TLW

The Metropolitan Police have requested that the Carabao Cup Final between Liverpool and Chelsea on the 25th of February be moved forward to an earlier timeslot due from its current 4:30pm timeslot due to it sitting in the ‘high risk’ category. The two teams met in a couple of showcase finals two years ago with the Carabao Cup final kicking off at 4:30pm while the FA Cup final kicked off 15 minutes later. The Met released a statement (per the Echo) which outlined the process. “Preparations for the EFL Cup policing operation are underway following the conclusion of the two semi-finals and we are working with partners including the Wembley Stadium, local authority and EFL on agreeing the kick off time. “Our partners are aware this match qualifies as a ‘high-risk’ fixture and in accordance with national guidance from the UK Football Policing Unit, this fixture should kick off no later than 3pm.” It is thought that the EFL were initially standing by their preference for a 4:30pm kick off due to their contract with Sky Sports, but sources on both sides have indicated that a compromise is likely with the game being brought forward. It also has to be noted that when Liverpool and Chelsea met in the two cup finals that no major disturbances were reported, but on a wider scale, incidents are said to be up in the last few years which has led to the more conservative approach in these matters. There is a recent precedent for authorities requesting a showcase fixture to be moved from its proposed kick-off time with last years FA Cup final between the two Manchester clubs being moved to a 3pm kick-off, the first time it had been in that timeslot since 2011. And Liverpool’s clash with City at the Etihad Stadium on November 25th was switched from a 5:30pm KO to a 12:30pm start due to objections from Greater Manchester Police citing previous incidents between the two sets of fans. View full article

Jurgen Klopp says Joe Gomez has been an unsung hero in his ability to deputise for injured teammates in the back four. Versatility has been a trademark of Jurgen Klopp’s spell as manager, asking players to play in a non-preferred position, but the sacrifice has then led to overall success. That trait is what led to James Milner earning the respect from everyone at the club, whether the midfielder filled in at Left or Right Back, he did it with a minimum of fuss. And Gomez shares that same quality. It is sometimes easy to forget that he is still only 26, but it is clear he is highly regarded from the coaching staff and teammates alike. The defender has been through plenty of ups and downs on a personal level through his nine seasons at the Reds but it is his strength of character which is so noteworthy, after every injury setback he has set his goal to return a better player. Those forced absences and then the subsequent return to match fitness has seen Gomez only surpass 20 Premier League appearances in a season on three occasions (2017/18, 2019/20 and 2022/23.. He is already sitting on 18 for this season. A sign that luck is finally luck is shining on Gomez is that he has made 60 of his 202 appearances for the club in the last season and a half (just under 30%) and with plenty of games on the horizon this campaign, that percentage will surely grow. A sidenote is that he has played the full 90 minutes for the last six fixtures, once again illustrating the confidence he has in his body. Gomez has had to fill in for Andy Robertson, Kostas Tsimikas and Trent Alexander-Arnold in recent times, no easy task by any means, but speaking after the Reds booked their ticket for another Carabao Cup final showdown against Chelsea, the manager waxed lyrical about Gomez as the Official Website reported. “Without Joe nothing would've happened in the last pretty much 13 [or] 14 weeks since Robbo [Andy Robertson] is out. Yes, because he could play there, but the things we could do with Trent [Alexander-Arnold] when we brought Joey on, I don't exactly [know] how many games [he] played now this year, but I would say 20-something already. “He is a life-saver, to be honest, that he was here, that he could play, and people forget how important Joey was in the best years we had. I don't know how many games he played in the year when we became champions and how many games he played when we won the Champions League. A lot and rightly so because he's a top-class player.” With Liverpool still fighting on all four fronts this season and key players set to return to action,, competition for spots all over the pitch is set to be intense. And that along with a team in fine form is all what a manager could ask for. View full article

A South American football expert has been surprised by the lack of concrete bids for a midfielder who has been likened to a former Liverpool star. Andre Trindade has been a name which has been circulating for a number of months with a number of Premier League clubs believed to be interested with Liverpool apparently at the front of the queue. Coming off a season that was imminently forgettable, the optimism in the fanbase for a successful campaign was not helped just before the season kickoff in August when the Reds interest in Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia was rebuffed with both players opting to join Chelsea. With Liverpool desperately needing a holding midfielder after the departure of Fabinho to the Saudi league, Stefan Bajcetic still learning his trade in the senior ranks and dealing with a injury setback, and with Trindade staying with his club until the end of the South American season in December, Jurgen Klopp turned to a largely unknown player in Wataru Endo. With Liverpool looking to completely revamp their midfield with younger and more dynamic players, signing a 30 year-old seemed to go completely against that mould. But while taking time to find his feet in a new league, the Japanese captain has ticked every box and passed every challenge asked of him and before leaving for the Asian Cup he was growing into a pivotal pice of the starting midfield. Tim Vickery is the font of all knowledge when it comes to South American footballing talent be it emerging or established. And given that the transfer window is well.and truly open, speaking to Sky Sports News (per the Echo), Vickery is somewhat at a loss to explain why a club has not come in for him. “ I'm absolutely baffled. Even Fulham - who have been closest recently - I think that they seem to think that signing this player is not a priority. Liverpool were the club who were closest to signing him in the summer. We understand that a big money offer came in. “Since then (Andre's) only grown, he's won the Copa Libertadores, he's played well in a bad Brazil side, did well in a losing cause against Manchester City in the final of the Club World Cup. "He's a central midfielder who brings you so much. He does remind me of a young Javier Mascherano “Given the success of a number of Brazilian central midfielders in English football recently, Joao Gomes or Douglas Luiz, this is the best of the bunch and it is surprising to me that there hasn't been more interest for him this window." It is abundantly clear that there will be no incomings during this month, and in truth that makes sense, when you see the team currently operating like a well oiled machine. While there are absentees through injury and international commitments, all the key players should be firmly in place again by mid February at the latest. The only long term injury being Joel Matip but his role has been expertly filled by Jarrell Quansah, meanwhile it remains to be seen if, or indeed when Thiago Alcantara will play for the club again. Endo and Alexis Mac Allister will continue to share the holding midfield role until the end of the season and it remains to be seen come the summer whether the interest for Andre is still there or if they look to focus on other parts of the pitch. View full article

Anthony Patterson is reportedly on Liverpool’s radar if Caoimhin Kelleher decides to leave Liverpool to become a first choice keeper elsewhere. The Sunderland goalkeeper has kept eight clean sheets in 27 appearances this season with the Black Cats currently on the fringes of the playoff positions in seventh. The future of Kelleher has been a source for discussion for a couple of seasons. The Irishman is highly unlikely to unseat Allison as Liverpool’s number one with the Brazilian currently regarded as the best goalkeeper in the world That said, Kelleher is arguably the best reserve goalkeeper around at this point of time, a title that Jurgen Klopp bestowed on him two years ago. The 25 year-old who is contracted until the end of the 2025/6 season has already set a personal record in terms of appearances for the club this season already having made 11 in all competitions, the first time he has reached double figures in his senior Liverpool career. While the Europa League does not hold the status of the Champions League, it presents itself as a great opportunity for fringe and emerging players to get experience on the European stage and certainly has aided Kelleher who has made five appearances in the competition so far. The Mirror reports that Celtic are certainly looking closely with Kelleher and he has been previously linked with a move to Brentford as a replacement for David Raya. When it comes to Patterson, the Sunderland academy graduate has been previously linked to moves to Wolves and Leicester. The 23 year-old who is also under contract until 2026 spoke at the start of this season that his main goal is to achieve success with his boyhood team. “This is my team, I have grown up supporting Sunderland. I'm happy here, content and looking forward to many more games. It's that extra bit special being able to play in front of the Sunderland fans and being able to be on the pitch rather than as a fan really." In a perfect world it’s clear that Liverpool would not want to lose Kelleher as they realise what a talent he is, but there may come a time when eventually he wants to become a number one in his own right especially with Alisson still in the prime of his career. And if the time does arise that Liverpool are on the lookout for a backup you sense they will look for a prospect in the mould of Patterson rather than a seasoned veteran with not too many miles left on the clock. View full article

This season TLW is once again looking to keep an eye on the younger members of the squad who are continuing their football education on loan. Last season we brought you the insight from Blackburn Rovers fans as Tyler Morton spent the campaign at Ewood Park. While it started brightly for the defensive midfielder, just like the team in general there was a notable drop-off come the end of the 2022/3 season. But all in all, playing a full campaign in one of the most physically intense leagues in Football would have done the 21 year-old the world of good. Now Morton is currently at Hull City, a club who are having a fine season under manager Liam Rosenior, exceeding expectations to sit seventh just one point and place outside the playoff spots. And one of the reasons for that improvement has been the play of Morton who has fitted like a glove into Rosenior’s starting lineup and in his 21 appearances for the club has averaged 1.5 tackles and one interception per game but also looked to develop a attacking side to his game with three goals and three assists. @AntNorthgraves (from @Hull_and_Back) gives our readers a half-season report card on the academy graduate. Tyler Morton has been absolutely fantastic since joining on loan from Liverpool. Liam Rosenior needed to add players to this Hull City side that could enhance the style of play and identity that he has been encouraging the squad to play since his appointment as Manager in November 2022. We like to play out from the back, get the ball into wide areas and dominate possession and since his debut, Tyler has fit straight into what was asked of him. Sitting alongside experienced and classy midfielder Jean Michael Seri, he has gone from strength to strength, growing in confidence each week. As the season has progressed, Tyler has become more of a box-to-box midfielder dropping deep to collect the ball, passing it out wide and then putting himself high up the pitch to create chances and score goals. So, what are Morton’s strengths? Spatial awareness & positioning are a particular highlight as he is always scanning the midfield for open spaces to put himself & provide a passing option, helping link defence to attack and keeping us possession. Passing is another of his strongest aspects. His range of pass & vision are superb, playing pin-point passes to team mates all over the pitch and rarely misplacing one. His assist for Ozan Tufan’s goal against Cardiff was a perfect example of what he can do. These all essentially fall under a similar category but his tenacity, desire, work-rate & willingness to track back make him a manager’s dream off the ball. For all he offers us in possession, he helps us win the ball back & contributes defensively too making him an asset in all areas of the game. What does he have to work on? I’m finding it really hard to think of any weaknesses at the moment, so I guess I’ll scrape the barrel as much as I can. Tyler could perhaps work on his timing when making runs into the box. In a really good week for him in which he made his England U21 debut, scored for them and scored for us in the following game, it looked like Tyler was beginning to flourish in the extra encouragement of going higher up the pitch. His style of play certainly deserves more goals and I can imagine he’ll get a few more before the season is over. This is also really harsh, but maybe delivery from set pieces could be hung into a more dangerous area in the box because his ability to play a superb cross is evident in games, but perhaps not seen enough from dead-ball situations (although this could be down to the positioning of our players too). Overall, Tyler is a fantastic player and from what I’ve seen, he is destined to play in the Premier League. I’m not sure what Klopp’s plans are for him but if I was Rosenior I would certainly at least enquire as to his availability on a permanent basis as, although he is young, he’s at a point of a young player’s career where he needs to decide if he wants to continue being loaned out & hope to get a first team place eventually, or find somewhere to call home and settle playing every week in the same surroundings. Maybe a buy-back clause would be the best way to convince Liverpool, but it will be interesting to see how his career progresses nonetheless. View full article

Simon Jordan believes that Jurgen Klopp is the best manager in the Premier League in all facets of the game. The former Crystal Palace chairman and current Talksport presenter admits that bare facts show that Pep Guardiola has been the standout manager in terms of overall success in the modern era, if the two managers were to swap places, then Klopp would have won just as much as him. They’ve [Liverpool] got a manager that to me, I think, is the best manager, if not close to it in world football. “I know that the statistics will tell you that it’s Pep. But if (Klopp) had the same resources as Pep I think he might have achieved the same things. Jordan went further in his analysis of the two most dominant teams of this modern era in English Football saying that he finds Liverpool much more enjoyable to watch. The argument will be, ‘what style of football do you like to watch? “I just like a more dynamic style of football rather than this overwhelming destruction of other sides by passing them to an almost near standstill. “The nature of Manchester City’s football whilst beautiful on the eye, isn’t quite as exciting as the dynamic explosion Liverpool often produce and that’s just a personal choice.” Jordan believes after a very difficult last season for all concerned with the club and most of all Klopp who was the public face constantly having to answer questions of what exactly had gone wrong, the German is rejuvenated and on the cusp of building another very successful era. “I think Klopp is a brilliant manager. He’s now back in the groove and back in most press conferences saying things that are sensible and not constantly indulging himself in what they do and don’t have and how unfortunate it is for them. “I think he’s an outstanding manager.” The whole Klopp vs Guardiola ‘who is better’ debate has been trotted out a number of times over the years and depending on what side of the fence you sit on, you will have a different answer. There are those that look at basic statistics and conclude their answer that way, but on the flip side there are those who use a bit of rationale behind their response like Jordan has done here. And by coming from someone who is completely impartial, it may carry a bit more weight in the mainstream. But even if it doesn’t, a great majority of Reds fans know that Jordan is completely on the money with what he said and in turn how lucky we are to have him guiding the club into a new era that is hopefully just as successful as what occurred before it. View full article

Pep Lijnders believes that FSG have played a major role in the rejuvenation of Liverpool this season by sanctioning a summer transfer spend window that transformed the midfield. With a number of senior midfield players such as captain Jordan Henderson, vice captain James Milner, Fabinho and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all departing at the end of last season, the decision was made to bring players of a younger age and potential to grow into true stars. Alexis MacAllister and Dominic Szoboszlai were initial signings which were then followed by Waturu Endo and Ryan Gravenberch. While each newcomer has adjusted to life at Liverpool at their own pace, what it has led to is a greater level of competition and pushed the likes of Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott to raise their game too. Speaking ahead of the first leg of the Carabao Cup Semi final against Fulham, Lijnders believes the owners who have their fair share of critics amongst the fanbase for their perceived frugalness at times, deserve some credit as the Echo reported. “Was their summer spending a surprise? No because we knew we could invest and knew in the summer we would invest. Cody Gakpo was a summer signing that we brought forward to January. We could do that early and it was great. If you look at the number of players we have brought in, that is really great, in my opinion. “The way we do business and the way our ownership works - of course you are relying on Champions League money, but not so much because we do our things really well. If we do not have it, we don’t do it. The assistant manager stated that a lot more goes into being a successful club than just results, everyone needs to be on the same page and wanting the same outcomes. “There is not a good manager without good ownership. The ownership invested in the squad where we needed to invest and that’s already a really good sign." After a 2022/3 which saw the Reds drop out of the top four and produce some truly abject performances, there was the real question mark regarding what kind of Liverpool team we would see coming into this campaign. Lijnders made it clear that those bad vibes had to be banished for the club to focus on future success. “We really drew a line before pre-season started. I said as a joke that if anyone was negative in this building I would punch them in the face! “I said that to every single one of them. Just to make sure that we didn’t carry anything over [from last season]. Then pre-season starts and we had all the players available for a long time. "A lot of key players went, seniors who were always the leaders, so new players had to step up – Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Alisson, Trent (Alexander-Arnold) – and they did, they showed up, and then you can start training three times a day, which we didn’t do before. There was a voice in their head saying: ‘We want to be successful and so we have to go through this." And part of becoming Liverpool 2.0 under Jurgen Klopp was reclaiming that “mentality monster” trademark which certainly played into the psyche of the opposition, knowing that the Reds were never beaten. "You need to win games when you think that maybe you are not going to win them. That’s why Newcastle away was a massive one. That creates momentum. In the right moments the team really stepped up." View full article

Jurgen Klopp has once again implored the governing body of the game to be extremely sensitive to the issue of player burnout. The footballing calendar has never been more congested than this current era with. tournaments which were scheduled to be played in the off-season now being played during peak periods of the campaign such as the upcoming AFCON. Players are also seeing their summer breaks greatly reduced due to the implementation of the UEFA Nations League fixtures played during that period. In these days of intense cost of living pressures for the everyday individual, sympathy is never going to be high on the scale especially given the average weekly wage the top players receive. Klopp has been a unrelenting advocate for player welfare since coming to England, where he is often bemused by the lack of a genuine winter break and the frequency of early kick-offs on Saturday that Liverpool are fixtured for. Speaking about the issue at length once again (per the Mirror), Klopp said important decisions need to be made but openly questioning if there is willingness to do so. “The people who decide don’t care. There isn’t one guy deciding who can remember what it was like when he was a player - if he ever was a player. That’s how it is. I won’t be in there deciding and I won’t have the power for that. “At some point, someone will have to press the brake. But we are obviously not in charge because, if football people were in charge, it would look completely different. Not because we are lazy, but because we are the people who really understand the intensity of what the boys are doing." Klopp believes whatever field of work an individual undertakes, it is going to take a toll and he is not underplaying what a general person goes through on a daily basis. However for those who are athletes for a living, he says there is only so much a body can take on a physical level. “The outside world discusses it and say ‘I work eight hour a day, seven days a week’ - and that’s 100 percent true. It’s just that they don’t run, sprint, tackle, sprint. You can’t compare it. If we did compare it, that would be dumb. It’s just a different intensity - and it is really difficult for the human body as we know it, to deal with. “Now UEFA and FIFA are arranging a new tournament - and suddenly getting a winter break in January is the smallest problem. When is the new Club World Cup? Is it 2025? In the summer? I don’t know how to compare that to anything else, where you take time off your best employees and then just think ‘they will go again and play a full season’.” The winter break issue always raises debate whichever side of the fence you sit on. Those teams that are not in European Cup competitions and who do not often progress to the business end of the FA/League Cups would not have nearly as many issues with playing on unabated compared to the elite teams of the division that regularly have two games a week. “I read what Sean (Dyche) said about it - that it just favours the bigger clubs - but I think the facts are on the table. “He said that it would be cool if we could take some games out of a really busy December and put them into January. That might be an idea, but it would then kill the winter break. "There’s so much tradition in this competition. If I, as a German, stood here and said stuff about the FA Cup… I love the FA Cup. It’s just so difficult to stay on your feet and get through these rounds. “You need a top squad to get to the end - and that also means moving other games. If you get through to the final of the Carabao Cup then it takes a league game out and you have to fit it in somewhere where it definitely won’t fit in. It’s unbelievably tricky.” But despite the fixtures coming thick and fast, Klopp was adamant that there would be no weakened side for their clash against Arsenal today. "Can you go to Arsenal and play a team with boys in a situation that Arsenal are in and will probably go all in? Of course not. We are Liverpool we can't go there like that. “Four years ago, we played Everton and it was one of the biggest nights of our lives. We went into an Everton derby game with a very young team and somehow we won. It was great. “All the boys with us in the dressing room are ready for games. That's how it is. There is no doubt about it. That is our life and the life of the boys. We have to make sure we get through.” View full article

Kaide Gordon could be on the move in January in a quest to get some valuable first-team experience according to a new report. The 19 year-old has just returned to first team action this month playing 75 minutes against Union SG in the Europa League. It was the culmination of a hellish 18 month period for the talented youngster who has had a series of musculoskeletal issues as he grows into his body. While an undoubtedly frustrating period for Gordon, he has now come out the other side and as Jurgen Klopp mentioned a few weeks back. “So we were really unlucky with some of our big, big prospects. “We had that problem that they were a little bit too good already for the physical status, let me say it like that. “So they were that good that we thought they could help us already and everybody went in the right direction, and then the body said ‘no, stop. “And that happened to Kaide unfortunately two or three times. It was a really long time out.” As he finds his feet in terms on a regular basis, there is a couple of paths that the club could choose to go down. The first one is to keep him in the ranks and allow him to get up to speed with the U/21s and possibly making future appearances in the Europa League and FA Cup. The other option is to go out on loan and as TeamTalk reported that Birmingham. Middlesbrough and high-flying Ipswich are all interested. Birmingham who are managed by Wayne Rooney are said to be extremely keen as the former Everton and Man United striker gave Gordon his senior debut at Derby. It is a added element to keep an eye on throughout January, but regardless what occurs, the great news is that Gordon is now fully fit and hopefully it is only upwards from here. View full article

Robbie Fowler has no doubt that he was a better all-round striker than his former Liverpool teammate Michael Owen. Affectionately referred to as ‘God’ by the Reds faithful, Fowler scored 183 goals in 369 appearances across two separate stints. In a golden era of strikers in the Premier League through the mid 90s, Fowler was right at the top echelon, the only disappointment being that his personal brilliance did not lead to team success with Liverpool being a greatly inconsistent team at that time. A few years down the track and another extremely talented striker started to emerge through the Liverpool ranks in Owen. With Fowler suffering from a career threatening knee injury, Owen began to claim top mantle. The treble winning season of 2000–01 is a memory that still sticks with a large majority of Reds fans today, and the two strikers combined for 41 goals across all competitions during that campaign. But a continuation of that partnership was not to be as Fowler was sold to Leeds in late November 2001. In a refreshingly honest reflection, Fowler spoke on the Up Front Podcast (Per The Mirror), and firstly addressed his own career compared to Owen. “In all honesty, I’ve always thought I was better than Michael Owen. He was quicker than me, but in every other element of being a striker, I genuinely think I was better than him. He could say the exact opposite but that is just my opinion and my self-confidence – I was better in every aspect of being a striker.‌ “Michael wasn’t the best player at Liverpool when I played, but I remember him coming through at the club and you could see that he was different class. At the time I was upset not to be playing as much as him for England, but I didn’t want Michael to fail or play badly. “Of course, I wanted to play, but I didn’t want him to not succeed. I think Michael just thought more of England than he did of his club, whereas I thought more of Liverpool than England.” In terms of England, Fowler played 26 times scoring seven goals but once again feels that he compared more than favourably to his contemporaries at the time. “I’d scored nearly 100 goals before I was called up to England – that to me is extraordinary, today I’d be in the England squad in an instant with the way I was playing back then. "England had the likes of Alan Shearer, Teddy Sheringham, Ian Wright, Les Ferdinand and Andy Cole, but I genuinely would back myself to be better than all of them. In terms of goalscoring, I was probably the best at that time." View full article

Jurgen Klopp has put out the call to the Anfield faithful to be in full voice from the very first minute as Liverpool prepare to play Arsenal in a top of the table clash on Saturday evening. The Reds warmed up for the fixture in fine style outclassing a West Ham outfit 5-1 to progress to the Carabao Cup semi final against Fulham. While the performance on the pitch was 5-star, the manager was significantly less satisfied by what was occurring off it as ESPN reported. “I thought it in the first half a little bit, when the boys played really exceptional, I was not overly happy. I have to say it now, with the atmosphere behind me. I asked people, 'What do you want?' “So, we changed a lot of things, we dominate West Ham like crazy, we missed chances. If I would be in the stand, I would be on my toes, 1,000 percent." The talking point of the atmosphere at Anfield has been bubbling away at various times, but seemed to come to a head on Sunday when the Reds played their arch rivals in Man United. Klopp was not as focused about that as he was regarding the daunting challenge that lies ahead in a couple of days time. “I don't know if the Man United game was that bad that we have to say, 'Oh sorry that we didn't smash them. "We need Anfield on Saturday. Without Anfield, I would say...[Arsenal] didn't play this week...they prepared for this game and [those] who know a little bit about them, they will be prepared. "So, we need Anfield on their toes from the first second -- without me having an argument with the opposition coach, whatever. We need you from the first second. If you really want, if it's too much football in December, I don't know, sorry, we have to play it as well. But if you are not in the right shape, give your ticket to somebody else." On an individual side, the manager was thrilled with the overall performance of the Player of the Match in Curtis Jones. “He did even better [than he has in recent months], to be honest, because he added in his game the acceleration with the ball, which is really important. You cannot do that against each opponent, but there are some opponents where you can do it, when you pass the first line then you have to go with the ball. “His second goal is now a crazy goal because you go pretty much towards the penalty spot from where he scored, that's pretty rare, but it's an important thing for him to do. Yes, it was a really good game. He looked super-fresh, which is probably not surprising because he didn't now play thousands of minutes in recent weeks. In general, the performance was just good." View full article

Pep Lijnders has produced a staunch defence of Darwin Nunez ahead of Liverpool’s Carabao Cup clash with West Ham at Anfield on Wednesday evening. The Uruguayan striker has not scored in his past 10 appearances for the Reds with his last goal coming in this competition against Bournemouth at the start of November while his last league goal came against Nottingham Forest on the 25th of October. Despite the lack of goals, Lijnders says that Darwin is more than playing his role in the side as ESPN reported. “Darwin is full of desire, you see this in each game. “If we only would judge players on the goals this would be so unfair because in our way, always when we reach our targets or when we were there to compete, it's always about the collective.” As well as his four goals in the league, Nunez has also contributed five assists which sees him just two behind joint leader Mo Salah in that category. Compare that to last year where he had three for the entire campaign. The assistant manager says that is a sign of the improvement in the all-round game of Nunez. “I feel above everything that Darwin is playing a much better season than last year. The way how he defends for the team... how he controls the centre [of the pitch] and at the same time put pressure [on]. “He helps us a lot when we are deep and we can play with him as a reference, he does that much better." “(And) I Feel There's a good connection between (Mohamed Salah) and Darwin for example, the way they see each other, assist each other. One thing you certainly cannot say of the 24 year-old is that he hides on the pitch. No one has hit the woodwork more (five) and only Erling Haaland (17) has missed more big chances than Nunez (15). While both stats can be used as a negative by his detractors to question why he is not putting those chances away, the positive is that he is actually putting himself in the right positions. Lijnders believes the tide will turn for him in the near future. "He's learning. We have this discussion often: this guy is full of fire and that's what our stadium likes. That's what we need as well to lead the line in this way. He can only get better and as always with goals, if you create a lot, the goals will come naturally, "He feels our trust, that's the thing that we can give him. Like I said, If you were not creating [chances] that would be much worse." View full article