De Bruyne and Son join Liverpool duo on Premier League Player of the Season shortlist

Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Joshua Kimmich gave Bayern Munich a 2-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen and put them on the brink of a ninth consecutive Bundesliga title.

RB Leipzig s shock 2-1 defeat at relegation-threatened Cologne earlier on Tuesday gave Hansi Flick s side the opportunity to go 10 points clear with four matches remaining.

They did so with the minimum of fuss after Choupo-Moting – again deputising for the injury Robert Lewandowski – opened the scoring in the seventh minute.

A superb second from Kimmich made a response from Leverkusen deeply unlikely, as their struggles during the second half of this season were again laid bare at the Allianz Arena. Hannes Wolf s side are seven points behind four-placed Wolfsburg having played a game more.

Fo…

The penultimate day of the Games on Saturday offers medals across 34 events, with athletics, wrestling and boxing featuring heavily.

The United States basketball team overcame an early scare against Australia and they now face France in a gold-medal clash on day 15 in Tokyo.

Just five medals away from table-toppers China, the USA will be hoping for more gold in both the men s and women s 4 400 metre relay races.

Spain and defending Olympic champions Brazil clashing in a mouth-watering men s football final among a host of other events and Stats Perform considers the potential highlights to look forward to.

CAN BRAZIL DO THE DOUBLE?

Spain head into their third Olympic men s football final, having settled for silver in 2000 after triumph…

Carlo Ancelotti rates Liverpool as favourites to win the Champions League but has warned that his Napoli side have also improved since last season s meeting.

Liverpool lost 1-0 in Naples last October but won the reverse fixture to scrape through the group stage at Napoli s expense and went on to lift the famous trophy for a sixth time.

The sides face off again at Stadio San Paolo on Tuesday in their Group E opener and Ancelotti has targeted another victory on home soil against the best team in Europe .

Liverpool have grown because last season gave them so much awareness, he said at his pre-match news conference.

 : The atmosphere makes a big difference. I hope the San Paolo really gets behind us
 
 
 

— Official SSC Napoli (@en_sscnapo…

Best odds: 6/5

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The group stages are over and we re now into the knockout phase. There s some really cracking encounters to come from Saturday to Tuesday, and along with the one between England and Germany on Tuesday, Belgium taking on Portugal at the Estadio la Cartuja in Sevilla should be at the top in terms of balance and quality.

Belgium

Having thrashed Russia in the opening round by 3-0 and then beaten Denmark by 2-1, they made sure they got the maximum number of points against Finland, courtesy of an own-goal by Lukas Hradecky and a strike from Romelu Lukaku. The fact that Belgium top the FIFA rankings at the moment obviously speaks a lot about their quality, and it seems that quality is finally matched by form.

Many see this as the one …

Erling Haaland is on the same early career trajectory as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, according to Norway coach Lars Lagerback.

Haaland, 20, enjoyed a sensational breakout season in 2019-20, impressing for both Salzburg and then Borussia Dortmund after a January move.

The Norwegian striker scored 28 goals in 22 matches for Salzburg across all competitions, before adding 16 in 18 outings for BVB.

He was unable to help Dortmund to a first Bundesliga title since 2011-12 as Bayern Munich continued their dominance, but Haaland s swift adaptation provides optimism for the seasons to come – if they can keep hold of him.

Haaland s introduction to international football has seen him score once in three games, that strike coming in Friday s 2-1 defea…

Liverpool completed one of the Champions League s greatest ever escapes on Tuesday as they overturned a 3-0 first-leg deficit to power past Barcelona and into their second consecutive final.

Divock Origi set Liverpool on their way to a famous 4-0 victory early on before Georginio Wijnaldum scored twice in quick succession shortly after being introduced at the interval.

Trent Alexander-Arnold s quickly taken corner was then buried by Origi 11 minutes from time as Jurgen Klopp s side booked their spot in next month s final in Madrid where they will take on either Ajax or Tottenham.

Here, with the help of Opta, we look at some of the key stats behind Liverpool s incredible Anfield victory.

AAARRGGHHHHHH!!  

— Liverpool FC (@LFC)

…

Gerard Pique believes Josep Maria Bartomeu was among the worst presidents in Barcelona s history.

Bartomeu held the post from January 2014 until his resignation in October last year, courting controversy along the way.

His exit was forced amid the threat of a no-confidence vote as Barca lurched from one setback to the next on and off the field.

Barca won the treble in Bartomeu s first year in charge, yet things gradually began to unravel over the course of his tenure. 

Lionel Messi had made clear his desire to leave before eventually sealing a move to Paris Saint-Germain, while Pique is one of several players who have taken a pay cut to ease the Camp Nou club s perilous financial situation.

With questionable head coach appointments added into the…

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has challenged his Manchester United players to rediscover their mojo  as they bid to return to winning ways in the Premier League against Southampton on Tuesday.  

The Red Devils title tilt has suffered a blow over the past week, a shock home defeat to rock-bottom Sheffield United followed up with a point from a 0-0 result at Arsenal on Saturday – their fourth goalless draw in the league this season.  

They are now three points behind leaders Manchester City  who also have a game in hand  in the Premier League table, having sat top not so long ago. 

United will hope to get back on track against a Southampton side they have not lost to in nine games, although they are looking to complete their first league double over the…

Mohamed Salah was affected by his contract saga in the latter stages of last season, according to Liverpool team-mate Virgil van Dijk.

Egypt international Salah signed a new deal at Anfield last month worth a reported £350,000 a week, making him the highest-earning player in the club s history.

That brought an end to months of speculation regarding the 30-year-old s future, having himself hinted that he may move away as he entered the final year of his previous deal.

Despite Salah finishing last season as the Premier League s joint-top goalscorer alongside Son Heung-min, Van Dijk believes the contract standoff took its toll on the Egypt star.

At the end of the season, from maybe April until the end, there was a lot of talk about his contract and stuff, …

Another transfer window has seen another huge outlay on fees, but not all great signings have to come at such a cost.

Paulo Dybala, Paul Pogba, Angel Di Maria, Antonio Rudiger and Boubacar Kamara have already moved as free agents in this window.

With just a couple of days to go before the deadline, there remain some notable names looking for clubs.

Let s take a look

Marcelo (34 years old – last club: Real Madrid)

It is not often the Champions League-winning captain of the previous campaign is without a club at the start of the new season, but that has been the case for Marcelo.

Admittedly, the left-back – a five-time European champion – was firmly behind Ferland Mendy in the pecking order last term, starting only seven games in all …