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Full redrawn Champions League Last 16 draw – Fixtures and dates

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The UEFA Champions League last 16 draw has been re-drawn after a botched attempt on Monday morning, and has thrown up some cracking ties.

At the second attempt of trying, Manchester United were drawn with Spanish champions Atletico Madrid while Real Madrid will take on Paris Saint-Germain in the tie of the round.

Manchester City will face Sporting CP, while Liverpool take on Inter Milan. Chelsea were the winners of the redraw, keeping their original opponents in Ligue 1’s Lille.

The original draw saw Manchester United once again set to face off against Paris Saint-Germain, with Cristiano Ronaldo to go head-to-head with Lionel Messi once again in the tie of the round.

Atletico Madrid were scheduled to take on Bayern Munich in the other mega tie, while the other English sides would have been happy with their draws as Liverpool faced Salzburg, Man City faced Villarreal.

However UEFA accidentally put Manchester United into the pot to be drawn against Villarreal and then they were selected, despite being ineligible to do so having come from the same group.

United then weren’t put into the pot for the potential opponents of Atletico amid the confusion, meaning they could never have been drawn against each other.

The draw will now be re-done at 14:00 UK time after several complaints that the botched draw affected the integrity of the competition going forward.

The fixtures will take place in February, with the first legs taking place on February 15/16 or 22/23 with the second legs taking place on March 8/9 or 15/16. Group winners will play their home game in the second leg.

Full draw and fixture dates:

FC Salzburg vs Bayern Munich – February 16th 2022
Bayern Munich vs FC Salzburg – March 8th 2022

Sporting CP vs Manchester City – February 15th 2022
Manchester City vs Sporting CP – March 9th 2022

SL Benfica vs Ajax – February 23rd 2022
Ajax vs SL Benfica – March 15th 2022

Chelsea vs Lille – February 22nd 2022
Lille vs Chelsea – March 16th 2022

Atletico Madrid vs Manchester United – February 23rd 2022
Manchester United vs Atletico Madrid – March 15th 2022

Villarreal vs Juventus – February 22nd 2022
Juventus vs Villarreal – March 16th 2022

Inter Milan vs Liverpool – February 16th 2022
Liverpool vs Inter Milan – March 8th 2022

Paris Saint-Germain vs Real Madrid – February 15th 2022
Real Madrid vs Paris Saint-Germain – March 9th 2022

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Football, Match Previews

Rafa Benitez must give Everton fans a reason to love him

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One of the big stories in the summer was that of Rafa Benitez joining Everton as manager to replace the departed Carlo Ancelotti.

After the Italian re-joined Real Madrid in a shock move to surprise Everton, the Toffees took their time to appoint his replacement.

There were talks with Frank Lampard, Eddie Howe and Nuno Espirito Santo but ultimately, the decision of the owner Farhad Moshiri was to bring in Liverpool fan favourite Benitez.

Immediately fans protested the decision, letting it be known that they were not happy with his involvement in the club considering the brilliant history he has with their fiercest rivals.

Benitez famously won the UEFA Champions League in 2005 as Reds boss while also leading them on a title charge as they competed with Manchester United and Chelsea in the late 2000’s.

Despite some ugly scenes before he was officially announced in the role, Benitez took over officially before the season started and took charge of pre-season where he signed the likes of Andros Townsend and Demarai Gray.

The season started well too, with three wins from the opening four Premier League games as well as progression in the Carabao Cup against Huddersfield. Since then though, it’s been a bit of a nightmare.

Everton manager Rafa Benitez greets his players after the Premier League match between Everton and Southampton at Goodison Park on August 14, 2021 in...

A 3-0 defeat to Aston Villa on September 18th was the start of seven defeats in ten games, with just one win in that run that has led them to tonight’s Merseyside derby against their in-form city rivals.

A video from the away section of their defeat against Brentford at the weekend showed just how angry Everton fans are right now, and considering Benitez was fighting a losing battle when he took the job initially it hasn’t got any easier for him now.

Something that would undoubtedly get Blues fans on side would be a victory against the Anfield side, who have long been labelled as one of the very best teams in the world currently.

One of those classic defensive performances with some strong counter-attacking threat and a potential upset win, would be the perfect remedy for the fans and go some way to showing exactly where his loyalties lie these days.

Everton manager Rafael Benítez during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Everton at Molineux on November 01, 2021 in...

Whether it comes against Liverpool or in the following games against Arsenal, Crystal Palace or Chelsea, Benitez needs to do something and quickly.

The longer this stretch of bad form goes on for, the less likely it is that the fans will be forgiving to him as the season becomes harder and harder to resurrect.

The same way Benitez endeared himself to Liverpool fans by winning big games and trophies, the Spaniard must find a way to make Everton fans love him.

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Football, Match Previews

Liverpool proving they can win without Mo Salah firing

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It says something about the strength of the Premier League right now that three of the top four teams in the world right now are plying their trade in England’s top flight.

Alongside Bayern Munich of the Bundesliga, Man City, Chelsea and Liverpool are running riot as the best and most effective teams in the world right now.

In those teams are some of the best players in the world right now, but arguably the best of the bunch currently is Anfield hero Mohamed Salah.

The Egyptian has been in the form of his life so far this season, registering an amazing 17 goals and eight assists in 18 games in all competitions.

But as Liverpool played host to Southampton on Saturday afternoon, for once he wasn’t firing on all cylinders. Even despite that though, Liverpool were able to run out 4-0 winners thanks to goals from Diogo Jota, Thiago and Virgil Van Dijk.

Salah did register an assist, but the overall performance for Liverpool was very encouraging against a good side in Southampton.

The full-backs were flying once again, with both Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold registering assists, while the midfield were able to dominate the ball and also chip in with creativity too.

It was the performance of Portuguese forward Jota that would have been most encouraging for Jurgen Klopp though, as he continued his excellent form with two goals early in the first half.

For a player who was initially signed as cover for the famous front three, Jota’s form and performances have pushed him firmly into consideration for a regular starting role in the team ahead of Roberto Firmino.

One of the big things for Liverpool’s attack was that all three players didn’t need to be firing for them to be influential on the result of a game, but Firmino’s drop-off over the last 18 months had essentially taken one of their weapons away.

Jota’s work rate means Liverpool are able to restore the feeling without Firmino, but his added quality in attack means they are back to having a three-pronged attack that is capable of rotating and going toe-to-toe with any defence in the world.

For Liverpool that can only be a good thing. It means that when a team does manage to halt the momentum of Salah, or even Sadio Mane for that matter, they still have one more weapon in their arsenal to punish the opposition.

It’s amazing for Liverpool and just another reason why they’re among the best teams in the world currently.

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Football, Opinion

Liverpool have a Sadio Mane dilemma

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Liverpool continued their brilliant start to the season thanks to a 4-0 win over Arsenal at the weekend, with Sadio Mane once again on the scoresheet for the Reds.

It was the winger’s 106th goal in 234 appearances for the club, as he currently takes part in a sixth season with the club since his £30million move from Southampton back in 2016.

But as the Senegalese star enters the final 18 months of his contract, Liverpool are suddenly in a dilemma with one of the key members of their attacking unit.

Since the arrival of Jurgen Klopp at Anfield, only Mohammed Salah has scored more goals for the club than Mane.

His pace, agility, directness, skill, physicality and technique have set him apart as one of the very best wingers in the Premier League and Europe but now at the age of 29 there is a decision to make for both player and club.

Mane is entering the final 18 months of his contract at the club, just like Salah is. Discussions over a new contract are yet to begin and with the club reportedly keen to re-sign Salah too there may be no space for them to sign both.

Reports suggest that the Egyptian wants a big pay-rise and with his importance to the side completely unquestionable, that could affect the budget in a big way.

Mane is unlikely to want to be second fiddle forever, and rightly so. At any other club in the world he would likely be the main man in the attack, with the ability to score 20+ goals per season and assist a huge amount too.

His ability to go in both directions and use both feet, while also being an aerial threat despite his diminutive stature, makes him an absolute nightmare for defenders.

At 29, Mane will be signing the last long-term contract of his career whether it is at Liverpool or not. He’ll want the one last big payday, like anyone else would, while also wanting some sort of assurances of being a key member of the team.

While Liverpool would no doubt be keen to sign Mane to fresh terms, but are they likely to give him the pay-rise and long-term deal he would crave considering everything else happening at the club? Probably not.

So the decision becomes whether they let him run his contract down and lose him for free, or sell him in the summer.

Sadio Mane of Liverpool celebrates after scoring a goal to make it 2-0 during the UEFA Champions League group B match between Liverpool FC and...

Should they choose to sell him, they won’t be short of suitors. Barcelona and Real Madrid have been linked to him in the past, while Paris Saint-Germain could potentially be looking to replace Kylian Mbappe in the summer too.

But if they let him go, they will be strengthening a European rival with one of the best players in the world.

The most likely outcome is that they find an agreement to extend his stay for an extra two or three years with a pay-rise that isn’t quite what Mane wanted, but enough to convince him to sign on.

But the club are running out of time to make it all happen, and the longer they wait the more likely an exit becomes.

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Football, Opinion

How Steven Gerrard can set himself up for Liverpool with Aston Villa

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Since the day Steven Gerrard left Liverpool for LA Galaxy back in 2015, the countdown has been on as to when he would eventually return.

After two seasons in Hollywood, Gerrard returned to Anfield to coach the academy and youth teams after impressing Jurgen Klopp with his work ethic and passion for the job.

Then followed the job at Rangers, where he really established himself as one of the better up and coming British managers in the game right now.

Gerrard spent three years at Rangers rebuilding the club to be able to compete with Celtic once again, eventually culminating in winning them their first Scottish Premiership title since the 2010/11 season.

But midway through this campaign Gerrard accepted the approach of Aston Villa to become the new manager and has made the move back to the Premier League.

At Villa he will have a strong squad, filled with young, talented players and capable of playing several different systems. On paper, Gerrard seems like the perfect fit for a club with aspirations such as theirs and a fan-base like theirs.

The issue for Villa fans is that they know that should he become a success for them, Liverpool will come calling eventually.

Jurgen Klopp manager of Liverpool with Steven Gerrard manager of Rangers during training session before the UEFA Champions League final between Real...

Jurgen Klopp has all but admitted that once he reaches the end of his current Anfield contract in 2024 that he will likely leave and take a break from management, so this seems like the perfect time for Gerrard to make the leap over to England’s top flight.

For Gerrard it’s a chance to implement his style and imprint of the beautiful game at the highest level and see if it can transition over in the same way it did in Scotland.

If he is able to bring through some of the many academy prospects on the brink of first-team football and bring success back to a club that has been struggling this season, then the calls for him to be Klopp’s successor will seem justified.

If he fails to make an impact and impression though, then talk is likely to be seen as too premature.

Glasgow Rangers' English head coach Steven Gerrard reacts from the sidelines during the Champions League qualiying match Malmo FF v Rangers in Malmo,...

Gerrard made a name for himself playing attacking football but with a rock solid defence in Scotland, so if he can recreate that with Villa it’ll be a good start.

He didn’t need a superstar to carry the team, he did it with great teamwork and spirit and a tactical setup that worked for his side. He will need to do the same at Villa and the chances are that he will find some sort of success there.

This is the step for Gerrard to prove himself as the next top boss or out himself as just another hyped up ex-pro. Which way it goes decides on whether Liverpool have found their next manager or not.

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Football, Match Previews

Liverpool see unbeaten run ended as West Ham lay the blueprint

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Liverpool’s 25-game unbeaten run has been snapped thanks to David Moyes’ West Ham after a 3-2 defeat at the London Stadium on Sunday.

West Ham took the lead early on after Pablo Fornals’ corner went straight in after a slight touch from goalkeeper Alisson Becker. Liverpool took over the game a bit more as the half went on, and Trent Alexander-Arnold equalised with a brilliant free-kick just before half-time.

The second half was more even but West Ham were dangerous on the counter and finally got a breakthrough with about 20 minutes left as Jarrod Bowen danced through the midfield and played the ball through to Fornals who tucked the ball into the corner. It was then 3-1 minutes later as Zouma headed home from a corner, before substitute Divock Origi pulled one back to make it a nervy ending with a brilliant finish.

It was a terrific performance from the Hammers, who moved up to third in the Premier League ahead of Liverpool in the table and level on points with Man City just three points behind Chelsea at the top.

For Liverpool, their club record of unbeaten games could only be tied in the end with a poor performance bringing it to an end.

Klopp was unhappy with the way the first goal came about, believing that Alisson was fouled but ultimately the right team won on the day and West Ham have now set a blueprint for how to win against Liverpool.

They camped deep and narrow defensively, using their aerially dominant defenders to clear out crosses from the likes of Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson, while Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek were there to clean up any loose balls.

Going forward Fornals, Bowen and Said Benrahma were direct and also excellent at keeping possession higher up the pitch to help relieve some pressure. Michail Antonio was once again brilliant leading the line too, using his physical presence to battle with Virgil Van Dijk and Joel Matip and also his pace to run in behind and stretch the defence.

It was a complete performance and showed the holes in the Liverpool team, especially without a natural striker in the box to attack their crosses and a high line which can sometimes leave them susceptible to pace.

Liverpool are still among the best teams in Europe and one of the favourites for the Premier League title, but a lack of serious squad depth could become an issue as the season goes on and the fact they’ll lose Sadio Mane and Mo Salah in the new year for the African Cup of Nations is huge too.

West Ham continue to exceed expectations, with 10/12 points in Europe this season as well as wins over Liverpool, Tottenham, Leicester, Manchester United and Man City in all competitions too. They’re a problem for anyone and Moyes deserves a lot of credit for the job he’s done.

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Football, Match Previews

Liverpool can put demons to rest against Atletico Madrid in Champions League

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It was almost two years ago when Liverpool were beaten home and away by Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid side as defending European champions.

After dominating domestically and running away with the Premier League title in the 2019/20 season, they were expected to make a run at winning the Champions League in consecutive seasons.

However when they were paired up with Atletico Madrid in a two-legged last 16 affair, they found out just how tough the Spaniards can be to beat.

Saul Niguez’s goal gave Atleti a 1-0 lead heading into the tie at Anfield, before a thrilling encounter in the final game in front of fans for over a year.

Gini Wijnaldum’s goal in the 43rd minute meant extra-time was upon us and then Roberto Firmino gave the Reds a lead. Three minutes later though Marcos Llorente got Atleti back into the game, before he scored a second to silence Anfield.

Alvaro Morata then wrapped the game up in stoppage time to make it home and away wins against the reigning European champions.

Liverpool’s season after that stalled, literally and form-wise, as the pandemic took over the main storyline of the year and Jurgen Klopp’s side were eventually crowned champions without really needing to restart at all.

Last season became a write-off for the defending champions as they suffered immensely with injuries and poor form, crashing out of Europe at the quarter-final stage to Atletico’s local rivals Real Madrid.

But now, Klopp’s team are back with a vengeance.

So far this season they’re essentially at full fitness and it’s showing. They have won eight out of 11 games so far in all competitions and have lost none, scoring 33 goals and conceding just nine.

Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Watford and Liverpool at Vicarage Road on October 16, 2021 in Watford, England.

Mo Salah is in the form of his life, scoring seven goals and registering four assists in his eight appearances so far while Sadio Mane, Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino are also chipping in with their fair share.

Defensively Virgil Van Dijk has returned from his ACL injury in great form, while Joel Matip has also returned from injury and continued his excellent partnership with the Dutchman.

Now paired up in a Champions League group together this season, Liverpool have the chance to avenge those defeats. They’ve won two out of two so far and with Atletico being held to a draw against FC Porto, a win means they would be five points clear at the top of the supposed group of death after just three games.

They’re on course for yet another brilliant campaign and what better way than to beat the reigning, defending La Liga champions to get their revenge and continue their brilliant European run.

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Diogo Jota a Liverpool injury doubt after missing Portugal internationals

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Liverpool are facing a period of time without Diogo Jota being available to them after he missed both of Portugal’s internationals during the break.

The winger started for Liverpool in their final game before the international break against Manchester City before being substituted in the second half.

He was selected by Portugal boss Fernando Santos for their games against Qatar and Luxembourg, but has been unable to train all week due to a muscle injury.

Jota was left out of the Portugal lineup that faced Qatar in a friendly as Santos rested most of his regular starters, but there was hope that the winger would be available for the World Cup qualifier against Luxembourg on Tuesday.

However the Portuguese Football Federation released a statement on Tuesday afternoon revealing that Jota had been sent home from international duty early after being unable to train once again, meaning he was unavailable for the game. A statement said;

“Diogo Jota was dismissed by the national team manager Fernando Santos, after being considered unavailable by the FPF Health and Performance Unit to face Luxembourg, in a meeting to be held this Tuesday.

Diogo Jota of Liverpool goes off during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield on October 03, 2021 in Liverpool,...

“The Liverpool player, who has already left the stage of the national team, has done conditioning work since the beginning of the international break, having also missed the match against Qatar.”

Jota is a doubt for Liverpool’s weekend game against Watford at Vicarage Road, where they could also be without goalkeeper Alisson and midfielder Fabinho who are on international duty with Brazil.

They aren’t expected to return from South America until late on Friday night and with the game against Watford on Saturday in the lunch-time slot, their participation is unlikely.

Liverpool then face Atletico Madrid in the Champions League in midweek before a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the Premier League the following weekend.

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Football, Opinion

Why is Mo Salah’s greatness still doubted?

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When a player’s stats are so good that the hashtag #OnlySalah trends because he is constantly out on his own in whatever the metric is, it’s hard to establish why his greatness is in doubt to so many.

Since joining Liverpool in the summer of 2017, Mo Salah has without a doubt become one of the best players in the world. He has scored 134 goals in 212 appearances for the Kop, including 101 in 152 games in the Premier League.

He has won the Premier League, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup as well as reaching another Champions League final and being part of the Liverpool side that were by far the best ever runners-up in Premier League history.

The success of Liverpool’s team since that season has largely been attributed to the brilliance of Virgil Van Dijk, who arrived in January in a £75m deal from Southampton and seemingly turned their defensive fortunes around.

But it seems to have been far too easily forgotten in that half-season where it was just Salah and not Van Dijk that the Egyptian was still absolutely dazzling. By the time January 1st 2018 rolled around, Salah already had 23 goals in all competitions to go with six assists in 29 appearances.

He ended that season with a record breaking 32 Premier League goals in 36 games, and 44 goals with 16 assists in 52 appearances across all competitions.

Since then his numbers have never quite reached those levels since, ending each season with 27, 23 and 31 goals while he currently has nine in nine games this season.

But while the first season was all about goals, goals, goals, the improvement in his overall game has seen a development that is only usually attributed to the very best players in the world.

His first touch has improved immensely, his decision making is better, he is still a world class dribbler, he can finish with both feet, he presses hard from the front in line with Jurgen Klopp’s system and his link-up play has improved to the point where Roberto Firmino is no longer considered an automatic starter.

Salah can play in the middle or from the right, his pace is frightening, his movement is brilliant and just like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski he comes across as just inevitable for oppositions.

But despite all of this, some people still doubt him. I’ve seen him left out of lists of the top ten players in the world, even in the best players in the Premier League by some. But chuck your bias away, ignore that he isn’t the most aesthetically pleasing player in the world and focus on what he can do and does on a regular basis.

He affects the biggest games against the best opposition on a regular basis and he is one of the attacking players in the world who doesn’t need to score a goal to have a good game. He also doesn’t need to be playing well and have a good game to score a winning goal.

He’s special. He’s one of Liverpool’s best players ever now, and it’s about time everyone started putting some respect on Mo Salah’s name.

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Liverpool and Man City are the best attacking teams, but defence wins titles

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Sunday evening’s Super Sunday clash between Liverpool and Man City was the perfect advertisement for the Premier League’s top teams.

The Anfield atmosphere was rocking as the Reds fans cheered on their side, while Pep Guardiola’s Man City team turned up looking to stifle the fans with patient, possession football that had precision and quality.

While the game played out to a 2-2 draw it showed that these two sides are the best attacking outfits in the league (and maybe Europe), but it raised question marks over their defences.

There was some brilliant passages of play from both teams, which showed the quality and skill that they possess in attack and all over the pitch. Liverpool’s first goal was a silky passing move where they came out from the back, before Mo Salah skipped past Joao Cancelo and slipped a wonderful pass into Sadio Mane to tuck away.

The attack was brilliant but the defending was shoddy from both Cancelo and Aymeric Laporte, who found himself in no-mans land once Salah began running at him.

Liverpool haven’t looked particularly solid all season either, and City consistently targeted James Milner in the right-back position with Jack Grealish and Phil Foden working in tandem to rotate between the left-wing and the left sided number 8 to cause him problems.

While the attacks shone brightly, it offered some hope to Chelsea that in the title race that while they may not be the best team in the race they definitely have the tools to win the title.

It’s a famous old saying – attacks win you games, defence wins you titles. Chelsea have got undoubtedly the best defence in the Premier League.

These three teams have already played against each other and the pattern in the games was visible for all to see. When Chelsea played City, they set up to defend and moved away from their usual system. They were beaten by the better team on the day as City dominated, but the previous three meetings between the sides saw Chelsea earn three wins.

When Liverpool hosted Chelsea, it was a very even and back-and-forth game which Chelsea led thanks to a stunning (and maybe a bit lucky) header. They defended well and never really looked under too much threat, even after being reduced controversially to ten men.

The three best coaches in the league, with the three best teams are all vying for the title. Manchester United’s lack of a top coach is hindering them and the results are currently showing that. So it’s currently a three-horse race and when the level between the sides is so close, it’s often the defences that come out on top.

It sounds really obvious, but if you don’t concede goals then you don’t lose games. Chelsea are really good at not conceding goals and they’re really good at winning games. Two results don’t win or lose you the league but they give a good indication as to what’s to come, and that’s that the title race is going to be very close this year.

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