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Sadio Mane struggled for form as Liverpool drew 0-0 with Bayern Munich in the Champions League Round of 16 on Tuesday.

The Reds had the chance to take advantage of home comforts in the first leg but drew a blank, with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino also in frustrating form.

But it was Mane who seemed to be at the centre of every major chance that fell Liverpool’s way.

Indeed, he showed signs that it might not be his night in the 15th minute, as he faced up Joshua Kimmich, turned him inside out and worked an angle for a shot. It was a wild effort and flew wide.

In the 32nd minute, he twisted to shoot first-time after a Naby Keita shot was deflected into his path, but he scuffed the effort and it did not trouble Manuel Neuer. An overhead kick in the second half was not even close.

Late on, a fine diving header drew an excellent save from the Germany goalkeeper but it was his only shot on target in the game.

While a member of a trio, when Mane fails to fire, Liverpool often struggle to create genuine moments of danger.

This was true on Tuesday, too, as, per WhoScored, Mane touched the ball just 37 times, the fewest of any Reds outfield player.

He completed just one dribble throughout the game, too, and was dispossessed five times, the most of any player on the pitch.

In total, Mane also committed three fouls, the joint-most of anyone except for Robert Lewandowski.

The Senegal international attempted a mere 17 passes, the least of any Liverpool player that started the game, and 13 lower than Alisson, who had the second-lowest tally for the home side.

Mane’s misfires ultimately stunted Liverpool’s attacking rhythm and robbed them of the dynamism that usually defines their forays forward.

Because of his poor form, the Reds could not sustain their pressure and now find themselves in need of a classic performance in Germany if they are to progress to the next round.

Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips could be out for up to four months through injury, according to injury expert Ben Dinnery.

The Lowdown: Leeds suffer Phillips blow

The 25-year-old has been an enormous figure for the Whites in recent years but they are now facing a long spell without him in the team.

Phillips has undergone surgery on a hamstring injury, heightening the need for a new midfielder to come in during the January transfer window.

While there is no definite timeframe regarding Phillips’ return date, a rather bleak outlook has been offered.

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The Latest: Expert makes worrying claim

Speaking to Football Insider, Dinnery admitted Phillips looks likely to miss around three to four months of football, rather than a more optimistic two:

“We’re talking about a player who’s going under the knife. Two months to me always seemed very optimistic, to me. Typically, the data suggests that three to four months is more likely.

“That 105-day mark is what we usually see. We have seen examples in the past of players who have been out even longer than that.

“Danny Welbeck has had a couple of these procedures. If he returns on Boxing Day, which is possible, that will be bang-on three months. Sarmiento from Brighton looks like he will be closer to four months.

“So you can’t rule out this two-month timeline, but things would have to go really, really well. That would be the exception rather than the norm.”

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The Verdict: Huge loss for Whites

Leeds have had a tough start to the season as it is, most recently being thumped 7-0 by Manchester City, and not having Phillips for a big chunk of the campaign is a huge blow.

The midfielder is such an influential figure, making 226 appearances for the club and winning England’s Player of the Year award back in August.

Without Phillips around, it is simply imperative that a new signing is made in the middle of the park, or Leeds could easily find themselves in a relegation scrap.

Adam Forshaw seems to be the most reliable option at Marcelo Bielsa’s disposal currently, but even he has only just returned from nearly two years on the sidelines.

In other news, a journalist has made a claim regarding a possible Leeds signing. Find out who it is here.

An update has emerged regarding Newcastle United and their interest in Premier League metronome Douglas Luiz…

What’s the talk?

According to The Athletic, the Villa midfielder has featured in discussions for the Magpies as they eye up deals ahead of the deadline on Monday.

The report claims that Yves Bissouma, of Brighton is too expensive for the Toon, whilst a move to bring Bruno Guimaraes to St James’ Park from Lyon is progressing nicely.

Better than Willock

Newcastle must ensure that they are able to get a deal over the line for Luiz in the coming days, as he could be a major upgrade on Joe Willock in midfield.

The current Magpies midfielder has averaged an unimpressive SofaScore rating of 6.63 in the Premier League this season, losing 53% of his duels over the course of the campaign since his permanent summer move from Arsenal. He has been unable to deliver consistently good displays in the top flight, and that is something Luiz could bring to the table.

For Villa this term, the former Manchester City man has averaged a SofaScore rating of 6.96. He has won 53% of his duels and provided 1.4 key passes per game, along with registering three assists. Luiz is also an asset defensively as he has averaged 3.1 tackles and interceptions per game.

Pep Guardiola previously heaped praise on the Brazilian, saying: “He’s a guy who plays all of the minutes. He’s an important player for Aston Villa. A guy who’s clever with the ball, so physically strong. He’s a lovely, lovely guy. Today, when he was involved in the game, defensively, offensively, he was good.”

Jermaine Jenas once dubbed him “underrated”, and his aforementioned statistics in the Premier League suggest that the 23-year-old is deserving of applause.

The £52k-per-week gem has shown that he can be a reliable option in the top flight by producing excellent performances week in, week out, which Willock has been unable to do this season. Therefore, the Villa ace seems a much better player than the former Arsenal man at the moment and could be a terrific addition to Eddie Howe’s squad.

This is why the Magpies must work hard to secure a deal to bring him to Tyneside, along with Guimaraes, before the window slams shut on Monday. Luiz is a proven Premier League player, and his statistics suggest that he will be a major upgrade on Willock in the middle of the park.

AND in other news, Howe can finally axe shocking NUFC “nightmare” with “incredible” £100k-p/w monster…

Wolves continued their 100% start to 2022 with a 3-1 win over Southampton at Molineux as Bruno Lage’s men moved back into eighth place.

Raul Jimenez’s first half penalty and second half goals from Conor Coady and Adama Traore secured the points, but it was young left-back Rayan Aït-Nouri who was particularly impressive for the Midlands outfit, standing out as arguably the manager’s real hero throughout the match.

The 20-year-old hadn’t started a Premier League match since the 1-0 defeat at Manchester City in mid-December and impressed on his return to top-flight action, having started his first game in a month last Sunday in the 3-0 FA Cup success over Sheffield United.

The Wolves wing-back was credited with the assist for Jimenez’s penalty after being fouled by Saints defender Jan Bednarek, and he was a real livewire in the final third all afternoon.

According to SofaScore, the Frenchman contributed two key passes as well as creating two big chances for Lage’s men whilst also enjoying a 75% dribble success rate, being awarded a hugely impressive 8.1/10 rating. Moreover, Aït-Nouri completed 74% of his passes, as well as two of the three crosses he attempted.

As a wing-back, the youngster succeeded with his defensive duties too, making two tackles and two interceptions whilst also winning 62% of his duels. However, the home side were unable to keep a clean sheet as Southampton captain James Ward-Prowse scored a sensational free kick from distance late on.

The victory was only the 10th league appearance this season for the Frenchman, but with performances like this one, he will heavily boost his claim for a regular starting spot in Lage’s side.

Granted, a groin injury hasn’t helped the £33k-p/w defender stake his claim for a regular spot, forcing the 20-year-old to miss Wolves’ busy festive period having enjoyed a run of eight consecutive starts prior to that setback.

Aït-Nouri’s main competitor for a place is arguably Marçal, with the Brazilian left-back featuring in Lage’s first eight games as Wolves manager. However, the 32-year-old has only played three league games since and was absent from the squad on Saturday. He may find it hard to get back into the team based on his younger team-mate’s performance this afternoon.

In other news – Imagine him & Neves: Wolves must secure deal for £27m-rated beast who has “a lot of character”

Lucas Moura has given Antonio Conte plenty to think about as Spurs advanced into the fifth round of the FA Cup on Saturday evening.

The north London outfit welcomed top-flight rivals Brighton and Hove Albion to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on their return from the winter break and they ran out 3-1 victors.

Goals from Harry Kane, either side of a Solly March own goal and Yves Bissouma consolation strike, sealed the win.

With the Lilywhites in cruise control for much of the game, the Italian head coach was able to hand debuts to both Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski following their deadline day moves from Juventus last week.

And the latter particularly impressed in a 22-minute cameo from the bench.

His brilliant movement on and off the ball should’ve seen him earn a near-perfect maiden outing. The Swede laid on the perfect ball for Steven Bergwijn, only for the winger to sky it into the stands.

The Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick dubbed his short outing as “eye-catching” after the game. The same cannot be said for the vastly-experienced Brazilian, who for large parts of the match went missing.

‘Barely registered in an unusually subdued display,’ is how the reporter described Moura’s performance as he ranked him amongst Spurs’ worst players on the night.

Indeed, across his 68 minutes on the pitch, the 29-year-old managed only 44 touches, in which he lost possession 17 times, meaning he handed the ball back to the Seagulls once every four minutes.

Wasteful.

Elsewhere, he failed to register a single shot on target, pulled off just one successful dribble from three attempts and made only 19 passes at an accuracy rate of 70%, as per SofaScore.

Ineffective.

The £18m-rated lightweight, who also lost 60% of his battles, has now given Conte a massive dilemma. This sort of disappointing display has come at the worst moment as his potential successor – Kulusevski – looked the part instantly.

Once claimed to be a “nightmare” to train against by teammate Eric Dier, it would not be a surprise to see Moura’s place in the starting XI at risk heading into the next couple of matches – and importantly, their return to the Premier League, where a place in the top four is still up for grabs.

The former PSG star can ill-afford more matches like that now that he has serious competition for places – whether Conte drops him or not remains to be seen but the Italian has plenty to mull over before they host Southampton on Wednesday night.

It could also be too soon to trust Kulusevski but that cameo was too good to ignore, thus the 52-year-old has been left with a major dilemma this weekend.

AND in other news, Forget Kane: £31.5m-rated Spurs “animal” with 97% pass accuracy stole the show vs Brighton…

A crushing Rangers transfer claim has emerged, regarding Nathan Patterson’s future at Ibrox…

What’s the talk?

According to The Athletic’s Jordan Campbell, the defender is closing in on an exit from the Glasgow giants to join a Premier League side.

He Tweeted: “Everton are in talks with Rangers to secure the signing of Nathan Patterson. Discussions have gone well so far and any deal will see Rangers receive a club record fee that will outstrip Alan Hutton’s move to Spurs in 2008.”

Nightmare

This devastating blow comes as a nightmare for Gio van Bronckhorst in both the short and long-term. Irrespective of the money involved, this deal will cause some serious issues for Rangers that will need to be resolved before the end of the month.

By selling Patterson, Rangers have lost left-back and right-back cover as well as the long-term successor to James Tavernier. The Scotland international is a right-back by trade but recently played on the left side whilst Borna Barisic was out, due to Calvin Bassey’s impressive form at centre-back meaning that he is no longer deputising when needed on the left-hand side.

This means that the Gers will be left without adequate cover in defence if they lose Barisic or Tavernier for any length of time. Fans will surely be fuming with this as it could have a serious impact on the title race or their efforts in Europe, should they fail to bring in a replacement before the end of January.

Whilst that highlights the impact this sale could have this season, the long-term problem it creates is what happens to the right-back position after Tavernier hangs up the boots. The ex-Newcastle man is now in his 30’s and there is no telling when his powers will begin to wane or whether or not he may want to move back down south of the border to finish his career in his home country.

Patterson, at the age of 20, appeared primed to take over his spot at right-back, but that potential is now being washed away by this news. This means that van Bronckhorst will need to dip into the market to find Tavernier’s successor, which could be helped by the record fee they are reportedly set to receive.

Therefore, this news comes as a nightmare for the Dutch head coach as it creates multiple problems in the here, now and the future.

AND in other news, Gio masterclass: Rangers must swoop for “bag of tricks” who’s “impossible to handle”…

Spurs finally return to Premier League action this evening following their last-minute postponement at Burnley on Sunday afternoon.

Back in north London, Antonio Conte’s side welcome top-flight newcomers Brentford to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the most intriguing of encounters.

Only three points separate the Lilywhites and the Bees heading into kick-off, which is a rather damning indictment on the latter’s incredible rise and the former’s recent fall from grace.

It means that Spurs’ last competitive fixture was nearly a week ago, in which they were humiliated by the Europa Conference League’s lowest-ranked team, NS Mura, who defeated a heavily-rotated lineup in Slovenia.

Amongst the starters that day was right wing-back Matt Doherty, who you would think is a perfect fit for the Italian’s system but truth be told, he has never been good enough and that much was evident under Jose Mourinho. And then perhaps the writing was on the wall when his former Wolves boss Nuno Santo snubbed him frequently in N17.

Indeed, the Republic of Ireland international has been a bit of a walking liability and somewhat a £15m transfer disaster.

After last week’s game, former Spurs midfielder Jamie O’Hara unleashed at the 29-year-old, and few others, deeming them all “shocking” to Sky Sports News. Similarly, Evening Standard reporter Dan Kilpatrick described him as “wasteful” and rusty” in his post-match column.

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Mourinho, who signed the defender in his first summer at the club, was once seen berating Doherty for his limp display against Liverpool and it even led to reports suggesting that his future was in doubt under the Portuguese, per ESPN.

Clearly not much has changed as he has started only five games in 2021/22.

The north London outfit clearly felt comfortable with Doherty providing competition to summer signing Emerson Royal as they cancelled Serge Aurier’s contract to allow him to find a new club post-deadline day.

But the £14.4m-rated dud, who earns around £74k-per-week at the club, isn’t fit to lace the Brazilian’s boots and that much is shown by who is often favoured, as evident above.

Fans around the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium have also regularly laid into the Irishman, some calling him a “liability” for example, so it’s clear that he has just been one massive disaster and as such, he should have no involvement against Brentford on Thursday evening.

With Ivan Toney and Bryan Mbuemo in fine form, scoring six goals between them, Conte cannot afford to carry someone like Doherty and instead, he must bring Emerson back into the fold, as he planned to do at Turf Moor a few days ago.

AND in other news, Conte could rectify Daniel Levy’s ghastly £32m transfer mistake this January…

Leeds United and Tottenham are interested in Scottish teenager Calvin Ramsay, according to The Daily Record’s Scott Burns.

The Lowdown: Ramsay profiled

Ramsay is just 18 years of age and is primarily a right-back who can also play as a right midfielder.

Contracted until 2024 with Aberdeen, Ramsay is claimed to be “in the elite upper bracket” of his position by Dons chairman Dave Cormack.

He’s made 20 appearances in 2021/22 and has racked up an impressive eight assists, and it seems as if he is a player now on Victor Orta’s radar.

The Latest: Burns’ claim

Reliable reporter Burns shared a story late on Wednesday evening, leading with a title that Leeds and Spurs ‘ramp up interest’ in Ramsay.

It is believed that scouts from both sides were at Pittodrie on Tuesday to watch Ramsay against Rangers, joining officials from Leicester City, Manchester United and Southampton.

The Verdict: Drameh replacement?

Leeds youngster Cody Drameh has recently moved to Cardiff City for the second half of the season, a decision Marcelo Bielsa wasn’t exactly thrilled about.

The youngster pushed for a loan to the Championship side, and should Bielsa remain in charge next season, there may well be no place for the youngster following his recent decision.

So, bringing in Ramsay, who is clearly a future star and is already impressing on the first-team stage, could be a wise move. Leeds could find that difficult, though, with a number of top Premier League sides also keen.

In other news: Leeds now want ‘lively’ speedster as well as Aaronson; he wants a Ballon d’Or within 3 years. 

Former Premier League Golden Boot winner Kevin Phillips has delivered a damning verdict on the transfer of Dele Alli to Everton. 

The verdict: In the wilderness

Signed from Tottenham Hotspur on a permanent basis in a deal which could rise to £40million if all clauses are met (Sky Sports), the 25-year-old has struggled so far on Merseyside.

Left on the bench for each of the Toffees’ last four Premier League matches, the one-time England regular has failed to recapture his best form so far since arriving at Goodison Park.

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In fact, Alli has only played 169 minutes under Frank Lampard, starting just once and failing to complete a full match.

The latest: Summer exit pending?

Following a recent report from The Telegraph suggesting that the Englishman could leave the club as soon as the summer, 48 year-old Phillips told Football Insider that the attacking midfielder may indeed need to move on again but called the news he’s heard a ‘surprise’.

“There have been suggestions that his time at Everton is going to come to an end. That’s a real surprise, for me. I thought a fresh challenge would get him back to the level we saw from him before.

“It’s a really difficult period for Dele Alli and his career. He’s got to find somewhere where he can thrive, and it’s not looking like that’s going to be Everton.

“It’s disappointing for player and club, but the reality is that he has been so far from his best.”

The verdict: What happens next…

Under contract until 2024 (Transfermarkt), it’s difficult to envisage that the club would cut ties with the 37-cap England man as early as the upcoming summer window.

Still just 25 and with undoubted quality, Lampard may well give Alli time in pre-season to prove that he can be part of plans moving forwards.

However, should the 43-year-old succeed in retaining Everton’s top-flight status then the manager will be on the lookout for players to take the side to the next level, something Alli has so far proven to be well below in his fleeting outings.

So far, the man once hailed as ‘amazing’ by Jose Mourinho at Spurs has lost possession on 43 occasions during six league outings for the Blues (Sofascore) and is seemingly in dire need of a career reset.

In other news, three players struggle despite victory. Find out who here!

Newcastle United are reportedly set to seal their first signing of the upcoming summer transfer window after agreeing a fee for Matt Targett…

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the Magpies are expecting to complete a deal to sign the Englishman on a permanent basis from Aston Villa at the end of his loan spell.

The report claims that the Toon are on the verge of securing a £15m swoop for the former Southampton full-back, making him their first addition ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

Eddie Howe will be over the moon

This update will surely leave Newcastle manager Eddie Howe over the moon, as it means that the left-back position is not a cause for concern heading into next season.

Instead of worrying about who his first-choice will be in that position, the 44-year-old can plan ahead knowing that Targett will be slotting in on the left of the backline.

The likes of Matt Ritchie, Jamal Lewis and Paul Dummett are also at the club and can provide competition for the 26-year-old’s place, which means that there is no need for any more signings in that area of the pitch after this deal is completed.

Upon Targett’s arrival at St James’ Park on loan, Howe said: “We have gone into this transfer window with a plan to add strong competition in specific areas of the team and Matt will be a fantastic option for us on the left.

“He has important Premier League experience and know-how at this level, so I’m really pleased we’ve been able to add him to the squad.”

These comments highlight how highly the Newcastle head coach rates the defender, whose performances in the top flight have lived up to the hype. He has proven himself to be a reliable option in the Premier League, with an average SofaScore rating of 6.87 across 26 appearances for Villa and Newcastle this term.

The left-back has created 1.3 chances per game and showcased his defensive quality with an impressive 3.3 tackles and interceptions per match. He is a modern day full-back who can excel at both ends of the pitch, and this is why the ex-Cherries boss will surely love to keep him heading into next season.

At the age of 26, the Magpies can get many more years of service out of Targett, whose performances on the pitch suggest that he could nail down the left-back spot for the foreseeable future at St James’ Park. Signing a player who could be a regular for the next four or five seasons for £15m seems like a bargain on paper, and Howe will be delighted with this prospective deal.

AND in other news, NUFC now eye swoop for “breathtaking” £36m-rated phenomenon, he could be Ginola 2.0…