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East Bengal's unbeaten run came to an end after eight matches as they went down 0-1 against Mumbai City in an Indian Super League (ISL) clash on Friday.

The Red and Golds dominated proceedings for the entirety of the second half but failed to find the back of the net. East Bengal Robbie Fowler was happy with the dominant show of his side hailed the attitude of his players.

"This was a performance we can rightly proud of even though we didn't win the game. But we showed everyone how much progress we have made. We looked better as a team, individuals looked fitter and stronger. It is a shame that it took us 45 minutes to get going because we probably gave Mumbai the hardest 45 minutes this year and full credits to the lads. Probably the scoreline didn't do us justice but its a defeat nonetheless," said Fowler.

The Liverpool legend suggested that the target was to get three points from the tie but the way things turned out eventually they would have even settled for a draw. 

"Like every game, we got to win. We got the attitude. If we play well and be confident then we can give anyone a game. We showed that tonight. We would have been more than happy to settle for a point, chasing the game really late but we always go out with the attitude to try and win it."

East Bengal were a completely different side in the second half and were the better of the two teams. Coach Fowler revealed what he told his team at half time that changed the approach of the Red and Golds.

"The chat was was to be a bit better and be on the front foot more. When they got the confidence they started playing better in their positions. We made a few tweaks and a change in formation. Our players have shown that they can compete with the good sides.

"Mumbai are a good side with an excellent manager and excellent players. There's a lot for us to work on and we will pick ourselves up. We have real ambition and aspiration to be among the top four."

The British manager suggested that it was frustrating in the end for him not to get a win despite dominating the league leaders and he hoped that they start winning soon.

"It is massively frustrating because we have shown we can compete against the big teams. Every game we want to get the right results. But we will pick ourselves up. This was the first defeat in eight games. It is massively important that we start winning soon. We have got the players to get results so hopefully, the outcome will be good," said Fowler.

The Kolkata club are currently languishing at the bottom half of the league table but their coach is no mood to throw in the towel as he felt there is still a chance of East Bengal making it to the play-offs.

"It gets harder with every passing week and game. It becomes more difficult. But it's important we play the game and try and get the right results. We have seen how tight it is from the midtable to the top. Few good wins can put you right back in the mix. It's not over for us yet, we have a challenge and we are up for it."

Sofapaka midfielder Lawrence Juma has explained his journey of playing for the Kenya national team.

The 28-year-old made his debut for the Harambee Stars in September 2019, during the friendly against Uganda which ended in a 1-1 draw at Kasarani Stadium, and since then he has gone ahead to feature in ten matches.

Juma, who last season was featuring for Gor Mahia but left to sign for Batoto ba Mungu when his contract ended at the start of the 2020-21 season, has said competing with foreign-based players for a starting role in the national team has made him feel he is on the right track.

“It’s an honour to be playing for Harambee Stars and that shows I have come of age,” Juma said as quoted by Standard Sports.

“Competing for a starting place with foreign-based players shows that I’m on the right track and it’s also a motivation to other local-based players.

“I never thought that one day I would be playing at this level. As much as you plan and work hard, it’s God who rewards you. I never saw this coming.”

Juma, who has so far scored four goals for new club Sofapaka in the top-flight, has also admitted that it was not an easy journey to reach where he is with the national team.

“It has not been an easy journey, but to play in the Premier League and the national team it needs a lot of sacrifice and discipline,” Juma continued.

“Despite the change of coaches in the national team, I have still been maintained in the team.

“There is nobody who is at that level by chance or favour. You can be talented, but without discipline in football, you can’t succeed. Talent is never enough; it is just a bonus but at the same time you can’t rely on hard work alone.”

Juma’s latest appearance for the national team was the Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Comoros, which Kenya lost 2-1 in Moroni.

He also featured against Egypt in the Group G qualifier of the match which ended in a 1-1 draw away in Cairo.

RB Leipzig manager Julian Nagelsmann has reacted to Bayern Munich’s public declaration of interest in defender Dayot Upamecano.

On Thursday, Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge announced his side wanted to sign Upamecano, with David Alaba seemingly set to leave the Bundesliga champions.

Rummenigge said no move was likely before the end of the season and, with Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea all interested, Goal has learned there is currently no clear front-runner in the race to sign him.

Leipzig are Bayern’s closest competitors in the Bundesliga title race this season, though they are now four points off the pace after dropping points against Borussia Dortmund and Wolfsburg in recent weeks.

Nagelsmann admitted at the start of the season that he didn’t know if Upamecano would remain beyond the end of the campaign, but the potentially unsettling intention of Rummenigge’s declaration wasn’t lost on the coach.

“It is clever if you want to cause trouble,” Nagelsmann admitted. “But nobody is getting restless with us now.”

Upamecano signed a new contract to 2023 only last year, but said at the time that he was still speaking with other clubs.

"We know what the contractual situation with Upa looks like,” Nagelsmann added.

“And we know that we like to have him with us, but we also know how the mechanisms are in football.”

Upamecano wasn’t at his best in Leipzig’s most recent game, a tight 1-0 win over this season’s surprise package in the Bundesliga, Union Berlin.

"He's a very fine person who takes things in and wants to improve and has his heart in the right place," his coach said. "He will also perform better and be more focused than against Union."

Upamecano only turned 22 in October but he is now only two games away from making his 100th Bundesliga appearance with Leipzig.

Since joining from Red Bull Salzburg in 2017, he has emerged as one of the world’s most promising young defenders, and was rewarded for his performances with his first senior cap for France in September.

He and Leipzig will be hoping to finish January with some momentum behind them as they look to cut the gap to Bayern with fixtures against Mainz and Bayer Leverkusen.

Gor Mahia secretary-general Samuel Ochola has warned club members against heeding calls from one of the club officials to fundraise money for logistics ahead of the FKF Premier League game at home to Vihiga United.

Earlier on, members had raised concern after a top official at the club shared a message requesting members to come forth and contribute 500 shillings. The official further stated the first 40 members to pay will have an opportunity to watch the game scheduled to be played on Saturday at Kasarani Stadium.

"It has come to our attention that there is an unscrupulous and unsanctioned collection of monies from well-wishers of the club in the pretext of getting them access to league matches," read a statement from the club signed by Ochola and obtained by Goal.

"This is not mandated by the Executive Committee Members as the government guidelines are still effective with the ban of public gatherings and the suspension of sporting events with crowds.

"Only club officials, media and officially invited fans are mandated to attend such events at no cost.

"The club would like to categorically clarify; all payments are made to the club's official pay-bill number... or the official club bank account. Payments should not be made to individual accounts for official business."

The administrator has further insisted K'Ogalo will not be held liable for any loss of the money sent to the unofficial account. He has further asked members to desist from taking communication outside his office.

"All communication regarding matters affecting the club is officially done from the office of the Secretary-General as the office mandated to carry out this function," Ochola added.

"The club will not take any loss experienced for monies obtained from the public for the above purposes and warning has been issued not to deal in this underhand dealings with such individuals acting in malice to swindle our loyal supporters. 

"We would like to warn the public against these corrupt individuals tarnishing the reputation of our beloved club and strongly come out to oppose any corrupt activities."  

The reigning league champions will be targeting their third win in a row after victories over Mathare United and Western Stima.

Mumbai City managed to scrape a win against East Bengal to extend their lead at the top of the Indian Super League (ISL) table on Friday.

Mourtada Fall gave the Islanders the lead in the first half itself and they managed to hold on to it to get the three points despite a poor show in the second half.

Coach Sergio Lobera, who loved to play possession-based attacking football, was understandably unhappy with his team's performance against East Bengal and he suggested that Mumbai City were lucky to get the positive result.

"When you see the stats, we lost the possession of the ball and it is difficult for us when we are playing this way. Obviously, we need to improve. We were lucky about the result in the second half because they played very well. We were playing against a team who were unbeaten in seven matches in a row. In the first half, we had chances to score the second goal.

"Sometimes it is not possible to play the way you want to play. The opponent was playing and we had to play in another way. In the second half, we suffered a lot because they wanted to keep possession. This is not the way we want to play. We want to win more games and improve. We need to work on this." said Lobera.

The Spaniard heaped praise on the Red and Golds and suggested that East Bengal were a completely changed side from what they were when Mumbai City met them in the first phase of the league.

"They (East Bengal) have improved a lot, they have new players. They are a very competitive team. Their results speak about their quality now, seven matches unbeaten. They played very well today and there is no comparison of this team with the team they were in the first half of the season."

The Islanders have been exceptional at scoring and defending and the former Las Palmas managed credited his assistant coach Jesus Tato for the team's prowess in dead-ball situations.

"We do everything possible to change the result and change the classification of the matches. With FC Goa I lost the final in 2018-19 conceding late with 10 players from a corner. I am very lucky because (Jesus) Tato is doing an amazing job with setpieces. We are scoring but we are also defending set-pieces very well. It is very important," said the Mumbai manager.

Advocate Tebogo Motlanthe has been appointed Safa CEO on a five-year contract.

The announcement was made by Safa President, Dr Danny Jordaan, who described advocate Motlanthe as a football administrator through and through.

He said Motlanthe was a unanimous choice after he had gone through a rigorous interviewing process conducted by three independent professionals.

‘’He was highly recommended by the interviewing panel and the NEC endorsed his candidature unanimously. He has been appointed on a five-year tenure and commences with immediate effect,’’ said Dr Jordaan.

The Safa president said Motlanthe’s mandate includes consolidating Safa’s healthy financial position, making sure that all our national teams feature in major tournaments in line with Vision 2022 and that they should compete with the best going forward.

‘’We are also looking at him strengthening the administration to make Safa a world-class organisation. In his short stint as the acting CEO, he has done extremely well and we are confident he is going to take Safa to the next level,” added Dr Jordaan.

In his acceptance statement, Motlanthe thanked the NEC under the leadership of Dr Jordaan for showing confidence in him and that he will make it a point that he does not betray their trust in him.

‘’I will deliver on my mandate and that include seeing all of our national teams doing well in their respective competitions. I have also commenced the financial turnaround strategy but I want to make this sustainable not a once-off thing,’’ he said adding that soon the association will be announcing various partnerships.

He said one vital element in having a stable administration was working closely and well with the media and that his door remains open to all football stakeholders.

Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy has been ruled out for a ‘few weeks’ due to a hernia issue.

The 34-year-old, who won the Premier League’s Golden Boot last season, is due to undergo an operation on the problem, which has been hampering him for some time.

A date has not been set for Vardy’s return to action, but Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers feels now is the right time for surgery to take place.

Why does it matter?

Vardy has been Leicester’s attacking spearhead for several seasons now and finished the last campaign as the Premier League’s top scorer after netting 23 times.

He has contributed 11 goals in the league this season, just two behind Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, and has helped Leicester to third in the table, only two points adrift of leaders Manchester United.

It is also a blow to Fantasy Premier League managers. Vardy, who costs £10.1 million in the game, is the fifth-highest points scorer in the competition this season after earning 116 points.

What Leicester games will Vardy miss?

Foxes manager Rodgers has ruled Vardy out for the next ‘few weeks’, meaning he definitely sits out Sunday’s FA Cup fourth-round tie away to Championship club Brentford.

Beyond that, Leicester are away to Everton in the Premier League on Wednesday, January 27 before welcoming Leeds to the King Power Stadium on Sunday, January 31.

Leicester tackle Fulham, Wolves and Liverpool in the early part of February, before meeting Slavia Prague in the Europa League last 32. A February 21 game away to Aston Villa could be a date when Vardy is ready to return to the Leicester team.

What’s been said?

Rodgers said: "Jamie Vardy will be out for a few weeks. As you know, we’ve been managing him over this last number of months, and he’s been absolutely fantastic.

"We have a window now that allows him to have a minor operation on his hernia and then he’ll be back within a few weeks. He’ll be out for that period.

"It’s one that doesn’t keep him out for too long, but it’s just a repair in and around that hernia area. It’s one we feel he can’t really put off much longer.

"We were hoping to do it a few weeks back, but this is a window where we can get it done and that will obviously leave him with a good part of the season where he can be really influential for us."

Joe Aribo has revealed his plans to improve on his performances for Rangers by contributing more goals and assists.

The 24-year-old has been a key member of the Gers since teaming up with the Scottish Premiership club in the summer of 2019 after leaving Charlton Athletic.

In his debut campaign, the Nigeria international delivered eye-catching displays to win Rangers young player of the season award.

In the current season, the midfielder has continued to make his impact felt for Steven Gerrard’s men notwithstanding his injury problems.

Aribo has found the back of the net four times and provided two assists in 22 appearances across all competitions.

Despite his fine form for the Ibrox Stadium outfit, the Super Eagles star has outlined how he wants to take his game to the next level.

“Obviously when you play you want to get goals and assists and I feel I need to improve that side of my game so I look at how to improve my game every day,” Aribo said in a press conference.

Rangers are on the path of securing their first Scottish Premiership title since 2011 as they currently lead the league table with 66 points from 24 games.

The Gers will take on Ross County in their next league game on Saturday and Aribo has urged his side to put in their best in the encounter.

“We take each game as it arrives, we know every single matchday that comes we need to be focussed on getting the three points. We need to start fast after a strong warm-up and take it straight into the match,” he continued.

The midfielder has also expressed his delight with the return of Ryan Jack to the team and lauded Steven Davis for his consistency for the club.

“The boys are buzzing to have Ryan Jack back in training and has been great to have him in with the group,” he added.

“Watching Steven Davis in and around the building he is a wonderful pro and you can see how he has played 300 games at this club.”

Aribo will hope to make his 15th league start for Rangers this season when they take on Ross County at Ibrox Stadium.

The midfielder has started to establish himself with the Nigeria national team, having made his debut in 2019.

Mat Ryan is a shrewd addition for Arsenal says Martin Keown, who says the Gunners have found a suitable replacement for Emi Martinez.

Eyebrows were raised at Emirates Stadium during the summer of 2020 when the Argentine goalkeeper was allowed to leave.

Martinez made it clear that he was not prepared to fill back-up duties behind Bernd Leno, having proven his worth towards the end of their FA Cup-winning campaign.

Big money was brought in with a £20 million ($27m) deal with Aston Villa, but Arsenal were left short in an important area.

Runar Runarsson was acquired to try and plug that gap, but the Iceland international has looked shaky in his five appearances.

Mikel Arteta made the acquisition of another proven performer a top priority for the winter window, and he has now got his man in Australia international Ryan.

The 28-year-old boyhood Arsenal fan has arrived in north London on a short-term loan agreement, and Keown thinks it is a move that benefits all concerned.

The former Gunners defender has told talkSPORT: “Runarsson didn’t really capture the eye as expected, in the League Cup there were a few mistakes.

“I was disappointed to see Martinez leave in the first place when you consider he climbed a mountain last year to get in the first team, but I imagine they couldn’t afford to keep two first-string goalkeepers financially, maybe they didn’t see that as the right way forward. He was allowed to leave.

“So this is a good adjustment, Mat Ryan coming in - 59 caps for Australia, he’s their No1 goalkeeper, he’s been out of the team at Brighton. He’s coming with good experience and that’s what Arsenal need in the event that Leno gets injured at any point.”

An untimely knock suffered by Leno handed Martinez his big break last season, as he stepped in to operate between the sticks in the FA Cup and Community Shield triumphs.

However the Germany international shot-stopper has been the go-to man for Arteta again in 2020-21 as Arsenal seek to make their way up the Premier League table.

Ryan is available to go straight into Arsenal's squad for their FA Cup fourth round tie at Southampton tomorrow lunchtime.

Jurgen Klopp insists Liverpool discuss transfers “on a daily basis” as he again hinted the Reds do not have the money to dip into the market this month.

It has been widely suggested that the reigning champions needed to sign a centre-back in January, with first-choice pair Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez sidelined with long-term knee injuries and Joel Matip’s fitness history chequered, to say the least.

And with the Merseysiders’ form having dipped dramatically in recent weeks – they are five league games without a win, and four without a goal even – the calls are getting louder.

Klopp, for his part, has always played down the idea of a new arrival this month, and sources have told Goal there is little chance of any incomings before the summer.

After the 1-0 defeat to Burnley on Thursday, Klopp suggested that transfer calls are not his to make. “I cannot decide if we do something in the transfer market or not, that must be clear,” he told reporters.

And asked on Friday to clarify those comments, at a press conference to preview Sunday’s FA Cup fourth-round clash with Manchester United, he was happy to do so.

He said: “Of course somebody else is making the decisions. It was always like this. If people are surprised by that now, I can’t help them.

“We discuss the situation pretty much on a daily basis. We think about ‘could we improve something or not?’ and I make recommendations, stuff like this.

“But I cannot spend the money. That’s not how it is. I don’t make these decisions, and I never did.”

When asked if that meant any transfers were reliant on the club telling him there was money available, he replied: “Exactly! Is that news to you?

“I don’t want to confuse anybody. I just said what I said. Hopefully we could clarify it now.”

Klopp shouldered the blame for Liverpool’s defeat to Burnley, their first league loss at Anfield in almost four years.

“Directly after the game, I said exactly what I thought,” he added. “I said that when things don’t work out on the pitch as we want them to, then there is an issue. And the issue is that the things I tell the boys, I didn’t tell them clear enough.

“So I have to change the way I tell the boys and then we have to change the way we play!

“We didn’t get the results we wanted for a few weeks now. Parts of the game were absolutely good enough and parts were not. We have to keep going with the things that were good enough and improve the others.”

Liverpool will check on the fitness of Jordan Henderson, who missed the Burnley game with a groin issue. With a crucial Premier League trip to Tottenham coming up next Thursday, Klopp is unlikely to risk the captain at Manchester United.

“We want to win the game, it is clear,” he said. “It’s a cup game. The game will be decided that night and we want to win it and that is how we will make the line-up.”

Lionel Messi will miss Barcelona's La Liga clash with Elche on Sunday after the appeal committee decided to uphold the two-match ban handed to the Argentine following his red card against Athletic Club.

The 33-year-old was dismissed by referee Jesus Gil Manzano in the final moments of extra time of the Supercopa de Espana clash, that Athletic would go on to win 3-2.

It was the first red card of Messi's club career, with the two other dismissals he had received in his professional career having come whilst representing Argentina.

Manzano issued the red card to the forward after he caught Athletic striker Asier Villalibre with a flailing arm, not long after Inaki Williams had given Marcelino's side the lead in the final.

Barca surprisingly decided to appeal the ban despite Messi only receiving a two-match suspension.

And that appeal has been unsuccessful, with Messi now due to serve what is the second of his two-game ban having already been absent for the 2-0 extra-time win over Cornella in the Copa del Rey.

With no additional games have been added to the Argentine's ban, Messi will now be available to face Rayo Vallecano in the last 16 of the Copa del Rey, with the tie due to be played on January 27.

Despite the six-time Ballon d'Or winner being a pivotal part of Ronald Koeman's side, it remains to be seen if he'll be staying in Catalunya beyond the end of the 2020-21 campaign.

Messi's contract expires in the summer and, having previously expressed a desire to leave the club only to be blocked from doing so, it could be that he exits on a free transfer.

Indeed, Barca have not made any significant progress over convincing Messi to pen a new deal, with the likes of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain having been mooted as possible landing spots for the 33-year-old.

Messi enjoyed huge success with Pep Guardiola during the City manager's spell at Barca, while PSG have Mauricio Pochettino, a fellow Argentine, in place as head coach and have been stepping up the charm offensive in recent weeks.

With “the end of Mesut Ozil” being reached at Arsenal, Nigel Winterburn is looking forward to seeing the Gunners find something different to talk about when things go wrong.

The World Cup-winning midfielder is set to bring a seven-and-a-half-year spell at Emirates Stadium to a close by securing a move to Fenerbahce.

As he packs his bags for Turkey, a distracting saga in north London will head through the exits with him.

Mikel Arteta had taken to freezing the German playmaker out of his plans this season, with no competitive action taken in by the 32-year-old since March 2020.

With Arsenal making their worst start to a campaign since 1974-75, questions were inevitably asked of whether the right decisions had been taken.

Ozil remained a topic of regular discussion despite being in a position to see no game time, with the furore surrounding him doing nobody any favours.

That problem has now been removed, with Winterburn relieved to see the Gunners moving in a different direction without a “terrific” but divisive talent on their books.

The former full-back told Bookmakers.co.uk: “That’s the end of Mesut Ozil at Arsenal and now when things go wrong – and things will go wrong again – we won’t be debating whether Ozil should be in the squad, we’ll have much fresher subjects to talk about.

“It’s the right thing. You can’t have someone around a club who’s got huge talent but is just not working for you, you have to get them out and move them on.

“I think he’s got terrific talent, I’ve said that all along. He’s played a key part in some of Arsenal’s success but over the last two or three seasons it’s gone downhill for him.

“It didn’t look like he fitted in to Mikel Arteta’s plans. Whether he didn’t want to do the work that Arteta was demanding from him, I don’t know, but his body language didn’t look quite right.

“If you don’t fit into a system then you’ve got to individually perform to a level where the manager simply can’t drop you and force him to reconfigure the team around you, but unfortunately for Ozil his performances didn’t convince Arteta that that’s what he should do.”

Arsenal have rediscovered a spark over recent weeks, collecting five wins from a six-game unbeaten run, and will be back in FA Cup action on Saturday when they take in a fourth-round clash with Southampton.

Liverpool’s struggle for goals can be put down to the defensive injury issues being endured by the Reds says David James, who says Jurgen Klopp’s attacking unit is not getting enough competitive training.

The reigning Premier League champions have failed to find the target in their last four top-flight outings and are without a win in five.

Prior to hitting an alarming slump, seven goals had been plundered at Crystal Palace in what was considered to be another serious marker put down by a side looking to defend their crown.

However the absence of key men such as Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez is doing their collective cause few favours, with James suggesting that the predatory instincts of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino have diminished as they are not being tested away from match action.

The former Reds goalkeeper has told talkSPORT: “Confidence seems to be an issue, and things are obviously not particularly great at the moment.

“I think one of the big problems for Liverpool is, because they have lost so many defenders, you have to ask the question whether in training Liverpool are getting the quality of defending against those strikers.

“Therefore, when you come into a real match you end up against top-drawer, well-drilled defenders who are not allowing you to do what you’re doing in training, you struggle.”

While admitting that Liverpool have become stuck in a rut, James sees no reason to panic as chances are still being created by Klopp’s side.

He added: “Nick Pope had a great game, Karl Darlow had a great game against Liverpool for Newcastle and Sam Johnstone had a great game for West Brom. From a goalkeeper’s perspective, when your goalie is doing so well in stopping the goals, it’s not the strikers’ fault.

“Any of those shots go in, then we’re not talking about Liverpool in a dilemma situation.

“In their last three games, Burnley have drawn two of them at Anfield; so it wasn’t so much of a surprise as they’ve been a bit of a thorn for Liverpool.

“You know what you’re going to get from Burnley, and if Liverpool won that game 1-0 we’d all talk about it not being a classic win but just doing enough, and great teams do enough - that coin flips so easily - but this time Burnley were fantastic. They played the perfect game.”

Manchester City have been rocked by the news that Kevin De Bruyne is set to miss up to six weeks of action due to a muscle injury.

De Bruyne pulled up sharply in the 2-0 victory over Aston Villa and was substituted just before the hour mark, sparking fears that he could be set for a spell on the sidelines.

And Pep Guardiola has now confirmed that his star man is set to miss at least a month of action, telling reporters: "Kevin, like the doctor said today after reviewing the scan, will be four to six weeks out.

"It's a big blow, isn't it? It is, but we have to move forward.

"I'm not saying anything that anyone doesn't know, it is unfortunate for him and for us and we have to find a solution because everyone in their own life is struggling in the situation we are living and we have to adapt."

Starting with Saturday's FA Cup clash against League Two Cheltenham Town, De Bruyne could miss as many nine games, including the trip to Liverpool and Champions League first leg against Borussia Monchengladbach.

He would also be in a race to be fit for the potential pivotal game against title rivals Manchester United on March 6.

Kyle Walker was also taken off in the win over Villa tut the England defender had a better diagnosis.

"Kyle had a big impact kick in his hips but it is just a kick so he is not available for tomorrow but we wish for the next game," Guardiola said.

Striker Sergio Aguero is also set for more time out after testing positive for Covid-19 while defenders Aymeric Laporte and Nathan Ake are still not fit.

The Argentine had already been self-isolating but has now contracted the illness.

"What we wish right now with Sergio is that he feels better," Guardiola added. "He felt uncomfortable for the first two or three days - so tired like all the symptoms you get.

"So hopefully he can recover well and step-by-step return to the training sessions.

"We have missed our best striker for a long time but we have lived without him and we need to wait for them to come back as soon as possible but move forward without them."

Despite having a stretched squad, Guardiola says he will not prioritise any competition and would not confirm if any academy players will start against Cheltenham.

"This is not going to happen with me," he said about prioritising.

"We know the Premier League is the most important and then the Champions League but four Carabao Cup finals in a row is because every game is important.

"If we arrive without players we play with the second team. We don't drop any game."​

Simba have launched an international tournament dubbed ‘Simba Super Cup’ as one way to prepare themselves for the Caf Champions League group stage duties.

TP Mazembe and Al-Hilal have been invited to the tournament that will start next week in Dar es Salaam.

Having in mind who their Group A opponents are, Wekundu wa Msimbazi have invited TP Mazembe and Al-Hilal who are AS Vita and El-Merreikh’s biggest domestic rivals respectively.

During the launch, Simba’s Chief Executive Officer Gonzalez Barbara confirmed the first game will be played on January 27 at 1700hrs at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium.

The club’s spokesperson Haji Manara explained why they settled on the two clubs as their rivals for the tournament.

“This is a big thing and Simba have become the first club to organise a tournament that involves the biggest clubs in Africa,” Manara said during the launch. “No one does not know how big TP Mazembe are or Al-Hilal of Sudan.

“Simba will open the competition with a game against Al-Hilal and on Friday, Al-Hilal will face TP Mazembe. On Sunday, which will be the climax of the tournament, Simba will clash with TP Mazembe at 4:00 pm.

“The competition will be opened and closed by ceremonies as is the case with any other international competition. All the three clubs are champions in their countries and are regular members in the Caf Champions League.

“The tournament will help the players get match fitness in a very proper manner and that applies even to the other participants."

According to Manara, new players will be unveiled during the opening ceremony. Before the 2020/21 season started, the club unveiled their new players during Simba Day that was graced by Vital’ O of Burundi.

“We are going to unveil new players during this tournament; players who we have specifically signed for the Champions League and maybe for the local league,” he added.

“We will also unveil new members of the technical bench; the coach and the new two assistants but this will be done tomorrow [Saturday].

“We are calling upon the Tanzanians and especially Simba fans to make the tournament a success as we are bringing big teams together for the first time.

“We are expecting the coach and the players to use the competition as the best way to prepare for the Champions League.”

The participating teams will arrive in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday.

Jurgen Klopp claims transfer calls at Liverpool are “not my decisions”, with the Reds yet to show their hand in the January window despite an injury crisis.

Virgil van Dijk, Alisson, Jordan Henderson, Thiago Alcantara, Diogo Jota, Joe Gomez, Joel Matip, James Milner and Xherdan Shaqiri have all spent time out of action.

The biggest concern for Klopp has come in defence, with his options in that area of the field being decimated by untimely knocks.

It was expected that efforts would be made to land another proven centre-half once the market opened for business. Various targets have been mooted, but none have been approached and Klopp says he is not the man to drive recruitment on Merseyside.

He told reporters after seeing Liverpool’s winless run in the Premier League stretched to five games by a 1-0 defeat at home to Burnley: “These decisions are not my decisions. If somebody thinks we should do something, I cannot decide if we do something in the transfer market or not. That must be clear.”

For now, Klopp is focused on freeing his out-of-sorts Liverpool side from a slump that has them sweating on the defence of the Premier League title that they claimed in record-breaking style last season.

He said after seeing his side remain in fourth spot and looking over their shoulder: “Look, how silly would that be if I sit here now, losing against Burnley, didn't score for the last three or four games – I don't know exactly – and now I talk about the title race? How silly would that be?

“It's just we have to win football games – it was always like this. For this we have to score goals, there is no doubt about it. That's what we have to change and have to do better.

“If things don't work, you have to work harder, do the right things more often, longer and more consistent, all these kind of things - but not talking like it is an easy situation, it's not. It shows a lot of things.

“It's incredible how consistent the boys were but that was never something that anybody should have taken for granted because now we see they are all human beings, that's how it is, and now I have to make clear about what we have to do in the right moments and then we will score goals again.”

Liverpool have drawn a blank in their last four Premier League outings but will get a chance to rediscover their spark when attention switches to FA Cup matters on Sunday and a heavyweight fourth-round clash with Manchester United.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has hit back at Jurgen Klopp's suggestion that his side were too defensive in their 0-0 draw against Liverpool but still wants to see an improvement from his attackers in Sunday's FA Cup clash.

United face their Merseyside opponents for the second successive week, having been held to a goalless draw in the league last weekend, with a place in the FA Cup fifth round at stake at Old Trafford.

Klopp criticised United for what he deemed to be a very defensive performance last time out but Solskjaer has defended his tactics and believes they would have paid off had his team been more precise with their passing.

The Norwegian said: "We attacked every time we got the ball, maybe too much. We kept giving it away, that was the challenge. We went forward too quickly.

"The thought that we weren't attacking, I don't understand that one. We kept giving it away. It's the quality of what we did, we need to do better. We tried to press them high. It's not easy, they played well, they played their way out of our press. We didn't go out there to drop deep and try to soak up the pressure.

"They had five midfielders out there to play out plus a 'keeper who is very capable. When you look back at it, I think it was a good game by the two teams. We played against a top Liverpool team. Yes, [Virgil] van Dijk is not there but everyone's got an injury or two here or there. I was very pleased with the performance when I looked at it after."

United were caught offside on eight occasions at Anfield on Sunday, with Marcus Rashford being flagged five times, and Solskjaer thinks that time and the improving relationships between his players will solve that problem.

He added: "They're eager [to get in behind the defence], of course, but it's also a way we want to attack quickly. It's not that you have to attack quickly every time, it's a decision you've got to make there and then.

"Of course, it's in our DNA that if you see a pass, do it. Do it well. I didn't think we executed the passes well enough. Some of the runs were maybe too eager, especially at Anfield. I felt one or two times there we could've been one-on-one with the 'keeper.

"For us, it's about fine-tuning, getting better, getting used to each other. Edinson [Cavani] is new, Bruno [Fernandes] has not been here a year yet. We'll get there."

Indeed, of United's impressive array of forward options that includes Anthony Martial, Rashford, Cavani and Mason Greenwood, only the Uruguayan has found the net in the last five matches.

And with Solskjaer planning to rotate on Sunday, it remains to be seen who will be given the responsibility in attack against the Premier League champions.

"We'll rotate, that's for sure," he said. We'll put a decent team together, of course, a team I feel can win the game. The focus is now on the FA Cup. We know it's a difficult tie."