LIVERPOOL: Jurgen Klopp believes Mohamed Salah is ready to wreak more damage on Manchester United in Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final as the Egyptian gets back up to speed after a lengthy hamstring injury.
Salah scored in his first start at club level since January 1 as the Reds thrashed Sparta Prague 6-1 on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
With that goal, Salah became the first Liverpool player to score 20 or more goals in seven consecutive seasons.
The 31-year-old has scored more goals against United than any other club, netting 12 times in 13 meetings, and his return is a huge boost to Liverpool’s quest for a potential quadruple.
In Klopp’s final season in charge, they have already lifted the League Cup and are also tied on points with Arsenal at the top of the Premier League.
And the German is hoping his talisman can prove decisive in the closing months of the season.
“Mo is pure quality and ask him what he likes the most about Manchester United,” Klopp told his pre-match press conference on Friday.
“Just an exceptional guy, a world-class player and how we dealt without him is unbelievable. But it is better to have him around and on the pitch than just in the changing room.
“We could build him now with minutes and he is ready for Sunday.”
By contrast, United are enduring a miserable second season under Erik ten Hag, with the FA Cup representing their final shot at a trophy.
But they are the only side to have stopped Liverpool scoring this season in a 0-0 draw when the sides met at Anfield in December.
And despite Liverpool enjoying far greater success than their historic rivals during Klopp’s time in charge, he has only won on two of his nine visits to Old Trafford.
“It’s always a tough place to go for us,” said Klopp. “It means everything to both fan groups, we know that. We try to show that on the pitch as well with the work rate but you never know, there are no guarantees.”
Liverpool’s injury crisis is slowly beginning to clear, with Ibrahima Konate and Ryan Gravenberch in contention to make their return on Sunday.
But Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota remain sidelined until at least after the upcoming international break.
‘World-class’ Salah ready to wreak havoc on Man Utd, says Klopp
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‘World-class’ Salah ready to wreak havoc on Man Utd, says Klopp
- Salah scored in his first start at club level since January 1 as the Reds thrashed Sparta Prague 6-1
- With that goal, Salah became the first Liverpool player to score 20 or more goals in seven consecutive seasons
US drops bid to preserve FIFA bribery convictions
- Prosecutors told the Supreme Court on Tuesday they wanted to end their fight
- The case was one of several to emerge from a sweeping 2015 corruption probe by DOJ
NEW YORK: The US government has moved to drop its case against a former Fox broadcasting executive involved in the FIFA corruption scandal that plunged the world’s footballing body into crisis.
Prosecutors told the Supreme Court on Tuesday they wanted to end their fight to preserve the convictions of Hernan Lopez and Argentine sports marketing firm Full Play.
Both were found guilty in March 2023 of wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies related to bribes to secure lucrative television rights to international football officials. The convictions were overturned on appeal months later, before being reinstated this July.
The case was one of several to emerge from a sweeping 2015 corruption probe by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), which ultimately led to the downfall of then-FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
In a filing to the Supreme Court, which Lopez had asked to review his conviction, prosecutors said that dismissal of the case is “in the interests of justice,” without giving further details.
They asked the case be returned to a lower court for its formal dismissal.
“I’m grateful the truth prevailed, and I’m also confident more of that truth will come out,” Lopez, a US and Argentine citizen, wrote on X late Tuesday.
While there was no indication of Donald Trump’s involvement, the US president has issued a string of pardons including for corruption related offenses.
In February, he ordered the DOJ to pause enforcement of a long-established law that prohibits American companies from bribing officials of foreign governments to gain business.
Lopez was facing up to 40 years in prison and millions of dollars in penalties after his conviction for money laundering conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy.
During the trial, a US court heard that the main beneficiaries of the kickback scheme were six of the most powerful men in South American football.
They included former CONMEBOL president Nicolas Leoz, who died in 2019, former Argentine football executive Julio Grondona, who died in 2014, and former Brazilian football chief Ricardo Teixeira.
The United States will host the World Cup alongside Canada and Mexico next year.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has cozied up with Trump ahead of the sporting event, this month awarding him the governing body’s inaugural “peace prize.”
