Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists the club will not be held to ransom over transfer targets and are not prepared to pay over-inflated prices.
The club have already pulled out of the running for their primary option Jude Bellingham with Borussia Dortmund likely to ask for a fee around £130million.
With a midfield rebuild required it was decided to spread their limited resources wider rather than going for a megabucks marquee signing, with Brighton’s Alexis Mac Allister near the top of their alternatives.
Liverpool’s issues in midfield could lead to selling clubs upping the price knowing the rival’s need to sign players and, more specifically, secure them early in the summer.
But Klopp said they were not prepared to pay over the odds and have a list of targets which he feels provides the club with options if they should encounter a stumbling block in negotiations.
“We cannot buy the player then. If they are overpriced we cannot do it,” he said.
“I am pretty sure we will bring in the players we want and those who will help us. I am pretty confident of that.
“You never know 100 per cent until they are signed but that (bumping up prices) is not new that some clubs might try that.
“Let me say it like this: you identify a position and you have not only one option on the position. That means they should all be good.
“You might have a favourite but if the other club doesn’t want to sell or someone else will pay the price then we cannot go with it.
“But usually we got the players we wanted. The one thing is can we afford them and then they are here.”
Liverpool’s five-match winning run, lifting them to within four points of fourth-placed Manchester United but with only an outside chance of making the top four because their rivals have played two matches fewer, has put a better spin on a season which had the club lingering between eighth and 10th for long periods.
Klopp knows he cannot “replace the whole team” with his summer transfers but does not believe their final league position will have much effect on the success of the business he does, although he thinks it may be of assistance to the players he currently has.
“Each performance we have now helps us and helps the players,” he added.
“We cannot replace the whole team. How I understand life is if you have a problem you sort it better now because if you just move on you have the same problem.
“We have to give the boys a frame where they can perform because I see them every day, I know they want to perform.
“It is not that they say ‘I cannot do that anymore’. We were not able to do it that is true for a long period, but we will find a frame where the boys can shine again.
“Everything we do well now will help us for next season. These five games I liked the reaction in moments, it is not full games, but the signs I saw are really promising and I am happy with that.
“Another four games, a break, then a proper pre-season and we will be strong.”
A goalless draw ensured Arbroath will play Scottish Championship football next season while Hamilton must try to do the same via the play-offs.
Accies began the day bottom of the table and staring at automatic relegation but a point lifted them above Cove Rangers on goal difference.
Instead, they will take on either Alloa or Airdrie in the League One play-offs as they attempt to secure second tier football again.
Chances were at a premium – Hamilton’s Daniel O’Reilly had a shot saved by Derek Gaston in the first half while in the second David Gold came close twice in quick succession for Arbroath, hitting the bar on the second occasion.
Scott Tiffoney struck a 68th-minute equaliser as Partick Thistle snatched a place in the Premiership play-offs with a 2-2 draw in their final cinch Championship match of the season at Raith.
Thistle took a 21st-minute lead through Darren Brownlie at Stark’s Park but Rovers pulled level before the break with a Lewis Vaughan penalty after handball by Ross Docherty.
The hosts went ahead through Scott McGill after good work by Kieran Ngwenya just before the hour but Partick quickly hit back.
Tiffoney claimed the crucial goal and ensured his side finished fourth in the table when he tucked home at the far post after Raith, who end the campaign in seventh, failed to clear.
Mark McKenzie scored an 88th-minute winner as Ayr clinched second place in the Scottish Championship with a 2-1 victory over Inverness.
Josh Mullin gave the visitors the lead in the 34th minute after being played clean through and they held on to their advantage until eight minutes from time, when Nathan Shaw equalised.
A draw would have meant both teams missed the play-offs but a late winner would have secured a top-four finish for whoever scored.
And it was the visitors who got it as McKenzie proved to be the hero in the 88th minute by scoring from Daire O’Connor’s cross.
There was still time for a nervous moment when Austin Samuels had the ball in the net for Scottish Cup finalists Caley Thistle but it was ruled out for offside.
Cove Rangers were relegated from the Scottish Championship after losing 2-1 to 10-man Greenock Morton.
Jack Baird headed in a corner for Morton after only two minutes, and Robbie Muirhead thought he had doubled the lead shortly afterwards only for the offside flag to deny him.
Declan Glass then levelled with a long-range effort just before half-time, and Morton were reduced to 10 men four minutes after the break when Cameron Blues was shown a second yellow card.
Cove looked the more likely winners, with Brian Schwake denying Connor Scully, Tony Weston and Glass, but Muirhead let fly from 35 yards for the winner in the 73rd minute, condemning Cove to the drop.
There was ultimately disappointment for Morton, though, as they missed out on the play-offs on goal difference.
Dundee secured their return to the cinch Premiership with a 5-3 win over nearest challengers Queen’s Park in a breathless Championship decider at Ochilview.
A point would have been enough for the Dens Park side to claim automatic promotion but they ended their campaign on a high as second-half strikes from Lyall Cameron and Luke McCowan killed off the challenge of the brave Spiders following an astonishing first half in which six goals were shared.
Both sides went into the much-hyped showdown in unconvincing form, with Queen’s – aiming to get back into the top flight for the first time since 1958 – having lost four of their previous six matches and Dundee on a run of one win in five.
Any notion that a lack of confidence within both sides allied to the pressure of the occasion might lead to a cagey affair was emphatically banished by an incredible start that brought four goals within the opening 17 minutes.
Dundee signalled their intent in the third minute when Cameron shot just wide after being teed up by Alex Jakubiak on the edge of the box.
The same players combined just a minute later as the visitors took the lead when Cameron took advantage of a slip by Malachi Boateng inside the box and cut the ball back for Jakubiak to slot home from eight yards out.
The hosts tried to find a response and Dominic Thomas saw an inswinging free-kick from the right pushed behind by goalkeeper Adam Legzdins in the ninth minute.
The resulting corner led to an equaliser as centre-back Charlie Fox seized on a bouncing ball 25 yards out and unleashed a sensational dipping half volley that looped over Legzdins and into the net.
And Queen’s edged themselves ahead in the 12th minute when Connor Shields fired home a superb angled volley from the edge of the six-yard box after Grant Savoury’s shot had been blocked.
The frenetic start continued as Dundee levelled things up once more in the 17th minute when defender Lee Ashcroft volleyed in from six yards after Dan Sweeney headed McCowan’s cross back across goal.
The visitors almost struck again five minutes later when Barry Maguire crashed a shot off the crossbar.
Dundee restored their lead in the 34th minute when Zach Robinson forced the ball home from close range after Queen’s made a mess of trying to clear a Jakubiak ball across the box.
The first-half scoring was not finished, however, and Spiders defender Fox netted his second of the night in stoppage time when he powered home a header from another Thomas corner to make it 3-3.
Queen’s went close to taking the lead three minutes after the interval when Shields’ shot from just inside the box was brilliantly tipped behind by Legzdins.
But it was Dundee who took control of the title race in the 54th minute when Cameron kept his cool to tuck home a low shot from 15 yards out after good work by McCowan and Jakubiak to create the opening.
McCowan then sealed the deal in the 81st minute when he curled in a superb shot from just outside the box to consign Queen’s to the play-offs. The final whistle was greeted by a pitch invasion from jubilant Dundee fans.
Frida Maanum scored a stunning winner as fourth-placed Arsenal kept up the pressure at the top of the Women’s Super League with a 1-0 victory over Leicester.
The Norwegian curled home a long-range shot just after the hour to settle a tight contest at Meadow Park.
Arsenal had been frustrated for large parts of the game after Katie McCabe had a penalty saved in the seventh minute.
The win lifted Arsenal within two points of third-placed Chelsea and six behind leaders Manchester United, on whom they have a game in hand.
Arsenal, looking to bounce back from their Champions League exit on Monday, started strongly and had a chance to take an early lead after McCabe was brought down in the area by Hannah Cain.
McCabe stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick but was denied by the excellent Janina Leitzig.
Leicester threatened through Cain but her shot was blocked by keeper Sabrina D’Angelo before Victoria Pelova spurned a chance for the hosts.
Cain was denied again by D’Angelo in the 62nd minute and was to rue the miss as Maanum picked her spot from the edge of the area following a Jodie Taylor cut-back moments later.
Arsenal finished strongly with Taylor hitting the side-netting and Maanum twice forcing Leitzig to save before hitting the bar from a free-kick.
Catalans Dragons players scurried for cover after a bull broke loose during a pre-match parade ahead of their Betfred Super League clash with St Helens.
The parade was contrived by Catalans owner Bernard Guasch, head of a local meat processing company, to celebrate the quality of beef in the region.
However, one of the bulls broke free, dragging its handler across the turf before shaking free and gallivanting towards the posts, sending players, who were warming up at the time, scattering into the stands.
The bull, one of three in the parade, was swiftly recovered with no damage done, and the match started as scheduled at the Stade Gilbert Brutus in Perpignan.
In a statement prior to the incident, the Dragons said that “three prize-winning bulls, as well as two cows from the same Gascon breed, will perform a lap of honour during the warm-up”.
George Russell saw off Lewis Hamilton as Mercedes completed a surprise one-two finish in opening practice for the Miami Grand Prix.
In the closing moments of the one-hour running in the Sunshine State, Russell and Hamilton moved from the back of the pack to the front.
Hamilton held top spot for a handful of seconds before he was usurped by team-mate Russell. Charles Leclerc finished third for Ferrari, one spot ahead of championship leader Max Verstappen.
Formula One is back in Miami for a second time at a 3.36-mile circuit constructed around the Hard Rock Stadium – home of NFL side the Miami Dolphins – 15 miles north of the city.
The race marks the first of three rounds to be staged in the United States this year as F1’s American owners Liberty Media continue to build on the rise of the sport across the Atlantic.
A debut event on the Las Vegas strip will take place in November, while Austin’s grand prix at the Circuit of the Americas – a permanent fixture on the F1 schedule since 2012 – also features.
Despite the boom of the sport, the actual competition is facing accusations of being “predictable” and “boring” with Red Bull winning 14 of the last 15 races.
Verstappen leads Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez in the standings by six points after the opening four rounds.
But Mercedes’ encouraging start here will provide hope that Red Bull might not have it all their own way in Florida.
Russell edged out Hamilton by 0.212 sec with Leclerc three tenths back. Verstappen ended the first running four tenths behind Russell, while his Red Bull team-mate Perez, who comfortably won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend, was only 11th.
The session was earlier suspended for nine minutes when Nico Hulkenberg crashed into the wall after he lost control of his Haas coming through the third corner.
With Hulkenberg’s broken machine in a precarious position, the red flags were deployed.
Behind the top four, Carlos Sainz took fifth for Ferrari, with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly sixth and the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso seventh.
Lando Norris finished 16th for McLaren, 1.8 sec back while home favourite and sole American in the field Logan Sargeant, who was raised in nearby Fort Lauderdale, finished 19th of the 20 runners.
The concluding action of the day gets under way at 17:30 local time (22:30 UK).
George Russell saw off Lewis Hamilton as Mercedes completed a surprise one-two finish in opening practice for the Miami Grand Prix.
In the closing moments of the one-hour running in the Sunshine State, Russell and Hamilton moved from the back of the pack to the front.
Hamilton held top spot for a handful of seconds before he was usurped by team-mate Russell. Charles Leclerc finished third for Ferrari, one spot ahead of championship leader Max Verstappen.
Formula One is back in Miami for a second time at a 3.36-mile circuit constructed around the Hard Rock Stadium – home of NFL side the Miami Dolphins – 15 miles north of the city.
The race marks the first of three rounds to be staged in the United States this year as F1’s American owners Liberty Media continue to build on the rise of the sport across the Atlantic.
A debut event on the Las Vegas strip will take place in November, while Austin’s grand prix at the Circuit of the Americas – a permanent fixture on the F1 schedule since 2012 – also features.
Despite the boom of the sport, the actual competition is facing accusations of being “predictable” and “boring” with Red Bull winning 14 of the last 15 races.
Verstappen leads Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez in the standings by six points after the opening four rounds.
But Mercedes’ encouraging start here will provide hope that Red Bull might not have it all their own way in Florida.
Russell edged out Hamilton by 0.212 sec with Leclerc three tenths back. Verstappen ended the first running four tenths behind Russell, while his Red Bull team-mate Perez, who comfortably won the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend, was only 11th.
Ross County manager Malky Mackay expects the cinch Premiership relegation battle to be closely-contested with nerve and fortune playing their part.
The Dingwall side slipped four points adrift at the foot of the table with a 6-1 defeat by Hearts immediately before the split and have lost seven of their past nine matches.
But they have beaten four out of five of their bottom-six rivals so far this season, including Saturday’s visitors, Livingston, and Mackay believes his side will make a fight of their survival quest.
When asked what will influence the survival fight, Mackay said: “The team that holds their nerve on the day… I also think the rub of the green will come into it over the five games in terms of maybe some decisions, and the VAR decisions that may take place.
“But I think there will be not a lot between the teams.”
It appears the Miami Heat will have their best player back on the court when their Eastern Conference semi-final series against the New York Knicks resumes on Saturday.
Jimmy Butler plans to play in Game 3, according to Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, after he sat out Tuesday’s loss with a right ankle sprain sustained in Miami’s Game 1 victory at Madison Square Garden.
“Jimmy is working,” Spoelstra said Friday. “We’ll see. … We know what his intentions are.”
Butler injured his ankle late in the series opener on Sunday, and though he never came out of the 108-101 victory, he was noticeably limping after getting hurt and played a smaller role in Miami’s offense.
The injury was severe enough, however, to keep him on the bench Tuesday as New York evened the series with a 111-105 win.
One advantage that is working in Butler’s favour is the lengthy layoff between Games 2 and 3.
By sitting out Tuesday, the 33-year-old Butler will have five days off between games to get treatment on the ankle.
A return in Game 3 would be a huge boost for the eighth-seeded Heat after they scored their fewest points of the postseason without the NBA’s playoff scoring leader in Game 2.
The six-time All-Star is averaging a league-leading 35.5 points per game in the playoffs on 58.5 per cent shooting, along with 6.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists.
The last time the Heat played at home on April 24, Butler had a career-high 56 points in a 119-114 win over the Milwaukee Bucks as Miami seized a 3-1 lead over the East’s top seed.
Steve Smith’s LV= Insurance County Championship debut innings was overshadowed by Sussex captain Cheteshwar Pujara’s classy century at Worcestershire.
Attention was fixed on former Australia captain Smith, whose union with Sussex for three Division Two matches ahead of this summer’s Ashes has raised eyebrows, after the visitors lost two quick wickets on the second morning.
But, just as he was finding some rhythm, Smith fell for 30 to a debatable lbw call before Pujara demonstrated why he is as highly regarded as the Australian with a fine 136 in Sussex’s 373 all out.
Worcestershire reached stumps on 34 for one – trailing by 75 heading into day three.
Australian fast bowler Michael Neser took the spotlight away from the returning Jonny Bairstow with a brilliant hat-trick as Glamorgan dominated against Yorkshire.
Bairstow made an unbeaten 20 in his first competitive innings after more than eight months out injured but he could only watch on from the non-striker’s end as Neser ripped through his colleagues at Headingley.
The 33-year-old, left out of this summer’s Ashes touring party, showed the Australia Test selectors what they could be missing as he claimed career-best figures of seven for 32 off 11 overs to help skittle Yorkshire for 106.
Boasting a first-innings lead of 139, Glamorgan reached 57 for two in their second innings before proceedings were brought to an early finish.
Nottinghamshire opener Haseeb Hameed fell three runs short of a first century of the season before Lancashire took the upper hand on a rain-affected second day at Trent Bridge.
England bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad both finished the day wicketless as Lancashire overturned a first-innings deficit of 35 to lead by 63 runs with nine second-innings wickets in hand.
Essex seamer Jamie Porter claimed four wickets to pose the first serious questions about Surrey’s credentials of retaining their title.
Porter took his season’s total to 18 in four Championship games to help dismiss Surrey for 240, with the lead extended to 89 by Nick Browne and Sir Alastair Cook in five overs before stumps.
Tom Kohler-Cadmore blasted a thrilling first half-century for Somerset to bat them into a promising position against Northamptonshire at Taunton.
The visitors began by extending their overnight first-innings score of 137 for four to 255 all out. In reply, Somerset slipped to 61 for three before Cameron Bancroft (39) helped Kohler-Cadmore on his way to an unbeaten 95 off just 71 balls, with his side 199 for four and trailing by 56.
Sam Hain passed 50 for the third time in five innings this season as Warwickshire continued to dominate Hampshire.
Hampshire had found hope with three wickets in a truncated morning session to fashion a collapse from 83 without loss to 95 for three but half-centuries for Alex Davies (51), Ed Barnard (91 not out) and Michael Burgess (60no) accompanied Hain’s 85 as Warwickshire ended day two on 364 for five – a lead of 135.
Leus du Plooy and Wayne Madsen batted Derbyshire into a dominant position against Leicestershire at Derby.
The pair shared a stand of 122 from 184 balls, with Du Plooy failing by six runs to become Derbyshire’s first century maker of the season. The hosts closed on 326 for seven, a lead of 204.
France’s Matthieu Pavon maintained his two-shot lead at the halfway stage of the DS Automobiles Italian Open.
Pavon followed an opening 63, his lowest-ever round on the DP World Tour, with a 70 on Friday to reach nine under par, with compatriot Julien Guerrier and Spain’s Adrian Otaegui on seven under.
Poland’s Adrian Meronk is a shot further back after a second consecutive 68.
Starting on the back nine at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Pavon threatened to leave the field trailing in his wake when he carded a hat-trick of birdies from the 11th, but dropped three shots over the next 13 holes before closing with a 57-foot birdie on the ninth.
“Quite an up and down day,” Pavon said. “I started quite fast with a lot of good shots, made some birdies earlier on and that was great, but then I made some mistakes.
“Nothing really big but when you miss something here it feels like it is really tough to get the up and down done, so I dropped a few shots.
“I was a bit tired in the end also after a poor night yesterday, so to finish my round under par I am really happy.”
Defending champion Robert MacIntyre had earlier been forced out of the tournament due to a back injury less than an hour before he was due to tee off alongside home favourite Guido Migliozzi and Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard.
The Scot wrote on social media: “Gutted to withdraw this morning from the @ItalianOpen with a back strain. Hopefully nothing too serious. Now for a week of rest before the PGA Championship.”
MacIntyre, who defeated US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick in a play-off to win his second DP World Tour title last September, had carded an opening two-over-par 73 on Thursday.
Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald missed the cut after consecutive rounds of 74 left him six over par.
“I wouldn’t have missed this for the world,” Donald said.
“Great to be back here again, obviously had a nice dinner with the vice-captains one night and did a lot of work behind the scenes, it was a busy week and a productive week, (but) my game was a little bit off this week.”
Carlos Alcaraz celebrated his 20th birthday by beating Borna Coric to reach the final of the Madrid Open.
The Spaniard is bidding to win back-to-back titles in his homeland for the second year in a row after successfully defending the title in Barcelona last month.
Croatian Coric put up a good fight, with the first set in particular full of gruelling all-court rallies, but ultimately Alcaraz was too good and he claimed a 6-4 6-3 victory.
After the pair had shaken hands, the home hero was presented with an enormous birthday cake while the crowd sang happy birthday.
“It means a lot to me, playing a final again here in Madrid,” said Alcaraz. “It’s such a special place for me and I have great memories since I came here to play under-12s. Of course last year was amazing.
“Turning 20 like that is special, so I will enjoy the final here and of course I will try to make all of Spain happy.”
Alcaraz’s latest win came amid the news Rafael Nadal will miss the Italian Open in Rome next week as he continues to recover from a hip injury, and the younger Spaniard is rapidly establishing himself as the French Open favourite.
Novak Djokovic missed Madrid with an elbow problem and, if he wins the title this weekend, Alcaraz will only need to play a match in Rome to ensure he returns to world number one.
Andy Murray defeated French teenager Luca Van Assche to reach the semi-finals of the Challenger event in Aix-en-Provence.
The Scot opted to drop down to the second tier after his first-round loss at the Madrid Open last week and the decision has paid off, with Murray’s 6-2 7-6 (6) victory over 18-year-old Van Assche his third in a row.
The teenager is regarded as a big talent and is already ranked in the top 100 but Murray was solid from the baseline and, unlike in his second match against Laurent Lokoli on Thursday, he managed to avoid being taken to a deciding set.
The second set was not without its frustrations, with Murray missing a match point at 5-4 and then seeing an early lead in the tie-break slip away.
Van Assche had two set points but Murray, who needs one more victory to climb back into the top 50, saved both and yelled in delight when he made it over the line.
The 35-year-old is looking for his first title at any level since Antwerp in 2019 having lost his last four finals.
Rafael Nadal’s hopes of defending his French Open crown suffered another blow with the news he has pulled out of next week’s Italian Open in Rome.
The tournament is the last big event before the tennis tour moves to Roland Garros at the end of May but Nadal is still not in good enough shape to compete following the hip injury he suffered at the Australian Open.
Nadal had hoped to be fit by the start of the clay-court season but a gloomy update last month revealed the treatment he had been having had not worked.
The 36-year-old said on Twitter on Friday: “Hello everyone! I am very sorry to announce that I will not be able to be in Rome.
“You all know how much it hurts me to miss another one of the tournaments that have marked my professional and personal career for all the love and support of the Italian tifosi.
“Despite having noticed an improvement in recent days, there have been many months without having been able to train at a high level and the re-adaptation process has its time, and I have no choice but to accept it and continue working.”
Nadal has won the title in Rome 10 times and has never gone into the French Open before without at least one warm-up event on clay.
For all his injury troubles, Nadal has never failed to play at Roland Garros since the first of his 14 titles in 2005, although he did pull out ahead of the third round in 2016 because of a wrist problem.
There are events in Lyon and Geneva the week before the start of the French Open on May 28 that Nadal could potentially seek wild card entry to but his hopes of a 15th title in Paris appear to be receding by the day.
Olympic gold medallist Oliver Townend has made a strong start to his quest for a first Badminton Horse Trials title since 2009.
The Shropshire-based Yorkshireman leads after day one of dressage, guiding Swallow Springs to a score of 23.2 penalties from an early morning draw.
Townend, a member of Great Britain’s eventing team that won gold at the Tokyo Games, holds a narrow lead over Gemma Stevens and Jalapeno, with world number one – New Zealander Tim Price – lying third on Vitali.
Townend’s Tokyo ride Ballaghmor Class is among a raft of Badminton contenders in dressage action on Saturday, when his Olympic team-mates Tom McEwen, riding Toledo De Kerser, and Laura Collett with Dacapo will also enter the arena.
And there is also likely to be a strong challenge launched by 2018 world champion Ros Canter, who returns aboard last year’s Badminton runner-up Lordships Graffalo in pursuit of a £105,000 top prize.
Sunday’s demanding cross-country test will be pivotal to the final outcome before the concluding showjumping phase on Monday.
“That was a very good start to the week,” said Townend, who was third on Swallow Springs at Badminton 12 months ago.
“I have two older horses here and I don’t think they have ever felt better, which is a great tribute to my team at home.
“I am very happy with the draw for Swallow Springs and think it will suit him. He is the quickest event horse I have ever sat on.”
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