PPV binned & Reds watching Schalke duo – Liverpool FC Roundup

November 5, 2020
This Is Anfield

Liverpool are preparing for a vital weekend game against Man City as the transfer rumours continue to focus on defensive recruitment in January.

Leicester game won’t be PPV

Premier League clubs have voted to bin the pathetic, greedy, insensitive, outrageous and frankly stupid £14.95 pay-per-view model for games.

A massive backlash from fans saw clubs and broadcasters come in for criticism, even though it’s possible the latter didn’t have much say or sway in the pricing structure.

For the Reds, that means our game against Leicester after the international break should become free-to-air, once the announcement is official.

The ‘broadcasting partners’ will continue to show the games not selected for subscription TV packages, with fans not having to pay additionally for those one-off games.

Schalke defensive duo linked

Whether or not you feel the likes of Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams have stepped up enough to keep being first-team options, the likelihood is that Liverpool will buy a new centre-back sooner or later.

In January or next summer, a new third or fourth option is probably going to be a requirement for Jurgen Klopp and the German media are adamant that our recruitment eyes are fixed on Gelsenkirchen.

Schalke centre-back Ozan Kabak has been long linked with the Reds and latest reports say €20 million will snare him in January.

However, as we noted yesterday, Malick Thiaw is also seen as an option, the stand-in defender during Kabak’s suspension.

Might be worth tuning into the Bundesliga a few times between now and January!

Injuries and internationals

One more game then a two-week break for three, yes three, irritating international games.

Diogo Jota did leave the pitch with a knock against Atalanta but medical staff are relaxed over his weekend availability
And post-match is always a key time, which makes the departure of a member of the backroom staff particularly jarring
And Gomez, Trent and Hendo are all in the England squad to face Ireland, Belgium and Iceland

Quickfire LFC news

The first episode of ‘Wingmen’ has gone live – Trent and Robbo’s TV show! (TIA)

Rhys Williams says the win over Atalanta was the best night of his life (LFC)

Ali says Jota can be best-described as humble and hard-working, and backed him to keep improving as he learns (Mirror)

And Steven Gerrard says he hopes Mo Salah goes on to shatter his European goalscoring records with the Reds (Herald)

Around the Prem

In our CL round-up, Skrtel gets one over United and the Reds take a big leap forward (TIA)

There’s nothing like hyperbole, so ex-Man City defender Richard Dunne goes with the eighth game of the PL campaign being the one which “decides the season” (Goal)

Juventus are talking about how much they admire Paul Pogba again, which might be the most predictable move ever at this stage (Mirror)

And Arteta says William Saliba could go on loan in January, which is nice considering he was out on loan already, they brought him back, tried to send him again and failed last month, leaving him with a pointless three-month wait (Mail)

Stupid recruitment process of the day

Man United missed out on a Bundesliga winger this summer apparently. No, not that one. Nope, not that one either. This one is Moussa Diaby, the Bayer Leveruksen flier who they apparently also wanted. What a wreck of a club. Keep it going!

Tweet of the day

.@DiogoJota18 has been nominated for the @ChampionsLeague Player of the Week award ???

You can vote for him now ?

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 5, 2020