Liverpool

BERLIN - Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp will not be able to attend his mother's funeral in Germany's Black Forest region due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, he said on Wednesday.

Klopp, who led Liverpool to the English league title as well as the Champions League crown in the past few seasons, said due to the restrictions and quarantine rules in England and Germany he would not be able to attend the funeral.

His mother Elisabeth had passed away last month.

After 73 minutes of tense, tactical equality between Liverpool and Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday, Alisson suffered a goalkeeping meltdown unseen since Loris Karius’ infamous night in Kyiv to transform a 1-1 stalemate to a 3-1 City lead inside three minutes of total madness. 

BERLIN — RB Leipzig does not yet know where it will play its Champions League last-16 first leg against Liverpool on Feb. 16, with the club working on a number of options if German authorities refuse entry to the English club.

Germany has banned all arrivals from areas affected by COVID-19 mutations until at least Feb. 17, with the only exceptions made for German citizens or residents.

Along with Leipzig, Borussia Mönchengladbach is also weighing its options for the first leg of its tie against Manchester City on Feb. 24 should the ban be extended.

With Sadio Mané injured and Roberto Firmino on the bench, Liverpool turned to Mohamed Salah for attacking inspiration against West Ham on Sunday. The men charged with feeding him the ball included Xherdan Shaqiri, Thiago, Georginio Wijnaldum and James Milner, but the opening 45 minutes passed without any clear chances generated. 

Liverpool supporters would have found themselves sighing in exasperation when Joel Matip came off injured at halftime against Tottenham on Thursday.

There is a genuine argument to be made that, when fit, Matip is a top-five center back in the league. Much to the chagrin of Reds everywhere, the Cameroonian international is seldom fit for more than a few games at a time. He was substituted at halftime against Fulham due to injury, subsequently missing out against last month's game against Spurs, before returning against Crystal Palace.

One week after Manchester United and Liverpool delivered a 0-0 Premier League stalemate that’s already been largely forgotten, the eternal rivals more than made up for that shit on a stick performance with a roaring FA Cup fourth round match that saw the Red Devils ultimately prevail 3-2 at Old Trafford on Sunday.  

Roberto Firmino may lose his place in Liverpool's attacking trio with Jürgen Klopp's side struggling for goals in recent weeks, former defender Jamie Carragher said.

Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mané and Firmino scored a combined 183 Premier League goals over the last four campaigns and helped the Merseyside club to their first title in 30 years last season. But their form has dropped off recently and they have gone three league games without a goal, including Sunday's 0-0 draw with leaders Manchester United at Anfield.

A tense, shouty and ultimately intriguing but largely uneventful meeting between Liverpool and Manchester United ended in a 0-0 stalemate at Anfield on Sunday to keep the Red Devils on top of the Premier League after 18 matches while Liverpool fell to third. 

In the end, Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s side came closest to securing all three points if not for Alisson’s big second half saves on Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba. 

There have been a few false dawns but there is growing belief that Manchester United are on the cusp of reclaiming their place as the pre-eminent force in English football.

They are top of the Premier League table after New Year's Day for the first time since Alex Ferguson's glittering dynasty ended with his retirement in 2013, since when they watched first Manchester City and then Liverpool disappear into the distance.