Liverpool
Rooney Concedes Error After On-Camera Exchange with Van Dijk
Rooney admits his criticism of Van Dijk was ‘unfair’ after an awkward post-match exchange. for fans.
Wayne Rooney has accepted that his public criticism of Virgil van Dijk was “unfair” after an uncomfortable meeting between the pair following Liverpool’s 1–0 win over Real Madrid in the Champions League. The result represented a much improved display from Liverpool after a run that included losing six games from seven across all competitions.
Rooney had earlier suggested that Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah had not “really led the team” and that their “body language is not right”, comments that drew a sharp response from Van Dijk, who labelled Rooney’s analysis “lazy criticism”. The two were then brought together on camera when Van Dijk came out to fulfil media duties instead of the anticipated Dominik Szoboszlai and the exchange was captured by Amazon Prime TV.
On the latest episode of his self-titled BBC Sport podcast Rooney reflected on the encounter and broadened his comments on scrutiny faced by the champions. “It was meant to be Szoboszlai, I think, to come to the table,” Rooney said. “But I think fair play to him, he came out and he put his point across. Listen, Virgil van Dijk over the last five, four years has been one of, if not, the best centre backs in the world , and his performances have dipped over the last few weeks.
“I’ve had my opinion on that; he has his own, which you have to respect. But when you’re the Premier League champions, teams are coming for you, and when you don’t win one game, people ask questions. I think the issue is, when you don’t play well and you’re not winning games, as Premier League champions, everyone’s going to have an opinion.
“And, of course, when you’re not playing well or you’re not winning games that opinion… they’re going to look at why and give their thoughts why. Liverpool can use this in two different ways: they can let it affect them, or they can use it to spur them on.
“You look at Man Utd over the last few years, the criticism that they’ve had. I played the game, I was captain of England , captain of Man Utd . I got criticised for all kinds. That’s part of being a top player. You have to deal with that. You have to accept it at times. Listen, I was unfair with my comments, I’d be the first to hold my hands up. Same way I did with Man Utd when I had a rant about them and then they won games, and I come back on that. If I was unfair, I’d be fair to hold my hands up.”
Rooney also said he “doesn’t know” Van Dijk personally, and that suggestions the 34-year-old had eased off after signing his new contract were misplaced. He added that “the best players, top players, which Van Dijk is, use that to spur them on,” a reaction Liverpool will hope to see as they seek to close the gap to early Premier League pacesetters Arsenal before the end of the calendar year.
Liverpool
Liverpool at a Crossroads: Slot’s Short-Term Future Hinges on Champions League Result
Slot’s future at Liverpool hinges on Wednesday’s Champions League tie as criticism and doubts grow..
A run of unsettling reports has placed intense scrutiny on Arne Slot’s position at Liverpool, with Wednesday’s Champions League last-16 second leg against Galatasaray framed as a potential turning point. The Reds travel to the tie trailing 1–0 on aggregate and return to Anfield needing to overturn that deficit.
The line of argument running through recent coverage assumes Slot holds the same reservoir of goodwill at the club as his predecessor. While both men share the same tally of Premier League titles, the German’s teams were celebrated as much for their high-energy style as their trophies. Slot himself has conceded this iteration of the team are “boring.” Supporters made their displeasure heard with boos after Sunday’s 1–1 draw with relegation-battling Tottenham Hotspur.
At present Slot is not thought to be in immediate danger of being sacked. Still, The Athletic’s James Pearce warned he must “turn this around” and that “the clocking is ticking” on finding a solution. Those alarm bells could start ringing as soon as Wednesday night.
Liverpool created a notable number of chances in Istanbul, a fact that offers hope of a comeback, but chronic defensive problems continue to compromise any sense of security at the back. Slot reportedly retains the faith of the club hierarchy, yet The Athletic’s Simon Hughes warned “it will be really, really hard for Slot to rescue back that trust” should Liverpool again exit in the round of 16.
Slot’s appointment as Liverpool’s “head coach” in the summer of 2024 coincided with the arrival of Richard Hughes as sporting director. The pair presided over the largest single-window spend by any club last summer. Hughes has been linked with a role at Al Hilal, according to The Telegraph, though no official contact is thought to have been made. Both Slot and Hughes have contracts running until 2027.
The potential loss of a close ally would only weaken Slot’s standing. Meanwhile former players continue to offer forthright assessments; Jamie Carragher labelled Liverpool a “team of individuals” after the Spurs draw. The Dutch coach has offered a different view, but the coming week will be decisive for perceptions of his stewardship.
Arsenal
Money Talks: CIES Ranks the World’s Most Valuable Squads
CIES values nine squads over $1bn; Real Madrid leads at $1.78bn while Tottenham exceed $1bn. Values.
The surge in transfer prices and squad valuations has reshaped how clubs are measured. The CIES Football Observatory produces those estimates by weighing a player’s quality, age, position and length of contract, and those individual valuations are then summed to give each squad a market value.
The scale is striking. There are nine clubs with squads valued above $1 billion. At the top is Real Madrid with a squad valuation of $1.78 billion and Kylian Mbappé listed as the most valuable player at $221 million. Barcelona follow with $1.60 billion, Lamine Yamal accounting for $403.9 million of that total. Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain each sit at $1.55 billion, with Bukayo Saka ($131.5 million) and Désiré Doué ($150.3 million) named as their most valuable players respectively.
Liverpool’s roster is valued at $1.20 billion, most valuable player Florian Wirtz ($149.8 million). Bayern Munich come in at $1.15 billion with Michael Olise ($162.6 million) as their top-rated asset. Tottenham’s squad is valued at $1.03 billion; Xavi Simons is listed as their most valuable player ($98.1 million), despite the club’s current relegation fight and Igor Tudor’s assessment that players “are lacking when we attack, we lack the quality to score the goal. We are lacking in the middle to run and we are lacking behind to stay there to suffer and not concede the goal.”
The list also includes Manchester United ($953 million, Benjamin Šeško $100.3 million) and Inter ($942 million, Lautaro Martínez $117 million). Earlier-positioned squads under $1 billion include Atlético Madrid ($903 million, Julián Álvarez $136.5 million), Juventus ($896 million, Kenan Yıldız $152.5 million) and Brighton ($894 million, Diego Gómez $86.4 million).
Several voices in the game have reflected on the market changes. Karl-Heinz Rumminegge said, “There are some players who do not come with a price tag.” Robert Lewandowski complained, “You are young, you score 10 goals in six months and some club will pay 60 or 70 million,” adding, “Before, you had to achieve something.” Vincent Kompany warned players about hype: “I always tell my players, ‘When there’s hype please don’t believe it, you’re not that good.’”
Whether the valuations mirror on-field quality or the inflation of a transfer market remains the central question CIES data brings into focus.
Analytics & Stats
Szoboszlai’s Conference League Comment Underlines Liverpool’s Finishing and Late-Goal Problems
Szoboszlai warned Liverpool must wake up; finishing inefficiency and late concessions persist. Today
Dominik Szoboszlai opened the scoring with his fourth Premier League free kick of the season, the most any Liverpool player has ever amassed in the competition’s history, but the lead did not hold. Richarlison salvaged a 90th-minute equaliser as Liverpool again dropped points late.
“I feel flat,” Szoboszlai told Sky Sports, barely raising his voice above a whisper. “We have to wake up because if we carry on like this, we should be happy with the Conference League.” Asked for an explanation behind this painfully familiar collapse — it was the eighth goal Liverpool have conceded in the 90th minute or later this season — Szoboszlai delivered a concerning response: “I don’t know why this is happening, I honestly don’t know.
“I think in the first half we played very well, we controlled the whole game and they hardly created chances apart from one or two headers. Second half we just didn’t so the same things.”
There was a clear sense of complacency after the opener: between that free kick and Richarlison’s equaliser, Tottenham registered twice as many shots on target as their hosts (six to three). Manager Arne Slot was less focused on attitude and more on finishing. “I think we are completely underperforming in terms of the chances we create and the amount of goals we score,” he said. “That’s quite a surprise if you look at how much attacking quality we have.”
Slot added: “If you’re not able to score enough, then you have to be able to keep a clean sheet, and that’s something we find really hard this season.”
The numbers underline the problem. “Liverpool have racked up 49 Premier League goals this season from an expected goals (xG) of 50.0, per FotMob.” That one-goal difference which Slot has bemoaned is almost exactly the Premier League average. Ten teams have a larger negative differential between their xG and actual goals scored, while nine different sides have been more efficient than Liverpool this season. Liverpool scored 86 goals from an xG of 83.5 last term, and nine clubs out-performed their predicted goal tally by a larger margin than the Reds.
Opta define a “big chance” as “a situation where a player is reasonably expected to score” and it is these opportunities Liverpool have frequently squandered. The side have converted 32% of their “big chances” this season—only three clubs have a lower rate. Big chances created fell from 150 (1st) in 2024–25 to 81 (6th) this season, while big chances missed moved from 92 (1st) to 55 (4th).
