Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso dodged questions about taking over at Anfield and insisted he does not return to the city as a tourist.
Alonso was hot favourite for the Liverpool job when Jurgen Klopp announced in January he was leaving, but quickly ruled himself out of the running before guiding Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title.
Asked whether it was ever a serious consideration, the Spaniard, who won the 2005 Champions League during a five-year spell at Anfield, said: “At that time I was focused, I had a big thing with the players and we were really focused on that.”
He has already been linked with a return to another of his former clubs Real Madrid to succeed Carlo Ancelotti, but he refused to speculate on whether coming to Anfield would be a consideration.
“Let’s talk about the game tomorrow, it’s more interesting than my future. Let’s talk about the great players on both sides, that is what is in my head,” he added.
“For us it is a big challenge to come here. Liverpool at the moment is one of the best if not the best in Europe, they are showing that in a very strong Premier League and the Champions League.
“It’s a good squad, good coach. At Anfield, it’s a big challenge. We’re looking forward to it, let’s see what happens.”
Alonso remains a crowd favourite and there is every chance the Kop will sing his name at some point on Tuesday night.
“We will see, I will tell you after the game how I feel. There will be a moment for everything, but the main thing is not me,” he said.
“It’s the players, how we deal with the emotions you have in this stadium, they are in a good moment.”
On his return to Liverpool, he added: “Maybe tomorrow I will take a little walk or a run, but there is no time for tourism.
“I know the city very well, I loved it, but I will focus on the game and only the game.”
Adam Armstrong scored an 85th-minute winner as Southampton beat Everton 1-0 to earn their first Premier League victory of the season.
The left-winger’s late goal helped lift the Saints off the foot of the table on a day where they were also indebted to the heroics of goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.
Everton’s Beto thought he had equalised minutes before the end but, after a lengthy review, the effort was ruled offside as Russell Martin’s promoted side were handed a much-needed boost in their survival bid.
Nottingham Forest’s Ryan Yates (centre) and team-mates celebrate victory after the final whistle in the Premier League match at the City Ground, Nottingham. Picture date: Saturday November 2, 2024. PA Photo. See PA story SOCCER Forest.
Saints’ theme of dominating possession continued as Everton struggled to breach the hosts’ well-organised structure in the early stages, with new boy Mateus Fernandes being the key link between midfield and attack.
The 20-year-old summer signing from Sporting Lisbon floated in between the lines and continuously picked out Armstrong on the right-hand side, but the wideman struggled to get the better of marker Vitalii Mykolenko.
Saints continued to play football which contradicted their 20th-place position at the start of the weekend, with Flynn Downes putting Cameron Archer in behind only for the striker’s effort to narrowly miss the left post, much to the relief of a well-beaten Jordan Pickford.
Everton had been second best, but with the game level they were still very much in the contest. A first-time strike from Idrissa Gueye off a corner routine early in the second half saw Ramsdale’s save awkwardly spin onto the roof of the net as Everton pushed men forward in search of the opener.
The Toffees came close again in the 67th minute. Substitute Jesper Lindstrom wandered onto the left, cut in and delivered a whipped inswinging delivery with his right foot, which was met by the head of Michael Keane in the six-yard box. Miraculously, Ramsdale demonstrated instinctive reflexes to touch the ball onto the post, keeping the scores level.
Ramsdale’s heroics continued as he began to outperform opposite number and England number one Pickford. The former Arsenal man, who made the move to the south coast for a reported £18 million in the summer, made another incredible stop, this time tipping Lindstrom’s free-kick over the bar.
Beto hit the bar for Everton after 84 minutes and, typical of the end-to-end affair, Saints surged down the other end to take the lead.
Yukinari Sugawara was unleashed down the right and a simple ball into the middle saw Armstrong jink inside and bury his first-time effort into the bottom left-hand corner.
Beto thought he had salvaged a point with a finish late on, but VAR saved Saints as they won an important and deserved three points.
Jordan Ayew’s stoppage-time equaliser denied Ipswich a first Premier League win of the season as Leicester snatched a 1-1 draw.
Town were on course for their first three points in the top flight since April 2002 when a superb volley from Leif Davis put them ahead.
But the Tractor Boys had Kalvin Phillips sent off with 15 minutes remaining, and the 10 men were unable to hold on.
Instead, Ayew’s last-gasp strike meant Kieran McKenna’s immensely watchable side have now squandered a lead five times in 10 matches this season.
Leicester, with manager Steve Cooper serving a touchline ban, should have gone ahead in the third minute when Jamie Vardy got in behind the Town back four.
But the 37-year-old opted to square the ball rather than shoot and Stephy Mavididi made a mess of his finish.
Moments later Leicester almost gifted the hosts a goal when Jannik Vestergaard miscontrolled a pass from goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.
Omari Hutchinson nicked the ball away from the defender and stood up an inviting cross for Sam Szmodics, who headed wastefully over.
Leicester’s Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte then embarked on a mazy run into the penalty area, beating four players before his deflected shot was pawed away by Arijanet Muric.
Ipswich passed up another good opportunity after half an hour when Dara O’Shea met a Davis corner unmarked at the back post, but he planted his header into the ground and wide.
But Town were playing some eye-catching stuff, and one slick move saw Liam Delap’s extravagant pass taken by Conor Chaplin and curled inches wide of the far post.
Hermansen had to come out bravely to deny the onrushing Delap and then hold Ben Johnson’s drive with Ipswich, like so many times this season, unable to convert some wonderful chances into goals.
That changed nine minutes into the second half, however, as Davis scored with a beautiful far-post volley. The left-back met a sweeping cross-field pass from Sam Morsy with a measured, cushioned effort back past Hermansen and inside the opposite post.
However, the mood inside Portman Road changed when a chaotic couple of minutes saw Conor Chaplin bundled over by Abdul Fatawu in the area, with referee Tim Robinson waving away Ipswich’s penalty appeals.
Robinson then further angered the locals when he showed Phillips a second yellow card for a foul on Abdul Fatawu.
Leicester sensed their chance but Buonanotte blazed over from 15 yards and Ayew’s goalbound shot was cleared by Cameron Burgess.
However, in the fourth minute of stoppage time, Morsy was robbed by Boubakary Soumare as he attempted to run the ball into the Ipswich half.
Soumare fed fellow substitute Ayew, who played a neat one-two with Vardy before slipping the ball under Muric to leave Cooper celebrating from the press seats and Ipswich utterly crestfallen.
Jose Mourinho cheekily said he is looking to add a fourth Premier League medal to his glittering cabinet if Manchester City are stripped of their titles and rivals Manchester United are awarded the Premier League trophy for the 2017-18 season.
Mourinho, who won three titles with Chelsea, guided United to a second-place finish behind City in that campaign, 19 points behind Pep Guardiola’s record-breaking side.
City, who have won the English title a record four times in succession, were referred to an independent commission in February 2023, with the various charges dating from 2009 to 2018. They have always denied any wrongdoing.
Should City be found guilty of some or all of the charges, they could face penalties or huge fines, points deductions, being stripped of their titles or even be demoted from the top flight.
“We won the Europa League and finished second in the Premier League. I think we still have a chance to win that league,” Fenerbahce boss Mourinho told reporters ahead of their Europa League clash against United.
“Maybe they punish Manchester City with points (deductions) and maybe we win that league. They have to pay me the bonus and give me the medal.”
Mourinho was the first manager since Alex Ferguson’s last season in 2012-13 to bring United the closest to winning the league title again but he was sacked in December 2018 after a poor run of form.
Ferguson is United’s most successful manager and although he is set to step down as a global ambassador after the club’s part-owners Ineos ended his multi-million pound contract, Mourinho said the 82-year-old did not need the position or the money.
“The ambassadorial role… I don’t know in depth the situation. It doesn’t matter why, what (happened). Sir Alex has the most important thing, which is the love and respect of every Man United fan around the world,” Mourinho said.
“That is more important than an ambassadorial role, it is more important than a few pounds that he can make that he doesn’t need.”
Former Manchester City footballer Benjamin Mendy was lent money by teammates when the club stopped paying him after he was charged with rape and sexual assault, an employment tribunal has heard.
Current and former players Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva and Riyad Mahrez supported the French international, who now claims to be owed £11.5 million in unpaid wages by the Premier League champions.
The 30-year-old’s £500,000 per month wage was withheld by the club after he was charged in 2021, the tribunal was told.
The World Cup winner was subsequently cleared.
Mr Mendy, who now plays for French Ligue 2 club Lorient, brought employment tribunal proceedings against Manchester City, claiming for “unauthorised deductions” from wages.
His contract showed he would also receive a £900,000 bonus for appearing in 60% of matches, a £1 million bonus if City qualified for the Champions League, and an annual £1.2m payment to his image rights company.
Court documents shared with the Manchester employment tribunal said Mr Mendy “very quickly ran out of money” and had to sell his Cheshire mansion to cover legal fees, bills and child support payments after his wages were withheld.
“I struggled to pay my child support, I felt awful,” the footballer said in a witness statement.
Mr Mendy said his agent, Meissa N’diaye, paid towards his legal fees, while teammates including England international Sterling offered “financial support”.
“Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva and Riyad Mahrez all lent me money to help me try and pay my legal fees and support my family,” he said in his witness statement.
The left-back described his 2021 charging as the day “my life was turned upside down forever.”
The tribunal heard he enjoyed partying, and was held in custody between August 2021 and January 2022, and again between December 2022 and January 2023 after he breached his bail conditions by hosting and attending multiple parties.
A January 2021 party at his multi-million pound home lasted until 4am, despite him having a match the following day, the tribunal was told.
Mr Mendy, appearing via videolink, told the tribunal he and his agent Mr N’diaye had been assured by Man City’s then chief football operating officer Omar Berrada that he would receive his unpaid wages once he had been cleared of the charges.
The footballer sent Mr Berrada a WhatsApp message in November 2022, asking if he could confirm in writing that the wages would be paid, the tribunal heard.
But Mr Berrada did not reply to the message and denied ever having made such an assurance.
After his acquittal, Mr Mendy sent an email to Khaldoon Al Mubarak, the Emirati chief executive of Manchester City, but again received no response.
The club continued paying Mr Mendy following his first arrest in November 2020 but has argued it did not have to carry on doing so later because his bail conditions and Football Association suspension meant he was not able to perform his duties as a player.
Mr Mendy’s witness statement continued: “I would have thought that Manchester City, of all clubs, would appreciate the lack of control and anger that a person or entity has with being charged with false allegations given the Premier League allegations that they are facing.
“At no point have Manchester City apologised to me or even acknowledged how their actions almost cost me everything.
“I believe that it is fair and just for me to be paid the wages that I would have earned but for being falsely arrested for crimes that I did not commit.”
Mr Mendy was found not guilty of six counts of rape and one count of sexual assault in January 2023, but the same jury could not reach a verdict on another count of rape and one count of attempted rape.
It saw a retrial and Mendy was found not guilty of one charge of rape and one charge of attempted rape.
In April, a High Court tax debt case against Mr Mendy was dismissed after he paid a £700,000 bill.
The employment tribunal is expected to last for two days.
Jürgen Klopp, the 57-year-old German will assume the role of Global Head of Soccer at Red Bull starting January 1, 2025. In this position, he will oversee the company’s international network of soccer clubs. Klopp, one of the most sought-after figures in world football, concluded his memorable nine-year tenure as Liverpool’s manager after the 2023-24 season. Under his leadership, Liverpool secured all major football honors, including the Champions League (2018-19), Premier League (2019-20), FA Cup (2021-22), two EFL Cups, the FIFA Club World Cup, and the UEFA Super Cup. They also finished as runners-up twice in the Champions League and once in the Europa League.
Jurgen Klopp
In his strategic role, Jürgen Klopp will not be involved in the clubs’ day-to-day operations but will focus on supporting the sports directors in advancing the Red Bull philosophy. He will also leverage his extensive network to aid in scouting top talent and contribute to the training and development of coaches.
Jürgen Klopp, Global Head of Soccer at Red Bull revealed:
“After almost 25 years on the sideline, I could not be more excited to get involved in a project like this. The role may have changed but my passion for football and the people who make the game what it is has not. By joining Red Bull at a global level, I want to develop, improve and support the incredible football talent that we have at our disposal. We can do this in many ways by using the elite knowledge and experience that Red Bull possesses to learn from other sports and other industries. Together we can discover what is possible. I see my role primarily as a mentor for the coaches and management of the Red Bull clubs. Still, ultimately, I am one part of an organisation that is unique, innovative and forward-looking. As I said, this could not excite me more.”
Oliver Mintzlaff, CEO of Corporate Projects and Investments at Red Bull stated:
“We are very proud of this outstanding and certainly the strongest signing in Red Bull’s soccer history. Jürgen Klopp is one of the greatest and most influential figures in world soccer, with extraordinary skills and charisma. In his role as Head of Soccer, he will be a game-changer for our involvement in international soccer and its continued development. We are hoping for valuable and decisive impulses in key areas to make the clubs even better, both collectively and individually.”
Jürgen Klopp will be formally announced as the Global Head of Soccer at a press conference in mid-January 2025, following his assumption of the role on January 1. The specific date and time of the event will be provided in advance. We kindly ask that you refrain from making further inquiries or interview requests until that time.
Luton winger Chiedozie Ogbene has completed a move to Premier League newcomers Ipswich for an undisclosed fee.
The 27-year-old Republic of Ireland international, who scored four times in 30 appearances for the Hatters in last season’s top flight, has signed a four-year contract.
Ogbene told Town TV: “I’m very excited and feel lucky to have this opportunity to play in the Premier League again.
“It’s an opportunity I had to grab with both hands and I can’t wait to be involved as soon as possible.”
Ogbene began his career in Ireland with Cork City and Limerick before spells at Brentford, Rotherham and Luton.
Burnley have continued their squad overhaul by signing Hannibal Mejbri on a four-year deal from Manchester United.
The Tunisia attacking midfielder, 21, joins for an undisclosed fee and is the eighth new arrival at Turf Moor this summer.
“I’m very excited. Very happy to be here and I can’t wait to see the fans,” he said.
“After speaking to the coach (Scott Parker), the project sounded good to me and hopefully we can make it a success.”
Mejbri joined United in 2021 – the same year he made his Tunisia debut – and spent loan spells at Birmingham and Sevilla.
Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo has joined Al Hilal on a permanent deal.
Manchester City’s Spanish manager Pep Guardiola (C) speaks to Manchester City’s Portuguese defender Joao Cancelo (R) during the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on August 13, 2022. -. (Photo by OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
It is understood Cancelo moves to the Saudi Pro League in a deal worth 25million euros (£21.1m), ending the Portugal international’s five-year stay with City after arriving at the club in a £60m move from Juventus.
“I would like to wish everyone at City continued success in the future,” Cancelo, 30, was quoted as saying on the Premier League club’s website.
“I had many very special moments during my time here at this great club.
“I would like to thank my team-mates, the coaches, all the staff at City and the fans for everything during my time here.”
Cancelo made 154 appearances for City and was part of three Premier League title-winning sides at the Etihad Stadium.
He went out on loan to Bayern Munich in January 2023 and spent last season at Barcelona.
Cancelo represented Portugal at this summer’s European Championship in Germany.
But he did not feature in City’s first two Premier League games this season, against Chelsea and Ipswich.
City director of football Txiki Begiristain said: “I would like to thank Joao for his contribution during a remarkable period at City.
“He made a big impact in title-winning campaigns and was a huge influence on the pitch.”
American Quincy Hall dug deep in the final metres to overhaul Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith and take the Olympic 400 metres gold in another race of scintillating quality on Wednesday.
Hudson-Smith seemed on course to win his country’s first gold over the distance since “Chariots of Fire” Eric Liddell in the Paris Games 100 years ago, but he tied up at the end and Hall swept past to win in a personal best 43.40 seconds and give the U.S. their first triumph since LaShawn Merritt in 2008.
Hudson-Smith bettered his own European record with 43.44 for silver and Zambia’s 21-year-old Muzala Samukonga set his second successive national record with 43.74 to take bronze.
The first five men home were all under 44 seconds.
Nigerian sprinter, Favour Ofili, expressed her frustration on Tuesday, revealing that she will not compete in the 100-metre race at the ongoing Olympics in Paris due to administrative failures by the Athletics Federation of Nigeria and the Nigerian Olympic Committee.
She said this in a series of tweets on Tuesday night calling for accountability from those responsible and voiced her skepticism about the trustworthiness of both organisations.
The LSU Track and Field alumni hopes to be entered in the 200-metre event.
LSU track refers to the track and field programme at Louisiana State University.
Her post read, “It is with great regret that I have just been told I will not be competing in the 100 metres at this Olympic Games. I qualified, but those with the AFN and NOC failed to enter me. I have worked for four years to earn this opportunity. For what?”
Despite qualifying for the event, Ofili disclosed that the officials did not enter her, marking a repeat of the previous Olympics, Tokyo 2020.
She added, “Please remember, in the last Olympic Games, I was not able to compete because AFN, NADC and NOC failed to release funds for athletes to be tested, which made 14 Nigerian athletes that qualified to not compete. Now this……”
