Sports

Game of Thrones Daenerys Targaryen took time off from waging war against the White Walkers to meet Liverpool s Mohamed Salah this week and Jurgen Klopp appeared a little jealous of his player.

Salah was in New York on Tuesday to attend a prestigious gala event for TIME magazine, having been named among the 100 most influential people of 2019 by the publication last week.

The event saw the Egypt forward rubbing shoulders with some of the biggest names in the celebrity world, with Rami Malek, Taylor Swift and Jimmy Fallon among them.

But it was Salah s photo with actress Emilia Clarke – portrayer of Daenerys Targaryen in hit fantasy drama Game of Thrones – which went viral on social media.

And, although Klopp lauded Salah for being a role model, the G…

Chelsea are interested in signing Lois Openda from RB Leipzig in the summer transfer window, according to . The report has claimed that the former Premier League and UEFA Champions League winners are among the clubs who are keen on Openda. RB Leipzig expect bids for the 24-year-old Belgium international striker.

Openda has been on the books of Leipzig since the summer of 2023 when he joined from Lens. The striker has done exceptionally well for the German club this campaign and is one of the best players in the Bundesliga at the moment. Openda has scored 17 goals and given four assists in 23 starts and one substitute appearance in the Bundesliga and has scored four goals in seven starts and one substitute appearance in the UEFA Champions League this campaign.

Chelsea ar…

Diego Simeone says he does not care what others think in response to criticism of his methods following Atletico Madrid s Champions League loss to Manchester City.

Atleti slumped to a first-leg defeat at Etihad Stadium against Pep Guardiola s side, after Kevin De Bruyne struck in the second half to secure a 1-0 advantage in the quarter-final tie.

Simeone s side failed to register a single shot throughout the match, becoming the first team for a decade to do so in the competition in the process, after APOEL in 2012.

That performance prompted criticism from ex-Atleti coach Arrigo Sacchi.

Simeone s approach was the subject of intense scrutiny from Sacchi, who bemoaned that the Argentine s defensive capabilities had turned his team of title-winners into a …

Andrea Pirlo admitted Alvaro Morata s glaring miss in Wednesday s 1-1 draw with Atalanta made him very angry but the Juventus boss praised the forward for an otherwise great game .

Juve were denied a fifth consecutive win in all competitions when Remo Freuler cancelled out Federico Chiesa s opener at the Allianz Stadium.

Cristiano Ronaldo squandered a golden opportunity to seal all three points for the champions, though, missing from the spot after Chiesa had been tripped in the area – his fourth failure from 30 penalties in all competitions for Juve. 

While Pirlo was relaxed about the Portuguese superstar s miss, he could not hide his frustration at Morata s indiscretion early in the first half. 

The Spain international, who has scored nine goals in …

Ronald Koeman has told Barcelona they must win all their remaining six games in 2020 to stay in the LaLiga title hunt. 

A rocky start to the campaign has followed the turbulent end to last season, which came to a head with the 8-2 thumping by Bayern Munich in the Champions League. 

Tension was then created when Lionel Messi tried to push through a close-season exit, while the effect of the pandemic has also hit Barcelona hard, causing off-field strife, with the early departure of president Josep Maria Bartomeu bringing club elections forward to January. 

A whole host of distractions appear to have taken a toll on Barcelona s first-team squad, with three defeats in their opening nine LaLiga games leaving coach Koeman with a tall order to reel in the early f…

Florian Wirtz played a starring role for Bayer Leverkusen this season and has been named the Bundesliga Player of the Year.

Wirtz scored 11 goals and provided a further 11 assists on the way to helping Leverkusen win their first-ever top-flight title.

The forward was pivotal in Leverkusen’s title charge as they became the first German team to complete an unbeaten season.

Only Victor Boniface has scored more goals than Wirtz this campaign, netting 14 times, while his tally of 11 assists is second only to Alejandro Grimaldo (13) across the Bundesliga.

Wirtz came off the bench to score a hat-trick in Leverkusen’s 5-0 win over Werder Bremen in April which clinched the title with five games remaining.

Magic in his boots

Florian is the Bun…

Diego Simeone has opened up about conversations with Luis Suarez as Atletico Madrid attempt to get the former Barcelona striker back to form.

The Uruguay international is Atletico s top scorer in all competitions this season, albeit with just nine goals from 27 appearances.

The 34-year-old, whose contract at Wanda Metropolitano expires at the end of the campaign, has only found the net once in his last 11 club matches.

Suarez s frustration was evident when he was substituted during last month s defeat at Sevilla, with the former Liverpool striker appearing to direct expletives towards coach Simeone.

With the striker s sharp shooting deserting him and his future uncertain, the Atleti boss said there have been discussions between the pair in recent time…

Luis Suarez scored an 88th-minute winner to earn Atletico Madrid a dramatic 2-1 comeback win over Osasuna that keeps their LaLiga title hopes in their own hands heading into the final matchday.

Their dreams of a first title since the 2013-14 season appeared to have suffered a damaging blow 15 minutes from full-time when Ante Budimir struck completely against the run of play in Sunday s clash at Wanda Metropolitano.

Diego Simeone s side had earlier wasted a string of opportunities, twice hit the post and had strikes from Stefan Savic and Yannick Carrasco ruled out, though they dug deep to turn the game around in the final eight minutes.

Substitute Renan Lodi equalised and Suarez atoned for some earlier misses by firing in a winner for Atleti, the result moving the…

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson praised new signing Conor McMenamin and his agents for sacrificing money to get his move to Paisley done.

The 27-year-old Northern Ireland international joins from NIFL Premiership side Glentoran on a two-year deal for an undisclosed fee, subject to clearance, with the Buddies holding the option of a further year.

Robinson told St Mirren’s official website what had to happen to complete the transfer.

He said: “It’s been a protracted negotiation but I have to pay a lot of credit to Conor himself and his agent Brian Adair and Keith Gillespie.

“They made the deal work by taking a little bit less and sacrificing their agency fee and less wages than initially agreed. That shows a real desire to come to St Mirren.

…

Manchester City s wait for a third Premier League title in four years went on after they suffered a 2-1 defeat against Chelsea at the weekend.

Pep Guardiola s side do have an unwanted statistic to their name in that ratio, however, having now lost three of their past four league outings at the Etihad Stadium.

Another trend to continue was Manchester United falling behind before beating Aston Villa 3-1.

As the season reaches its final stretch, players will be well aware it s a marathon not a sprint. Indeed, one of the division s most noted pace merchants has proved again he is adept at lasting the course.

Using Opta data, we take a look at these talking points from the most recent round of Premier League fixtures.

10 Manchester United have won 1…