Luis Diaz does not believe Liverpool's start to the Premier League season has been "problematic", but accepted the stumbling Reds must improve quickly. 

Liverpool have failed to win any of their opening three league games for the first time since Brendan Rodgers' first season at the helm in 2012-13, having fallen to a 2-1 defeat at Manchester United on Monday.

Goals from Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford dealt the Reds their first Premier League loss of 2022, which followed back-to-back draws with Fulham and Crystal Palace.

Liverpool have now conceded the opening goal in seven successive Premier League games for the first time in their history, while a number of injuries to key players have led to calls for Jurgen Klopp to dip into the transfer market.

While Diaz recognises the need for rapid improvements, he was keen to avoid overstating Liverpool's troubles when speaking to Sky Sports.

"It's been a bit of a difficult start," he said. "It's not quite the outset we wanted for the season. We're a club that goes out to win three points from every game we play.

"I wouldn't say it's problematic for the players or for the manager, but certainly we all know we need to do better."

Reflecting on Monday's defeat at Old Trafford, the Colombia winger added: "We were fully aware of what kind of rivalry exists between the clubs and we knew we had a big task ahead of us. It didn't go our way on the day.

"We know now we have to just do our job and train hard, rest hard and look forward to the next game, when we can hopefully accumulate some points and get a proper start to the season."

Liverpool have now lost four games against United in all competitions under Klopp, with each coming against a different Red Devils boss; Louis van Gaal in 2017, Jose Mourinho in 2018, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2021 and Erik ten Hag last time out.

Although there were few positives for Liverpool to take from the loss, Mohamed Salah's late consolation made him Liverpool's all-time top scorer against United with 10 goals, and Diaz described the Egypt star in glowing terms. 

"It's stupendous for me, being able to share my position in the team with Mo," he added. 

"I've seen him over many years on television at so many tournaments and I'd like to say I'm proud of myself, having reached this position where I can share with him these experiences, to wear the same shirt and be a team-mate of his. 

"It's really something special. Every day, playing alongside players like him, it helps you to improve, not just in a footballing sense as a player but also as a person.

"He's a great guy and there's a very special connection between him and me, and between all of us, in fact."

Liverpool welcome Bournemouth to Anfield looking for their first win of the Premier League season on Saturday.

Formula One's midseason break delivered drama that the title race so far perhaps had not.

The first half of the campaign had its own intriguing narratives, with Ferrari's frequent collapses and Mercedes' unprecedented struggles, but those strands only served to allow Max Verstappen to build a healthy lead at the top of the standings.

Attention has turned to those in the midfield in recent weeks, though, with Sebastian Vettel's imminent retirement prompting a series of developments that have not yet slowed.

Alpine have been at the heart of the drama, losing Fernando Alonso to Aston Martin in Vettel's place and then failing to secure Oscar Piastri as his replacement.

Piastri instead seems set for McLaren, who have announced Daniel Ricciardo will be leaving the team.

For Alpine then, there will be some relief that focus can now return to the track at the Belgian Grand Prix, with Verstappen set to resume his role at centre stage.

Qualifying key to Red Bull repeat

For those hoping to reel in Verstappen's 80-point lead, they will hope to get more opportunity to attack him than at Spa in 2021, when he started from pole and completed just two laps behind a safety car to claim victory amid a deluge at the circuit in Stavelot.

That result actually continued a recent trend in Belgium, where recovering from a poor qualifying session has proven increasingly tricky.

The past seven winners of the Belgian GP have started from the front row of the grid, with Verstappen among six of those to line up on pole.

Repeating the feat has not been quite so straightforward, however, as Verstappen will be looking to become the first driver to win this race from pole in consecutive entries since Ayrton Senna did so a remarkable four years in a row between 1988 and 1991.

Senna had five Belgian GP wins in total, behind only Michael Schumacher (six). Lewis Hamilton (four) will be bidding to join the Brazilian this weekend.

In-demand Fernando on top form

Alonso will hope his shock move to Aston Martin does not knock his final season with Alpine off course, as the Spaniard had refound form before stunning his team during the break.

The two-time world champion has earned points in each of his past eight races for his best run since another sequence of eight in 2018.

Alonso has not finished in the points in more than eight straight races since 2014, when he put together 15 in a row – the last of them being in Belgium.

But perhaps this could instead be a strong weekend for Alonso's future employers and the man he will replace.

Vettel's best qualifying performance at Aston Martin was fifth at Spa in 2021, finishing fifth on race day, too. Only in Azerbaijan last year (second) has he enjoyed a better result with the team.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst "couldn't be prouder" after Rangers overcame PSV to book their place in the Champions League group stages.

The Scottish Premier League side are back in the main stages of Europe's premier competition for the first time since the 2010-11 season, having prevailed 3-2 on aggregate against the Dutch giants.

Van Bronckhorst's men held out for a hard-earned 1-0 win at Philips Stadion, with Antonio Colak's 60th-minute strike settling the tie and booking their place in Thursday's draw.

And the Rangers boss was delighted by the efforts of his players, and the control they demonstrated throughout the second leg.

"It feels great to win this game, to get the whistle at the end and to achieve what we wanted," he told BT Sport.

"I was more relaxed than last week because of the way we played. It was very controlled, we played the way we wanted. We scored in the right moment and became stronger and stronger in the game.

"As a player and coach, you're only thinking about competing with the best teams in Europe, and we have the opportunity to do so.

"I'm really happy with the way we played. I couldn't be prouder at the moment."

Meanwhile, matchwinner Colak was reduced to tears after the final whistle. The Croatia international has now scored five goals since arriving from PAOK, although this is undeniably the most important yet.

And Gers' number nine cannot wait for his maiden appearance on Europe's biggest stage in club football, telling BT Sport: "It's difficult to describe in words. 

"It was a great team performance. It's an amazing journey we'll have this year, and I'm so proud of all of these guys.

"I was in tears on the pitch, it was just a moment of joy. As a kid, I always wanted to compete at this level, and to be here is amazing."

Dinamo Zagreb struck twice in extra time to book their place in the Champions League group stages at the expense of Bodo/Glimt following a 4-2 aggregate success.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, the hosts struck twice in the first half at Stadion Maksimir with Mislav Orsic and Bruno Petkovic turning the tie on its head.

Yet Albert Gronbaek levelled the tie with 20 minutes remaining as last season's Europa Conference League quarter-finalists forced extra-time.

But it was the Croatians who secured their first group stage appearance in three years; Josip Drmic edging them back in front before turning provider for Petar Bockaj in the dying moments.

Meanwhile, Copenhagen sealed their return to the group stages, having last appeared in the 2016-17 season.

The Danish champions held Trabzonspor to a goalless draw in Turkey, with a 2-1 aggregate victory booking their place in Thursday's draw.

Antonio Colak's strike sealed Rangers' return to the Champions League group stages as they edged out PSV 3-2 on aggregate in the play-offs.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst's side are back in the main stages of Europe’s premier competition after a 12-year absence, as Colak settled the second leg at the Philips Stadion.

Malik Tillman robbed Andre Ramalho of possession inside the PSV penalty area on the hour mark, before squaring for the Croatian to apply the finishing touch.

And last season's Europa League finalists held out to inflict only a second home defeat on PSV in 14 matches across all competitions.

Rangers had won just once in their previous 11 away matches in Europe, but went close to scoring despite PSV carrying the greater threat earlier on.

Ryan Kent drew a comfortable save out of Walter Benitez, while a patient build-up culminated in John Lundstram firing narrowly wide from Tillman's lay-off.

PSV, who had struck in the opening period in each of their 11 previous games, finished the half strongly.

Jon McLaughlin was called into action to deny Luuk de Jong, and Cody Gakpo squandered a decent opportunity as he could not keep the ball down from 16 yards.

Rangers were whiskers away from snatching the lead 11 minutes after the restart; Tom Lawrence's curling 20-yard strike rattling the crossbar with Benitez beaten.

But the visitors did edge their noses in front on the hour mark, Tillman stealing possession inside the PSV area before squaring for Colak to slot into the empty net.

Tillman went close to doubling the lead soon after when Benitez held onto his vicious low drive before PSV threatened the equaliser.

An unmarked Philipp Max volleyed wide from close range, while McLaughlin demonstrated brilliant reflexes to keep out Gakpo as Rangers stood firm to secure their return to European football's top table.

Ben Stokes has praised Matthew Potts for his maturity after he was dropped for England's second Test against South Africa at Old Trafford.

Potts struggled for rhythm during a heavy opening defeat at Lord's, the first Test loss of the Brendon McCullum era and since Stokes took the captaincy permanently from Joe Root.

That has seen the bowler pay the price, with Ollie Robinson called up in his place, but Stokes nevertheless believes Potts remains a key member of the wider England cohort.

"It's very tough for Matty to miss out, but what he's done in the five games that he's played is he's taken himself from a county cricketer with a lot of promise and really announced himself on the big stage," Stokes told reporters.

"We've got to give him a lot of credit, to handle the decision so professionally at such a young age is a real indication of where we're at at the moment as a team.

"The selection was based around what we thought was the best bowling attack to suit this particular ground and he completely understood that."

Robinson has not played for England since the end of the Ashes tour in January, with a combination of fitness issues keeping him out of the fold.

But an impressive showing for the England Lions earlier this month has seen him recalled, with Stokes hopeful the paceman will complicate matters for South Africa's batters.

"When you look at what Ollie possesses as a bowler, one of his real key assets is how much extra bounce he gets compared to other bowlers in our squad," Stokes said.

"We think here at Old Trafford, with it being a slightly quicker wicket than other grounds we play at, it obviously offers a lot more bounce. We obviously pick the team we think is going to enable us to win the Test."

Having brushed aside New Zealand as part of the 'Bazball' approach, defeat against South Africa brought England back down with a bumpy landing.

"What we have learned from ourselves is that you can't always go out there and perform how you want to perform," Stokes explained.

"The address after the game was, 'look, lads, you have obviously not performed anywhere near the capabilities we want to and we know we can, but it's not something that we are going to take backward steps from'.

"South Africa were better than us in that Test, that's fine, that's sport. Sport is set up for someone to be a winner and someone to be a loser. We are focussing on this game and the next and want to win the series 2-1."

Fortress Old Trafford needed for England

The hosts will be looking to avoid back-to-back defeats in men's Tests at home for the first time since August 2008, following their innings and 12-run defeat to the Proteas.

England will take heart from their strong Old Trafford record against the tourists, having lost only one of their nine men's Tests against them at Old Trafford, way back in July 1955.

Elgar eyes milestone

South Africa captain Dean Elgar needs just 89 runs to become the eighth player to hit the 5,000 mark in men's Test cricket for South Africa.

He might just get them too, with his Test batting strike rate in England (51.8) his second-best in any country (60.7 in Pakistan).

Los Angeles Chargers cornerback and prized free agent acquisition J.C. Jackson underwent ankle surgery on Tuesday.

The 2021 Pro Bowl selection is expected to miss two-to-four weeks, the team announced, giving him a chance to suit up for the Chargers' season opener against the Las Vegas Raiders on September 11.

After starting his NFL career with the New England Patriots, Jackson signed a five-year, $82million contract with the Chargers this offseason.

Jackson, who went undrafted out of Maryland in 2018, had 25 interceptions in his four seasons with the Patriots, the most in the NFL over that span.

Jackson, 26, was signed by the Chargers in an effort to improve on last year's bottom-five scoring defense that allowed 27 points per game.

This offseason, Los Angeles also traded for Khalil Mack to rush the quarterback opposite Joey Bosa, while the interior defensive line should be bolstered by the acquisitions of Sebastian Joseph-Day and Austin Johnson.

The Chargers made Derwin James the highest-paid safety in NFL history when they signed him to a $76.5m contract extension earlier this month.

With a talented, new-look defense and with blossoming star Justin Herbert under center, the Chargers are looking to challenge the Kansas City Chiefs in a highly competitive AFC West.

Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has cited "insanely good" Karim Benzema as inspiration as he vows to never stop improving at the Etihad Stadium.

Haaland has made a solid start to life in England since his £51million (€60m) move from Borussia Dortmund, scoring three goals in as many Premier League games for the reigning champions.

City pipped some of the world's biggest clubs in the race to secure the services of the Norway international, including reigning LaLiga and Champions League winners Real Madrid.

Madrid talisman Benzema played an instrumental role during their successful 2021-22 season - top-scoring in both competitions along the way - while he recently surpassed Raul (323) as the club's second-leading marksman of all-time behind only Cristiano Ronaldo (450).

The 34-year-old appears certain to be in the running for the top prize at this year's Ballon d'Or awards, and his recent exploits have provided inspiration for a player 12 years his junior.

"I don’t know what will happen, but it must always be about learning, about developing," Haaland told FourFourTwo. "You can never stop looking for new ways to become better.

"Look at Karim Benzema at Real Madrid. He's 34 now and suddenly, he's developed into an even better player over the last couple of years – that's insanely good. I want to always do that."

West Ham have completed the signing of defender Emerson Palmieri from Chelsea for a fee in the region of £15million.

The Italy international has penned a four-year deal with the Hammers, with the option of a further 12 months, and will wear the number 33 shirt at the London Stadium.

Emerson becomes David Moyes' seventh signing of the transfer window, following the arrivals of Nayef Aguerd, Alphonse Areola, Flynn Downes, Gianluca Scamacca, Maxwel Cornet and Thilo Kehrer.

The 28-year-old struggled to establish his place in Chelsea's starting line-up after moving from Roma in January 2018, spending last season on loan at Ligue 1 side Lyon.

Nevertheless, the left-back brings plenty of experience to the West Ham ranks, having started for Italy in their Euro 2020 final victory over England last year.

"I'm very happy to be here and to arrive here. It's a big challenge for me, it's a big team, so I'm very happy to be here and I'm ready," Emerson told the club's official website.

"Personally, since the first day I arrived here in England, I always saw the big clubs and I always watched the big games, and I knew the history about West Ham.

"The history is so, so big for this team and so when I knew about the interest, for sure I said 'Yes, let's go, I want to go there' and I'm here now! I can't wait to get started in a West Ham shirt."

Hammers boss David Moyes added: "We are very pleased to welcome Emerson to West Ham United.

"He is an experienced player with a good pedigree, who has enjoyed great success at both club and international level in recent years.

"He will give us strong competition in defensive areas and brings a winning mentality that we are looking to build here at West Ham."

West Ham have started their league campaign with three defeats and no goals scored for the first time since 1971-72.

The Hammers take on Viborg in the second leg of their Europa Conference League play-off on Thursday, leading 3-1 from the first leg, before facing Aston Villa in the Premier League three days later.

Washington Commanders coach Ron Rivera had said all along the team would not rush defensive end Chase Young back from last November's ACL tear.

Now the earliest Young can suit up for the Commanders is Week 5 after officially placing the star pass-rusher on the reserve/physically unable to perform (PUP) list on Tuesday.

Young is still recovering from a torn ACL in his right knee sustained in Week 10 of last season and Rivera had already ruled him out for the 2022 opener against the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars on September 11, while also hinting he could wind up on the PUP list.

Under the new rules for the PUP list, a player must sit out at least four games, meaning the first game Young will be eligible to play is against the Tennessee Titans on October 9.

After capturing Defensive Rookie of the Year honours and earning a Pro Bowl selection in 2020 with 7.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries to help Washington win the NFC East, Young's production dipped last year before his season-ending injury.

In nine games in 2021, Young finished with just 1.5 sacks and two forced fumbles without recovering a fumble as Washington ended the season in third place in the division.

Placing Young on the PUP list was a necessary move as all teams must trim their rosters to 80 players by Tuesday's deadline.

Manchester United players must be prepared to continue to "suffer" if they are to maximise their potential this season after beating Liverpool, according to manager Erik ten Hag.

United stunned their bitter rivals as they claimed a hard-fought 2-1 win at Old Trafford on Monday, with the result made even more surprising by the manner of the defeats in their two previous games.

The Red Devils began Ten Hag's tenure with back-to-back losses to Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford, the latter of whom ran out emphatic 4-0 winners in London.

Ten Hag dropped Harry Maguire, Cristiano Ronaldo and Luke Shaw from his starting XI for the visit of Liverpool, with their respective replacements –  Raphael Varane, Anthony Elanga and Tyrell Malacia –  all acquitting themselves well in what was United's first league win over the Reds since 2018.

The collective attitude of the United team attracted widespread praise due to their defensive work rate – their 232 pressures applied to an opposition player on the ball was the third-highest in the Premier League this season.

But the key for United now is to ensure Monday was not just a flash in the pan, and for them to have sustained success in building towards their objectives, Ten Hag is warning the team they have to be willing to run themselves into the ground.

"What I demand is that players bring the top spirit every day. Every day, they have to bring it to the club," Ten Hag told United's official website on Tuesday.

"It has to be a way of life and I hope they understand. It's only working – high performance, high level – if you have that spirit and have that focus.

"If you accept that you have to hurt yourself, you have to suffer, to finally get the best level out of you."

Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford got United's goals on Monday, with the two England internationals generally looking lively as their movement and pace caused Liverpool's defence issues.

Both endured disappointing seasons last term, with Sancho netting only three Premier League goals and Rashford getting four.

Indeed, Rashford's strike against Liverpool ended a run of 997 minutes without a goal in all competitions for United since netting against West Ham in January.

Clearly, however, Ten Hag thinks they could both be crucial to United.

"I'm convinced they can be really a threat, really a weapon against every opponent," Ten Hag continued.

"As long as their focus and energy is there with them, it is very difficult to stop them.

"So it's about the team getting them in the right situation and also about themselves, with the right approach, right focus in the game and battling, defending, pressing. But also dribbles and combinations and runs in behind."

Former Manchester United midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger described the Red Devils as being in "survival mode" during their 2-1 win over Liverpool, insisting Erik ten Hag will not be entirely satisfied with their performance.

United bounced back from consecutive defeats against Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford in impressive fashion on Monday, dealing Liverpool their first league defeat of 2022 through goals from Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford.

The result eased the pressure that had already begun to build around Ten Hag, who is the first United boss to claim his maiden victory in the job against Liverpool.

But Schweinsteiger, who made 35 appearances for United between 2015 and 2017, believes the manner of United's win may not have impressed Ten Hag.

United recorded just 29.6 per cent of possession at Old Trafford and allowed Liverpool 17 shots to their 12, and Schweinsteiger says they remain a long way from competing with the best.

"I support United of course and I'm very happy they won the match," he told BBC Radio 5 Live on Tuesday.

"But was it a great performance? In my opinion, if I compare it with other teams, the top teams in Europe, I wouldn't say so. 

"For me, Liverpool were the better team, they had much more of the ball and possession in the game.

"But United did one thing very well, and that was to have the right attitude towards the game, they had the right spirit in the team. 

"If I compare it to the top football in Europe, it's not on that level. Against the ball they were doing very well; fighting, running, they had the right attitude. 

"But after 20 minutes, Liverpool were the better team, definitely. They couldn't finish their last passes otherwise they would have won the game."

Schweinsteiger knows Ten Hag from the Dutchman's time coaching Bayern Munich II between 2013 and 2015 and insists he is the right man to bring success to Old Trafford, though he feels United are yet to adapt to his style of play.

"I think they have got a very good manager now with Erik ten Hag, I know him quite well from Munich because he was our second team manager back in the day," he added.

"I think they have the right man in that position. But was it the way United want to play football? I don't think so, it was survival mode. 

"In the long term, he definitely wants to have a team that plays a different kind of football. It will take some time but definitely he is the right man for that position."

Ten Hag made several big calls when selecting his team for the game, leaving out club captain Harry Maguire and talismanic striker Cristiano Ronaldo as Bruno Fernandes was handed the armband.

Fernandes looked rejuvenated after his quiet start to the season, recording a team-high 66 touches and creating two chances on Monday, the joint-most among United players.

And while Schweinsteiger was impressed with the midfielder's display, he highlighted the need for United to fit both him and Ronaldo into a coherent system.

Asked whether the duo could play together, he said: "Well they're both Portuguese so I don't know, it's tricky for the national team then! There, they have to play together.

"You definitely see that Bruno Fernandes was running a lot, he made metres and metres and metres. 

"But if you have a player like Cristiano Ronaldo, you have to know what you get and what to expect. He's not the player who runs a lot defensively, but he scores you 15 goals. So, you have to know that."

The new NFL season is right around the corner and, amid the battle for the playoffs and eventual success in the Super Bowl, there's also the fight that nobody wants to admit they may like the idea of.

The team with the worst record in the NFL in the 2022 season will secure the first pick of the 2023 NFL Draft – theoretically allowing the worst teams to pick the best players, continuing a cycle of maintaining competitiveness across the league.

For the past two seasons, that opportunity has fallen to the Jaguars but, while 2022 may not be a fully enjoyable season in Jacksonville, there is at least hope that they can rise off the bottom after two seasons with a combined record of 4-29.

So, if not the Jaguars, then who? Stats Perform has crunched the numbers and given an assessment of four teams who could be in the hunt for the number one pick.

Houston Texans

There are few teams who head into 2022 with such a bleak picture across the entire team and Davis Mills, the quarterback tasked with helming the offense, has weak wide receiver options and an offensive line unable to provide him with much safety.

Last season, Houston were ranked dead last for the total number of first downs (266), and red-zone drives (37), as well as holding the worst yards-per-game average at 278.1 and the highest percentage of three-and-out drives (28.2)

Their first down efficiency, the percentage of first downs picking up four or more yards, was 42.9 per cent, again the worst across the league.

Defensively, things were not much better. When it came to stopping big plays where opponents gained 10 or more yards, the Texans were bottom of the class with 257 given up and allowed the most successful plays in the red zone with 55.9 per cent.

The Texans' opponents averaged 384.4 yards per game in 2021, which was the second-worst tally in the NFL - and Houston also ranked 31st for the average margin of defeat (17.15 pts).

Atlanta Falcons

Having traded away the greatest quarterback in their franchise history in Matt Ryan, the Falcons head into unchartered territory in 2022, but the signs are far from promising.

Marcus Mariota, entering his seventh year in the NFL, has been named as the Falcons' starting quarterback for the forthcoming season ahead of rookie Desmond Ridder, but has enjoyed limited playing time in recent years.

Getting up to speed with the offense will be even harder without Calvin Ridley, handed an indefinite suspension for betting during the 2021 season, though tight end Kyle Pitts and rookie receiver Drake London offer him two physically imposing targets.

Atlanta have also had problems retaining the ball, with the Falcons recording 30 fumbles last season, the most in the NFL - conceding possession on 11 occasions.

Things are worse on defense. In the 2021 season, the Falcons gave up an average of 364.4 yards per game and conceded an average of 27 points per game - the third-worst mark in the NFL behind only the New York Jets (29.6) and the Detroit Lions (27.5). Atlanta's is a talent-poor roster that looks primed to put them in contention for the first pick and a potential shot at a franchise quarterback.

New York Jets

The Jets' situation looks bleak before even diving into the stats, with the franchise 0-6 against division opponents in 2021 and having an overall record of 4-13 last season – only the Jaguars and the Lions held a worse return.

Positive moves were made in the 2022 NFL Draft, New York landing cornerback Ahmad 'Sauce' Gardner, wide receiver Garrett Wilson and defensive end Jermaine Johnson in the first round – but getting immediate contributions from all three may be asking too much.

The Jets were comfortably the worst defensive team in the NFL last season, conceding an average of 397.6 yards per game, the highest in the NFL, and 29.6 points per game totalling 504 overall – the most by some distance ahead of the porous Lions (467).

Vulnerabilities were present across the field, with the Jets giving up an average of 138.3 rushing yards per game in 2021, the fourth-highest in the league, and 259.4 receiving yards per game, the third-highest total.

The Jets will be desperate to improve a turnover differential of minus 13. Doing so will be contingent on 2021 second overall pick recovering from his preseason knee injury and staying healthy and avoiding the poor decisions that were prevalent in his rookie year. He threw 11 of the Jets' 20 interceptions last season. 

If Wilson fails to make those strides, the Jets could be debating whether to replace him with one of 2023's top quarterback prospects with the number one pick.

Seattle Seahawks

Losing Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos is a hit likely to send the Seahawks to the NFC cellar, as their 2012 third-round pick was responsible for moments of magic that kept Seattle's head above water in recent years.

The strength of Pete Carroll's defense had defined his reign in Seattle, but the Seahawks have gradually declined to become one of the league's worst teams on that side of the ball. Seattle conceded an average of 379.1 yards per game in 2021 – the fifth-most in the league.

Seattle have particularly struggled defending the pass, giving up 265.5 yards per game through the air in 2021 – putting them behind only the Baltimore Ravens.

Neither of Wilson's replacements have previously shown any indication of elevating an offense to a level to mitigate the defensive struggles as the franchise legend did so often during his storied spell in Seattle.

Indeed, neither Drew Lock nor Geno Smith can be considered capable of filling the void left by the nine-time Pro Bowl QB.

Lock's interception percentage of 2.8 since entering the NFL in 2019 is the ninth-worst in the league in that time. Both Lock (6.54) and Smith (5.88) were among the five worst quarterbacks (min. 50 attempts) by pickable pass percentage last season.

Simply put, the Seahawks do not possess the quarterback play to allow for the defense to be as bad as it is. It's a transition year in Seattle, and the Seahawks could soon be transitioning to Wilson's long-term replacement with the top pick.

Christian Eriksen believes Manchester United showed they have the legs to take on the best in the Premier League after outrunning Liverpool at Old Trafford.

The Monday night 2-1 win at Old Trafford will count for little if United stumble at Southampton on Saturday, but after defeats to Brighton and Hove Albion and Brentford, the Red Devils found a big performance to sink their great rivals and lift spirits.

With Harry Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo shuffled out of the starting XI, goals from Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford delivered three points for United, Erik ten Hag's first league win as United manager.

United had only 29.6 per cent of possession and their passing accuracy was a fairly dismal 65.93 per cent.

That was the worst accuracy United have had in any Premier League game since posting 65.73 per cent in a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield in December 2018.

Yet they were still the better side for large parts of the game, with their energy and enthusiasm so markedly different from the game prior, the 4-0 thumping at Brentford.

Assessing the difference between the Brentford and Liverpool games, Eriksen hit on the big change against the Reds, saying: "I think our intensity compared to the Brentford game [was the biggest difference].

"Obviously, we made a few mistakes against them that gave them the advantage and [against Liverpool] we started on the front foot and were the better team in the first half."

Captain Maguire would have been frustrated to be relegated to the bench, but the England defender reacted on Tuesday morning by posting a picture on Instagram of Rashford and Bruno Fernandes celebrating, adding the caption: "Things you love to see."

United's running caught the eye, as they covered 113 kilometres as a group, with Liverpool clocking up just under 110km.

Rashford ended a run of 997 minutes without a goal in all competitions for United and almost added another, thrashing a fierce shot just over the crossbar.

Eriksen said that for United it was a case of getting "back to basics".

"We have some very quick players and how we played today, and how Liverpool play, suited us as well," the Denmark midfielder said. "It's great to play with players who want to play football and run."

Eriksen believes the jolt of the Brighton and Brentford defeats has set United up for the rest of the season, but time will tell on that score. Two wretched performances followed by a big improvement for one game leaves them with some convincing still to do.

Former Tottenham and Inter playmaker Eriksen senses growing unity, however. Quoted on United's official website, he said: "I think it started after losing two games.

"This has been about coming together and getting back to the basics. We needed to show that we were better doing the basics and I think we did that."

Manchester United supporter Stormzy believes Cristiano Ronaldo's future should be out of the spotlight, as he urged fans and media to "let the GOATs be the GOATs".

United claimed their first win of the season by defeating rivals Liverpool 2-1 at Old Trafford on Monday in impressive fashion.

With new signing Casemiro having been paraded on the pitch before kick-off, Erik ten Hag's team bounced back from the 4-0 hammering at Brentford in style, and were deservedly in control at 2-0 through goals from Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford.

The latter, who ended a run of 997 minutes without a goal in all competitions for United, has scored five league goals against Liverpool, a tally he betters only against Leicester City (six) in the competition, and it was Rashford who Ten Hag picked to lead United's line instead of Ronaldo.

Ten Hag stressed the need for energy as the reasoning behind his decision, with Ronaldo coming on from the bench in the 86th minute, shortly after Mohamed Salah had pulled Liverpool back into the contest.

Ronaldo's future remains uncertain and with United not back at Old Trafford until September 4, three days after the close of the transfer window, it could mean he has played his final home game for the club.

But rapper, singer and songwriter Stormzy, who was in attendance on Monday, wants Ronaldo to be respected as one of the greatest of all time.

"That was amazing, that’s the best we've been this season, the best we've been for a long time," said Stormzy in a pitch-side interview on Sky Sports' Monday Night Football.

Of Ronaldo, he said: "When they're that great, you can't speak on them, man, you've just got to let the man be great.

"As much as there's been a bit of a fuss, that's a GOAT. You've got to let the GOATs be the GOATs."

United's victory saw Ten Hag become the club's first manager to secure his first ever competitive win with the club in a match against Liverpool, who have failed to win any of their first three games of a Premier League campaign for the first time since the 2012-13 season.