances for Newcastle since his £32million move from Southampton in August.
Aaron Ramsey has also returned, with Brentford goalkeeper Matthew Cox – currently on loan at Bristol Rovers – Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah, Hull’s Jaden Philogene and Jonathan Rowe of Norwich given their first call ups for the Euro qualifiers against Serbia and Ukraine.
Boss Lee Carsley said: “Tino is a player we rate highly, it’s going to be good to have him back in and around the squad.
“He’s been out for a while injured, so we’ll be looking to support him and Newcastle with that.
“Jaden and Jonathan are both doing really well with their clubs at the minute – they’re players who are in form which is always a good position for us to be in.
“We also have Jarell Quansah in the squad for the first time. He’s been getting game time at Liverpool which, as we know, is a really tough team to get into for any player, so he deserves to be a part of this squad.”
The Young Lions, the defending champions, host Serbia in Group F at the City Ground next Thursday before facing Ukraine in Slovakia on October 16.
Carsley added: “We always talk about the players pushing each other and we should never be in a position where we’re doing a copy and paste of the squad list.
“The players need to know they have to keep performing, either with their clubs or when they’re on camp with us.
“There are some players in the squad who weren’t with us last time and there are four or five who are really close to getting in this squad.
“When we look at the Elite League squad (previously Under-20s), that’s also a very competitive age group and we want to have them in the position where they are pushing these players in the older age group.”
England Under-21 squad: Beadle (Oxford, on loan from Brighton), Cox (Bristol Rovers, on loan from Brentford), Trafford (Burnley); Branthwaite (Everton), Cresswell (Leeds), Harwood-Bellis (Southampton, on loan from Manchester City), Humphreys (Swansea, on loan from Chelsea), Lewis (Manchester City), Livramento (Newcastle), Norton-Cuffy (Millwall, on loan from Arsenal), Quansah (Liverpool); Elliott (Liverpool), Hackney (Middlesbrough), McAtee (Sheffield United, loan from Manchester City), Patino (Swansea City, on loan from Arsenal), Ramsey (Burnley); Bynoe-Gittens (Borussia Dortmund), Delap (Hull, on loan from Manchester City), Iling-Junior (Juventus), Madueke (Chelsea), Palmer (Chelsea), Philogene (Hull), Rowe (Norwich)
Harry Kane will still have the support of Tottenham fans despite his decision to leave the club, according to fellow Spurs favourite Jermain Defoe.
Kane signed for Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich for an estimated €117million (£100m) in the most recent transfer window, leaving North London having overtaken Jimmy Greaves as the club's all-time record goalscorer.
Kane scored 280 goals in 435 appearances in all competitions before ending his 19-year association with Spurs, and he has started life at Bayern in similarly prolific fashion, netting eight times in six Bundesliga outings while also getting off the mark in the Champions League.
Though Kane decided to leave in pursuit of the silverware that eluded him at Spurs, Defoe believes the club's fans will continue to back the England captain in his new surroundings.
Speaking to Stats Perform at the Legends of Football event, in aid of Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy, Defo said: "For Harry, it's amazing for him and his family. It's a new challenge.
"Everyone at Tottenham wants to wish him the best – we always knew he was going to do well anyway because he's a world-class player. He'll score goals anywhere. Nothing changes in terms of goals.
"We just want to wish him the best because Harry as a footballer is special but he's a special guy and he deserves everything he gets."
Kane the final piece of Bayern's puzzle?
Bayern have claimed 11 Bundesliga titles in a row, but the trophy they really want to lift is the Champions League having not made it past the quarter-final stage since last winning European football's elite competition in the 2019-20 campaign.
Kane has hit the ground running at Bayern, giving fans hope that he can be the man to lead them back to European glory.
The England international has scored eight goals in his first six Bundesliga appearances, with only Erling Haaland scoring more in his first six games in the league, while he has surpassed some of Bayern's greatest strikers in terms of their starts at the club.
His seven goals in his first five Bundesliga games for the club is more than Bayern legends such as Miroslav Klose and Robert Lewandowski managed, while his 10 goal involvements during those games is also the most in a player's first five Bundesliga appearances.
Kane is second behind only Serhou Guirassy (10) for Bundesliga goals this season, finding the net every 66 minutes on average while converting 34.78 per cent of his shots.
His three assists indicate he has also been a key facilitator for Bayern, while he is tied for fourth in the Bundesliga in terms of big chances created (four).
It is still early days, but Kane's excellent start suggests he could be the one to help Bayern back to the very top of European football.
The Government has been asked to reveal what steps it has taken to investigate whether Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour assisted wealthy Russians it has sanctioned in moving their assets to the United Arab Emirates.
Lawyers acting on behalf of a Ukrainian activist – who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals from Russia – have written to Foreign Secretary James Cleverly to ask whether investigations have been carried out to determine whether Mansour, the UAE’s Deputy Prime Minister, should be identified as a ‘designated person’ subject to financial sanctions under the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.
As of last week, the UK Government said more than 1,800 individuals had been sanctioned under the regulations, with more than 1,600 of those sanctioned since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
That number includes former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. His assets, including Chelsea, were frozen, with a consortium led by American businessman Todd Boehly taking over last summer.
The request for an update on Sheikh Mansour follows an initial letter from the lawyers, Rhys Davies of Temple Garden Chambers and Ben Keith from 5, St Andrew’s Hill Chambers, on behalf of their client which was sent to Cleverly in September last year.
The Foreign Secretary can only designate a person if he has reasonable grounds to suspect that the individual is “an involved person” in the destabilisation of Ukraine.
Involvement is defined as someone who is responsible for, engages in, provides support for, or promotes any policy or action which destabilises Ukraine or undermines or threatens its territorial integrity.
If Sheikh Mansour was designated as an individual subject to Government sanctions, it would disqualify him as an owner under the Premier League’s updated rules on its owners’ and directors’ test which were published in March.
The new letter, sent to Cleverly on Thursday and seen by the PA news agency, states: “Sheikh Mansour is a particularly high-profile individual and as the owner of one of the United Kingdom’s most celebrated football clubs, is a person who ought to be subject to reasonable scrutiny by the UK Government.
“For the avoidance of doubt, we make no allegations as to any particular conduct of Sheikh Mansour. Nevertheless, in light of the wealth of evidence in the public domain tending to link Sheikh Mansour with the accommodation of wealthy Russians in the UAE, we respectfully suggest that there is a prima facie basis for the UK government to conduct an investigation.”
The new letter has been sent as the UAE prepares to host the COP28 climate change conference between November 30 and December 12 and notes that Sheikh Mansour is likely to play a “visible role” in the event.
“The bloodshed caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues,” the letter stated.
“You are asked to note that, as set out in our earlier correspondence, notwithstanding the robust nature of the British response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, many Russian oligarchs appear to have found a home for their wealth in the United Arab Emirates, with Dubai and Abu Dhabi apparently being particularly attractive to those individuals.
“In light of the global attention which will be focused on both the UAE and Sheikh Mansour at the forthcoming COP28 event, we write to you to enquire what steps you have taken further to our request of September 30, 2022 to open an investigation into the conduct of Sheikh Mansour.
“You may recollect that we invited the UK government to consider whether or not the conduct of Sheikh Mansour is such that he is a suitable person to be designated, pursuant to the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.
“In the circumstances, it is critical that the UK Government takes all necessary steps consistent with its statutory and international obligations.”
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Manchester City have all been contacted for comment.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic says he would face no moral issues playing in Saudi Arabia, but questioned why players would not want to end their career on the big stage.
Cristiano Ronaldo, Brazil striker Neymar, Karim Benzema and England midfielder Jordan Henderson are among players to have made the switch to the Saudi Pro League, along with former Manchester City forward Riyad Mahrez and Ruben Neves.
Ibrahimovic, who retired from football in June, has played for some of the leading clubs in Europe, including Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Barcelona, Paris St Germain and Manchester United, while also having a successful spell in America with LA Galaxy later in his career.
The 42-year-old former Sweden international revealed in an interview with Piers Morgan Uncensored he had received an offer from Saudi Arabia as well as China, but feels the level of competition must always be top of any footballer’s list.
“I had an offer also from China, I had an offer also from Saudi,” he said. “But the situation is, what do you want? What objectives do you have? I said before we started, like certain players need to finish their career on the big stage because that is the high end of your career.
“You have to be remembered for your talent, not for what you earned. Because if you were remembered in the opposite way, what we are training every day for, what we are being recognised for is our talent and that is what you want to be remembered for.
“So I think certain players that reach a certain level, they have to stop at a certain stage and that’s the big stage.
“You cannot go in a lower stage and finish your career in a different way, but some players needed the situations where you can earn a lot of money because they didn’t earn enough.”
When asked about whether he would have a moral problem playing in Saudi Arabia, Ibrahimovic said: “No, absolutely not.
“You have the golf situation now. They came together and they made it one, so I am just sorry for the (golf) players that didn’t go before because they didn’t get the money that the (other) players got.
“Listen, wherever you play football, it’s football. Football connects people. It’s a dream we share, both of us.
“As a professional football player, as long as you play football – and Saudi is growing, MLS is growing. China had a peak and then I don’t know the situation changed there.
“But a moral thing? No. We do things for ourself and our family. Who will judge you in five or 10 years when you have a wealthy, healthy life and have a good life?
“Nothing is for free – you (Morgan) don’t work for free, I don’t work for free. I don’t need money, but I am very expensive.”
What the papers say
Liverpool have identified their prime target when the January transfer window opens. According to the Daily Mirror, Fluminense’s Brazilian midfielder Andre Trindade will be at the top of their list.
Manchester City are turning their attention towards keeping hold of their talent. The Daily Telegraph reports the treble winners plan to open contract talks with striker Erling Haaland, 23, with Real Madrid showing interest.
Chelsea are also looking to secure one of their young stars, according to the Daily Mail. They are planning talks with Conor Gallagher, 23, as the England midfielder nears the final 18 months of his contract.
And Everton are also close to tying up Jarrad Branthwaite to a long-term deal, reports the Daily Mirror. Manchester United had reportedly been interested in the 21-year-old defender.
Social media round-upPlayers to watch
Jarrod Bowen: Liverpool and Newcastle are watching as contract talks for the England forward, 26, move slowly at West Ham.
Xavi Simons: Manchester City are expected to face a fight from Barcelona for the Netherlands midfielder, 20, from Paris St Germain next summer.
England boss Gareth Southgate believes VAR has not done anything to resolve controversial refereeing decisions.
The off-field decision-making process has come under renewed fire this week after Liverpool were denied a fair goal in their defeat at Tottenham when VAR Darren England mistakenly thought the on-field decision was onside and inadvertently validated the linesman’s offside call, with play restarting before the mistake was noticed.
There has been a huge fallout from the gaffe, with Reds boss Jurgen Klopp calling for the game to be replayed while the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has announced a review into VAR and its practices.
Southgate has always been against it and says nothing has changed from when on-field decisions were final.
“Well, all I would say is everybody used to go to the pub and moan about the ref and they still go to the pub and moan about the ref,” he quipped.
“So I’m not sure what we’ve resolved, really. I don’t like it, never have, so I have sort of dismissed it.
“I just was always brought up as a kid that the referee’s decision was final. You might agree or disagree but we have to get on with it.
“I didn’t ever feel we were going to resolve every issue.
“I think we are probably too far down the line now to go back but I didn’t like it from the off.
“Once you open up a technology opportunity, you are normally going that way and you have got to refine and improve on what happens. But yes, I don’t like it.”
The PGMOL has taken unprecedented steps in recent times of retrospectively releasing audio of the decision-making process, including England’s expletive-filled mistake at the weekend.
But fans in the stadium remain in the dark at the time, often left waiting for up to five minutes while decisions are scrutinised in Stockley Park.
“When I am at games I am always conscious that the only people who don’t know what is going on are the people who have paid to go,” he said. “I find that really difficult.
“I am sitting in the stadium next to people and I am lucky as I normally get a free ticket and other people pay a lot of money and haven’t got a clue or are on the phone to someone at home asking what’s going on.
“The frustration, you can feel it in the stadium, you can feel the view.
“I know if we didn’t have it people would go back to, ‘well this could be resolved’, but when I am in the stadiums my sense is they don’t necessarily want 14 minutes of added time or a decision by something that they are not totally across the process of.”
Meanwhile, Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou has said he does not know if he likes “where the game’s heading” in the wake of the VAR controversy.
Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald, prior to the audio emerging and Klopp’s suggestion of a replay, Postecoglou questioned the game’s pursuit of “perfection”.
He told the paper: “It seems like we’re now heading towards that space of trying to find perfection in a game where the beauty of it is the imperfection.
“What makes our game different from any other game is that the goal – the actual goal, the scoring of a goal – is that most precious commodity. It’s the flaws in the game that creates goals.
“Sometimes we think it’s the brilliance – yeah, it is the brilliance, but mostly on the back of somebody’s flaw, either an opposition player or your own teammate or a referee.
“We’re trying to make this perfect game, which the other codes do – but they have to, because goals in their game don’t mean anything, so they try and create this perfect product. And that’s not football.
“Football is Maradona putting it (in with) his hand. I don’t like it, but that’s the game, and if you want to eliminate that? Yes, OK, but if you’re searching for perfection within football, I just think you take away from what the essence of it is.”
England captain David Beckham scored a last-minute free-kick on this day in 2001 to salvage a 2-2 draw against Greece and secure his country a place at the upcoming World Cup.
Sven-Goran Eriksson’s team were losing 2-1 entering stoppage-time at Old Trafford and heading for a World Cup play-off with Ukraine when Beckham rescued his team.
Beckham curled home a trademark free-kick in the third minute of added time to send England to the World Cup in Japan and South Korea and help the midfielder earn redemption for his red card at the 1998 World Cup.
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The sending-off of Beckham for kicking out at Argentina’s Diego Simeone during England’s last-16 penalty shoot-out defeat in France three years earlier had resulted in a huge public backlash for the then-Manchester United winger.
Beckham would go on to help United win the treble in 1999 before he became permanent captain of his country upon the arrival of Eriksson as England manager.
Ahead of England’s final World Cup qualification match against Greece, the Three Lions were still vying with Germany for top spot in Group Nine.
Greece took a shock lead at Old Trafford through Angelos Charisteas and while England substitute Teddy Sheringham levelled in the 68th-minute, the hosts’ joy was short-lived.
Demis Nikolaidis immediately put Greece back in front and England were – at this point – set to finish a point behind Germany, who were being held by Finland.
Beckham was desperate to lead his country to the 2002 World Cup and after several failed set-piece efforts, he found his range in the third minute of second half stoppage time with a stunning strike to spark wild celebrations at his home ground.
News filtered through around the same time of Germany’s draw with Finland, which meant England finished top of Group Nine and were assured of their place at the tournament in Japan and South Korea.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp hailed Ryan Gravenberch’s “obvious talent” as the midfielder paved the way for the 2-0 win over Union Saint-Gilloise with his first goal for the club.
The Netherlands international, a £34million summer signing from Bayern Munich, made only his third start of the season and after impressing in the first European outing another all-round performance was capped with what he described as “the easiest goal of my career”.
Gravenberch capitalised on an error from goalkeeper Anthony Moris, who fumbled Trent Alexander-Arnold’s shot to present a tap-in for the 21-year-old a minute before half-time.
It was a crucial goal as Liverpool had wasted a number of chances prior to that and although they were rarely in trouble Diogo Jota’s goal in added time at the end of the second half secured a second successive Europa League victory.
“It is really obvious how good he is, the talent he is,” said Klopp of a player who arrived on transfer deadline so has had to be gradually introduced to English football with three Premier League substitute appearances.
“He is enjoying the situation and it is very important the confidence back, that is really good to see.
“We thought he might be able to play 90 (minutes), we wanted to give him 90 but we saw he dropped a bit so that’s why we took him off.”
Jota responded to Saturday’s sending off for two yellow cards – which means he is suspended for Sunday’s trip to Brighton – with his fourth goal of the season.
“How should he deal with it? I knew it would be difficult. That (controversial defeat to Tottenham) is long ago and we are over that and Diogo is over it as well. We are not children.
“From a focus point of view, it was not a problem to focus on the game, in the game it was a problem to keep being focused because that was how it looked a little bit.
“We got a bit sluggish, I didn’t like that too much but that was nothing to do with the last game or the last week. That’s the challenge in football any way.”
Two successive wins puts Liverpool two points clear at the top of Group E and victory over Toulouse, two points behind, in three weeks’ time would put them on the verge of qualification for the knockout stages.
But it was far from the sort of free-flowing performance seen by the side this season as they missed a number of chances and then started to lose their way in the second half.
“(I liked) the start and the result. The goals, the chances we created. What I didn’t like is we lost rhythm after 25 minutes,” Klopp added.
“It’s very difficult to keep rhythm in games like this but it’s important. We should have scored earlier but got the second in stoppage time.
“We should use our chances better more often if we want to be successful in competitions but I’m not angry or concerned, it’s just how it is. We know we have to do better.
“It was a mature professional performance, we got the result we wanted but know we can do better.”
Union coach Alexander Blessin knew his side were up against it before a ball was even kicked but was disappointed they did not gain more confidence from keeping their hosts at bay for almost the entire first half.
“In the end I’m proud of the team, but we saw the strength of Liverpool,” he said.
“I had the feeling that the game changed (after Liverpool’s start) and in those moments you need it to go your way.”
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