Five-star Real Madrid produce masterclass to hammer Liverpool at Champions League

While both Real Madrid and Liverpool are rightly considered Champions League royalty, there can only be one king.

Down by two goals after 14 minutes on Tuesday, defending champion Madrid came back to win 5-2 in a classic at Anfield and take a commanding lead into the second leg of the round of 16 matchup.

Vinicius Jr. and Karim Benzema scored two goals each to stun Liverpool and confirm the Spanish giant will take some stopping in its defense of the trophy.

If anything, this Madrid team looks more complete than the one that beat Jurgen Klopp's team in last year’s Paris final. Yet this was a win that echoed the memorable comebacks that led to that record-extending 14th Champions League title.

Darwin Nunez put Liverpool ahead after four minutes and Mohamed Salah doubled the lead 10 minutes later.

In the face of a typically daunting Anfield atmosphere, the visitors looked in danger of buckling under the pressure until Vinicius Jr. sparked a rousing fightback.

The Brazil international pulled one back in the 21st and evened the score in the 36th.

Madrid took control after the break when Eder Militao headed the visitors in front two minutes into the second half.

Benzema's double in the 55th and 67th means the quarterfinals are in sight for Madrid, while Liverpool is left hoping for a near miracle in the Bernabeu.

The royal, gentlemen.. Despite the delay, Salah's goal, Real Madrid hits Liverpool with a historic five

Real Madrid of Spain achieved a historic victory over Liverpool, England, by five goals to two, in the first leg of the round of 16 of the European Champions League.

Real Madrid of Spain achieved a historic victory over Liverpool, England, by five goals to two, in the first leg of the round of 16 of the European Champions League.

Real Madrid's quintet came through Vinicius Junior with two goals, Karim Benzema and Eder Militao a goal each, and Joe Gomez, Liverpool defender, accidentally scored an own goal.

While Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah scored the double for Liverpool. (A new number for Mohamed Salah after his goal at Real Madrid)

Historic quintet at Anfield

The defeat by five is the first time for Liverpool to concede 4 goals or more at home in the history of the European Championships.

Real Madrid also became the second most team to score 5 goals in one match against Liverpool, after Ajax in 1966.

Match description

Real Madrid entered the match without its German star Toni Kroos, returning from injury, who remained on the bench.

Liverpool started the confrontation with strong pressure and almost scored early in the second minute, but Real Madrid's defense pushed the ball away.

Liverpool's early pressure resulted in the first goal in the 4th minute, with Darwin Nunez's foot, after a cross from Mohamed Salah, which was met by the Uruguayan national team striker with a heel shot that hit Thibaut Courtois' net.

And Mohamed Salah missed the opportunity to add the second goal for Liverpool in the 12th minute, after he passed the defense and hit a ball that passed near the post.

But Salah was able to make up for the missed opportunity and scored himself the second goal for Liverpool in the 12th minute, after he took advantage of Real Madrid's defense returning the ball to goalkeeper Courtois to pressure him and shoot it into the net.

Real Madrid responded with the first goal in the 21st minute in a wonderful way from Vinicius Junior, who hit a perfect ball from outside the penalty area, which went to the left of goalkeeper Alison.

Liverpool missed the opportunity to add the third goal after a breakthrough from Henderson from the right, then passed the ball to Salah, who followed it up with a shot that hit the defense, then Nunez followed it up again with a shot that the defense pushed off the goal line.

Real Madrid defender David Alaba was injured and left the field, replacing him with Nacho in the 26th minute.

And again, Vinicius almost scored with a powerful shot from inside the penalty area, but Alisson saved him and pushed the ball away.

Comedy error

Just as German goalkeeper Karius made a mistake with Liverpool against Real Madrid in the Champions League final in 2018, Alisson repeated the same mistake again.

Vinicius pressed Alisson, who tried to deflect the ball, but it hit the Real Madrid striker and rebounded against Liverpool in a strange way, scoring the royal equalizer in the 35th minute.

And from a quick counterattack, Real Madrid almost scored the third goal after a quick start from Vinicius and a cross that Rodrigo met with a direct shot, but Andrew Robertson, who returned to cover, saved it in time.

The first half ended in a positive tie with two goals for each team.

Second half

As the first half ended, Real Madrid started the second half with strong pressure, and Vinicius got a foul in the 47th minute next to the corner kick flag.

Modric advanced to execute the ball and sent it over the head of Brazilian defender Eder Militao to turn it into Alison's net, scoring Real Madrid's third goal.

Real Madrid took control of the match and once again gave Liverpool a goal to Real Madrid.

The royal's fourth goal came in the 55th minute by Joe Gomez by mistake, after he turned Karim Benzema's shot into Alisson's net, who was unable to stop the ball.

Liverpool coach Juergen Klopp made a double substitution, with Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino replacing Cody Jakobo and Darwin Nunez in the 63rd minute.

But Real Madrid added the fifth goal with a quick counterattack in the 67th minute through Karim Benzema.

The goal came after Modric launched the ball and then passed it to Benzema, who brilliantly dodged Alisson and then put the ball into the net in front of Liverpool defenders.

Liverpool's attempts continued in the remaining time of the match to score the third goal, but to no avail, so that the confrontation ended with Real Madrid winning 5-3.

The return match between the two teams will be held on March 15th at the Santiago Bernabeu, the stronghold of Real Madrid.

Man Utd fans urge prospective new owners to back Ten Hag

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Manchester United fans have urged any prospective new owner to back manager Erik ten Hag as the club prepare for a pivotal week against the unsettling background of takeover talk.

United have a chance to end their six-year trophy drought in Sunday's League Cup final against Newcastle, three days after they go head to head with Barcelona in a Europa League play-off.

Dutch manager Ten Hag has transformed United's fortunes in his first few months at Old Trafford after a rocky start, even lifting them to the fringes of the Premier League title race.

Off the pitch, the race to become the new owners of the 20-time English champions is hotting up.

Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe's INEOS company showed their hands before Friday's "soft deadline".

The Times reported at the weekend that American hedge fund giant Elliott had entered the battle, ruling itself out of a full takeover but offering to provide financing, and rumours also persist of a possible Saudi Arabia bid.

The Manchester United Supporters' Trust (MUST) on Sunday said whoever buys the club must "explicitly commit to backing Erik and his plans to restore United to glory" after 18 years under unpopular American owners the Glazers.

United have not won the Premier League for a decade and have failed even to qualify for the Champions League on a number of occasions.

"Everyone can see the progress the team is making under Erik ten Hag," MUST said in a statement. "After the frustrations of the last decade, it is clear that enormous strides are being taken."

Those sentiments were backed by former United captain Gary Neville, who said the former Ajax manager was "over-performing and out-achieving anything that I could imagine at this moment".

"This manager, this coach deserves his period of time," he said on the Gary Neville Podcast.

"This coach needs supporting for a couple of years at least off the back of this one. Three years it looks like to me is the minimum time I would give Erik ten Hag because of what he's done already. He looks like the real deal."

Glazers' 'failed' project

Neville said fans were desperate to see the end of the Glazers' unpopular ownership of United, which loaded the club with huge debts.

"The absolute emphasis at this moment in time from all Manchester United fans is that this has got to be the end of the Glazer ownership," he added.

"They've run out of money, they've not invested in the stadium... the sporting project they've failed on in the last 10 years since Sir Alex Ferguson left."

The former England international said his own straw poll found that supporters, desperate for a debt-free club, were in favour of the Qatari bid.

Neville believes the "horse has already bolted" on the issue of state ownership of clubs following Abu Dhabi's investment at Manchester City and the Saudi-led takeover of Newcastle.

But MUST stressed in their statement "the importance that any owner respects the rights of all people", particularly women and the LGBTQ community, amid concerns over human rights in Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

United's dramatic resurgence under Ten Hag has lifted them to third in the Premier League, five points behind leaders Arsenal.

The Red Devils will go into Thursday's second leg of their play-off against Barcelona level at 2-2, with the winner securing a place in the last 16 of the Europa League.

United will then turn their attention to Wembley, with Newcastle standing in their way as they seek to win a first trophy since 2017.

Ten Hag said after a 3-0 win over Leicester on Sunday that he was trying to ignore off-pitch distractions to do his bit to restore the club to former glories.

"I thank the fans when they have that trust in me," he said, referring to the MUST statement. "I feel committed with this club and I love to be here.

"But, yeah, it's not in my influence. What I can influence is the performance of this team and I will give everything to perform as good as possible and to bring them up, hopefully, across limits."

Liverpool owner: We will not sell the club.. but there are new investments

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John Henry, owner of Liverpool FC, announced his final position on selling the English club.

And the newspaper "Liverpool Echo" quoted the statements of John Henry, who said: "Do we talk to investors about Liverpool? Yes, will something happen? I think so, but it will not be a sale of the club."

"Have we sold anything in the past 20 years? The answer is no."

The name of Liverpool FC has been linked to various investment groups in the past months, including Qatari investments.

However, some sources in the United States indicate that the current negotiations may result in the presence of a new "strategic partner" for Liverpool FC, and that this is the most likely thing.

This comes at a time when Manchester United is in the process of selling the club after it officially received the offers submitted to study it well before approving one of them.

The Qatari offer made by Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani is the most prominent so far to buy Manchester United.

[Officially] the owner of the same title.. Belgium announces its new coach

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The Belgian Football Association announced the appointment of Domenico Tedesco to coach the first team, replacing Roberto Martinez until Euro 2024.

Martinez left Belgium after bidding farewell to the World Cup in Qatar, in the first round.

Martinez took charge of Belgium in the summer of 2016, and succeeded in leading the national team to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, which he finished in third place.

  Then, on December 13, the Belgian Confederation opened the door to receiving applications to select the new technical director, and the door for progress was closed on January 10, to announce that Tedesco took over the task.

The 37-year-old coach began his journey with training with youth teams in 2013 by being with the 17-year-old team in Stuttgart as an assistant coach, then technical director, and from there to Hoffenheim to manage the 17-year-old team, then 19-year-old.

He made his debut with the first team for any team in 2017 with Erzgebirge Oh in the third division in Germany.

He then took charge of Schalke from 2017 to 2019 and won 34 matches out of 75 with them.

After that, he worked in Spartak Moscow from 2019 to 2021, and won 27 matches out of 54 with him.

Then finally, German Leipzig from December 2021 until last September, and he achieved the cup title with him last season.

Domenico Tedesco coach of Belgium

Di Marzio: Done... Zaniolo to Turkish Galatasaray

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Roma player Niccolo Zaniolo has completed the paperwork to move to Turkish side Galatasaray.

Gianluca Di Marzio, Italian journalist for Sky Italia, revealed that the deal took place between the two parties.

According to reports, the player will sign his transfer contracts until the summer of 2027, and it will be for 22 million euros.

Zaniolo will be the most expensive player in the history of Turkish football if the deal takes place at that value, surpassing Brazil's Jardal, who joined Galatasaray in 2000 for 17 million euros at the time.

Zaniolo's name was linked to a move to Bournemouth for 30 million euros, but he refused.

There was also an interest from AC Milan to include the player, but the Lombardy team did not make an offer in the last days of the winter transfer market.

Galatasaray leads the league standings after 22 rounds, with 54 points, 9 points ahead of Fenerbahce, its closest competitor.

The Lions include a large group of players who played in the Italian league, most notably Fernando Muslera with Lazio, Sergio Oliveira with Rome, Lucas Torreira with Sampdoria and Fiorentina, Mauro Icardi with Inter and Dries Mertens with Napoli.

Zaniolo will be the number 8 player in the Turkish League this season also with Joao Pedro in Fenerbahce, Stefano Okaka with Basaksehir, Fabio Borini, Matteo Ricci, Andrea Bertolacci, Davide Beracassi and Emiliano Viviano with Fatih Karamgrok.

Zaniolo, 23, occupies the positions of playmaker and winger, and has played 17 matches this season in all competitions, scoring 2 and making 3.

The former Genoa, Fiorentina and Inter youth player wore the Wolves shirt in 2018 for the first time.

Since then, he has played 128 matches for the Giallorossi, scoring 24 goals and making 18 assists.

Naples President: Osimhen is not for sale

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Napoli club president Aurelio De Laurentiis stressed that his Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen is not available for sale.

Osimhen scored 17 goals and provided 4 assists in 21 games with Napoli this season.

"I can tell you that Victor Osimhen is not for sale," De Laurentiis told the German newspaper "Bild".

"Our players are wanted, but we are not forced to sell," he continued.

He concluded, "There are no debts on the club that force us to sell."

Victor Osimhen has been linked to a move to Manchester United next summer, after his brilliance this season.

The 24-year-old moved to the ranks of Napoli in 2020 from Lille, France, to participate in 83 matches, during which he scored 45 goals and assisted 13 others.

Napoli tops the Serie A standings table with 56 points from 21 matches, 13 points ahead of second-placed Inter Milan.

Flamengo coach criticizes the referee of his match against Al-Hilal in the Club World Cup

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Brazilian Flamengo coach Vitor Pereira criticized the refereeing staff for his team's match against Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal, which they lost on Tuesday.

Al-Hilal defeated Flamengo on Tuesday evening, with three goals for two, in the semi-finals of the Club World Cup, to await the confrontation of the winner from Al-Ahly and Real Madrid.

Flamengo completed the match with 10 players after its player Gerson was sent off in stoppage time from the first half, and 3 cases of expulsion of Flamengo players occurred after the end of the match.

Pereira told reporters, "We were fully prepared to face Al-Hilal, and not to face arbitration that did not meet the standards of the tournament."

He added, "The arbitration lacked standards, and it was provocative, and had it not been for the personality of the Flamengo players, more players would have been expelled."

He continued, "The referee did not intervene to prevent Al Hilal players from wasting time, and was lenient in stopping play time after time."

Al-Hilal's attempts on the goal in the first half were from two penalty kicks, so we could have excelled if the match had been completed 11 against 11 players.

And the Flamengo coach concluded, "We created several chances, but we did not translate them into goals, and it was difficult in the second half after the expulsion."

Hugo Lloris misses Tottenham for two months

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Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris will be out for a long time with his club due to injury.

The Telegraph newspaper reported that Lloris will be out for a period ranging from 6 to 8 weeks after suffering a knee injury in the Manchester City match.

Tests confirmed that Hugo had damaged the ligaments in his knee and would now need a period of recovery.

Tottenham are hopeful that Lloris can recover without the need for surgery, so the medical team will continue to check him regularly.

Initial expectations indicated that Lloris might miss the rest of the season, but Tottenham hope that the Frenchman can return within two months at the most.

A few days ago, the club stated that its coach, Antonio Conte, would miss leading his team in the upcoming matches, due to undergoing surgery.

And the English club said in a statement: “Antonio Conte has recently developed severe abdominal pain.”

"After being diagnosed with cholecystitis, Conte will undergo cholecystectomy on Wednesday and will return after a period of convalescence," he added.

"Everyone at the club wishes Antonio all the best," the statement concluded.

Conte's assistant, Christian Stellini, is overseeing Tottenham's training in his absence.

For its part, The Athletic Network reported that Conte will be absent from Tottenham for a period of nearly two months.

Thus, the Italian coach may be absent from his team in at least 9 matches after undergoing surgery.

Tottenham will play its next matches against Leicester City, West Ham United, Chelsea, Wolverhampton, Nottingham Forest and Southampton in the English Premier League and Milan twice in the Champions League.

Tottenham ranks fifth in the English Premier League, while it plays against AC Milan in the Champions League round of 16.

Report: Courtois will not participate in the Club World Cup

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Real Madrid received a new blow after it was confirmed that Thibaut Courtois was absent from the Club World Cup.

Courtois did not travel with the Real Madrid mission, which faces Al-Ahly in the semi-finals of the tournament on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the Spanish “Al Chiringito” program stated that the result of the magnetic resonance imaging that Courtois underwent proved that he had not suffered any injury, and that there were possibilities to participate in the final match or the third-place match.

But the Relevo platform made it clear on Wednesday that Courtois will miss the Club World Cup and will not be called up for Saturday's game.

The report indicated that Courtois was suffering from injury and it was decided not to risk it.

Courtois was on Real Madrid's Club World Cup list, but he did not travel with the mission to Morocco on Monday evening.

And Carlo Ancelotti said on Tuesday in the press conference before the Al-Ahly match that Thursday will be decisive, either with the travel of Courtois, Karim Benzema and Eder Militao, or their continuation in Madrid.

El Chiringuito also mentioned that Benzema and Militao could be in the final but need more time to recover.

Courtois was injured during the warm-up before Real Madrid's match against Mallorca last Sunday in the Spanish League.

[Officially] Bayern misses Mane's services in front of Paris Saint-Germain

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It was confirmed that Sadio Mane was absent from facing Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League.

The Senegalese star, who joined Bayern this season, was injured last November before the start of the 2022 World Cup and missed his country’s matches.

Bayern Munich coach Julian Nagelsmann said at the press conference: "We expect Mane to return at the end or mid-February. Things look fine and he does not feel pain."

"But he will certainly miss the first match against Paris Saint-Germain," he added.

Bayern will collide with Saint-Germain in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 in mid-February.

The return match will be played on the eighth of next March at the Allianz Arena.

Bayern leads the league table with 36 points, one point ahead of Union Berlin, who are in second place.