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The ECHO will provide breaking stories, reaction and comment to all the big talking points from Anfield as well as keeping tabs on transfer market gossip from around the world.
Chelsea are reportedly considering a second move for Federico Chiesa as they look to bolster their attacking options in 2022 amid continued speculation linking the Juventus star with a move to Liverpool.
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Key Events
UEFA release European Super League statement after Liverpool stance confirmed
UEFA will not oppose an ongoing legal battle in a Madrid court surrounding the European Super League.
Liverpool were one of six Premier League clubs who initially agreed to sign up to the proposed breakaway league, before withdrawing less than 48 hours after it was announced.
Juventus, Barcelona and Real Madrid have refused to back down after the ESL row and are still pursuing the issue through a legal challenge in Madrid.
But European football’s governing body remains committed to fighting any ongoing threat of a breakaway, despite deciding not to oppose the case in court.
Liverpool Champions League squad vs Porto confirmed as absence sparks concern
Liverpool have arrived in Portugal as they prepare for their next clash in the Champions League.
The Reds take on Porto at the Estadio do Dragao on Tuesday evening, in what will be their second group stage encounter.
Jurgen Klopp will be hoping to follow up their victory against AC Milan in their opening fixture with another win this week.
Arriving in Porto, the Liverpool players and staff have been pictured getting off the team bus as they enter their hotel.
Trent Alexander-Arnold hands Liverpool major concern ahead of Porto fixture
Trent Alexander-Arnold has handed Liverpool a major scare - and could face a race against time to be available for Sunday’s visit of Manchester City.
Alexander-Arnold was not part of the Reds’ squad that flew to Porto on Monday ahead of their Champions League Group B clash on Tuesday evening.
The right-back had taken part in open training at Kirkby earlier in the day only to not be among the party that disembarked the team coach at their hotel in the evening.
Liverpool have remained tight-lipped over Alexander-Arnold’s fitness.
Rio Ferdinand makes Mohamed Salah claim after Liverpool record broken
Former Manchester United skipper Rio Ferdinand has outlined why Mohamed Salah deserves to be held in the top bracket of the world’s best.
Salah recently made history once again with Liverpool, after scoring his 100th Premier League goal for the club in the weekend’s draw with Brentford.
The Egyptian achieved the feat in record time, becoming the player to reach the landmark in the fastest time in Anfield history.
Ferdinand has outlined the “biggest fact” of Salah’s achievement, and why the 29-year-old deserves to be regarded as one of the world’s best.
What Diogo Jota has told Liverpool team-mates after 'massive' Anfield admission
Diogo Jota has warned his Liverpool team-mates they will be making a mistake if they dismiss Porto on the strength of their recent visits.
Jurgen Klopp's side travel to the Estadio do Dragao on Tuesday for the third time in five seasons in their second Champions League Group B match.
The Reds, unbeaten in eight previous games against Porto, won there 5-0 in the last 16 in 2018 and the following year triumphed 4-1 in the quarter-finals.
However, the Portuguese side reached the last eight last season by eliminating Juventus and beat eventual winners Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
And Jota - born in Porto and who spent the 2016/17 campaign on loan at his boyhood club from Atletico Madrid - believes Sergio Conceicao's men will be a much sterner proposition.
Jurgen Klopp explains midfield theory and sets Curtis Jones challenge
Jurgen Klopp has challenged Curtis Jones to maintain the consistency of his performance in Saturday's draw at Brentford.
And the Liverpool boss says he does not decide his midfield three for upcoming games before the players have been given the chance to impress in training.
Jones scored the Reds' third in the 3-3 draw at the Brentford Community Stadium and caught the eye with an all-action display alongside Fabinho and Jordan Henderson.
Asked what Jones, who made his 51st appearance for his boyhood club on Saturday, has to do to now stay in the team, Klopp said he needs to continue playing the same way he did in London at the weekend.
Ivan Toney makes Virgil van Dijk claim after last ditch tackle in Liverpool draw
Brentford striker Ivan Toney believes Virgil van Dijk is the only defender in world football who could have produced the goal-saving tackle witnessed late on in Liverpool's 3-3 draw with Thomas Frank's side.
Toney was denied in the final moments of the match by the Reds' centre-halve, who slid in to win the ball off the English forward as the last man of defence.
Had Van Dijk not intervened, there is a strong chance the Brentford marksman would have clinched all three points for his side.
Saturday afternoon was a rare off day for the Dutch defender, who struggled to deal with the physical threat of Toney and his effective link-up play with Bryan Mbeumo.
Shaping up against Van Dijk is an experience Toney won't forget as he reflected on the difficulty of this test.
Liverpool 'plot £34m move' for Marco Asensio
Liverpool are reportedly considering making a bid for Real Madrid playmaker Marco Asensio.
According to El Nacional, the Reds are interested in the Spain international, who could leave Madrid in the next few months.
The report states that Real are willing to let Asensio leave the club, and are ready to cash in on the player with a 40m euro (£34m) valuation placed on the player.
Asensio scored against Liverpool in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final last term, and has been with Madrid since 2014.
Gary Neville makes bold Liverpool title prediction with Jamie Carragher jibe
Gary Neville has delivered his verdict on Liverpool’s title hopes and also poked fun at Jamie Carragher during a Q&A session on Twitter.
The ex-Manchester United full-back fielded a range of questions from football fans on social media, which led to him sharing his thoughts on the Reds.
After the weekend’s results, Neville had admitted that he doesn’t believe his former team will challenge for the title and suggested that Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea consistently produce better team performances.
Asked by one Reds fan where he thought the club would finish this season, he responded, before commenting on his friendship with Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher.
Juventus want to sign Kylian Mbappe
Another of Europe’s biggest clubs has reportedly joined the race to sign Kylian Mbappe.
Liverpool have consistently been linked with the Paris Saint-Germain forward, but those are quite tentative at this stage.
According to Tuttosport, via Sport Witness, Juventus are interested in signing Mbappe, but may not have the funds available to secure a deal.
The report goes on to say that, while Juve may want to sign Mbappe, they may be forced to go for a ‘secondary option’ that won’t be as expensive.
Real Madrid are the other club who, like Liverpool, have been credited as long-time admirers of Mbappe.
Jurgen Klopp and Diogo Jota press conference
Jurgen and Diogo spoke to the media earlier today to preview tomorrow's Champions League clash at Porto. You can listen to everything they said here.
Liverpool urged to make Salah contract call even if it 'upsets a few people'
Peter Crouch has admitted he thinks Mohamed Salah is still under-appreciated, despite his array of achievements with Liverpool.
And he believes a new contract for the club's "biggest hitter" is a must - even if it "might upset a few people".
Scoring against Brentford on Saturday took Salah to 100 league goals for the Reds in 151 games, the fastest a player has reached the landmark for the club in the Premier League era and the third-quickest in Liverpool’s history.
The 29-year-old has started the new season in a familiarly impressive fashion, scoring six goals in seven games across all competitions, after being the overall top scorer for Jurgen Klopp’s team in each of his last four campaigns.
However, former Liverpool striker Peter Crouch believes that Fernando Torres and Luis Suarez are still “held in higher-esteem” by fans, even though Salah has helped bring more success to the club.
Jurgen Klopp confirms new captaincy order at Liverpool after squad vote
Jurgen Klopp has revealed his decision to extend his players' committee at Liverpool from three to six this season.
And the Reds boss explained how Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson and Alisson were all elevated as a result.
Last season, the Reds had a four-man group of internal 'leaders' in the squad with club captain Jordan Henderson and vice skipper James Milner joined by Virgil van Dijk and Gini Wijnaldum.
With Wijnaldum now at Paris Saint-Germain, Klopp detailed why he decided to expand the group to a half dozen in the Liverpool first team and why Alexander-Arnold, Robertson and Alisson got the nod.
Jurgen Klopp LIVE
We will be taking a short break from here as we head over to our Jurgen Klopp press conference blog.
Follow everything the Reds boss has to say here.
Liverpool release ESL statement as UEFA issue new warning
Liverpool have reaffirmed their commitment to rejecting the idea of a European Super League despite claims from lawyers that European clubs would be happy with the ongoing fight waged by Juventus, Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Liverpool were one of 12 clubs who backed the idea of the ESL back in April, the project put out into the public domain late on a Sunday evening through a co-ordinated social media approach, with the idea rejected by fans, governing bodies and the wider football family.
So toxic was the idea, Liverpool and the eight other clubs of Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan and AC Milan all performed a U-turn on the plans and apologised, returning to the bosom of UEFA and the European Clubs Association in the aftermath.
But Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus, three of the clubs who had suffered most financially as a result of the pandemic, remained espoused to the idea of the ESL and continued, through legal challenges from the umbrella company behind the ESL idea, A22.
Dave Powell has the full story here.
Chelsea 'eyeing Chiesa move'
Chelsea are reportedly considering a second move for Federico Chiesa Juventus star as they look to bolster their attacking options in 2022.
It has been claimed that the Blues made a sensational £85million offer for the Italy international during the summer transfer window, but that was rejected by the Serie A club.
But now according to Calcio Mercato, Chelsea will try their luck to sign Chiesa and are expected to approach the European giants in the next few months.
And it is also claimed that Liverpool have shown strong interest in the forward.
He moved to Turin in September 2020 on a two-year loan deal from Fiorentina, but Juventus do have an obligation to buy for £34.3million at the end of the season.
Souness makes title prediction
Graeme Souness believes Liverpool are part of a small group that are “so far ahead” of the rest of the Premier League.
The Reds currently sit top of the table by a point, after the weekend’s draw with Brentford, and the ex-Red has shared how he thinks the title race will play out this season.
Speaking ahead of the North London derby between Arsenal and Tottenham, Souness admitted that those two clubs are being left behind.
The 68-year-old named Chelsea and Manchester City as Liverpool’s main rivals, predicting that Manchester United would fall out of contention despite their heavy summer investment.
Gouiri 'eyed by Liverpool'
Liverpool are reportedly one of three clubs ready to fight it out for the signing of OGC Nice striker Amine Gouiri.
According to Spanish outlet Fichajes, via the Hard Tackle, Real Madrid have entered the race to sign the 21-year-old , who is also a transfer target for the Reds and Manchester City.
Gouiri is a product of the Olympique Lyon academy and 16 times as well claiming eight assists in 41 games last season.
Dortmund CEO's X-rated response to Haaland claim
Borussia Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke has dismissed recent claims his side's ' financial situation might force them to cash in on Erling Haaland next summer.
The 21-year-old forward is one of European football’s hottest properties having averaged around a goal a game for the past two seasons.
That impressive form has resulted in the forward being linked with a host of top clubs around Europe, including Liverpool.
But Watzke told Sport 1 on the rumours:
"It has not yet been decided whether it will really leave in the summer. We'll just have a look. I heard someone say: 'They have to sell Haaland because they are listed on the stock exchange.' This is all bulls***.
"The decision whether someone is sold at our company is made by the management and only by the management."
Salah's agent issues one word response after milestone
Mohamed Salah seems to be breaking records every week and he reached a new milestone on Saturday as he recorded his 100th Premier League goal for Liverpool against Brentford.
The Egyptian became a centurion a couple of weeks ago as the Reds beat Leeds United 3-0 at Elland Road, but two of those 100 goals were scored during his time at Chelsea.
In the 3-3 draw against the Premier League's newcomers, Salah became the fastest Liverpool player to reach 100 goals for the club, doing so quicker than Steven Gerrard, Robbie Fowler and Luis Suarez.
In response to a tweet from OptusSport, highlighting the 29-year-old's latest achievement and labelling him a 'bonafide Anfield legend', Ramy Abbas bluntly said: "Yep."
Behind Enemy Lines podcast
Liverpool have quickly got to put the frustration of dropping two points in the Premier League on Saturday behind them because on Tuesday they travel to Porto for their second match in Group B of the Champions League.
The Reds got off to the perfect start when they beat AC Milan 3-2 at Anfield two weeks ago. And they’ll be confident of making it six points from six given they’ve had Porto’s number in recent years.
However, the Portuguese side did earn an excellent 0-0 draw at Atletico Madrid on matchday one, and like Liverpool, they’ve made an unbeaten start to the season.
So to learn more about Porto, Paul Wheelock picks up the phone to Portuguese football expert Alex Goncalves (follow him on Twitter @Aljeeves).
They talk Diogo Jota, who will be facing his former club on Tuesday, as well as Marko Grujic, who will be doing the same, plus two midfielders Liverpool were linked with in the summer, and the star forward who came close to joining Everton.
Must-read Liverpool stories
Before we get started, why not have a read of our must-read Liverpool stories from over the past 24 hours.
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