Sean Dyche unhappy with the officials as Liverpool take derby spoils

Sean Dyche described referee Craig Pawson’s decision not to send off Ibrahima Konate in the Merseyside derby as “nearly impossible”.

Everton were reduced to 10 men late in the first half at Anfield when Ashley Young was shown a second yellow card but Pawson opted not to make the same decision midway through the second half when Konate pulled back Beto.

The Toffees had succeeded in keeping the game goalless to that point but Mohamed Salah then scored a penalty after a VAR review saw Michael Keane penalised for handball and the striker added a very late second to give Liverpool a 2-0 win.

Should Ibrahima Konate have been given a second yellow card for this…?

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt)

Dyche was booked following the Konate …

Klopp says new Liverpool signing Nunez ´has all the pieces we look for´

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says new signing Darwin Nunez has all the pieces that the Reds look for in a player but insists he is still a work in progress .

The Reds confirmed the signing of the 22-year-old Uruguay international forward on a long-term contract from Benfica on Tuesday.

Nunez has joined for a reported fee of £64million (€75m), with a further £21.4m (€25m) in potential add-ons, in a move that is subject to the granting of a work permit and international clearance.

The striker joins after netting 48 goals in 85 appearances for Benfica, finishing as last season s Primeira Liga top scorer with 26 strikes. He also scored in both of Benfica s Champions League matches against Liverpool prompting excitement about his acquisition.

Klopp was…

Athletic Bilbao v Barcelona: Catalans seeking second leg of treble

With one leg of a possible domestic and European treble in the bag, Barcelona go in search of their second trophy of 2014-15 in the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao.

Barca wrapped up the league title with a 1-0 win at Atletico Madrid a fortnight ago, and Saturday s clash with Athletic marks the first of two finals in as many weeks as Luis Enrique s side steel themselves for a huge end to the season.

The following weekend sees them take on Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final, but for now their attentions are focused on completing the domestic double.

For one last time, Xavi will enjoy playing at Camp Nou for Barca, although he and his team-mates will occupy the away dressing room, and around 50,000 Athletic fans are expected to make the journey f…

Canada v Costa Rica: Co-hosts in the last-chance saloon

Experienced midfielder Julian de Guzman says Canada still believe they can progress out of Group B in the CONCACAF Gold Cup going into Tuesday s clash with Costa Rica.

Benito Floro s side have taken just one point from their opening two games in the competition a late Rodolph Austin strike against Jamaica last time out condemning them to a 1-0 defeat.

The co-hosts hopes of making the knockout stages for the first time since 2009 remain alive with only Jamaica having secured their place in the top three spots.

And De Guzman who returned from injury to feature in the reversal against Jamaica has challenged his team-mates to keep the faith and gain the win they need if they are to stand a chance of reaching the next round against Paulo Wanchope s men.

In th…

Manchester United ‘have got to move on’ from humbling derby experience

Jonny Evans says Manchester United have to move on from their derby disappointment and believes injuries have played a part in Erik ten Hag’s second season struggles.

A promising first campaign under the Dutchman has been forgotten as a challenging start to this term continued with Sunday’s humbling at home to Manchester City.

Erling Haaland’s brace and a late Phil Foden goal sealed City a derby victory at Old Trafford that was more one-sided than even the 3-0 scoreline suggested.

Outclassed, outthought and outmanoeuvred for the most part, it was an embarrassing end to the Red Devils’ admittedly unconvincing three-match winning run in all competitions.

“It’s never easy – everyone’s disappointed,” said experienced defender Evans, who was …

Scholes slams City star Toure as ´a liability´

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes believes Yaya Toure’s performances lie at the heart of Manchester City s struggles in Europe – branding the Ivory Coast star  a liability .

Toure has helped to inspire City to two Premier League titles since moving from Barcelona in 2010, also scoring in FA Cup and League Cup final triumphs.

The 32-year-old, who won the Champions League playing as an emergency centre-back in the Barcelona team that beat Scholes  United 2-0 in Rome in 2009, has largely failed to scale similar heights in European competitions while at the Etihad Stadium.

City beat Bayern Munich and Roma in consecutive games to salvage their group-stage campaign last season as Toure sat out following a red-card received in a 2-1 home loss to CS…

Pioli rues missed Milan chance but insists ´no result´ would guarantee progression past Napoli

Stefano Pioli was left wishing Milan capitalised further against 10-man Napoli but insisted no first-leg result would ensure progression to the Champions League semi-final.

Ismael Bennacer s first goal in UEFA s top club competition proved the difference on Wednesday at San Siro as Milan secured a 1-0 lead to defend in Naples in eight days time.

The Rossoneri perhaps could have compounded Napoli s misery, though, as Milan played the last 15 minutes with a one-man advantage following Frank Anguissa s dismissal for two quickfire bookable offences.

Milan have progressed from seven of their previous nine two-legged ties in the Champions League knockout stages after winning the first clash, though Pioli suggested Napoli could overturn any given deficit.

The Mi…

Godin passes Inter medical

Atletico Madrid s Diego Godin has passed a medical ahead of the proposed move to Inter Milan, Sky claim via their sources in Italy. The experienced centre-back is now set to join the Serie A side as a free agent when his contract expired this summer.

Godin has spent the last nine seasons in the Spanish capital, and has made over 350 appearances for Atletico in all competitions in that time, scoring a total of 24 goals. He won the 2013/14 La Liga title and Copa del Rey the previous season, as well as the 2017/18 Europa League. Apart from that, he s played in two Champions League finals, 2014 and 2016.

It seems, however, the Uruguay international, who will turn 33 next month, is keen on a change of scenery in the closing stages of his illustrious career, and Inter have st…

Ange Postecoglou says ‘we have to accept the referee’s decision’ after home loss

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou has called for an end to the questioning of officials’ decisions in order to prevent their authority being undermined.

Spurs had two players sent off in the 4-1 defeat – their first loss of the Premier League season – at home to Chelsea but refused to criticise referee Michael Oliver.

However, after a first half which had 12 minutes added on due to several VAR checks, the Australian felt a number of incidents have led to an overuse of technology.

And then there was none…

Ange Postecoglou suffers his first defeat in the Premier League

— Premier League (@premierleague)

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta called Newcastle’s winning goal against his team after three VAR checks a “disgrace” on Saturday…

Jurgen Klopp’s poor disciplinary record counts against him after touchline ban

Jurgen Klopp’s poor disciplinary record and his failure to heed previous conduct warnings were aggravating factors which led to the Liverpool manager receiving a two-match touchline ban for implying bias by referee Paul Tierney.

Klopp was fined £75,000 and will not be in the technical area for their final Premier League home game of the campaign against Aston Villa on Saturday but the second match of his punishment has been suspended until the end of next season.

The German admitted a charge of improper conduct in that his comments about Tierney implied bias, questioned the integrity of the referee and brought the game into disrepute.

Klopp, who was booked for celebrating in the face of fourth official John Brooks after Diogo Jota’s added-time goal in the 4-…