Ibrahima Konate has revealed the cheeky motivational message he sent to new Liverpool teammate Hugo Ekitike after the French striker joined in a £79 million summer move from Eintracht Frankfurt. The defender admitted to giving the 23-year-old a “hard time” during training sessions as he pushed him to prove his worth at both club and international level.
Liverpool forward Federico Chiesa has turned down another international call up from Italy for November's World Cup qualifiers against Moldova and Norway. Manager Gennaro Gattuso has said he has spoken with Chiesa and must respect the 28-year-old's decision not to return to the national team. Chiesa has not played for Italy since Euro 2024 when the Azzurri were knocked out of the tournament in the last 16.
The weekend of European soccer brought plenty of drama, and GOAL US unpacks the main storylines from the Premier League, La Liga, and other top competitions in The Euro XI.
Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann has defended Florian Wirtz following his underwhelming start to life at Liverpool after signing for the Reds in a deal worth £116 million. Wirtz came in for fresh criticism following Liverpool's 3-0 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday, but Nagelsmann feels the team's strikers could help out by finishing some of the chances the German star creates.
Liverpool have complained to the Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL) about the decision to rule out a goal by Virgil van Dijk during Sunday's 3-0 defeat to Manchester City. The Reds have raised "serious concerns" after seeing Van Dijk's effort chalked off as Andy Robertson was ruled to be offside when he ducked out of the way of Van Dijk's header as it flew past goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
The weekend before an international break always feels significant. Pick up a positive result and the only thing a manager really has to worry about is players suffering injury while representing their countries. A defeat, though, results in two torturous weeks as the result is pored over in the press while the coach waits for the opportunity to make amends.
Liverpool have been warned that they could lose two key midfield stars amid transfer interest from La Liga giants Real Madrid and Barcelona. After a trophy-winning campaign in the 2024-25 season, which saw them equal Manchester United's tally of 20 top-flight English titles, Arne Slot's side have endured a nightmare journey in the current season, having already lost six league matches.
Pep Guardiola and Arne Slot agreed that Jeremy Doku was "outstanding" in Manchester City’s victory over Liverpool, with the Belgian winger starring in a 3-0 win for the Blues. Reds boss Slot saw his side suffer another demoralising defeat at the Etihad Stadium, but he has played down any suggestion that the reigning Premier League champions are in crisis.
Since Pep Guardiola won his first Premier League title back in 2018, only two teams have been able to compete with Manchester City: Arsenal and Liverpool. The Gunners led the way for the majority of the 2022-23 season before they were overhauled by Guardiola's treble-chasing juggernaut, while only two points could separate them in 2023-24, when City won a fourth successive title.
Liverpool boss Arne Slot says it was wrong to rule out Virgil Van Dijk’s equaliser against Manchester City in their 3-0 loss on Sunday. The Reds’ captain thought he had found the back of the net after beating Gianluigi Donnarumma with a powerful header. But the celebrations were cut short quickly, with Andy Robertson judged to have interfered with play from an offside position.
Manchester City's Ruben Dias has thrown a warning shot at title rivals Arsenal after the defender's side romped to victory over Liverpool on Sunday. City tore through a feeble Liverpool defence to win 3-0 and go within four points of the league leaders, who dropped two precious points away to Sunderland following Brian Brobbey's late equaliser at the Stadium of Light.
Roy Keane believes Liverpool can no longer be considered Premier League title contenders, saying their 3-0 thumping at Manchester City proves they are in a "crisis". Goals from Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez, and Jeremy Doku saw Pep Guardiola’s City confirm themselves as the likeliest challengers to league leaders Arsenal, in what was a damaging defeat for the reigning champions.
Liverpool were left furious after Virgil van Dijk’s first-half header against Manchester City was ruled out for offside, despite Andy Robertson not touching the ball. The Dutchman thought he had equalised from a Mohamed Salah corner, but VAR sided with the on-field officials. And here's why Arne Slot's team did not end up getting a goal that could have had a big impact on the game.
The pundits on Sky Sports ripped into Liverpool after the Reds produced a feeble first-half display against Manchester City that saw them fall two goals behind their title rivals. Gary Neville and Roy Keane were unreserved in their criticism of Arne Slot's side, who were second best throughout the opening exchanges in Manchester and did little to suggest they could defend their Premier League crown this season.
Liverpool saw their mini-revival come to an end as they lost 3-0 against Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday. The Reds were unable to build on their victories over Aston Villa and Real Madrid in a sluggish performance which saw Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku put them to the sword during Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th-game as a manager.
Fans from across the footballing world have slammed Erling Haaland after the Manchester City forward fluffed his lines from the penalty spot in a top-of-the-table clash against Liverpool at the Etihad. With the scores level at 0-0 after 13 minutes, the Norwegian goal machine had his tame effort saved by Giorgi Mamardashvili, low to the goalkeeper's left.
Jamie Carragher insists Liverpool should not panic over Ibrahima Konate's future, saying his former club will be "absolutely fine" if the defender leaves on a free transfer next summer. The France international has less than a year remaining on his contract and it remains to be seen whether he will agree an extension ahead of the January transfer window opening.
Manchester City's free-scoring forward Erling Haaland has fired an ominous warning to Premier League champions Liverpool ahead of their crunch clash at the Etihad Stadium, claiming he is showing the "best version of himself." Haaland has 18 goals in 14 appearances in all competitions for City this season and now he has Arne Slot's side in his sights.
Bayern Munich are expected to enter the race to sign Liverpool defender Ibrahim Konate. The 26-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid next summer, with the player able to leave Anfield on a free transfer with his contract running down. The Bavarian giants have ignited interest in the player, with his former RB Leipzig teammate Dayot Upamecano also out of contract in the summer.
Liverpool star Federico Chiesa, who was once a teammate of Cristiano Ronaldo at Juventus, settled the GOAT debate as he picked Lionel Messi over the Al-Nassr star. It’s the question that has divided football fans for nearly two decades, and still, when both legends are at the twilight of their respective careers, the debate rages on. There have been contrasting opinions, but Chiesa has no doubt that the crown belongs to one man, and he is Messi.
Hugo Ekitike has revealed the inner workings of his relationship with Liverpool boss Arne Slot, admitting that the Dutchman's high standards have left him "p*ssed off" at times. The 23-year-old made the comments in a sit-down interview ahead of the Reds' marquee clash with Manchester City, where he also shot down suggestions that he and Aleksander Isak cannot play together in the same team.
Hugo Ekitike has revealed he has modelled elements of his game on his former PSG teammates Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe as he looks to forge his own legend after making the switch to Liverpool earlier this year. The Frenchman spent a season on loan in the French capital during Les Parisiens' Galacticos era, before finding his feet in Germany with Eintracht Frankfurt.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has named Jurgen Klopp as his “main rival” as he prepares to lock horns with his old adversary’s former club Liverpool in the 1,000th game of his illustrious managerial career. The Catalan has been reflecting on his famous battles with the German ahead of achieving what he describes as an “insane” milestone on Sunday.
Erling Haaland needed less than four minutes to score his first ever goal against Liverpool. Aged just 19 at the time, he had started on the bench for RB Salzburg's Champions League visit to Anfield in 2019, despite scoring a hat-trick on his competition debut against Genk. He was introduced by coach Jesse Marsch with his side in the middle of a comeback from three goals down and duly made it 3-3.
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
Liverpool.png?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
.png?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
.jpg?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
.png?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
.png?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
.png?auto=webp&format=pjpg&width=3840&quality=60)
