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Pep Guardiola's side earned a point deep in stoppage-time after banging down the door throughout the second half against the 10-man Gunners

Manchester City rescued a draw in dramatic circumstances against Arsenal as John Stones' stoppage-time equaliser meant Sunday's early-season title showdown ended in a 2-2 draw.

City started brightly and went ahead inside the first 10 minutes as Erling Haaland latched onto a Savinho through-ball and prodded home a first-time finish for his 100th goal for the English champions in just 105 appearances.

An injury to Rodri, however, turned the game on its head, as Arsenal equalised shortly after the Ballon d'Or contender was forced to hobble off with a knee injury as Riccardo Calafiori fired in a curling effort from 20 yards.

The visitors from north London then took the lead early in first-half stoppage-time as Gabriel Magalhaes rose highest to head home a corner from close-range, only for the Gunners' joy to turn to anguish as Leandro Trossard was sent off for a second yellow card moments later.

As such, the second 45 minutes was played almost entirely on the edge of the Arsenal penalty area, and while David Raya saved from Kyle Walker, Haaland and Josko Gvardiol, City eventually found a way through in the 98th minute as Stones prodded home after a Jack Grealish cross bounced around the penalty area.

GOAL rates City's players from the Etihad Stadium…

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Ederson (4/10):

Had no chance with Calafiori's effort but needed to be stronger up against Martinelli as he was caught under the ball for Gabriel's header. A spectator thereafter.

Kyle Walker (3/10):

Looked a shadow of his old self as he was beaten for pace by Martinelli on more than one occasion, including for the first Arsenal goal. Failed to track Gabriel for his header, too. Stung Raya's palms from range on a couple of occasions.

Manuel Akanji (6/10):

Assured in possession and dealt with crosses from open play into the penalty area.

Ruben Dias (6/10):

Heavily involved, both as the last line of defence and then in the build-up during the second half. Didn't do much wrong, but not his best game either.

Josko Gvardiol (6/10):

Kept Saka pretty quiet in open play during the first half. Forced Raya into a save midway through the second period.

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Rodri (6/10):

In the wars from the opening seconds as he was clattered by Havertz before he was forced off after 20 minutes with what looked to be a serious knee injury.

Bernardo Silva (7/10):

In constant motion and showed some nice touches in and around the penalty area. Couldn't quite unlock the Arsenal defence, however.

Ilkay Gundogan (5/10):

Should have opened the scoring early on and then rattled the post from a free-kick at 1-0. Faded from the game, however, as it became more compacted around the Arsenal penalty area.

AFPAttack

Savinho (8/10):

City's best player throughout. Superb touch inside and through-ball laid on Haaland's opener, and he game Calafiori trouble throughout while drawing two bookings with his pacey dribbling.

Erling Haaland (6/10):

Superb finish brought up his century of goals for City, but he struggled to get involved in the game thereafter. Had a couple of headed efforts kept out by Raya in the second half.

Jeremy Doku (4/10):

Largely locked down by Timber as he couldn't have anywhere near the same impact as Savinho on the opposite flank. Replaced by Foden midway through the second half.

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Mateo Kovacic (5/10):

Barely misplaced a pass but lacked the incisiveness that Rodri may have brought after he replaced the injured Spain star.

Phil Foden (6/10):

On for the final 25 minutes but couldn't unlock the Arsenal defence.

John Stones (7/10):

On for the final 10 minutes or so and was in the right place at the right time to poke home the equaliser.

Jack Grealish (6/10):

Thrown on alongside Stones and his ball into the box led to the equalising goal.

Pep Guardiola (6/10):

Decision to stretch the game and press high paid early dividends, but his team lacked ideas after the break as they looked to break Arsenal down. Slightly fortunate to escape with a point.

Tottenham have the chance to land an exciting new attacker this summer for just £10m, it has been reported.

Spurs keen on attacking additions

Ange Postecoglou's side have already made one addition this summer, re-loaning Timo Werner from RB Leipzig for the upcoming season. However, they remain keen on adding more firepower to their side and are expected to sign at least one more attacking player this summer.

Tottenham's attacking options

Player

Contract until

Richarlison

2027

Heung-Min Son

2025

Dejan Kulusevski

2028

Timo Werner

2025

Brennan Johnson

2028

Manor Solomon

2028

The Spurs boss admitted as much after his side's Premier League finish saw them qualify for the Europa League next season.

"Yeah, absolutely. It's no secret. You saw the way we finished the season. We obviously lost Richy and Timo as well with injuries but we're fairly light in that area," he said. "We started last season with Manor [Solomon] and [Ivan] Perisic and we were quite healthy in that front third in terms of numbers, but as the year went on it became pretty evident that we need to bulk up.

"We're in Europe as well next year so we'll have more games and it's definitely an area of the park we'll need to strengthen."

Spurs keen on signing £70m star to partner Romero

The towering star could help tighten up the Lilywhites’ defence next season.

ByJack Salveson Holmes May 31, 2024 Edwards an option for Spurs return

Reports claim Spurs could finally pull the trigger to bring Marcus Edwards back to north London. The winger left the Lilywhites for Portugal during Mauricio Pochettino's time in charge of the club, and his stock has risen dramatically since.

He drew plenty of praise when he met his former side in the Champions League back in 2022, with the TNT Sport studio waxing lyrical about his ability.

“On the ball, dribbling at people, he’s up there [with the best]”, Owen Hargreaves explained. “He leaves people for dead. Technically he’s fantastic. The young man has so much ability with the ball at his feet, makes it look easy."

Pedro Mendes added: “He’s a fantastic little player. When he signed for Guimaraes in the first days we saw something there. Then he signed for Sporting and he just became a fantastic player. He’s been terrific.”

Now, Football.London reveal that Spurs are "keeping an eye" on his situation, with Edwards down to the final two years of his £23,000 a week deal in Portugal.

His arrival would provide a boost to their homegrown quota, while he also has a clause in his deal which will see Tottenham land a hefty discount should he arrive. That is because, when he was sold to Sporting, Spurs inserted a 50% sell on clause, which they dropped to 35% during negotiations to sign Pedro Porro in January 2023.

Now, Sporting "are understood to value him [Edwards] at £15million", but said clause would allow Spurs to snag him for just £9.75m, far less than his £22m market value [as per transfermarkt].

As it stands, Edwards is among those that are under consideration, with the report adding that there "has been no concrete approach yet from Tottenham", but he could well tick a lot of boxes for a very small fee, allowing Postecoglou to focus on other areas of his side that need strengthening.

Bruno Fernandes claimed his tackle on James Maddison was "never a red card" after Manchester United's 3-0 home defeat to Tottenham on Sunday.

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Bruno called out referee Chris KavanaghMaintained that he did not deserve a red cardUnited went down 3-0 at home against SpursFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

The Red Devils talisman was given his marching orders just minutes before the half-time whistle for a reckless lunge on Maddison in the middle of the park. Referee Chris Kavanagh swiftly pulled out a red card and replays showed that Fernandes caught the Spurs midfielder with his high tackle, albeit after losing his footing. The captain's sending-off proved to be detrimental as a 10-man United went down 3-0 against Tottenham Hotspur at home.

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After the humiliating defeat at Old Trafford, the Red Devils skipper came out to insist that Kavanagh's decision to send him off was completely wrong. He also claimed that even Maddison had agreed that the red card was too harsh a decision.

WHAT BRUNO FERNANDES SAID

Speaking on BBC Match of the Day, the 30-year-old said: "I just wanted to come and talk [do the interview] and be myself because my team-mates deserve that for what they have done in the game playing with one man less. Particularly as I was the man sent off, the one that let them down. The team showed a lot of character, a lot of resilience, a lot of fight. They tried. It wasn't easy."

Fernandes added on his red card to Sky Sports: "I'm slipping. I don't take him as everyone wants to see it. I don't take him with my studs, I take him with my ankle. It's a clear foul but never a red card. That's my feeling and even Maddison when he gets up… he just said it's a foul but it's never a red card, that's what he said. In the eyes of everyone, you can see it's never a red card. If this is a red card, we have to look at many other incidents. I've had many incidents when I get kicked and I've never seen something so quick coming off as a red card. It's never a red card."

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AFPWHAT NEXT FOR BRUNO FERNANDES?

As a result of his straight red card, the former Sporting CP star will miss United's next three Premier League fixtures against Aston Villa, Brentford and West Ham. Fernandes will, however, be eligible to feature in the club's upcoming Europa League clash against FC Porto on Thursday night.

Philippe Clement may need to sell a few first-team players at Glasgow Rangers before he is able to spend much this summer.

Michael Beale’s lavish summer spending spree from last year looks like it could derail the club unless the Ibrox outfit can raise several million during the transfer window.

Sam Lammers has attracted attention after a stunning second half of the 2023/24 campaign – scoring 11 goals in just 20 matches for FC Utrecht – and he will be sold this summer.

Might a more prominent first-team player be ready to finally leave Rangers, however? Especially as interest in him is growing with each passing day…

Rangers could sell their top goalscorer from last season

James Tavernier finished the 2023/24 campaign with a tally of 24 goals – two clear of Cyriel Dessers – and there is no denying how much of a difference the captain makes in the final third.

When the pressure was on during the final few weeks of the season, however, Tavernier failed to raise his game, which saw Celtic win both the Premiership title and the Scottish Cup.

He failed to score in any of the final seven fixtures of the season. Could it finally be time to see the defender leave Glasgow this summer?

Former Rangers manager Steven Gerrard has shown interest in luring Tavernier and Connor Goldson to Saudi Arabian side Al-Etiffaq this summer, according to reports from the Middle East nation (via Football Scotland), while there also appears to be a new suitor for Tavernier.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst, another former manager of the Glasgow side, is lining up a reunion with the Englishman at his new side Besiktas.

Reports in Turkey (via the Rangers Review) claim that the Dutchman is looking to bolster his team ahead of the new season, with Tavernier a main target.

The skipper will turn 33 in October and, with two years left on his current contract, this could be the perfect chance for Clement to remove all sentiment and sell him for a decent fee.

Season

Games

Goals

Assists

2023/24

58

24

12

2022/23

55

18

10

2021/22

58

18

17

2020/21

46

19

16

2019/20

46

3

15

2018/19

57

17

20

2017/18

46

9

9

2016/17

44

2

7

2015/16

50

15

23

This would allow him a licence to bring in his own players, but also for the club to finally make a fresh start this summer in the hopes of returning to the summit of the Scottish game.

There is certainly a lack of options available at right-back, which suggests the 50-year-old coach may need to invest in one or two in the coming weeks.

Could he turn to the Premier League in order to do this? There is one rising talent that has been linked with a move north of the border…

Rangers line up move for Tavernier replacement

Last week, Scotsman journalist Graham Falk delivered an update on the Gers transfer activity which concerned Arsenal starlet Reuell Walters.

Falk stated that the Light Blues were interested in making a summer move for the highly rated right-back in a bid to add some depth to the right side of the defence.

With Clement’s summer budget unknown, luring a few talented youngsters to Scotland without paying a penny could be considered wise, allowing the manager to save his funds for more high-profile targets.

Walters may only be 19 years old, but there is no doubting the talent he possesses which could see the Englishman reach the very top of the professional game.

What Reuell Walters could offer to Rangers

Despite emerging through the Hale End academy in recent years, becoming one of the most promising talents in the youth teams, Walters has yet to make his senior debut for the Gunners.

Last season, the teenager made the matchday squad on no fewer than 11 occasions, including for the Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven in December, yet failed to make it onto the pitch.

This experience, however, should give Walters plenty of confidence heading into the future, although it appears to lie away from Arsenal.

He is out of contract at the end of this month, which means the Ibrox side can secure him on a pre-contract deal at any time. Mikel Arteta looks as though he is keen to keep the right-back,

With first-team football a priority for his ongoing development, surely a move to Scotland would help in this regard, especially with the chance to play European football.

He may not offer the same attacking abilities as Tavernier, registering just six goal contributions across 80 matches for a variety of youth sides, but the current Rangers captain is an anomaly.

While his talents lie elsewhere, the defender was highly praised by analyst Ben Mattinson recently, who said:

“Reuell Walters is a physically gifted player. His 1v1 strength in duels is a joke, playing against the others at youth level he’s so strong and hence wins the ball off opponents well.

“A ball-carrying monster – Walters loves to drive up the pitch with conviction, brushing off challengers and shielding the ball with his body. Walters can carry the ball far past many players due to his powerful running style. This type of on the ball ability is invaluable.”

This suggests that while the youngster might not get on the scoresheet often, his strengths clearly lie in bringing the ball out from the defence and bursting down the right flank with ease, bullying defenders with his brute strength and pace.

Clement will be hard-pressed to find a player who is going to score 20 goals a season from right-back. This means he must improve his midfield and attacking options, adding players who can regularly chip in with ten or more goals a campaign, taking the pressure off the full-backs to contribute.

If the Belgian can do this, signing Walters could be a logical move this summer. Not only does the 19-year-old have plenty of time on his hands to improve and develop naturally through exposure at first team level, but his market value could rise substantially over the next few years, thus allowing the club to make a serious profit on him.

Rangers will need to act fast, however, as a player of Walters' talent will have plenty of admirers lined up ready to offer him a deal.

Rangers edge closer to signing speedy Sima alternative

Rangers appear to have agreed a fee with one of their recent transfer targets…

ByRoss Kilvington Jun 10, 2024

New deal to make Jurgensen the longest serving NZ coach with nine years at the helm

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Sep-2020Former Queensland fast bowler Shane Jurgensen has extended his contract by a further two years as New Zealand bowling coach, thereby making him the longest serving coach for the national side. Jurgensen’s new deal is set to keep him in charge until the end of 2022, which would accumulate in a total of nine years with New Zealand, including his previous stint from 2008-10.”It’s a huge honour to continue my coaching journey with New Zealand Cricket,” he said. “I love my job and feel lucky to have been involved with such a special group of players and support staff for the past five years.”We’ve had some amazing experiences as a team and I’m looking forward to working alongside Gary [Stead, the head coach] and Kane [Williamson, the captain] as we prepare for an exciting summer. It’s a privilege to work with such a world class bowling unit and I’m proud of the depth we’ve added to the group which has us well prepared for the variety of challenges ahead.”Jurgensen had also been instrumental in the rise of Bangladesh when he was with them for three years until 2015, having also coached Fiji and advised Scotland earlier. Gary Stead, New Zealand’s head coach, acknowledged the impact that Jurgensen has had on the bowlers and looked forward to “having his energy and passion around the group for another couple of years”.”Shane’s done an outstanding job with the bowlers over the past five years and you only have to look at their performances to see his impact,” Stead said.”He obviously possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience, but I think it’s his planning and work ethic that has helped get the best out of our top players consistently. His influence also extends beyond the Black Caps with his knowledge and leadership helping shape the wider NZC pace-bowling system which is already reaping rewards.”

Leeds United are thought to be in talks with one club over selling a £57,000-a-week player this summer.

Leeds transfer plans in the Championship

The Whites are preparing for a second season in the Championship after missing out on immediate promotion back to the Premier League under Daniel Farke. The German will remain in charge at Elland Road for the 2024/25 campaign, but before then, a busy summer in the transfer market appears to be likely.

The Athletic report Leeds want to re-sign £30,000-a-week player

He scored at Elland Road last season.

ByCharlie Smith Jun 14, 2024

Chairman Paraag Marathe recently admitted there will need to be some “trade-offs” as a result of their failure to rturn to the top flight at the first time of asking.

“We have the funds that we need to do what we need to do. The reality of being in the Championship is that Profitability and Sustainability (P&S) plays a role. We also inherited a challenging situation, so naturally there are going to be some trade-offs. But also, we have a really good team, and it is not just about outs, but ins.

"We're looking at scouting possibilities and players that we can bring in. We will have to make some trade-offs because of P&S but we have the investment commitment to do what we need to do.”

Some of the players who starred under Farke last season have been linked with exits, such as Archie Gray, Crysencio Summerville and Wilfried Gnonto. However, the Whites will have decisions to make on a number of players returning from loan spells, such as Brenden Aaronson, who is set to play a part in Leeds’ promotion push next season after talks with Farke.

One who may not be in the plans, though, is centre-back Diego Llorente, who spent last season on loan with AS Roma.

Roma in talks with Leeds over Diego Llorente transfer

According to reports in Italy, relayed by Sport Witness, Roma are now in talks with Leeds to sign Llorente on a permanent transfer. A €5m (£4.2m) fee has been mooted for the £57,000-a-week defender, who is under contract until 2026.

Llorente was brought to Leeds by Marcelo Bielsa, who was full of praise for the defender following his first season at Elland Road.

“He has played well, he hasn’t had any bad games. He’s had a performance level that has improved every single time we have played. He started playing well and from there onwards he’s been playing better. He has been one of the high points of our season.”

However, after a promising debut campaign, things went downhill for Llorente in Yorkshire, who was sent to Roma midway through the 2022/23 season. He ended up making 59 appearances for Leeds in all competitions and has already turned out 54 times for the Italian giants, so a permanent move could make sense for all involved.

The former Australia wicketkeeper is considering filling the position vacated by Michael Kasprowicz

Daniel Brettig13-Oct-2020Ian Healy has confirmed he is considering a move to the Cricket Australia board in place of Michael Kasprowicz, regarding himself the most “dispensable” Queensland Cricket board member to take up a critical post with the national governing body.As part of his job on morning radio in Brisbane for SEN, Healy said that he had been approached to be Queensland’s nominee to be one of nine national directors, a move that would compel him to resign from the state association’s board.In outlining the process by which he had got so close to the position, replacing Kasprowicz after he resigned earlier this year, Healy said that both the Queensland chairman Chris Simpson and fellow director Jon Dooley were “too busy” to take up the CA board spot. Healy, a longtime commentator on cricket for Nine, has also served as president of the Australian Cricketers Association, and joined the Queensland board in 2019.ALSO READ: Alistair Nicholson steps down as ACA chief executive”Yes, there’s been an approach to me to come onto the Cricket Australia board,” Healy said. “It’s nominated by Queensland, there’s six states that can nominate a director. The one who is missing is Michael Kasprowicz, who stood down after 11 years. Queensland has decided to nominate me if I want to do it, I’ve just got to find out if I’ve got time.”I am seriously considering it, I feel like I’m the most dispensable of three options on our Queensland Cricket Board, and that would mean I’d need to get off the Queensland board. We’ve got another two options in Chris Simpson and Jon Dooley, but they’re pretty busy at the moment. I’m probably best placed out of us three at the moment, but we’ll see how it goes.”Should Healy accept, he is expected to join the former New South Wales premier Mike Baird in being added to the CA board in time for its AGM on October 29. Baird is set to step down from his position as a Cricket New South Wales director to join CA, with the state’s current nominee Richard Freudenstein moving sideways to an independent spot that will be left vacant by the Bendigo Bank chair Jacquie Hey, who is exiting after being part of the board since 2012. Cricket Tasmania’s nominee, Paul Green, is also up for re-election this year and is expected to be retained.While CA’s own diversity targets call for 40% female representation on the board, this configuration would leave only Mel Jones (Victoria) and Michelle Tredenick (independent) among nine directors.Earl Eddings, the current chairman of CA, has one more year to run on his current term and is constitutionally permitted to seek a second, but both Simpson and John Knox, the chairman of NSW, have made it patently clear that they wanted to bring more chair-capable directors onto the board, while also strengthening links between the CA board and those of the states.In Healy and Baird, Queensland and NSW would have a pair of CA directors with deep connections to their respective states.

Manchester United star Marcus Rashford is putting in the work in the international break following a difficult start to the season.

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Man Utd's Rashford struggling for form Working hard during the international break Works on free kicks and penalty technique Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Rashford has been having a torrid time finding his feet since the start of the 2023/24 season. Under Erik ten Hag, the England international had been shifted out wide onto the wings and has struggled to have the same impact as he did before. As such, Rashford has also seen his place in the England national team slip, however, despite club football being on a break for international fixtures, the 26-year-old is hard at work on the training field.

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Rashford has received a flurry of criticism from fans and pundits for his lack of form over the last months, and the England international has been told multiple times that his focus on football is slipping, and recently Andy Cole revealed his belief that football is not Rashford's 'top priority'.

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WHAT NEXT FOR RASHFORD?

The speedy player will return to action next weekend when Manchester United take on Brentford at Old Trafford on Saturday, October 19. Whether he will be in the starting lineup, however, remains to be seen.

Evidence reveals “continuous references to taxi drivers and restaurant workers” in relation to Asian community

Matt Roller04-Dec-2020Former Yorkshire players and employees have given evidence in support of Azeem Rafiq as part of the investigation into allegations of institutional racism at the club.Rafiq spoke out about his experiences at Yorkshire this summer, telling ESPNcricinfo in September that he had been close to committing suicide after what he experienced. He was interviewed by the independent investigating team last month, and said that he had been “bullied and targeted because of my race”.Two former Yorkshire employees to have given evidence were Taj Butt and Tony Bowry. Butt, who was employed within the Yorkshire Cricket Foundation as a community development officer, offered his resignation within six weeks of joining, which he said was due to targeted language used at the club.ALSO READ: ‘I was ‘bullied and targeted because of my race’ – Rafiq”[There were] continuous references to taxi drivers and restaurant workers when referring to [the] Asian community,” he said. “They called every person of colour ‘Steve’. Even [India batsman] Cheteshwar Pujara, who joined as an overseas professional, was called Steve because they could not pronounce his name.”Bowry worked at the club as a coach until 1996 and as a cultural diversity officer at the Yorkshire Cricket Board from 1996 until 2011, before he was appointed as a cricket development manager to develop the game for black communities.”Many youngsters struggled to make progress, and the few that did found the environment of the dressing rooms very difficult and unwelcoming, as a direct result of racism they faced,” he said. “It affected performance… they were labelled trouble-makers.”Tino Best, the former West Indies fast bowler who played at the club in 2010, and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, the former Pakistan seamer who joined as an overseas player between 2008 and 2009, both reiterated their previous support for Rafiq.Yorkshire announced last month that they will appoint a head of equality in a bid to boost inclusion after the ECB revealed a number of new measures to tackle discrimination.Rafiq welcomed the measures both organisations had taken, and said that he would seek “an urgent meeting” with the ECB in order to discuss “how we can instil cultural and racial acceptance through all age groups”.”Part of the problem I faced was that my concerns and complaints fell on deaf ears,” Rafiq said. “I raised complaints about racism, including with the head of diversity, and no one took action. The key to change is to listen and then to keep listening.”In response, Yorkshire said in a statement to ESPNcricinfo: “We recognise that county clubs, with their vast pipeline of talent across age groups, are crucial to ensuring equality and addressing issues of racism in cricket. We wholeheartedly support the recently announced ECB initiatives and want to be part of meaningful change across all levels of the game.”In addition to the ECB measures, we will also seek to implement the recommendations due to be made by the independent investigation panel considering the allegations made by our former player, Azeem Rafiq. We appreciate that this is a distressing time for all involved, but this is an important investigation and we have committed to a full and thorough process to provide an in-depth set of recommendations which we will publish in early 2021.”Cricket is enjoyed by diverse audiences throughout the UK and around the world but it is clear that we must do much more to improve inclusion, address issues of inequality and truly reflect and embrace the many communities who contribute so much to our sport.”

Liverpool are challenging for the Premier League title again, but Jamie Carragher thinks the Reds are missing a key piece to rival Manchester City.

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Liverpool top of the Premier League tableCarragher thinks Reds are weaker than rivalsNeed a De Bruyne or Foden to win the titleFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱(C)Getty ImagesWHAT HAPPENED?

Liverpool are currently atop the Premier League rankings as they prepare to face off against title rivals Arsenal this weekend. Arne Slot's men lead the standings by one point over defending champions Manchester City. Last season, the Reds finished third behind the Gunners and the Cityzens after a late collapse in the title race.

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Liverpool legend Carragher has suggested that the Reds' squad is too weak this season to seriously challenge, and that they will need to make a few signings in the January transfer window as they lack a threatening attacking midfielder, as he claimed Dominik Szoboszlai has left him 'wanting more'.

Getty Images SportWHAT CARRAGHER SAID

In his column for , Carragher wrote: "Liverpool need to grasp the nettle and make a couple of quality signings in January if they are to win the Premier League title. Liverpool knew during pre-season they needed more ready-made class. I am not talking about a squad player to give Slot another option to rotate, but the right recruit to go directly into the line-up against the best teams in England and Europe – a signing that screams, 'Bang, Liverpool really mean business.'.

"When comparing the full-strength Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City starting XIs, the title rivals have more quality in a particular area. Liverpool are short of a Martin Odegaard, Phil Foden or Kevin De Bruyne-style attacking midfielder – that X Factor in the middle of the park who elevates a side to the next level.

"Dominik Szoboszlai has performed well off the ball and he brings energy to the team – doing the ‘dirty work’ as he puts it – but for all the possession he gets in good areas, he needs to be more productive in terms of his assists and goals. We are yet to see if that is part of his game. For the £60 million he cost, he too often leaves me wanting more. It does not need to all be ‘dirty’ work when you have the time and space on the edge of the penalty area to find a team-mate or unleash a shot."

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WHAT NEXT FOR LIVERPOOL?

Slot's men will now take on Arsenal on Sunday, October 27, as they look to continue their remarkable start to life under the Dutchmen and pile the misery on the underwhelming Gunners.