Liverpool

Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against a variety of guests.

For week 11 he takes on Mylee and Tate from CBBC football drama Jamie Johnson FC (JJFC), which is set in the world of an elite academy at fictional Premier League club Hawx United.

Sutton's prediction: 2-0

It was such a lethargic performance by Aston Villa against Club Brugge on Wednesday. I was expecting far more from them.

Villa will need much more intensity if they are going to compete at Anfield, but the form Arne Slot's side are in means I cannot see past a home win for this one.

There is a lot of speculation about Mohamed Salah’s future at Liverpool, but what isn't in doubt is his quality, and he showed it again with his finish against Brighton last week.

Mylee's prediction: I am going with Liverpool here. 2-0

Tate's prediction: This is going to be tit for tat with one team scoring, then the other - and it will end in a draw. 3-3

Read the rest of their predictions and have your own say here

Mandeep Sanghera
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool boss Arne Slot was in relaxed, measured and in somewhat jovial mood when he addressed the media on Friday before his side host Aston Villa on Saturday.

You can understand his demeanour considering his side are top of the Premier League and top of the Champions League group stage in its new format after what has been quite the start to the season for the Dutchman.

Slot put the team's success so far down to the quality and hard work of the squad in response to the demands he places on them, with the result being 14 wins from their opening 16 games.

And, while there might be plenty of talk outside of the Anfield club about their prospects for the season, it is not something being talked about within the inner sanctum of the Reds.

"I'm not trying to manage expectations with the squad because we don't talk about expectations," said Slot.

"The only expectations I have is that they put the same effort in on a daily basis like they've done for the last few months, and probably for the past six or seven years. That's the only thing we focus on."

Slot gave a laugh when the contract situations of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, whose deals all expire in the summer, was brought up.

Questions about the futures of the trio have become routine and Slot has become more than adept at dealing with them.

"In general, contract situations are talked about by the people who should talk about it," he said.

"I'm one of them but I should not talk about this in public. I do talk about this with [sporting director] Richard [Hughes]. That's the place that we have to talk about it and not in front of a microphone."

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot says it was "perhaps a surprise to me to see how well" Luis Diaz did when playing through the middle during Tuesday's Champions League win over Bayer Leverkusen.

The Colombia forward scored a hat-trick in the thumping 4-0 win.

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot had high praise for midfielder Curtis Jones following his England call-up by interim manager Lee Carsley.

"He has a lot of qualities on the ball," said Slot. "He is never afraid to do something special with it, but sometimes he touches the ball a bit too much in my opinion because he is so confident.

"But confidence is an important tool. He has an incredibly hard work rate and we trust him in defence. He is complete. For him now, it is all about consistency. The best players turn up every three days and that is what he has got to show."

Jones has made 12 appearances in all competitions for the Reds this season, scoring once and providing four assists.

Slot however, batted away suggestions that he has made a significant contribution to Jones' positive trajectory.

"It is not me - it is since he became a father and I had nothing to do with that!" he joked. "You never know if that plays a part or not.

"Since then [the birth of his child] he has been putting great performances in. In pre-season, I thought he was outstanding and he is outstanding again now.

"In general, it probably has to do with how the team plays because every player that comes in has a good performance. That says a lot about the quality of the team and how they play together."

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Aston Villa (kick-off 20:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Diogo Jota is on track to return after the international break but Slot would not say what the injury is that has sidelined him in recent weeks.

• On keeping everyone grounded following Liverpool's almost-perfect start: "I’m not trying to manage expectations in the squad because we don’t talk about it. The only expectation I have is that they put in the effort every day and they have done that. Usually with that results come as well."

• He added his players are "not getting carried away by being top of the league" because it is not an unfamiliar position for the club and is still early in the season.

• However, he hopes fans will continue to be excited by their position in the Premier League and Europe because that comes across in the general atmosphere in games.

• He noted that since Curtis Jones became a father "he has been putting in great performances" but joked "I had nothing to do with that!"

• More from Slot on Jones: "In general, it has to do with how the team plays because every player that comes in has a good performance, so that says a lot about the quality of the team and how they play together."

• He also commented on the improvement in Luis Diaz this season: "I have no clue why, but maybe it is because the team provides a lot of chances for these players. If they are in a promising situation, then they can score a goal."

• On the contest between Andy Robertson and Konstantinos Tsimikas at left-back: "My line-ups tell you what I think about this. We have two brilliant full-backs and we play many, many games. There are multiple reasons why the full-backs and midfield are rotated but it is also to do with the quality of the players. I have two very good players."

• Despite managers often changing their usual style to face Liverpool, Slot "does not expect" Unai Emery to adapt his formation for their trip to Anfield.

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Mandeep Sanghera
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool will end an early season test of their trophy-winning credentials against Aston Villa on Saturday and, so far, they are passing with flying colours.

The Reds faced a run of seven testing games in 21 days since the last international break and, in the Premier League, have sandwiched a draw at Arsenal in between wins against Chelsea and Brighton to go top of the table.

Impressively, those results have come among victories against RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen as the Anfield club have moved top of the new-look Champions League table. They have also progressed to the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup after beating Brighton.

In all competitions, Liverpool have 14 wins from their opening 16 games under new manager Arne Slot. You could say, if a former shirt sponsor of the club did starts to the season then it might look like the sort the Reds have enjoyed to this campaign.

Slot will be talking to the media at 09:00 GMT this morning prior to the Villa game which precedes the final international break of 2024.

And, despite a dream start to his tenure, it is unlikely the Dutchman will be getting carried away.

If anything, he might take a similar view to Xabi Alonso.

Following his Leverkusen side’s defeat by Liverpool on Tuesday, ex-Reds midfielder Alonso was asked about his former club's prospects in 2024-25 and said: "It’s looking a promising season - but we are still in November”.

Slot has had to deal with constant questions about the futures of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, who are out of contract in the summer.

We’ll see if there is anything else to say on the issue.

Liverpool are preparing a £50m bid for Real Madrid's 24-year-old France midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni. (Fichajes - in Spanish), external

The Reds will rival Manchester United, Arsenal and Juventus for 24-year-old Lille striker Jonathan David. (Corriere dello Sport - in Italian), external

Arsenal have held talks with the agents of Sporting forward Geovany Quenda, with the 17-year-old also on the radar of Liverpool, Manchester United and Manchester City and Liverpool. (Teamtalk), external

Finally, Liverpool and Bayern Munich have been told by Eintracht Frankfurt they will need to pay upwards of £50m to prise 25-year-old Egypt striker Omar Marmoush away from the club. (Fussball News - in German), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Friday's full gossip column

Image source, Getty Images

England interim boss Lee Carsley says Curtis Jones is a player he "highly rates" after calling up the Liverpool midfielder for the Uefa Nations League matches with Greece and Republic of Ireland on 14 and 17 November.

The games will be an opportunity for Jones to make his England debut, having withdrawn from the squad in October and being cut from Gareth Southgate's provisional selection for Euro 2024 after receiving his first call-up in the summer.

"Curtis is an all-round player, plays in various positions and is a player that I highly rate," Carsley said after making the announcement.

"He will be one of the best players I have worked with in terms of his ability. I think he has shown a really consistent level of playing every week now, most weeks especially, at a high level.

"He has shown he can score goals and assist, a player that I've had a lot of success with working in the past and I'm looking forward to working with him."

Image source, PA Media

England interim manager Lee Carsley has named a 26-man squad for the upcoming Nations League games against Greece and Republic of Ireland.

Newcastle left-back Lewis Hall and Southampton centre-back Taylor Harwood-Bellis have received their first call-ups to the senior side, with Saints' Aaron Ramsdale one of three goalkeepers selected.

The only other uncapped player in the squad is Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, while there is no place for Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers.

These will be Carsley's final two matches in charge before Thomas Tuchel becomes Gareth Southgate's full-time successor from 1 January.

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton).

Defenders: Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Rico Lewis (Manchester City), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle), Taylor Harwood-Bellis (Southampton).

Midfielders: Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Angel Gomes (Lille), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Curtis Jones (Liverpool).

Forwards: Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham).

Image source, Getty Images

I do not think the ongoing speculation on the contracts of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah or Virgil van Dijk will upset the title challenge.

It seems late to be negotiating contracts considering their previous length of deals but they do all seem comfortable at the club.

They will not get to the end of the season not knowing what they are going to do. Plus, if Liverpool are in a position to win silverware at the end of this campaign, it will not make much difference about what they decide to do.

They are still here. They do not seem too worried about the future and are just focusing on the present.

Nedum Onuoha was speaking to BBC Sport's Katie Stafford

Match of the Day's Stephen Warnock explains shows how Arne Slot's half-time rejig in midfield changed the game in Liverpool's 4-0 victory over Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.

Watch the full Champions League show on BBC iPlayer

Josh Sexton
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Mohamed Salah made himself the hero once again for Liverpool at Anfield this past weekend and in doing so moved himself up to eighth on the Premier League’s all-time top scorers list. It was a trademark strike that served as another reminder of what The Egyptian King can contribute, even in what many are viewing as the twilight of his career.

Whatever the aforementioned 'many' think, eyes and minds are being cast towards those that sign the cheques and contracts at the club with a clear message - Salah must stay.

It is unthinkable to consider the idea that a player with nine goals and seven assists in 15 appearances so far this season is one that can just walk away from the club for free. Not to mention the cautionary tales littered throughout the Premier League in recent times.

Look at Manchester United spending all that money on Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee, Arsenal throwing the kitchen sink at Kai Havertz and Chelsea hanging their hopes on Nicolas Jackson, all of whom have proven so far that it is hard to just go out and buy goals - without even mentioning Liverpool’s own outlay.

There is obviously more nuance to any contract negotiation than simply suggesting that the club should do "everything" to get a player to stay, but those in charge of making those decisions would do well to convince fans that securing Salah for the next few years would be a bad investment.

Not to mention the fact that the player himself continues to go above and beyond to publicly state his love for Liverpool - on social media, television and to anybody who asks about his change in hairstyle over summer.

No matter what happens, this decision will be another that defines the legacy of the club’s ownership.

I just hope they fall on the right side of history this time.

Find more from Josh Sexton at The Anfield Wrap, external

It was another special Champions League night at Anfield on Tuesday as Liverpool thrashed Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen 4-0.

Luis Diaz scored a second-half hat-trick to help the Reds maintain their flawless start to the competition.

Real Madrid will make a January move for Liverpool's 26-year-old England right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is out of contract at the end of the season (Marca - in Spanish), external

However, Liverpool are prepared to block any offers for their first-team players in January. (Football Insider), external

Meanwhile, the Reds, Arsenal and Tottenham are interested in Eintracht Frankfurt's 20-year-old Sweden midfielder Hugo Larsson. (Caught Offside), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Thursday's full gossip column

Mike Hughes
BBC Radio Merseyside reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool continue to take almost all before them with their astonishing start to the new season under Arne Slot.

Fourteen wins from 16 matches in all competitions since he became manager is not only a record-breaking opening run in this country, it is over and above what even the most positive of Reds fans expected.

Top of both the Premier League and the new bizarre format of the Champions League at this stage brings only plaudits. Yet in a few days' time we will hit the final international break of the calendar year, which is always a significant benchmark and sacking season for football managers appears to go into overdrive. More than a quarter of the campaign has elapsed and we have a very decent sample size on which to gauge opinion.

In all the metrics that really count, Liverpool show up well. But even if you decide against crunching the numbers, what you see before your eyes is impressive. This team finds a way to win whatever the circumstances.

For most games so far, they have been able to dictate from the front , building a platform after scoring the crucial first goal. However, in the past two Premier League matches, they have gone behind three times and still shown the hunger and desire to change things around.

On Tuesday, after a counter-punching first half of battle with Bayer Leverkusen they powered past the German champions to a 4-0 victory. That scoreline against this sort of opponents is to be admired, but when you add in that Leverkusen are managed by former Reds midfielder and the person everyone wanted to replace Jurgen Klopp, Xabi Alonso, it adds even more lustre.

I doubt Slot will be getting too carried away, even if he enjoyed the Anfield faithful singing his name at the end of the 90 minutes. What is worth considering though is just how well the new manager has done, in just a few short months.

Saturday evening could prove to be another formidable challenge. Aston Villa, despite that surprise 4-1 defeat at Tottenham, are one of the best sides in the country and have not looked out of place in the Champions League. They have a style and pattern of play that is both easy on the eye and brings results.

Unai Emery has worked miracles at Villa and has put together an excellent squad. Morgan Rogers is a breakout star of season so far and, along with Ollie Watkins and Jhon Duran, has the potential to cause problems for the Liverpool defence.

But this is just the latest challenge for Slot and Liverpool. You get the feeling that this is something he absolutely relishes.

Listen to Total Sport Merseyside from 18:00 on weeknights and find details here of live Liverpool match commentaries on BBC Radio Merseyside

Explore Liverpool content on BBC Sounds

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Captain Virgil van Dijk believes there is still room for improvement from Liverpool, despite the Reds topping both the Premier League and Champions League tables.

Since Arne Slot took charge at the start of the season, Liverpool have won 14 of their 16 games in all competitions.

"We are happy but we want to be happy at the end of the season," Netherlands international Van Dijk told BBC Radio Merseyside after Tuesday's 4-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen.

"That is all about working each day to get better on things that we have to improve because there are still so many things that we could improve. We all know that as players and the manager is very keen to show that too.

"We're still a work in progress, the manager wants us to defend in a certain way, we try to do that and try to solve things on the pitch when we can.

"It doesn't always go perfect as you've seen in so many games, but the good thing is that we make sure we are willing to defend, so when they beat the press we are back to not concede any unnecessary chances or crosses."

Liverpool have conceded only six goals in their 10 Premier League games so far and host fellow Champions League side Aston Villa to Anfield on Saturday.

"There are so many moments and things in games that we are doing well and I think so far, so good in terms of results," Van Dijk added.

"[Being] where we are now and still being able to improve is only a positive thing."

Listen to more reaction from Van Dijk on BBC Sounds

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on Liverpool's Champions League match against Bayer Leverkusen.

Here are some of your comments:

Zak: Wow! I was not expecting that result. It was a rampant second-half where we didn't give them a moment of peace. I can't fault a single player on that pitch. It is clear to see they all did their job and it has paid off massively. Top of the Champions League and top of the Premier League. Arne Slot ball is insane!

Fraser: A big statement from Liverpool. What a performance in the second-half! We defeated a very good Bayer Leverkusen side convincingly and, at long last, a Liverpool player gets a hat-trick. Both Diaz and Gakpo are really cooking this season. The Slot machine keeps going. Real Madrid is next up. I never thought I would say this but bring it on!

Jake: Thoroughly enjoying the evolution of Gakpo and Jones under Arne Slot. I was a doubter last season and I was unsure whether they had futures at Liverpool, as they would often go missing in games and fail to influence. They have been the difference in so many games this season, and their battling and incisive play has driven the team forward.

Tricia: An evenly matched first-half but a superb performance from Liverpool in the second-half. They totally outclassed Leverkusen. Slot is a revelation!

Yusuf: A night of two halves. One that was like an arm wrestle and one that showed a team full of confidence. I feel for Xabi on his return to Anfield, but what a performance against the virtually unbeaten German champions. Hopefully this will show other teams that we are not to be messed about with. Bring on Real Madrid!

Katie Stafford
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

If any team hopes to bolster their attack in the January or summer transfer window then Sporting Lisbon's number nine Viktor Gyokeres has to be in the conversation.

Following Tuesday's hat-trick against Manchester City in the Champions League, Gyokeres is the joint leading scorer in this season's most elite European competition with Harry Kane and has scored 66 goals in 67 matches for the reigning Primeira Liga champions.

The sceptics, who have argued the standard of football in Portugal is not that of Premier League, are likely to have been silenced by the striker's performance against the often dubbed 'best team in the world.'

So if the Sweden international is to be snapped up by an English club, where could he go?

Well, Gyokeres is not going to be cheap so it will have to be a club with long-term ambition and deep pockets. The 26-year-old is believed to have a release clause of 100m euros (£83m) despite only signing from Coventry City in 2023 for a fee close to £20m in 2023.

Premier League clubs were linked to Gyokeres while he was at the Championship club but it was Sporting who seized the opportunity to sign him.

And now Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea are the English clubs that are linked with his name in the daily gossip pages.

The most obvious choice would be to follow head coach Ruben Amorim to Old Trafford. However, with the club already owning Rasmus Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee and Antony it is unlikely they would sign Gyokeres without selling at least one.

Plus, it was Dan Ashworth - the current sporting director of United - that sold Gyokeres to Coventry for just £1m in 2021 from former club Brighton.

United's neighbours Manchester City could view Gyokeres as a long-term replacement for Erling Haaland should he leave the Etihad, and Sporting's director Hugo Viana may want to re-sign his Sporting star when he succeeds the outgoing Txiki Begiristain.

Liverpool could also be in the market if Mohamed Salah does not sign a new contract and departs Anfield after eight years next summer.

Chelsea, who have three strikers, have proven they like to spend big in recent transfer windows but it is their rivals in North London that appear to be the most obvious fit.

Fans and pundits have long said that Arsenal need a number nine.

Mikel Arteta's side would be formidable with a striker like Gyokeres and would be strong contenders in the league and Europe if he could replicate his form there.

"I could see that," columnist Nedum Onuoha told BBC Sport. "From the style of play that I have seen from him and the intelligence he has, he is a handful.

"If he comes to England then it is important to note that he is simply coming back because he has already got experience playing here and he knows the physical level required. He comes across as very coachable so in an Arsenal system it could really work for him and them.

"That is on the assumption that he is the sort of player that the Gunners are looking for."

In the meantime Gyokeres will no doubt continue to add to his price tag by doing what he does best - scoring.