Liverpool

Liverpool manager Arne Slot on starting goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher: "Caoimhin will be in goal on Wednesday. Alisson is getting there but I think this game has come a bit too earlier. We're looking at this weekend with the game against Wolves, but it's looking a bit tight."

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool

Liverpool manager Arne Slot on how strong a side he will field: "I want all of them to play, but unfortunately that is not possible because you can only play 11.

"We will play with the best possible team, which means that players who are a bit more tired from playing a lot might mean I select different players, but they will come in today and I'll make the decision."

Liverpool

Liverpool manager Arne Slot on facing West Ham in the third round of the Carabao Cup: "It's very important because it's the next game we play. I know the history of this club, I know what happened last year and how special winning a cup can be.

"We have a difficult tie against West Ham, but it's a game to look forward to."

Liverpool

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has confirmed Caoimhin Kelleher will start in goal against West Ham, with Alisson Becker still unavailable because of injury.

More to follow.

Liverpool

Liverpool manager Arne Slot is about to speak to the media before his side's Carabao Cup third-round tie against West Ham at Anfield on Wednesday.

Stay tuned for the best lines.

Simon Stone
BBC Sport's chief football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Fresh footage has emerged of Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya going down for treatment under instruction from the Gunners bench during Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

Debate has been swirling since the game about the visitors’ perceived time-wasting tactics and how much stoppage time there should have been.

BBC Sport has obtained footage, which has been published by other media outlets, shot from a wider camera position, high up in the stand opposite the dug-outs, showing a member of the Arsenal backroom team gesturing for Raya to go down as he gets ready to take a goal-kick midway through the second-half.

At the same time, Arsenal substitute Myles Lewis-Skelly, who had been warming up close to the corner flag, runs down the goal-line and attracts Raya’s attention.

Raya then spots the ball, before walking backwards and sitting down saying he needs treatment.

Most of the Arsenal players are then called to the bench to allow manager Mikel Arteta to offer instructions.

Lewis-Skelly was booked for unsporting behaviour but Raya was not cautioned for simulation because referee Michael Oliver did not know what had been said between the Arsenal duo.

Rory Smith
Chief Soccer Correspondent for The New York Times, on BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, Getty Images

Rodri is incredibly important to City. In the run of normal fixtures they will be fine.

Where it makes a difference is if Rodri is out for a long period of time and you have to play a Champions League semi-final, that is where it becomes an issue.

For the vast majority of Premier League games a Croatian international in Mateo Kovacic, formerly of Real Madrid and Chelsea – he can probably fill in.

Chris, Hants

Andros Townsend
Luton Town midfielder on the Monday Night Club

Image source, Getty Images

The way he [Rodri] pulled up and grabbed his knee, I would be very surprised if it wasn’t anything else but his ACL.

Rory Smith
Chief Soccer Correspondent for The New York Times, on the Monday Night Club

More sources on Rodri's injury...

The Athletic, external, ESPN , externaland Marca , externalare all saying it is an ACL [anterior cruciate ligament].

But, they are also saying there are further tests to be done. [Which was reported earlier by our own Simon Stone].

So, until those test are done, we cannot be certain.

Listen to the Monday Night Club here.

Steven MB

The focus of iSport's back page is all about Everton's takeover being agreed "at last" with the promise of "new investment" to come.

Image source, iSport

Whatever the final news is, Rodri will likely to be out for at least some time injured.

Is Rodri Manchester City's most important player? Who will replace him?

Get involved with the usual details above.

Simon Stone
BBC Sport's chief football news reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Pep Guardiola has never made any secret of his belief Rodri is irreplaceable as a single midfield anchor in his Manchester City side.

Kalvin Phillips is the nearest thing to a sitting midfielder in the City squad but Guardiola has long since decided the former Leeds man is not good enough and he is currently on loan at Ipswich and unable to be recalled until January.

That means Guardiola is likely to tinker with his formation and play with two holding midfielders.

Former Chelsea star Mateo Kovacic can fill that role but he is not the only option.

Centre-back John Stones has rarely played as a lone defensive midfielder during his time at Etihad, but has been inverted into the deep-lying role at times from central defence and right-back.

Ilkay Gundogan was used in that position on numerous occasions before he left for Barcelona in 2023. Bernardo Silva has also played there, as has currently sidelined Kevin de Bruyne at times.

And then there is 19-year-old Rico Lewis, who someone Guardiola said only last week could fill a number of positions, such is his flexibility.

Losing Rodri for any length of time would be a hammer blow for City, but if anyone can come up with a plan to deal with it, Guardiola can.

The January transfer window is only a few months away as well.

Chris Sutton
Former Premier League striker on BBC 5 Live's Monday Night Club

I don't think anyone can fill that role like Rodri but Mateo Kovacic is as able as any replacement out there. Man City will find a way of coping, they always do.

Image source, Getty Images

After Rodri made his Manchester City debut in the 2019 Community Shield against Liverpool, team-mate Kevin de Bruyne described him as the "perfect fit" for the team.

He wasn't wrong.

Since arriving from Atletico Madrid, the Spain midfielder's influence has been extraordinary, with City having lost just 11% of their games with him in the side compared to 24% without him.

City's points-per-game average with Rodri in the side - albeit across all competitions - is 2.36. Without him, it is just 2.04.

Therefore, if Rodri was to miss the rest of the Premier League season, using those averages City would finish on 80 points, compared to a projected 91 points with him playing every week.

In three out of the past four seasons, 91 points would have been enough to win the title.

However, the last time a team won the league with as few as 80 points was Manchester United in 2010-11. City, with Roberto Mancini at the helm, finished third that year.

What makes Rodri so effective?

Put simply, he wins the ball back from the opposition and then gives it to another player on his team - and he does so with metronomic accuracy.

Since his debut in a 5-0 win at West Ham, only Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has won possession more often. Nobody has won the ball back more often in the middle third of the pitch than Rodri has, and only seven players during that time have made more tackles.

His reading of the game and combative nature has helped add a real defensive steel to City, with the club keeping 73 clean sheets in his 260 appearances.

What really sets him apart, however, is how he uses the ball.

Since arriving in the Premier League, Rodri has successfully completed nearly 2,000 more passes than any other player - the City midfielder has made 13,699 in total, with Brighton defender Lewis Dunk next on the list with 11,952.

He has also completed more passes in both the opposition's half and in the final third, while his passing accuracy of 91.9% proves he seldom gives the ball away - even though he's often moving it deep in opposition territory.

Metro

Reports in the Metro suggest Manchester City midfielder Rodri "may" be out for the season.

Again remember that there has been no official confirmation from Manchester City or the player of the extent of the injury.

They also bring some positivity from the City camp as defender Manuel Akanji says they will still retain the Premier League title.

No Rodri, no problem?

Image source, Metro

Simon Stone
BBC Sport's chief football news reporter

Manchester City midfielder Rodri will have further tests on the knee injury that looks set to rule him out for an extended period of time.

Rodri travelled to Spain yesterday for initial tests on the injury sustained in the early stages of City 2-2 draw with Arsenal on Sunday.

The Spain international seemed to jar his knee as he ran on a wet surface.

Sources have told BBC Sport further tests are required to discover the exact extent of the problem.

However, manager Pep Guardiola was downbeat in the aftermath of Sunday’s game and said the 28-year-old would not have left the field if the issue had not been serious.

Rodri's influence at City can hardly be understated. In his absence last September, they lost three games in a row. The only time City lost in normal time last season with Rodri in the side was the FA Cup final. He was named player of the tournament as Spain won Euro 2024 and is a leading contender to win this year’s Ballon D’Or.

Rodri was making his first Premier League start of the season at the weekend after being given extended time off to recover from injury following the European Championships.

Prior to the Champions League game with Inter Milan on Wednesday, Rodri spoke about the excessive demands being placed on players and warned they were close to taking strike action in protest.

Daily Mirror

The Mirror focus on Gabriel's comments that Arsenal will be "waiting" for Manchester City ahead of February's return game at the Emirates after the feisty 2-2 draw in Manchester on Sunday.

Their reports also suggest Rodri "could miss the rest of the season".

Image source, Daily Mirror