Defending

According to a report by David Ornstein of The Athletic, Liverpool is in the process of finalizing a move for RB Leipzig central defender Ibrahima Konate. 

Bayern Munich have signed defender Dayot Upamecano from RB Leipzig with the French center back set to join the European champions in July before the 2021-22 season, the Bundesliga club said on Sunday.

Upamecano, 22, agreed to sign a five-year contract that will keep him at Bayern until 2026. Financial details of the transfer were not provided but German media reported Bayern had triggered his release clause which is worth around $51.5 million.

Napoli cruised into the Coppa Italia semifinals with a 4-2 win over Spezia on Thursday, taking a 4-0 lead into halftime. The Chucky Lozano goal vs Spezia pretty much summed up the first half for the Serie A newcomers.

Kalidou Koulibaly opened the scoring with a cheeky backheel in the fifth minute after Spezia’s defense simply gave up on the play. 

It was merely a sign of things to come for the Little Eagles.

Roma’s 22-year-old center back Roger Ibañez is not a bad footballer — we don’t want to pile on too much here — but he had one of the worst performances of his career on Friday. Ibañez was directly responsible for Lazio’s first two goals en route to a 3-0 defeat in the Derby della Capitale.

Lazio, which came into the match in eighth place and eager for a victory to get back into the race for Champions League qualification, controlled the Roman rivalry from the outset. A couple of early mistakes from Ibañez put Le Aquile on the road to an easy win.

Eleventh-place Leeds United takes on Tottenham Hotspur, which could have gone joint-top as little as two weeks ago but has now slipped to seventh, on Saturday.

Watford left back Adam Masina has played just 33 minutes so far this season due to injury, but should the club gain promotion at the end of the campaign, Hornets fans will look back on his heroic tackle during a tense Boxing Day match as the defining play of their season.

The Championship club found in the northwest outskirts of London entered Saturday's fixture against league leaders Norwich in a comfortable fifth place, just four points off an automatic promotion spot.

A tale of two halves at Anfield on Sunday — one in which Liverpool controlled 81% possession; one in which West Brom landed more shots on target — ended in a 1-1 draw between the sides of a clearly frustrated (and booked) Jürgen Klopp and a triumphant Sam Allardyce. 

West Brom made the first managerial change of the Premier League season on Dec. 16 when sacking Slaven Bilić in favor of Big Sam, and the Baggies are now the first team to take points off Liverpool at Anfield — although the club remains five points from safety after 15 matches.    

Real Salt Lake icon and longtime U.S. Men's National Team midfielder Kyle Beckerman retired Monday following a 21-year professional career.

"What a ride it's been. My playing days have come to an end, but I step away with a full heart and a lifetime of memories," the 38-year-old posted on social media. "I've had a career the younger me could never have imagined."