Mohamed Salah defeats Lionel Messi to win the Ballon d’Or, as Liverpool agree a new four-year contract.

While Mohamed Salah outperformed Lionel Messi in a Ballon d’Or performance deserving of a new contract, Liverpool has reached an agreement regarding a new contract with a defender.

The international break is almost over, which means Liverpool will resume Premier League play the following week.

The Reds entered halftime with plenty of momentum after an encouraging league debut that culminated in a convincing 3-0 victory over Aston Villa. All attention will be on maintaining form in the fight for the Premier League championship with Wolves coming up next.

Next Saturday’s match between Jürgen Klopp’s team and Manchester City won’t start until later in the day at Molineux, but three victories will put Jürgen Klopp’s team back atop the Premier League standings, which seemed nearly unimaginable following last season’s underwhelming performances.

That has been largely due to Liverpool’s management of its team. The Reds have been able to move more quickly toward their goal of returning to the Champions League thanks to the signings of Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis MacAllister, who both had 1-0 victories with their respective nations in midweek.

“Heavy-metal football” is back in tune and the chords now have a sense of control after two crucial cogs were installed in Klopp’s renovated machines

The Reds have had the opportunity to witness some impressive performances from players during a time that is typically quiet for Liverpool supporters. While Andy Robertson led Scotland one step closer to qualifying for the European Championships with a 3-0 victory over Cyprus, Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nez both excelled while playing for their respective countries.
Scotland now has five straight victories and a nine-point advantage over Spain in second place.

However, with league football soon returning without the distraction of the transfer window, Liverpool must now concentrate on building the team for the future, with the subject of player contracts likely to come up as January approaches.

Kostas Tsimikas set to sign new deal

The Athletic reports that Kostas Tsimikas and a new two-year extension have reached an agreement. The Greek star’s new contract will keep him in Merseyside until 2027, securing a crucial squad player and well-liked team member.

Despite not challenging Robertson for the starting left-back spot, Tsimikas has offered Klopp a useful backup after making 20 Premier League appearances the previous year.

Mohamed Salah beats Lionel Messi in Ballon d’Or feat

With his most recent nomination for the Ballon d’Or in 2023, Mohamed Salah joined a select group of only four players who have been nominated for each of the previous five awards.
Salah played a key role in Liverpool’s late-season turnaround in performance the previous year, finishing the Premier League with a total of 19 goals and 12 assists from 38 appearances.

Only Kylian Mbappé, Kevin De Bruyne, and Karim Benzema have accomplished that feat of consecutive nominations in the previous five awards ceremonies, forming a select four-player club without Lionel Messi, the favorite for this year’s award after he and Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister won the World Cup.

That illustrates the significance of the Egyptian international who was sought after by Al-Ittihad of the Saudi Pro League toward the close of the transfer window.

Perhaps Liverpool should consider a new contract given the amount of talk surrounding transfers.

More news……

Jurgen Klopp sent a clear message on the transfer of Evan Ferguson

Former Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt praises Evan Ferguson as potential signing, talks Virgil van Dijk’s form

Liverpool hero Dirk Kuyt believes Brighton’s Evan Ferguson should be on his former club’s radar as he insists Virgil van Dijk is still “one of the best”.

The 18-year-old Ferguson broke into Roberto De Zerbi’s Gabbiano team, as many youth players have already done.

The striker scored six goals in 19 Premier League games last season, but has already scored four goals in four games this season, thanks in part to a hat-trick against Newcastle United last weekend.

Brighton could compete in European football for the first time in the club’s history, starting in the Europa League group stage later this month.
However, that hasn’t stopped players like Alexis Mac Allister from switching to top rivals to further their careers.

In his current form, Kuyt has singled out Ferguson as one of the next candidates for Brighton to earn a transfer. He thinks Liverpool should be in the fray for a player who rejected him at youth level.

“Evan Ferguson looks dangerous to me! He’s in good shape,” the Dutchman told BettingSites.co.uk.
“He’s an interesting player to watch and I’m looking forward to following him over the coming months.
For me he’s one to watch in the Premier League right now.

“Ferguson will certainly be watched by the top six clubs, including Liverpool, but he will need to hold on for a longer period of time to show he is capable of having a very consistent season.
But from what I’ve seen so far, he could definitely be on the radar of top teams.”

Van Dijk, now captain of Kuyt’s home country and also a Dutch international who plays for Liverpool, was also part of the Reds’ former number 18.

The centre-back has been criticized for his performances at times when the whole team was struggling, especially last season.
However, Kuyt insists the No.4 is ‘still one of the best’ even after his 2020/21 season injuries and recent red card.

He said: “People forget that Van Dijk had a very serious injury.
It takes time to recover from it and I think he’s already done a great job of recovering from it.” “The other Liverpool players have to bring out the best in themselves and I think van Dijk is determined to do his best again. I watched the first two games he played and together with Konate he has very well played and does a great job.

“Even in the game against Newcastle, he was in control of the defence.
He was also comfortable with the ball.
However, after 28 minutes he made a small mistake and received a red card – a tough call in my opinion.
But that’s how it is in football and if you make a small mistake as a defender or goalkeeper it can cost you dearly.

“He is doing very well, the team is getting results and he is now captain.
I have great hope that he can return to his best level. I think he can’t wait to prove people wrong.

“He’s still a great defender, but he did his best at such a high level.” He remains one of the best defenders.
Liverpool also play with a high line and that makes things difficult.”