BARCELONA 2-1 EINTRACHT FRANKFURT | MATCH REVIEW

 

HUGO EKITIKE EXPLAINS 'STUPID' AND 'NEEDLESS' RED CARD FOR TAKING OFF SHIRT

The 23-year-old said the ‘emotion got the better of me’ after coming under criticism from his manager Arne Slot

Hugo Ekitike said the “emotion got the better of me” after removing his shirt in celebration despite already being on a yellow card in Liverpool’s Carabao Cup victory over Southampton.

After scoring the winning goal in the 85th minute, Ekitike received a second yellow card for taking his shirt off and the striker will now be suspended for Liverpool’s trip to Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Ekitike has made a bright start to his Liverpool career since arriving from Eintracht Frankfurt for £69m, with the 23-year-old scoring three goals in his first five Premier League appearances for the Reds.

Slot removes his shirt after scoring Liverpool’s winner, despite being on a booking (Getty Images)

But this was a moment to forget, with his manager Arne Slot criticising his “stupid” and “needless” red card while also hitting out at the nature of Ekitike’s celebration as he held up his shirt rather than thanking Federico Chiesa for the assist.

Ekitike released an apology following the match, with the striker writing on social media: "I was so excited to help the team achieve another victory here in our home for my first Carabao Cup match.

"The emotion got the better of me. My apologies to all the Red family. Thanks to the fans who always support us and to my team-mates for this victory!"

Slot was annoyed that he will be without Ekitike for Saturday’s trip to Selhurst Park, particularly because his other new signing Alexander Isak is still working his way towards full fitness.

“Needless? Yes. And it was stupid,” Slot said. “I told him that if you score in the Champions League final in the 87th minute after outplaying three players and hitting it in the top corner I can maybe understand. He is like, ‘This is all about me, what did I do’.

“But I am old-fashioned, I’m 47 and old. I never played at this level but did score a few goals and if I scored a goal like this, I’d have turned around and walked up to Federico Chiesa and said, ‘This goal is all about you, this is not about me’.

“It’s always the best to control your emotions. If you can’t, do it in a way that doesn’t lead to a yellow card.”

- Jamie Braidwood

ALEXANDER ISAK DRAMA ENDS AS LIVERPOOL'S BRITISH RECORD FEE IS ACCEPTED BY NEWCASTLE: REPORT

The longest running transfer saga of the summer window is reportedly over as Liverpool have decided to dish out a British record fee for Newcastle striker Alexander Isak.

Alexander Isak will be joining Liverpool on the last day of summer transfer window. Image: Reuters

Liverpool have reportedly landed the big fish Alexander Isak from Newcastle, who had become their biggest target in the transfer window, which will close on Monday. Despite signing striker Hugo Ekitike for £79 million from Eintracht Frankfurt, Isak was Liverpool's No 1 target throughout this transfer window.

Liverpool had a £110 million offer for the 25-year-old Isak rejected by Newcastle earlier, but the Telegraph and transfer expert Fabrizio Romano have confirmed that the Magpies have now accepted a British record £130 million offer for the Swedish striker.

- FP Sports Desk, FirstPost

LIVERPOOL SIGN FORWARD HUGO EKITIKE FROM EINTRACHT FRANKFURT

Liverpool completed the signing of striker Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday for a reported £69 million ($92 million) as the Premier League champions continued their summer spending spree.

Liverpool completed the signing of striker Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday for a reported £69 million ($92 million) as the Premier League champions continued their summer spending spree. "The 23-year-old has successfully completed a medical and agreed personal terms with the Reds, allowing him to fly out to Hong Kong to join his new teammates on their pre-season tour of Asia later this week," Liverpool said in a statement. The deal taking the France Under-21 international to Anfield is set to push Liverpool's spending past £250m this summer.

Liverpool switched their focus to Ekitike following Newcastle's refusal to sell Sweden striker Alexander Isak, who is valued at around £150 million by the Magpies.

Newcastle and Manchester United were also interested in Ekitike, but Liverpool have won the race for one of Europe's hottest young stars.

It is believed the Reds have agreed to pay a potential further £10 million in add-ons to sign Ekitike, whose overall price tag could reach £79 million.

Ekitike scored 22 goals in 48 games in all competitions for Frankfurt last season after joining the Bundesliga club from Paris Saint-Germain.

He was named in the Bundesliga team of the season as Frankfurt finished third in Germany last term.

Liverpool have an opening in their forward line after Diogo Jota's recent death in a car crash in Spain.

The Reds are also believed to be willing to sell Uruguay striker Darwin Nunez, while Colombia forward Luis Diaz has been the target of a rejected bid from Bayern Munich.

Liverpool have already splashed out £116 million on Germany playmaker Florian Wirtz, as well as signing defenders Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez from Bayer Leverkusen and Bournemouth respectively.

Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili has also linked up with Arne Slot's side since the end of last season after agreeing his move from Valencia in 2024.

Ekitike began his career with his hometown club Reims and had a brief loan spell in Denmark in 2021 before earning a move to PSG the following year.

He struggled to make an impact in his first season in Paris alongside the likes of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, but claimed a Ligue 1 winner's medal.

His opportunities were again limited at the start of the 2023-24 campaign before he joined Frankfurt on loan.

"Hugo has improved tremendously in his 18 months with us and has been a real asset to our team and the club as a whole on and off the pitch," said Eintracht sporting director Markus Krosche.

"We're delighted he can now take the next step – a step he has earned through his performances with us."

- Agence France-Presse

HOW TIME FLIES! IT'S 32 YEARS SINCE OKOCHA'S DEBUT FOR AUPER EAGLES

One of the globally acclaimed footballers to have come from Nigeria is Austin Okocha, who is better known as ‘Jay Jay’ Okocha.

He belongs to the acclaimed Golden Generation of the Super Eagles, which dazzled the continent and the world from 1994 to 1996. Okocha was pivotal and a central performer in the squad.

His illustrious career in the squad with which he made 68 appearances started on this day 32 years ago, on 2 May.

He made his first appearance for the Super Eagles in a World Cup qualifying duel with Côte d’Ivoire in Abidjan. Nigeria lost 2-1. Since then, Okocha has had 68 caps.

He remains one of Nigeria’s most iconic footballers as his fame cut across the continent.

At Eintracht Frankfurt, he remains one of the most revered players to have worn the German club’s colours, as the fans still have fond memories of him, even over two decades since his departure.

His skill with the ball was a beauty to behold. Even other accomplished players confessed they were inspired by Okocha’s skills.

From being a midfielder, he rose to become the captain of not just his English Premier League club, Bolton Wanderers, but also of the Super Eagles.

In March 2004, the legendary Brazilian football icon, Pelé, named him among the top 125 living footballers in the world. Significantly, only five players from Africa made the list.

When he moved from Fenerbahçe of Turkey to 1998 French Cup winners, Paris St. Germain, at a record transfer fee of $17 million, the amount eclipsed the two most expensive transfers previously made in French soccer history, when Olympic Marseille paid $12.6 million each for Italian international Fabrizio Ravenelli and former Metz star, Robert Pires.

Okocha’s sign-up was regarded as a bid to rebuild the club to recapture the French League. His languid skill and deceptive pace already made him a favourite among French fans who watched him play four World Cup matches. His creative spark was the most noticeable feature of the erratic Super Eagles at the France ’98 World Cup.

Okocha’s career began at home while playing as a 16-year-old for Enugu Rangers. But a chance encounter whilst on holiday in Germany launched his international career. He tried out for a fourth division club, Borussia Neunkirchen, and they snapped him up.

In 1992, Okocha began his ascent in the German league, joining first division club Eintracht Frankfurt and signing professional terms. It was at Frankfurt that he first began to excite German crowds with his dazzling dribbling skills and drew the attention of European agents.

A £ 1 million move to Turkish outfit Fenerbahce was the result in 1996 and Okocha helped his new side to the league title in his first season, but just two seasons later he was on the move again in a staggering $17million switch to Paris St. Germain, making him the most expensive Nigerian footballer ever.

After seeing out his contract with the French giants, Okocha was available on a free transfer – hence the rumoured £ 3.3 million-a-year wages he was reported to be demanding from Bolton Wanderers. It is testament to Sam Allardyce’s negotiation skills that he was able to convince the midfielder to drop his high demands and join the English Premier League outfit.

 At Bolton, he was like a cult hero. “Jay Jay Okocha – so good they named him twice” was a common chant by Bolton fans. This was the attitude of fans towards the gifted Nigerian after the skilful midfielder played the lead role in securing the Trotters’ Barclaycard Premiership status in his debut season at the club. The Nigerian helped Bolton to one of their most successful seasons ever during the 2003/04 campaign. For 131 years, Bolton Wanderers had wandered in the wilderness.

The 2003/04 season was undoubtedly the best season the club ever had. Okocha was part of that historic moment. In the past, it was common to see Bolton Wanderers slipping into relegation almost every other season. Before Okocha arrived at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton Wanderers hardly ever spent three consecutive seasons in the top division.

After a slow start to his Bolton career, Okocha came into his own in the second half of the season, thrilling crowds with his tricks and pleasing Sam Allardyce with his match-winning performances. Bolton’s Player of the Season had many memorable moments throughout the 2002/03 campaign, but his most important contribution was the winning goal against relegation rivals West Ham at the Reebok.

As if to prove his talent, Okocha was honoured with the BBC’s African Player of the Year award for two consecutive seasons. The player who once featured for Nigeria at Mauritius ’93 African Youth Championship moved to SC Qatar at the close of the 2005/06 season.

At the close of the 2006 season, he ranked next to Muda Lawal in the number of international appearances for Nigeria.

The high point of his career was the scoring of the historical 1,000th goal of the African Cup of Nations.  This he did at Monastir, Tunisia, when he converted a penalty kick to put the scoreline at 2-0 in a 4-0 defeat of South Africa.

- Kunle Solaja

RUMOUR MONGERING: LIVERPOOL IN FOR A NEW EGYPTIAN KING?

According to rumors, the Reds are willing to pop up to £50 million for Omar Marmous

Photo by Mohamed Asad/Xinhua via Getty Images

According to Sky Sports Germany, the Reds are seriously considering bringing in Eintracht Frankfurt attacker Omar Marmoush for between £40-50 million. And why not? The last Egyptian attacker Liverpool brought in worked out pretty well.

Marmoush has an impressive 10 goals and 5 assists across 10 Bundesliga and Europa League matches, so a goal or assist every 55.7 minutes. Seems good.

Of course, we already have an Egyptian King, so I guess that would make Marmoush an Egyptian Prince, at least until the sad day when Salah leaves the club. However, unlike Mo, Marmoush is primarily deployed on the left wing, and is right-footed.

According to the report, Liverpool could move for Marmoush as early as the January transfer window.

The rumor is a bit of a funny one though. If there is any area where the Reds are well and truly stacked, it is in attack. And it is no secret that Liverpool desperately want to buy a defensive midfielder, as their three failed and very public efforts to do so over the last two summers shows.

On the other hand, if Liverpool’s laptop gurus see that the 25-year-old is ready for that step up, and the price is right, it might not be the worst idea, especially if Salah does depart in the summer.

- Zachary Marx

MAN UNITED NEAR DEAL FOR BOLOGNA STRIKER

Joshua Zirkzee came off the bench for the Netherlands in their quarterfinal win over Turkey on Saturday. Christina Pahnke - sampics/Getty Images

 Manchester United are closing in on a deal for Bologna striker Joshua Zirkzee, a source has told ESPN.

United have reached a broad agreement over payments relating to Zirkzee's representatives, which had been a stumbling block, and will now seek to reach a deal with Bologna.

Zirkzee has a release clause of £34 million ($43.5m) in his contract which is valid until August, but United may look to negotiate a different deal.

The 23-year-old, who has also been subject of interest from AC Milan, is part of the Netherlands squad preparing for their Euro 2024 semifinal against England in Dortmund on Wednesday.

Zirkzee has emerged as United's preferred striker target after they also considered both Lille's Jonathan David and Brentford's Ivan Toney.

Chelsea have also shown interest in David, who has one year left on his contract at Lille and is available for around £25m.

Zirkzee scored 12 goals for Bologna last season as they finished fifth in Serie A, qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in the modern era.

A source has told ESPN that United remain in contact with Bayern Munich over a deal for Zirkzee's international teammate, Matthijs de Ligt.

The German side are willing to negotiate the defender's exit and value the 24-year-old at more than £40m. United have already seen a bid turned down for Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite this summer.

Bringing in a striker, a centre-back and a central midfielder are United's priorities in the summer window. Dan Ashworth has now taken control of recruitment following his arrival as sporting director last week.

Midfielder Donny van de Beek, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Eintracht Frankfurt, is set to join Girona in a permanent deal worth around £420,000. The fee could increase depending on his success at Girona.

United signed the former Netherlands international midfielder from Ajax in a £40m deal in 2020.

United players who have not taken part in either the European Championship or the Copa América are expected back at Carrington for the start of preseason training on Monday.

Ten Hag has boosted his backroom staff by adding to its Dutch contingent, with legendary striker Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake agreeing two-year deals with the club.

- Rob Dawson, Correspondent

BIZARRE SITUATION MEANS BUNDESLIGA CLUB MAY HAVE TO LOSE FINAL GAME OF SEASON TO QUALIFY FOR CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Getty

 Eintracht Frankfurt may have to lose their last game of the season in order to qualify for the Champions League in a bizarre potential twist to the conclusion of the German top flight's campaign.

Dino Toppmoller's side currently sit in sixth place in the Bundesliga, and need five points from their final three games to ensure that they will finish in that position.

They are currently on course to qualify for the Europa League, and are set to be the sole German team to qualify for the competition.

That is because Germany, through their clubs' performances in European competition this season and co-efficient ranking, have earned an additional spot in next season's Champions League.

That means that the top five teams from this season's Bundesliga - Bayer Leverkusen, Bayern Munich, Stuttgart, RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund - will qualify for the competition, with Frankfurt unable to catch any of them.

But the complication comes in due to Dortmund's progression in the Champions League. Should they beat PSG in the semi-final and then win the competition, they will automatically qualify as holders.

If Dortmund win the competition, they would still join the other four teams above as part of the five teams representing German football - except in one specific scenario.

Rules state that if Dortmund finish fifth in the Champions League and win this year's competition, the extra qualification spot for next season goes to the sixth-placed team - currently set to be Frankfurt.

As a result, Frankfurt need the above two scenarios to happen in order to reach the Champions League. But coincidentally, they can play a major role in getting themselves over the line - by losing a match.

Frankfurt host Leipzig on the final day of the campaign, and may need to lose to their visitors to ensure that Leipzig finish ahead of Dortmund in fourth.

But both Leipzig and Dortmund are within touching distance of Stuttgart in third, who still need to gain three points to ensure they finish ahead of Dortmund.

The Champions League final takes place on June 1 - two weeks after the conclusion of the Bundesliga season - meaning that we won't know which teams get the final qualification spot from the Bundesliga until then.

 - Ryan Smart

TUTA SCORES AND RECEIVES RED CARD AS FRANKFURT DRAWS WITH BREMEN

AP

 BERLIN (AP) — Brazilian defender Tuta scored and then was sent off as Eintracht Frankfurt came from behind at home to draw with Werder Bremen 1-1 in the Bundesliga on Friday.

Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp pulled off several good saves to thwart the visitor but he could only parry a shot in the 62nd minute and Miloš Veljković pounced to knock home the rebound.

The game appeared to swing Frankfurt’s way in the 73rd when Bremen midfielder Jens Stage was sent off for a bad tackle on substitute Jean-Mattéo Bahoya.

The home side pushed forward and four minutes later Tuta got on the end of a lofted pass from Willian Pacho to loop in a headed equalizer and his first league goal of the season.

Then a minute from time, Tuta was shown a straight red card for a foul on Felix Agu.

The draw ensured Frankfurt extended its unbeaten home run to eight games and was sixth in the Bundesliga, nine points behind Leipzig.

Bremen snapped a four-game losing streak and remained in 10th place.

SOME PLAYERS CAN'T HANDLE MAN UNITED - TEN HAG

Getty 

Erik ten Hag has suggested some players can't handle the pressure of representing Manchester United but insists signing for the club is still "the best challenge" for any footballer.

Ten Hag has sanctioned Donny van Beek's loan move to Eintracht Frankfurt in the January window while Jadon Sancho is set to return to former club Borussia Dortmund, also on loan.

Dawson

Van de Beek was on a Ballon d'Or shortlist before his £35m move from Ajax in 2020 and Sancho was one of the most promising young players in Europe when he arrived in a £73m deal from Dortmund in 2021.

Ten Hag, however, insists it's not always the club's fault when high-profile signings don't work out.

"That is always on those players and how much confidence you have in your capabilities but I can tell you one thing; the Premier League is tough," said Ten Hag.

"Man United; that is tough to play there because it's easier to play in almost any other team than Man United because the pressure is that high, always. You have to deal with that.

"But if you have confidence in yourself, this is the best challenge and this is definitely the best club you want to be at as a player. It depends from player to player, and it depends especially on the character of the player, their personality."

Sancho's dip in form since his transfer to Old Trafford two-and-a-half years ago has seen the 23-year-old -- exiled at United for the four months following a public fall-out with Ten Hag -- lose his place in the England squad while Van de Beek was never able to win a regular place in midfield.

Van de Beek excelled under Ten Hag in a team which reached the Champions League semifinals in 2019 but the United manager said a series of injuries meant he was never able to reach the same level at Old Traffor"He has had many injuries, first of all," said Ten Hag.

"I worked with him for two years [at United] and before he was under different managers here. He had a loan before as well. Actually, from the first moment I came in here at Manchester United, he wasn't the player he was at Ajax because he was injured.

"So many times he was not available and then he struggled for a long time to recover from that injury. That is probably the main reason why he was not playing.

"We decided for a loan in the summer but it didn't come and then his opportunities are few because also we make appointments and we make agreements with players and contract players in that position. The competition was high."

- Rob Dowson, Correspondent, ESPN 

TWO RISING STARS OF THE BUNDESLIGA MEET AS LEADER LEVERKUSEN TAKES ON STUTTGART

AP Photo 

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — Is Bayer Leverkusen's German title challenge for real? How about Stuttgart's chances?

The Bundesliga's two teams on the rise meet on Sunday when league-leading Leverkusen travels to third-placed Stuttgart.

Leverkusen's 21-game unbeaten start to the season is on the line again after a rare moment of vulnerability in a 1-1 draw with Borussia Dortmund on Sunday.

Stuttgart knocked Dortmund out of the German Cup on Wednesday and is aiming for another upset win in a season already packed with eye-catching performances.

The simple fact that Stuttgart vs. Leverkusen has become a must-watch game in Germany is tribute to Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso and his Stuttgart counterpart Sebastian Hoeness, who both took over relegation-threatened teams partway through last season and turned them around.

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