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Jerry Mawihmingthanga along with Lallianzuala Chhangte had made the headlines in India as well as in England in 2016 when the two youngsters went to Liverpool for a week-long training program at the club’s Kirkby academy.

The Indian boys who were a part of the DSK-LFC International academy in Pune were called up by the British giants on the basis of their merit.

After reaching Merseyside, the youngsters had trained with the youth teams of Liverpool and had also visited the famous Melwood training ground. They also had a chance to attend a training session of the first team under the tutelage of Jurgen Klopp.

“It was a great experience. We learned a lot of things from that trip. Everything is very different there from India. It was like a dream,” said the 23-year-old Odisha FC winger to Goal.

Mawihmingthanga also remembered training alongside current Liverpool right full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold who was still a part of the academy back in 2016.

“We met Trent Alexander-Arnold there. He was there at the academy at that time. We trained with him. Then there was Yan Dhanda. We also went to the Melwood training ground and we met the first team players. That was indeed memorable for us.”

It was indeed a dream come true for the Mizo youngster who had idolised Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho while growing up and was fortunate to meet the latter during his trip to England.

“Growing up my favourite player was Luis Suarez. I looked up to Luis Suarez and also Philippe Coutinho. It was a great experience to meet the Brazilian in person.”

The winger suggested that he was inclined towards football from a tender age and always dreamt of pursuing the sport at a professional level.

“I always wanted to become a footballer. This was a dream that I nurtured since I could remember. I remember in school I had to write an essay about our hobby and I wrote that wanted to become a footballer. My father and cousins used to play football but not professionally. I looked up to them.”

The former DSK Shivajians player made his debut in the Indian Super League (ISL) at NorthEast United before moving to Jamshedpur FC in the 2017-18 season. He regularly started for the club in his very first season and was highly rated by then Jamshedpur coach Steve Coppell.

Speaking about Coppell’s influence on his career, Jerry said, “He is a very good coach. I learned a lot from him. I developed as a player under him. He gave me a lot of confidence and helped me believe in myself.”

After a comparatively less productive 2018-19 season, the winger came back to limelight last season as he once again churned out some impressive performance under Spanish coach Josep Gombau.

The Mizo boy was all praises for his former coach and also thanked the club ownership for backing him continuously.

“It is a great team,” said the young player about his current employers. “We had a very good coach in Josep Gombau. He believed in me. We enjoyed playing together and worked as a team last season. Everyone, from club owners to coaching staff, worked as a team. They looked after us in every way possible. I enjoy playing for this club and I am happy to be here.”

The youngster is very excited to work with newly appointed Odisha FC coach Stuart Baxter who has the experience of working with the South African national team.

“Stuart Baxter is a big name and a high profile coach. I am really looking forward to working with him. I want to learn more and develop further as a player under him.”

A role in midfield is the more “natural position” for Trent Alexander-Arnold, claims Emile Heskey, with the Liverpool right-back expected to change position at some stage.

The Merseyside native has earned a regular role for the Reds and England while operating in defence. At 21 years of age he is already a key man for club and country and a player with the potential to become one of the finest on the planet.

Alexander-Arnold has offered no indication that he is looking for a role change any time soon, and has said he aims to become the Premier League’s best right-back of all time.

Many are, however, backing the full-back who has contributed 30 assists to the Liverpool cause over the course of the last 12 seasons to take on a more prominent playmaking post.

Former Reds striker Heskey told Sky Sports of the Anfield academy graduate:  "If you were to ask him, he would be more than happy to play in midfield because that is, I would say, his natural position.

"He gets more space in the wide areas and then you see the passing range that he has, but that passing range has obviously been built up over the years playing in central midfield.

"His decision-making probably comes from having less time when he was in central midfield. He's had to be aware of what's going on around him."

Ex-Liverpool midfielder Graeme Souness is another who feels that Alexander-Arnold could thrive in the middle of the park, but he would be in no rush to make that tactical tweak.

The Scot said: "It's a different game in there. You are dodging bullets and elbows are up. If he's full-back, he knows nothing is coming [to his right] when he receives the ball.

"Full-back is a very different position and you get plenty of time there to have your first touch, get it out of your feet and get your head up, but he's as good as anyone when he gets a chance to deliver."

Souness added: "I think the boy could play anywhere in midfield. He started out as a central midfield player and then saw an opening at right-back.

"You would be reluctant to take him away from where he is because a large part of Liverpool's attacking play comes from him and [Andrew] Robertson. They have high energy levels, and when they get into the last third, they can deliver.

"Looking at it now, you've just won the league, you are the current European and world champions, so if it ain't broken, why try to fix it?

"But the modern defender today, at the top clubs, has to be able to take the ball and play and deliver in the final third, so why not?"

Suddenly, things don’t feel too bleak for Barcelona.

In midweek, talk of a crisis enveloped the Nou Camp in the aftermath of the reigning Spanish champions' domestic draws against Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid.

While Barca had taken just two points from their previous two matches heading into the weekend, Real Madrid have won their last seven top-flight fixtures, going on an impressively relentless run since football returned.

By the time Barca took to the field against Villarreal on Sunday, they were seven points behind Real having played a game fewer. Failure to win, and the title—with four games left to play—would surely be beyond them.

Beyond the bleak title situation, there were also allegations of internal strife at the club, and an increasing rift between the players and the coaching staff.

However, they downed Villarreal in style on Sunday, winning 4-1 to cut Los Merengues’ lead to four points.

It was a magnificent display at El Madrigal, as Barca shook off any pressure to take an early lead when Pau Torres put the ball into his own net.

While Gerard Moreno equalised 10 minutes later, the Catalonian giants were in no mood to drop more points, and goals from Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann and Ansu Fati secured the victory.

Of course, they still need Real to slip up at least twice in order to overhaul the league leaders, but it’s imperative that Barca keep the pressure up when they host Espanyol in the city’s derby on Wednesday evening on SuperSport.

Bottom-club Espanyol have lost their last five, but how they would love to dent their city rivals’ title bid…and open the door for Real to re-establish their seven-point lead.

Also in LaLiga in midweek, Atletico Madrid are away at struggling Celta Vigo looking to extend their fine run.

Atleti saw off Real Mallorca on Friday to consolidate third place, with Alvaro Morata in particularly lethal form.

SuperSport Fixtures

Monday 6 July – Tottenham vs Everton (Premier League)

Tuesday 7 July – Arsenal vs Leicester (Premier League)

Tuesday 7 July – Crystal Palace vs Chelsea (Premier League)

Tuesday 7 July – AC Milan vs Juventus (Serie A)

Tuesday 7 July – Celta Vigo vs Atletico Madrid (LaLiga)

Wednesday 8 July – Barcelona vs Espanyol (LaLiga)

Wednesday 8 July – Sheffield vs Wolves (Premier League)

Wednesday 8 July – Sheffield vs Wolves (Premier League)

Wednesday 8 July – Brighton vs Liverpool (Premier League)

There’s also Premier League action on the agenda in midweek, where newly elected champions Liverpool are away at Brighton & Hove Albion.

Jurgen Klopp’s side were found wanting in midweek as they were thumped by Manchester City, but they recovered to down an obdurate Aston Villa side at the weekend and may now realign their focus on the Premier League record points haul.

Brighton, their next opponents, have been in encouraging form since the restart, but they’re still not out of the woods in terms of relegation, and will be desperate to take a major scalp.

Champions League hopefuls Sheffield United and Wolverhampton Wanderers also collide on Wednesday evening, where both will be desperate to put disappointing weekend results—a draw with Burnley and a defeat by Arsenal—behind them.

The Gunners return to action on Tuesday evening with a match against Leicester City, who must prove that their victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday was no false dawn.

The Foxes have been off the pace since the restart, with defeats by Chelsea and Everton cutting their lead to the sides beneath them, but they appeared to be back to their best in the 3-0 thumping of the Eagles, and must now build on that success away at Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta’s side, however, have been growing in stature with three consecutive victories, and the Londoners will be particularly boosted by the Sunday showing of Bukayo Saka, who netted his first Premier League goal as Wolves were dispatched.

On Monday, Tottenham Hotspur host Everton, with both harbouring European hopes. However, the Londoners must improve following their lacklustre defeat by Sheffield United.

There’s also Serie A action on Tuesday, as AC Milan host Juventus in a match between Italy’s two most successful clubs.

Juve will have watched on with glee as both of their nearest rivals—Lazio and Internazionale—were defeated at the weekend while they downed rivals Torino in style.

Victory over Milan would represent a major step towards the title.

Frank Lampard's "ruthless" streak in the dugout comes from Jose Mourinho's early days at Chelsea, according to Tony Cascarino.

Chelsea legend Lampard returned to Stamford Bridge last summer after beginning his coaching career at Derby County, succeeding Maurizio Sarri in the hot seat.

He has since set about stamping his own mark on the squad while implementing a fresh attack-minded philosophy, which has included the integration of several academy prospects into the senior fold.

Lampard has been unafraid to drop household names in favour of up and coming youngsters, with the likes of Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham, Reece James and Fikayo Tomori all emerging as stars in 2019-20.

The Blues boss axed Antonio Rudiger and Marcos Alonso from his starting line up to face Watford on Saturday after the pair's disastrous showing in a defeat to West Ham three days prior, and the decision proved to be the correct one.

Chelsea secured a 3-0 victory over the Hornets to tighten their grip on fourth place, and Cascarino was impressed by Lampard's no-nonsense approach.

“What I find extraordinary about him [Lampard] is how ruthless he can be when necessary,” the former Blues striker told Talksport.

“Yesterday he pulled the plug on Marcos Alonso at left-back and played [Cesar] Azplicueta, switched him from the right to the left side. He dropped Tammy Abraham and brought in Olivier Giroud and he dropped Antonio Rudiger.”

Cascarino went on to compare Lampard's management style to Mourinho's, specifically referring to the Portuguese's first spell at Chelsea, which garnered two Premier League titles and four domestic cups.

“Sometimes you have to make call as a manager but Frank does it incredibly quickly,” he added. “There isn’t any leeway with him. If he feels something needs to be changed he does it and I do wonder if that comes from his early days with Jose [Mourinho].

“He did it regularly at Chelsea – when someone wasn’t pulling their weight he took the out the team immediately.”

Lampard will now start preparing his side for a crucial trip to Crystal Palace on Tuesday, which comes four days before a meeting with Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

Young Africans (Yanga SC) have suffered a huge blow with midfielder Haruna Niyonzima ruled out of their FA Cup semi-finals clash against Simba SC on Sunday.

The Rwandan international started in the Mainland Premier League match against Biashara United at Karume Stadium in Musoma but was stretchered off with only ten minutes played after a bad tackle in the contest which eventually ended 0-0.

Yanga coach Luc Eymael has now told Goal he will have to do without the influential player when they lock horns against rivals Simba in a Kariokoo derby set for the National Stadium in Dar es Salaam on Sunday.

“I lost Haruna [Niyonzima], one of my best players to injury, after only ten minutes into the game and it was due to a bad tackle and his knee twisted and so he will be out of Simba, and there was no reaction from the referee only a free-kick was given,” Eymael told Goal on Monday.

“It is a huge blow to my team because Haruna is one of my best players, one of my favourites, a hard worker a player who fights for the team, so he will not be available to play in the derby.

"It is sad news for him, he was looking forward to the match but now he will miss it altogether.”

In an earlier interview, Eymael also slammed the state of the Karume Stadium terming it as a pitch “good for pigs and cows.”

“It is a shame for a team like Yanga to play in the pitch which is just good for cows and pigs, the changing room was catastrophic, you cannot play soccer in such a pitch, how is it possible for a league match to be played there?” Eymael posed a question to Goal on Sunday after the match.

“It is impossible to play in such a pitch, you know me I like teaching my players to play good soccer, I am not enjoying this kind of soccer when playing in such a pitch, I only enjoy playing soccer when using the National Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

“But we hit the crossbar more than three times, we created a number of scoring chances though we could not convert them into goals.”

Asked whether the draw could affect their aim to finish in the second position, Eymael said: “Yes it can affect our second place but we are okay, we will fight until the end, we knew very well it will be difficult but we were not lucky like I told you we hit the crossbar but could not score.”

Yanga are fighting to lift the FA Cup so as to earn a ticket to the Caf Confederation Cup next season.

The Timu ya Mwananchi are also keen to finish second on the table, though they dropped down to third on Sunday after Azam FC hammered Singida United 7-0.

Ugandan Premier League (UPL) side Police FC are set to sign experienced midfielder Tony Mawejje.

Mawejje is set to return to Police with a two-year deal already negotiated and agreed between the midfielder and the team's hierarchy.

Mawejje was part of the Police squad, then known as Police Jinja, in 2006 and 2007 although he could take a while to return to full fitness as he has been clubless since 2019 when he terminated his contract with Al-Arabi SC of Kuwait.

“It is certainly a done deal between Police and Tony [Mawejje],” an unnamed source close to Mawejje is quoted as saying by Football256.

“And what could be holding back the deal are the final details before the player can be unveiled.

“Hopefully, what is remaining for the deal to go through will be sorted early next week, but Mawejje will be a Police player soon."

In April, Mawejje revealed what could influence his next move after he had been linked with relegated Tooro United.

“In case it happens [any transfer move] then it’s about my legacy and ending my career with pride. That means it’s only me who can choose the club with no buzzing news around,”he said at the time.

“I got the news [of Tooro United interest] from a friend who shared with me a link and only came to know about it through the news.

“I have not talked with anyone because I still have a running contract with my club, although I have some issues.”

Mawejje, 33, is an experienced midfielder having played for more than 10 clubs in his career spanning over a decade.

The Ugandan started playing football in 2004 at Kampala City Council FC, now KCCA FC, until 2005 before he joined Police Jinja for a stint that lasted about two years.

In 2008, Mawejje joined Uganda Revenue Authority (URA FC)  and left in 2009 for IBV Vestmannaeyjar and the club became his first foreign team.

Mawejje spent a long time with the Icelandic club compared to the rest of the other clubs he has featured for. He made 106 appearances and scored 10 goals.

The midfielder joined Golden Arrows of South Africa in 2012 on loan, made an appearance, and scored no goal before returning to Europe and this time around joined a Norwegian club Haugesund but made no appearance at all in 2014.

He then joined Valur of Iceland on loan again in the same year, where he played for 11 games and scored a goal. Mawejje joined Protur, his third Icelandic club, from 2015 to 2017, and played in 16 games but did not manage to find the back of the net.

In 2017 to 2019, Mawejje left for KF Tirana of Albania and played a combined 52 matches and scored two goals.
 
He had a short stint with Al-Arabi SC before he severed the association, meaning he has been clubless since last year.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola does not believe Sunday's surprise Premier League loss to Southampton highlights the need for the club to sign new players.

Guardiola's City suffered their third consecutive away defeat in the Premier League after going down 1-0 to Southampton at St Mary's on Sunday.

After routing newly crowned champions Liverpool 4-0 last time out, City – who rested Kevin De Bruyne and others – succumbed to Che Adams' first Premier League goal as they fell 23 points adrift in second position.

Napoli star Kalidou Koulibaly and Bayern Munich's David Alaba have been among the players linked with moves to City at the end of the season.

But when asked if City's defeat was a question of needing new players, Guardiola told reporters: "No, I don't think so.

"I think we play good, honestly. We play with the character and desire to drive until the end. We played against Southampton who had 10 players in the penalty area. We did it really well.

"We will review the game, and with the chances that we had, we can do more. It's difficult to create more chances than we created and the way we did it.

"I'm so proud, so I liked the way we played but it's not enough. There's no complaint about the players. We played really well, I like it but it's not enough to win the games."

Guardiola, meanwhile, does not feel City goalkeeper Ederson is to blame for the loss to Southampton.

Adams scored the only goal of the game in the 16th minute, catching the Brazilian keeper off his line after Oleksandr Zinchenko had been dispossessed of the ball.

"We use our keeper to build up our play. We use our keeper to play better," Guardiola said. "It gives us a lot. The mistake is part of the game but we didn't lose for that reason.

"It happens many times this season this situation. The amount of chances we have but it's football. The amount of chances we have but not able to score goals."

Moussa Marega found the back of the net as Porto demolished Belenenses 5-0 in Sunday’s Primeira Liga game at Estadio do Dragao

The 29-year-old striker was afforded his 24th league start in the encounter and delivered an impressive performance to help the Blue and Whites extend their winning streak to three games.

Marega led his side’s attack along with Soares, who opened the glut of goals in the 31st minute after benefitting from a fine assist from Otavio.

The Mali international then doubled the lead after he was set up by Jesus Coron moments before the hour mark.

Alex Telles found the back of the net from the penalty spot to further extend the Estadio do Dragao outfit's lead in the 75th minute.

Eight minutes before full time, Fabio Vieira added the fourth before Luis Diaz sealed the comprehensive victory at the death.

Marega featured for the duration of the game along with Guinea star Alhassane Keita, who ended with the losing side.

The former Maritimo striker has now scored 12 goals and provided eight assists in 39 appearances across all competitions in this campaign.

With the result, Porto firmly maintain their lead on the league table with 73 points from 30 games, six points above second-placed Benfica.

Marega has been with Porto since 2016 and has made 91 league appearances for Sergio Conceicao’s men, scoring 41 goals.

The Mali star will hope to continue his eye-catching displays when his side takes on Tondela in their next league game on Thursday.

Quique Setien praised Antoine Griezmann after the forward finally returned to the scoresheet in Barcelona's 4-1 La Liga victory over Villarreal.

Griezmann netted his first goal since February to go with strikes from Luis Suarez and Ansu Fati after Pau Torres' own goal as Barca pulled back to within four points of leaders and rivals Real Madrid.

Setien was happy with what he saw from Griezmann, whose goal was his 15th in his first season at Barcelona.

"He has associated himself very well and has been gaining confidence," the Barcelona head coach said, via AS.

"I am very satisfied as I suppose he will be after the goal so beautiful that he has scored, reminded me of one of [Lionel] Messi's at [Real] Betis."

Setien hailed Barca's performance as they claimed just their second win in five games.

"All teams are different. Today, we have had everything," he said.

Setien added: "Other teams like Atletico [Madrid] or Sevilla, firmer in defence created more problems for us. Perhaps they were stronger than this.

"This helps us a lot in confidence. We have pressed very well and we haven't allowed them to leave. We have made a very balanced match. I would have liked to be right before."

Meanwhile, there was further controversy in Real Madrid's win over Athletic Bilbao as another Sergio Ramos penalty saw Zinedine Zidane's men claim three points.

The spot-kick was awarded via the VAR and Setien said the system was becoming more confusing.

"I understand it [the VAR] less and less," he said.

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique urged the Catalans to continue fighting despite the deficit to Madrid.

Pique called for his side to keep pushing ahead of hosting Espanyol in a derby clash on Wednesday.

"We don't like to be behind in the standings, but we will fight to turn the situation around, knowing how complicated it is," the Barca defender told Movistar.

"We will fight to the end."

Barcelona's draws against Sevilla, Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid have allowed Madrid to take the initiative, with Los Blancos winning all of their seven games since the restart - and only conceding two goals along the way.

Madrid finish the season with matches against Deportivo Alaves (home), Granada (away), Villarreal (home) and Leganes (away), while Barcelona face Espanyol (home), Real Valladolid (away), Osasuna (home) and Deportivo Alaves (away).

Barcelona reached 9,000 goals in all official competitions following their 4-1 rout of Villarreal in La Liga on Sunday.

Barca celebrated the milestone thanks to teenage sensation Ansu Fati, who came off the bench and scored the team's fourth goal away to Villarreal.

The two-time reigning La Liga champions, who are four points behind bitter rivals Real Madrid with four matches remaining, netted their first official goal in April 1909.

Just over 111 years later, Barca have scored their 9,000th goal – superstar captain and six-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi contributing 630.

Of Barca's overall tally, 6,165 goals have been scored in La Liga, followed by the Copa del Rey (1,474) and the Champions League (543).

The Blaugrana added four goals to their league tally against Villarreal with the first coming in the opening three minutes of the match.

Barca's blistering start and they were rewarded when Pau Torres turned the ball into his own net just three minutes in with Antoine Griezmann waiting to pounce on Jordi Alba's cross behind him.

Quique Setien's side were causing the home side all sorts of problems going forward but looked vulnerable on the break and Moreno levelled clinically against the run of play with 14 minutes played after Marc-Andre ter Stegen palmed away Santi Cazorla's strike.

Barca wasted little time in regaining the lead, though, Messi running from just inside the Villarreal half and beating two players before finding Luis Suarez, who picked out the far corner with a sublime first-time finish from the edge of the penalty area.

Arturo Vidal and Suarez came close before Griezmann added a third just before half-time, lobbing Sergio Asenjo with a superb effort after Messi set him up with a cheeky backheel following another penetrating run.

The busy Asenjo denied Suarez and Vidal after the break and Messi had a goal chalked off after VAR ruled he had been offside before tucking in Sergi Roberto's cutback.

Fati came off the bench to put the icing on the cake, cutting in from the left to fire home and Messi rattled the crossbar with a free-kick before Asenjo superbly saved Martin Braithwaite's header following up.

Farouk Miya scored the only goal in Konyaspor’s 1-0 win over Rizespor in Sunday’s Turkish Super Lig game.

The 22-year-old midfielder has continued to impress since teaming up with the Anatolian Eagle last summer from Gorica.

The Uganda international came off the bench for his 22nd league appearance for the Konya Buyuksehir Arena and shone, helping his side to bounce back to winning ways, after a three-game winless run.    

With only seven minutes into the encounter, Konyaspor got a glorious chance to open the scoring from a free-kick but missed the target.

After both sides failed to break the deadlock, manager Bulent Korkmaz brought on Miya for Levan Shengelia in the 57th minute in his quest to ensure his side clinches the victory.

The midfielder then went on to score the match-winner with a well-taken strike from the penalty spot, leaving goalkeeper Tarik Cetin with no chance.

The Uganda star has now scored seven goals and provided one assist in 26 appearances across all competitions, amid other dazzling displays.

With the win, Konyaspor are 14th on the league table with 30 points from 30 games, two places above the relegation zone.

Miya will hope to continue his impressive performances when his side takes on Gaziantep FK in their next league game on Thursday.

Victory in the encounter will steer Konyaspor further away from the drop zone and brighten their hope of maintaining their Super Lig status.

Miya started his career with the Vipers in 2013 before he joined Belgian side Standard Liege in 2016, where he spent two years.

The midfielder, who made 33 league appearances for Gorica before his departure, is a key member of the Uganda national team and has 64 caps for the East African side.

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has accused the VAR of favouring the same team as he hinted the system was stacked in favour of La Liga title rivals Real Madrid.

The Blaugrana official made the statement following Barca's 4-1 victory over Villarreal, which saw the Catalans move four points behind Madrid with four games remaining.

Bartomeu referred to watching Madrid's 1-0 victory over Athletic Club in San Mames on Sunday before revealing his dismay at the decisions made by the video technology.

Madrid's game-winning goal came after the referee viewed the VAR pitch-side monitor to award a 76th-minute penalty dispatched by Sergio Ramos, while Athletic appeared unlucky to not receive a late spot-kick themselves.

"I watched San Mames match until almost the end of the second half," Bartomeu said after Barca's victory. "I feel bad because we have the best league in the world and VAR after coronavirus isn't fair.

"It has changed some results and always favours the same team."

Since the restart after the coronavirus-forced hiatus, Barcelona's two point lead at the top of La Liga's standings has evaporated with Madrid currently clear by four with the same number of matches left to play.

Barcelona's draws against Sevilla, Celta Vigo and Atletico Madrid have allowed Madrid to take the initiative, with Los Blancos winning all of their seven games since the restart - and only conceding two goals along the way.

Madrid finish the season with matches against Deportivo Alaves (home), Granada (away), Villarreal (home) and Leganes (away), while Barcelona face Espanyol (home), Real Valladolid (away), Osasuna (home) and Deportivo Alaves (away).

Barca's victory against fifth-placed Villarreal was a positive performance, with Lionel Messi's 18th and 19th assists breaking his personal record for most in a La Liga season.

A Pau Torres own goal in the third minute got Barca off to the best possible start, before the Yellow Submarine hit back through in-form attacker Gerard Moreno.

But then Messi took a hold of the match, setting up Luis Suarez in the 20th minute before helping to end Antoine Griezmann's goal drought on the stroke of half-time.

Seventeen-year-old prodigy Ansu Fati then put the finishing touches on Barca's victory four minutes from time with a well-taken solo goal.

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has addressed the speculation surrounding the future of Lionel Messi, insisting that the Argentine superstar will remain at the club for the rest of his career.

The rumour mill was sent into overdrive earlier this week when Cadena SER claimed  Messi was ready to quit Barcelona when his contract expires next summer.

Goal has previously confirmed that Messi does not want to leave Camp Nou - but he is immensely frustrated with how the club is presently being run, with the suspension of talks over a contract extension evidence of his dissatisfaction.

Messi has yet to publicly comment on the rumours, though his silence in itself is telling and believed to be vote of no-confidence in Bartomeu’s stewardship, whose position is now looking increasingly perilous as a result.

The presidential elections, originally scheduled for next year, may now be brought forward in the hope it may placate Messi and prevent one of the game’s greatest ever players leaving the club where he has spent his entire career.

That prospect has been swiftly dismissed by Bartomeu himself, who remains confident the 33-year-old will sign a new contract and see out his playing days at the Catalan giants.

"I am not going to give details but Messi has said many times that he will end his football life in Barcelona,” he said.

“We are focused on [the] competition and there are negotiations with many players. Messi wants to continue and wants to end [his career] here. He has many years left and we are going to enjoy him for much longer."

Messi once again displayed his enduring influence on the side with two assists in Sunday’s 4-1 win at Villarreal. The Argentine now has 19 La Liga assists for the season - the most prolific of his career to date.

Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann, Ansu Fati and Pau Torres' own goal were on target for Quique Setien’s side, who narrowed Real Madrid’s lead at the top back to four points, though with just four games remaining it is Los Blancos who remain firmly in the driving seat for the title.

Galatasaray crumbled 3-1 to Trabzonspor in Sunday’s Turkish Super Lig clash with Jean Seri finding the net.

Needing a victory over Huseyin Cimsir’s men to stay in contention for the Turkish elite division title, they bowed at home to the rampaging visitors.

Algeria international Sofiane Feghouli – who was featuring in his 25th game of the season was given the marching orders by referee Cuneyt Cakir in the 31st for a dangerous play.

Even at their numerical disadvantage, the hosts showed great mental strength but blew away several scoring chances.

For their opportunities, however, it was the Black Sea Storm who took the lead with four minutes left into the half-time break thanks to a well-taken penalty from captain Jose Sosa after a foul by Ryan Donk.

Sosa turned provider for Filip Novak in the 70th minute to help Trabzonspor race to a two-goal lead at the Turk Telecom Stadium.

Despite the deficit, Gala kept fighting got their consolation through the Cote d’Ivoire star who beat goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir from the penalty spot.

Seconds later, Cimsir’s team regained their two-goal advantage courtesy of Alexander Sorloth with the last kick of the encounter.

Seri who now boasts of two goals this season was on parade from start to finish, while Morocco’s Younes Belhanda was replaced in the 77th minute by Emin Bayram.

Nigeria's Jesse Sekidika was brought in for Omer Bayram early in the 46th minute, while DR Congo’s Christian Luyindama was not listed for the game.

For Trabzonspor, Anthony Nwakaeme was brought in for Sosa with four minutes left to play, as well as Ghana’s Caleb Ekuban for SosaBilal Basacikoglu.

On-loan Stoke City midfielder Badou Ndiaye made the starting lineup, albeit he was substituted for Brazil’s Guilherme in the 71st minute as Morocco’s Manuel da Costa was in action from start to finish.

Defeat leaves Galatasaray with 52 points after 30 games – 11 points behind leaders Istanbul Basaksehir and nine points adrift of Trabzonspor who are in second place.

Seri would be targeting victory with his team when they face Alanyaspor on Wednesday as Nwakaeme is expected to lead his club’s attacking set up versus Antalyaspor on the same day.

Jurgen Klopp highlighted Liverpool's 2-0 win over Aston Villa as a prime example of why his side are Premier League champions. 

The Reds, playing their first game at Anfield since ending a 30-year title drought, were made to work hard by their relegation-threatened visitors. 

Late goals from Sadio Mane and Curtis Jones got the job done as Klopp's side continued their 100 per cent home record in the league in the 2019-20 campaign. 

And the German, who was left angered by Thursday's 4-0 loss to Manchester City, felt it showed just why his side have reigned supreme this season. 

"A very difficult game for different reasons," Klopp told Sky Sports. 

"Villa are obviously organised and made it tricky for us. The wind made it tricky for both, but it was really hard to play normal football. 

"We had to stay on track and do the right things and in the second half we had more of the good moments. You could see we needed time to get used to it." 

The result took Liverpool to 89 points, with just 11 more needed from their remaining five matches to equal the record tally achieved by Manchester City two seasons ago.

They could also end the season with the record for most wins and become the first side to win every one of their home games, putting the gloss on what has already been a dominant season by the Merseysiders.

Klopp, however, insists records were not his mind on Sunday and believes obsessing over them would actually prove counter-productive.

"The only thing I can say is there's no chance to win records if you constantly think about records," he added. 

"We don't want a record we want the three points. We don't think about these things, three points is difficult enough. 

"Aston Villa was fighting with all they had and it makes life uncomfortable. I like it, it was not a brilliant performance but it was a good performance that gets us three points." 

Next up for Liverpool is a trip to Brighton on Wednesday before a home game against Burnley next Saturday.

Lionel Messi wrote another page in the record books when he set up Antoine Griezmann for Barcelona’s third goal against Villarreal for his 19th La Liga assist for the season - the Argentine’s best ever tally in the Spanish top-flight.

The 33-year-old had already set up Luis Suarez midway through the first half at El Madrigal, becoming the first player to reach 18 assists for the season since Messi himself did so in 2014-15 and prior to that in 2010-11.

He went one better shortly before the break, with his neat back-heel teeing up Griezmann who stroked home his ninth La Liga goal of the campaign. Messi has now up set up three of those nine goals, more than any other team-mate.

It was perhaps a timely reminder to the Barcelona hierarchy of Messi’s continued importance to Barca despite his advancing years.

Not only is he top of the assists chart, he is also La Liga’s top scorer with 22 goals - five goals clear of nearest challenger Karim Benzema. He thought he had taken his tally to 23 on Sunday evening but his close range strike was ruled out following a VAR referral.

It was also a memorable evening for Suarez, whose 194th goal for Barca moved him level with Laszlo Kubala on the club’s all-time scoring charts, with only Cesar Rodríguez and Messi ahead of the Uruguayan.

Teenage prospect Ansu Fati made sure of the win with a fourth goal late on to narrow Real Madrid’s lead at the top of the table back to four points, though Los Blancos remain in the driving seat for the title with four games remaining.

Messi’s latest match-winning antics comes after a week of frenzied speculation over his future at Camp Nou , with the striker yet to respond to Cadena SER's  claim that he could leave Camp Nou when his contract expires next summer

As previously confirmed by Goal , Messi does not want to leave Barcelona – but he is immensely frustrated with how the club is presently being run, highlighted by the cancellation of talks over a new contract.

It has now piled the pressure on Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu and may force the presidential elections to be brought forward, highlighting the influence Messi wields at Camp Nou.

Bernardo Silva accepts Manchester City cannot afford to drop points away from home with such regularity if they are to compete for the Premier League title again next season.

Deposed champions City thrashed title-winners Liverpool 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium in midweek but came unstuck on the road at Southampton, losing 1-0 to a stunning Che Adams goal on Sunday.

It was a third consecutive defeat away from home in the league for City, manager Pep Guardiola's worst such run of his coaching career.

City star Silva could not explain the disappointing streak but recognised the team must improve before the 2020-21 campaign.

"I don't know. I don't have the answer to that," the Portugal international said. "Of course, it's always better to play at home, a place where we're used to being.

"But there's no excuse for that. We need to improve next season if we want to win again the Premier League."

However, after mustering 26 shots and forcing Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy into six stunning saves, Silva felt City had performed well in defeat.

"I honestly think we played well today," explained Silva, whose City are second and 23 points behind Liverpool with five games remaining. "We created plenty of chances but couldn't score them. Then little mistakes cost us the game.

"Overall, I think 88 minutes of the 90 of this game were spent in the Southampton half of the match. But congratulations to them.

"We didn't play a bad game. I thought we started well in the second half especially - we put a lot of pressure onto them - but we couldn't finish our chances.

"I think we need to improve. We need to check the mistakes that we made today, the little mistakes that, for example, cost us the goal and the few chances they had.

"But overall, the way we played, I honestly thought it was good."

Guardiola's side next face Newcastle at home on Wednesday before facing Brighton away as City are given a chance to end their losing streak on the road. 

City are currently 23 points shy of league leaders Liverpool but eight points clear of third-place Leicester City with six games remaining.