Liverpool might be out of the FA Cup but the big games keep on coming and we need a reaction. The players are of exactly the same mind, thankfully.
Liverpool chasing Spanish attacker Torres – not that one, obviously
Ferran Torres! The Valencia wide man has been tearing it up in LaLiga, putting the best full-backs to the sword with his creative running, great control and eye for a pass.
The Reds are serious with their interest, along with the unsurprising duo of Barcelona and Real Madrid, and Ferran has a release clause of about £90 million in his contract – which expires around 15 months from now. So far, no joy for Los Che in agreeing a new one.
He tends to play wide midfield in a 4-4-2 for Los Che, begging the question of how he adapts to a change in approach with the Reds, but there’s no doubting his talent.
The rumour comes out of Spain’s Mundo Deportivo publication, so can’t exactly be taken as gospel, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to know Liverpool are at least considering him as an option.
Positive reactions to a negative week
All things considered, this past week has probably been a worse one than any the Reds faced in 2019.
But despite back-to-back defeats, several players have come out with fighting talk, showing the Reds are not ready to lie down and end the season with a whimper.
There’s a big European match coming up and both Andy Robertson and Sadio Mane have demanded that hard work and learning the lessons of the past few games be the order of the day.
Similarly, Virgil van Dijk says there’s no reason for panic after a couple of setbacks and Curtis Jones says thinking the great players at the club have turned bad in the space of a week is nothing less than crazy talk.
The message is clear: get back to work, get back to winning ways.
Cup exit fallout
Here’s all the match reaction and post-game opinion after Liverpool’s fifth-round FA Cup defeat at Chelsea.
- The papers didn’t go over the top at all, did they? Apparently Liverpool have been sussed out and Fabinho is now garbage
- The player ratings aren’t great across the board, with Sadio and Neco the most impressive
- And you can see exactly what Jurgen had to say in his post-match presser here
Quickfire LFC news
- RB Leipzig’s sporting director says “not much favours [Timo Werner] leaving,” citing his long contract and playing in the Champions League, but conveniently ignores his release clause (Bild)
- Barry Lewtas says the experience of playing in the UEFA Youth League will be of great benefit to the young Reds, after they were knocked out by Benfica in the last 16 (LFC)
- More details have emerged on Daniel Sturridge‘s ban for breaching Betting Rules, with certain text messages proving somewhat incriminating (The Athletic)
- The Premier League have written to all clubs, including the Reds, with guidelines for potential behind-closed-doors games over the coming weeks (Sky Sports)
Around the Prem
- Harry Kane is supposedly fed up with Spurs not winning anything, so the question is over who might buy him. As if we didn’t already know where he’d end up for the last three years (Telegraph)
- Everton are ‘linked’ with Marc Roca, but more because someone reckons he fits rather than because they are legitimately interested (Echo)
- Cardiff City’s owner is selling half his stake in the club to MLS side LAFC, which will definitely, without question, go well over the long-term (LA Times)
- And Aston Villa want Morgan Sanson if they stay up this season, and hey, we can all shoot for the stars even if they look absurdly out of reach (Birmingham Mail)
Stupid question of the day
Fair play to Jurgen for giving it both barrels and refusing repeat questions when asked about the coronavirus in his press conference. You’re there to talk about the game, folks – don’t see you heading down to the local A&E to ask the surgeons about the Bournemouth game at the weekend, after all. And the boss is also right not to spread any further misinformation from a point of non-authority.
Tweet of the day
KING KENNY ??
Happy birthday, Sir @kennethdalglish! ? pic.twitter.com/p5gANepUlR
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) March 4, 2020
What we’re reading
A very open interview with former Ipswich and Everton striker Marcus Bent, on addiction, anxiety and dealing with falling out of love with the game, for the Athletic.
And a dozen Italian matches have already been postponed, across Serie A and the Coppa. The Telegraph looks at how the authorities are proposing to continue and why it might be behind closed doors action for a while.
Worth watching tonight
Tottenham vs. Norwich in the FA Cup has the potential to be a great game, with both looking for a bit of respite from recent difficulties in the league. 7:45pm kick-off.
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