AS Roma forward Mohamed Salah to undergo medical at Liverpool

AS Roma forward Mohamed Salah will undergo a medical with Liverpool on Tuesday after a £39 million transfer fee has been agreed with Roma.

According to reports from Egypt top media outlet KingFut; Jurgen Klopp’s side had launched an improved bid of €45m (£39.4m) for the 25-year-old in the wake of accepting that the Serie A club would not bring down their cost on the Egyptian.

KingFut claimed that the offer has been accepted by Roma after negotiations with the midfielder’s representative, Ramy Abbas, in London. Salah’s ticket to England has now been booked and the former Chelsea player will arrive for his medical session at Liverpool on June 20.

The European giant has been in talks with Roma since the start of June after their underlying £28m offer was refused. In spite of the need to sell a key player keeping in mind the end goal to meet Financial Fair Play rules, Roma were fixed that the midfielder would not be permitted to leave at a cut-cost charge.

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Liverpool keen on Monaco's youngster Kylian Mbappe

Liverpool are reportedly keen on Monaco's youngster Kylian Mbappe.

Liverpool's manager Jurgen Klopp is reported to have made contact with the Mbappe's representatives.

As revealed by The Daily Mail, Liverpool have kept tabs on Mbappe over the past 12 months and are ready to make an offer to rival the likes of Arsenal and Real Madrid

It is understood that Arsenal have had an ambitious £87m bid rejected by Monaco for Mbappe, while Real Madrid reportedly had a world-record £103m bid turned down for the forward.

The 18-year-old was named the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year after scoring 15 goals in Monaco's title-winning campaign.

Mbappe said last month that his sole focus was on developing his game by playing at a club that offers regular first-team football.

"I will make a choice based on my sporting career, and my career is first and foremost, and I am at an age where I need to play, and that will be paramount," he told beIN Sports.

"I'm not 35 or 36, an age where I have to manage [my body], I still have everything to learn, this year was discovery, and now comes the most important step: confirmation.

"And I will be the sole decision-maker, and I will not go anywhere where I will be forced to go."

Culled from: Yahoo Sport

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I want Steven Gerrard to replace me at Liverpool - Jurgen Klopp

Jurgen Klopp has revealed that he would love Steven Gerrard to replace him as Liverpool manager when he leaves Anfield.

Gerrard is currently at Liverpool having retired from professional football earlier this season. He now coaches the club’s academy. The former Liverpool star will take charge of the Under-18's side next season.

Having spent all of his career at Liverpool, minus a short playing spell with LA Galaxy in the MLS, Reds fans are anxious for Gerrard to remain associated with the club and will probably coach the first team in the future.

Klopp’s contract with Liverpool is due to expire in 2022, and the former Borussia Dortmund manager wants to aid nurture Gerrard during their time together at Merseyside.

The German even revealed that he has already told Gerrard that he wants to see take over from him at Liverpool.

Klopp told The Times: “It’s perfect that we can involve Steven. What a guy, he’s fantastic. He was one of the world’s best footballers ever.

“I told him when I leave, or the club sacks me, I don’t care of course who’ll be my successor, but I’d love that he’d be it. I’ll do everything I can to make sure he gets all the information he needs.

“Because when you join a club you have a big responsibility for the future, and the future of this club needs legends like Steven Gerrard in decisive positions.

“[Gerrard] gave the club a lot and now we can give him the best education in this specific part he wants to work in, hopefully for the rest of his life.”

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I would feel sick if Liverpool failed to qualify for Champions League - James Milner

Liverpool vice-captain James Milner said he would feel "sick" if Liverpool failed to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Milner missed a second-half penalty as Jurgen Klopp's men were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Southampton on Sunday.
The outcome was a major blow to their ambition of a top-four finish in the Premier League, in spite of the fact that they sit third in the Premier League.
Milner said he would be sick if Liverpool were not able to end the season strongly and finish in the top four.
"When asked how he would feel if they missed out in the top four? Sick," he disclosed to UK daily papers.

READ ALSO: Milner isn't to blame for Liverpool´s Southampton setback - Klopp


"This is a club and a side that should be in the Champions League. We will be in Europe however the Champions League is the place everybody wants to be.
A lot sitting on the Southampton game and I had to assume the responsibility for missing the penalty. Hopefully, fortune will shine on us, and we will finish the job. We have made improvements this year, and we know where we need to improve again.
"We have appeared on any one day we can beat anybody so in the event that we could get in the Champions League we know we could be a match for anybody. We must do it reliably."

Words from the vice-captain... pic.twitter.com/lBD9H7uyMp

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) May 8, 2017

Liverpool sits third with 70 points on the Premier League table, ahead of Manchester City (69 focuses), United (65) and Arsenal (63) – however having played one game than each of their opponents.
Milner lamented his side's inability to beat supposed lesser groups this season, having dropped various points against rivals they were relied upon to beat.
"You take a look at the outcomes all season. We have lost points where you won't anticipate, and there have been some disappointing games," he said.
"We carry out the job better, and we are battling for the title, it doesn't mind fighting to get into the top-four.
Liverpool still have to face West Ham away this season and a meeting with Middlesbrough at home.

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Milner isn't to blame for Liverpool´s Southampton setback - Klopp

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp feels other reasons must have affected the game besides James Milner's saved penalty after Southampton left Anfield with a 0-0 draw.

The hosts were baffled by a deep-lying and well-manned  Southampton defense. However, looked set to get the breakthrough when Jack Stephens was penalized for handball inside the box in the 64th minutes.
In any case, Milner's typical dependability betrayed him as he couldn't accurately pick out the bottom left corner as Saints goalkeeper Fraser saved brilliantly.
Former England international Milner last failed from the spot in the Premier League in November 2009 and had scored seven times from seven appearances this season.

READ ALSO:  Jurgen Klopp frustrated over Liverpool's reputation against smaller teams

Milner claimed responsibility for a setback that left Liverpool's Champions League hopes out of their hands during a post-match interview. However, Klopp refused to be so harsh.
"He ought not to point the finger at himself – that is football," he told Sky Sports.
"Him scoring would have aided apparently, however, that is by all account not the only definitive thing."
Without a doubt, Klopp and his men were frustrated by opponents playing with limited ambition.

0-0 - Liverpool have drawn 0-0 home and away against the same opponent in a PL season for the first time since 2008/09 against Stoke. Dull.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) May 7, 2017

"I thought it was good enough to win," he said of Liverpool's performance. "I thought Southampton played really unlike how they normally do.
"I'm fine with our defending more than an hour and a half since they didn't create any chance.
"To play against ten deep defending Southampton players is tough and exceptionally troublesome. We had our moments, and We should have scored, that would have opened them up a bit.
Klopp said, "It is not finished yet. We all need to play our games.
"We go to West Ham, will attempt to win and that is everything we can do. We go for everything, and we don't stop."

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Jurgen Klopp frustrated over Liverpool's reputation against smaller teams

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is baffled by their reputation for struggling against lower sides, saying: "Where did other groups lose their points? Which way is better?"

The Reds have lost to Burnley, Swansea, Hull City and Crystal Palace this season and lie eighth in a league table of results against lower half sides.

In any case, they have beaten Watford, West Brom and Stoke as of late and will face Southampton at home later Today.

"Is there ever a moment when you are adequate in these games?" said Klopp when asked about their issues against sides outside the top six.

Liverpool have won once and managed just 6 points from 6 matches against teams currently ranked 9th to 12th. #LIVSOU #LFC pic.twitter.com/UQoFLr3lYK

— Simon Gleave (@SimonGleave) May 7, 2017

“We have won three, and lost one of them, and still we have the image that we lost all of them.

“No other team has this perception like we have: That we win against the top teams but we lose against the lower side.

“We have this image, and yet we have 69 points, and we are in the top four on the table.

“So where did the other clubs lose their points? Which way is better? “OK, Chelsea and Tottenham are first, but all the other teams have issues too.”

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Francesco Totti: Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard was my toughest ever English opponent

 

Francesco Totti has said that Steven Gerrard is the best English footballer he’s played against.

The Roma legend described Steven Gerrard as the toughest English player he has ever encountered.
The two players have met on several occasions in European competition when Gerrard’s beloved Liverpool faced the Serie A giants.
In those contests the pair, who until recently were both one-club men, struck up a mutual respect for one another and Totti is in no doubt who the best he’s come up against from England.

“Steven Gerrard. A champion and an example,” he simply told Marca, as reported by Football Italia.
A box-to-box midfielder with incredible footballing intelligence, Gerrard represented his boyhood club, whose academy he graduated from in 1998, on no fewer than 710 occasions.

He would manage 186 goals and guide them to a plethora of trophies including his most famous moment in Istanbul when Liverpool won their fifth European Cup.

Since hanging up his boots, last playing for Los Angeles Galaxy, he’s entered the world of coaching.
Gerrard was recently appointed as a youth coach at Liverpool with many Reds supporters hoping one day he could be sitting on the dugout managing their first team.

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Liverpool targeting Hull City defender Andy Robertson

Liverpool are said to be ‘closing in’ on transfer of Hull City defender Andy Robertson 

Hull City have coped far superior than anticipated in the Premier League this term, as of now floating over the relegation zone in spite of bearing a little squad. 

As expected, numerous Tigers players have been connected with moves away, in the midst of constant disappointment from fans towards the club's owners.

According to the Daily Mail, the Humberside team's squad is set to be desolated assist in the upcoming transfer window, with Liverpool on a move for Robertson.
The left-back would cost around £8 million, the source proposes, with previous club Dundee United due a 10% fortune by means of their sell-on clause.
The report asserts that Hull's No.3 is viewed as a swap for James Milner, whose flexibility has been abused as a remain in full-back all through the battle by Jurgen Klopp.

The left-back would cost around £8 million, the source sugge, with former club Dundee United due a 10% windfall via their sell-on clause.
The report claims that Hull’s No.3 is seen as a replacement for James Milner, whose versatility has been abused as a full-back throughout the campaign by Jurgen Klopp.

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Everton beat Liverpool and Spurs for £20m Michael Keane

Everton believe that they head the race to sign Michael Keane from Burnley this summer despite interest from Liverpool and Tottenham.

Burnley have accepted that they are set to lose Keane this summer having convinced the defender to remain at Turf Moor last summer even though Leicester City were keen on signing the centre-back.

The 24-year-old is ready to test himself at one of the division’s top clubs and has been linked with a move to either Tottenham or Liverpool, while former club Manchester United might also be an option.
But, according to the Daily Mail, it is Everton that are leading the way in the race for Keane’s signature with the Toffees and Burnley enjoying positive talks about a move.

A deal reportedly in the region of £20 million is set to be agreed with former side United entitled to 25% of that due to a sell-on agreement.
Ronald Koeman’s Everton side seem to be locked in a battle for fifth alongside United and Arsenal, and will face West Ham this weekend.

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Virgil van Dijk head Jurgen Klopp’s wish list

Liverpool are ready to join the race to sign Virgil Van Dijk as they look to make a statement of intent in this summer’s transfer window.

Manchester City and Chelsea have long been established as the clubs leading the way to sign Van Dijk; City specifically sent scouts to watch Van Dijk on November 19 at St Mary’s when he was Man-of-the-Match in a 0-0 draw with Liverpool.

Ronald Koeman, Everton’s manager, is also keen to be reunited with Van Dijk when he begins what is expected to be an ambitious overhaul of his squad, having worked with him at Southampton, but Liverpool are not going to be passive.

Jurgen Klopp is determined to bolster his defence and recently explained the injuries Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip have suffered this season have meant he cannot regard them as being automatic first choices selections.

Though Claude Puel does not want Van Dijk to leave, there is no question they will be put under serious pressure as soon as the window opens; Van Dijk has been a big miss for Puel in recent months, as he recovers from ankle ligament damage.

Klopp wants to bring in quality additions to ensure Liverpool’s progress over the last 12 months does not go to waste and Van Dijk fits the profile of player they are targeting. 

Liverpool are prepared to spend heavier than they have ever done before to get their manager the additions he wants.

Some Liverpool fans want to see Mamadou Sakho return, given he has been doing so well on loan at Crystal Palace; there is no clause in the contract they agreed in January that gives them first option on signing the France international and Klopp says no decisions have been made on his future.

‘You can imagine like all the plans we have for next season, we speak about behind closed doors,’ said Klopp. 

‘In the moment when we have to say something we will say something. I see a lot of Premier League games so I see Crystal Palace too and I see how he is playing there and all this stuff.’

His tone was similar on Daniel Sturridge, too, and Klopp said: ‘We are in the season and around this we plan different things like transfers, as you can imagine, but who will leave we have never thought about it.

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Liverpool pained as Spurs star Dele Alli smashes Paddlefoot record

Liverpool will regret pulling out of a deal to sign Dele Alli from MK Dons “every single minute of every single day”, according to Mark Lawrenson.

Alli completed his move to Tottenham from MK Dons in February 2015 for just £5 million and since then the midfielder has developed into one of the most talent young players in Europe.

The 2016 PFA Young Player of the Year has once again excelled this season with the 20-year-old already netting 16 Premier League goals, helping Spurs to second in the league.
Liverpool were set to sign Alli before Tottenham had even made MK Dons aware of their interest but opted to pull out of the deal due to the transfer fee, a decision that former Reds’ star Lawrenson says is the source of much pain at Anfield

Lawrenson told You-are-the-ref.com: “He was going to Liverpool. It was absolutely all done and sorted but Liverpool had a change of heart the next day.

“It was a change a heart over money rather than the actual boy. They are regretting it every single minute of every single day.
“He’s a player isn’t he, as in he’s one of those lucky lads who can be anything that he wants to be but, he also has that little bit of edge about him.”
Lawrenson has also revealed that even a couple of Spurs officials weren’t convinced by Alli when it came to signing him.

The BBC pundit added: “The other thing as well is Tottenham have a transfer committee and I know one of the guys on it. When they went to buy him only three of the five said yes. When I say only of course only three was enough.”
Alli, who turned 21-year-old this week, is expected to continue his development and become an even more essential player for England during his career.

Dele Alli goalscoring record

Liverpool will be seriously unhappy that they missed out on signing Dele Alli, especially with how well the England international is performing compared to their main three centre-midfielders. Alli has scored 16 goals in the league this season. The combined efforts of Adam Lallana (7), Georginio Wijnaldum (5) and Jordan Henderson (1) have only wielded 13.

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Juninho - Neymar is the only Brazilian better than Liverpool star Coutinho

Philippe Coutinho

Juninho is “delighted” that Philippe Coutinho has broken his goalscoring record in the Premier League and has declared the Liverpool star the second best Brazilian in world football, behind only Neymar.

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