Roberto De Zerbi praised Jurgen Klopp after the Liverpool manager intervened to try and calm him as he protested against a refereeing decision during the Reds’ 2-2 draw with Brighton at the Amex Stadium.

The Italian was shown a yellow card by referee Anthony Taylor for remonstrating with the fourth official when his team were denied a penalty for a possible handball against Virgil van Dijk.

The ball struck the defender on the leg and bounced up onto his arm, with the manager insistent his side should have been given a spot-kick as they sought a way back from 2-1 down.

This team doesn’t give up.

— Brighton Hove Albion (@OfficialBHAFC)

Klopp went into Brighton’s technical area to try and sooth the situation, putting his arms around De Zerb…

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi may have accomplished a lot in the Champions League, but as Ajax thrashed Sporting CP on Wednesday it was Sebastien Haller who wrote his name into the history books. 

Haller emulated a feat only previously achieved by Marco van Basten by scoring four goals on his Champions League debut, powering Ajax to a 5-1 success in the Group C encounter at Estadio Jose Alvalade. 

Van Basten, a Netherlands and Ajax icon, struck four times when Milan defeated Gothenburg 4-0 at San Siro in the inaugural Champions League season of 1992-93. 

Haller s first in Lisbon came after just 68 seconds – the fourth time Ajax have scored a goal in the opening two minutes of the competition since the start of 2019-20, which is two more than any other…

Thailand sacked coach Milovan Rajevac in the wake of their 4-1 loss to India at the Asian Cup on Sunday.

After making a poor start to their Group A campaign, Thailand moved quickly, sacking Rajevac and announcing Sirisak Yodyardthai as interim boss.

Former Ghana coach Rajevac took charge of Thailand in 2017 before earning a contract extension until 2020 in February last year.

But a semi-final loss at the AFF Cup, which the nation had won in 2014 and 2016, and the India defeat led to his sacking.

I believe that this is not the way we, not just FA Thailand, but all Thai people, support this national team to play, the governing body s president Somyot Poompanmoung said in a statement.

With this regard, I announce duty relieving of Milovan Rajevac a…

With the World Cup qualifiers taking center stage this weekend, we have another stacked Saturday schedule from across the globe. So, for those of you who are looking to put on a weekend flutter, we have found a handful of helpful tips that are worth keeping an eye out for.

Saturday October 9th

BST 15:00 Sheffield Wednesday vs Bolton 

While Bolton might have only made their League One return earlier in the year, there is no doubt that the Whites have continued to shock many across England s third-tier. Finding another morale boost in midweek as they breezed their way to a thumping 4-1 win against Liverpool U21 s on EFL Trophy duties, Ian Evatt s men firmly find themselves battling it out in the play-off hunt. Looking to lay down what would be a real marker on …

According to a recent report from Sky Italy, AC Milan have renewed their interest in Watford winger Gerard Deulofeu following their relegation from the Premier League.

The Serie A side have made contact with his agent as they aim to resign him on a permanent basis following his loan spell with the club back in 2017.

The expectation is that a deal could be pushed through relatively quickly, but either way, it feels like a natural next step for Deulofeu to move away from English football in the wake of what happened to the Hornets.

He’s had a strong spell in the Premier League with a few notable moments, as well as in the FA Cup when he helped to mastermind Watford’s dramatic comeback over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Wembley in their 2019 semi-final.

AC…

Mauricio Pochettino insists he respects referee Craig Pawson s decision to send off Son Heung-min and Juan Foyth in Tottenham s 1-0 Premier League defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday.

Son was dismissed just before the break for pushing Jefferson Lerma to the ground, while half-time replacement Foyth received a red card only two minutes and 13 seconds after the restart for an ugly lunge on Jack Simpson.

The Cherries numerical superiority finally told in stoppage time when Nathan Ake headed home from a corner.

Asked whether he thought Son s dismissal was harsh, Pochettino told Sky Sports: There is nothing to say. I respect the decision of the referee and my opinion is not too important. You cannot change what happened before now.

On Foyth s red card, Poch…

Pep Guardiola accepts Manchester City must adapt to the artificial surface they face in Switzerland this week – but claims “common sense” dictates grass is better.

The holders will play on unfamiliar terrain in their latest Champions League outing on Wednesday when they take on Young Boys on their synthetic pitch at the Wankdorf Stadium.

Guardiola insists there are no complaints on his part, and he has changed his team’s routine to ensure they are prepared.

PEP (On artificial pitch) UEFA allow to play here because it is in good condition… That’s why we travel in the morning, so the players feel how the ball runs right, left, backwards, forwards. That s why we try it and the players will know it immediately.

— Manchester City (@ManCity)

…

Arsenal are considering a second bid for Leeds United winger Raphinha in the summer transfer window, according to . North London club Arsenal’s initial offer for the winger was turned down, and with Chelsea having made a bid of their own for he Brazil international, the Gunners are considering going back in for him.

Chelsea have made a bid for Leeds winger Raphinha and are willing to pay up £65m including add-on. Arsenal seemed to be on their way to getting the winger, but Chelsea have moved in on him now.

Raphinha made 34 starts and one substitute appearance in the Premier League for Leeds last season, scoring 11 goals and providing three assists in the process. During the 2020-21 campaign, the winger made 26 starts and four substitute appearances in the league for …

Dwight Yorke has claimed Manchester United did not need to sign Jadon Sancho due to the emergence of Mason Greenwood at the time.

Sancho joined from Borussia Dortmund in a big-money move in the last transfer window, though the winger s arrival was somewhat overshadowed by Cristiano Ronaldo s sensational return to Old Trafford.

The 21-year-old has struggled for form since the transfer and was dropped by England after disappointing in his initial showings for United.

However, Sancho – who has accumulated 744 minutes across all competitions for his new club – finally found the net against Villarreal on Tuesday after previously going 14 appearances and 10 shots without finding the net.

His Champions League strike was his first goal for the club, having f…

Paulo Bernardo believes he can follow in the footsteps of friend Jota and create his own history at Celtic.

The on-loan Benfica midfielder made his first start for the club in Saturday’s goalless draw against Hibernian after playing the bulk of the midweek Champions League draw against Atletico Madrid following an early hamstring injury to Reo Hatate.

With the Japan midfielder likely to missing for the next two months, Bernardo has a chance to make his mark.

The 21-year-old watched on as Jota became a Celtic fans’ favourite, firstly on loan from Benfica and then after making a permanent deal to Glasgow before sealing a big-money move to Saudi Arabia in the summer.

Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s cinch Premiership encounter with St Mirren, the Portugal…