Author: Soccerhuz
Gary Lineker has backed Liverpool to be title contenders this year, believing they have the experience to challenge Arsenal and Manchester City. After eight matches the Reds sit in fourth spot. They had the opportunity to go top ahead of the visit to Tottenham Hotspur but were denied by VAR, then a draw with Brighton only consolidated their placement as most of the top eight dropped points at the weekend. It is still extremely tight in the standings as a so-called easier run of fixtures comes up after the international break, and Lineker feels Jurgen Klopp’s men have what it…
Ronaldo Koeman has suggested there is still a route back for Ryan Gravenberch into the Holland set-up. The Liverpool midfielder has been snubbed from international duty for both the senior and under-21s this week. After joining the Reds from Bayern Munich on summer transfer deadline day, Gravenberch pulled out of Holland’s under-21s squad in September. Instead, he wanted to use the time to settle in at Anfield and acclimatise to his new surroundings – although the decision was met with criticism from Koeman at the time. The former Everton and Barcelona manager admitted he still has a ‘certain opinion’ of Gravenberch. And…
Chelsea have reportedly informed Roma how much it will cost to secure the permanent signing of Romelu Lukaku next summer. The Belgium striker has been on fire since joining Jose Mourinho’s side on loan, scoring seven goals in his opening eight games in the Serie A. Although some Chelsea fans will be wondering if it was an opportunity missed as they struggle with their own striker issues, they will be rubbing their hands together as his potential asking price goes up. The 30-year-old still has three years left on his Chelsea contract and according to Fabrizio Romano, will cost Roma…
Arsenal shelled out a club-record fee of £105 million to sign Declan Rice from West Ham United in the recent summer transfer window. The 24-year-old is already living up to his price tag. Rice produced another outstanding performance in the middle of the park as Arsenal secured a 1-0 win against reigning Premier League champions Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. The 24-year-old was rock solid for the Gunners in the middle of the park, and as the game went on his influence only became more pronounced. Mikel Arteta’s side nullified Manchester City’s attacking threat, taming them to…
James Maddison has made a sly dig at Trent Alexander-Arnold over Liverpool’s demands to replay their defeat to Tottenham, as the duo met up for England duty. Both Maddison and Alexander-Arnold have been included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the Three Lions’ upcoming games against Australia and Italy. They were also both involved in the controversial clash between the Reds and Spurs. Refereeing body the PGMOL were forced to apologise to Liverpool after “significant human errors” saw Luis Diaz’s first-half goal wrongly disallowed for offside. After that apology, Reds boss Jurgen Klopp called for his side to be given a replay as they…
Santiago Gimenez’s agent confirmed Tottenham’s interest in the in-form 22-year-old striker, as Ange Postecoglou might look to sign him. Santiago Gimenez has become the centre of the media’s attraction and their willingness to link him with moves to top clubs. The Mexican has been in top form and looks like a man on a mission to break the Eredivisie scoring record set by the legendary Coen Dillen, who hit 43 goals in one season. Nobody would have thought about naming Gimenez in the same breath as Dillen, considering the Mexican only scored 15 times last season. His goals did help…
It seems there is no good result for Liverpool ahead of an international break. Either Jürgen Klopp is robbed of momentum, or his players are left to stew on an unsatisfactory showing. The prevailing narrative falls into the latter camp this time, with Liverpool entering the second break of the season winless in two league games. The reaction would presumably have been far more positive if the draw away at Brighton had left Klopp’s side top, as may well have been the case without the VAR error in the Spurs game, but football will always be an especially outcome-centric pursuit.…
The departures of both Jordan Henderson and Fabinho were somewhat of a surprise for Liverpool fans in the summer, and even more so when the Reds ended the transfer window having only signed one defensive midfielder in Wataru Endo. Liverpool’s decision has proved to be a success so far, with Jürgen Klopp’s side just three points off the top of the table and one behind Manchester City ahead of a favorable upcoming schedule. But the rebuild isn’t quite finished yet, with no long-term successor for Fabinho identified, though an option is beginning to emerge after continuing form following an impressive…
Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has backed Anthony Taylor’s decision not to award Brighton a penalty in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool. The controversy arose when Kaoru Mitoma’s shot deflected off Virgil van Dijk’s thigh and then struck his hand. Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi was visibly angry that a penalty was not given and received a yellow card for his protests. However, Gallagher, speaking on Sky Sports’ ‘Ref Watch,’ supported the on-field decision, stating that it would be surprising if a penalty had been awarded in that situation. “The evidence is there for everyone to see. It clearly strikes his…
When Liverpool icon Roberto Firmino left the club at the end of last season after reaching the end of his contract, the club elected not to replace him. It was a perfectly reasonable decision given that, between the resumption of the campaign following the World Cup and the end of proceedings in May, Firmino only started two Premier League games. In terms of minutes alone, he wasn’t going to be leaving an especially big hole. Granted, his lack of game time in the first half of 2023 was partly down to injury — he was only available from mid-February onwards…