Manzanares FS - Barça, en directo — and more

• Long-time rivals play for gold on Sunday at 2026 Games

• Tensions are high between two teams

• Status of Canada’s Sidney Crosby still uncertain

The US and Canada are prepared for a stormy men’s ice hockey final on Sunday as the long-time rivals face off for Winter Olympic gold.

This year’s Olympics mark the first time NHL players have competed at the Winter Games since 2014, meaning many of the best players in the world will face each other on Sunday. While Canada are the betting favourites – and have won the most ice hockey golds in Olympic history – the US players say they have motivation to upset their northern neighbours.

Liverpool have reportedly been paying close attention to a prodigious centre-back who’s currently on the books of a Premier League rival.

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The Reds have already completed deals for several young defenders this year, with the £55m acquisition of Jeremy Jacquet for the first team next season following on from the academy arrivals of Mor Talla Ndiaye, Noah Adekoya and Ifeanyi Ndukwe.

It seems that FSG aren’t quite finished with recruitment in that position, though, judging by reports which have emerged over the past 24 hours.

Liverpool watching Luka Vuskovic

According to Sports Boom, Liverpool have ‘dispatched special representatives throughout the season’ to monitor Luka Vuskovic, the Tottenham Hotspur centre-back who’s currently on loan at Hamburg.

The towering 18-year-old (1.93cm in height) is described as a ‘modern defensive artist’ who’s been said to possess the ‘complete package’, and Spurs’ intention is to build their defence around the Croatian teenager in the long-term, as demonstrated by a contract which runs to 2030.

Although the youngster is said to be regarded as ‘unsellable’, the north London club might potentially be brought to the negotiating table if they were to receive a bid in the region of €60m-€70m (£52.5m-£61.2m).

(Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)

Could Vuskovic be the next long-term defensive addition at Liverpool?

Liverpool’s interest in Vuskovic is nothing new – scouts from Merseyside had watched him as far back as three years ago when he was starring for Hajduk Split in their run to the UEFA Youth League final, but it was Spurs who ultimately moved to sign him later in 2023.

He’s yet to play a competitive first-team match for the London outfit but has impressed on loan at Hamburg, scoring four goals in 21 appearances and impressing with his use of the ball, as illustrated by statistics from Fotmob comparing him with other Bundesliga centre-backs this season.

Igor Tudor’s side seem intent on keeping hold the Croatian unless an exceptional offer were to be made – a shock relegation could compel Tottenham to flog some of their most valuable assets, and while that scenario seems unlikely, they’ve gone into this weekend just five points above the Premier League drop zone.

While it remains to be seen just how much substance there is to Liverpool’s reported interest in Vuskovic, this latest rumour further underlines FSG’s clear strategy to build a defensive core for the long-term, with the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson coming towards the end of their careers.

If the Reds do sign the Spurs starlet to join the likes of Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni at Anfield – along with the more established but still young Conor Bradley and Milos Kerkez – we could have a formidable defence in place for the best part of the next decade.

You can watch Slot’s full pre-Nottingham Forest press conference below, via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:

Get French Football News favourite Franck Leboeuf joined us for another interview, talking what makes Olympique de Marseille special, why Habib Beye could be a good fit, why RC Lens can win the title and how he thinks Liam Rosenior has settled at Chelsea. In this fourth and final part, he talks about Lens’ chances of winning Ligue 1 – and the best football songs!

You talked earlier about only needing to play Paris Saint-Germain twice and how Montpellier HSC and Lille OSC were able to challenge and win the league. This season Lens are doing that. Do you think they can go all the way?

Yes, I think so because I find that PSG are not the PSG of last year. They’re finding it hard to find that cohesion. They are very, very strong when they do so – we saw that against AS Monaco [PSG beat Monaco 3-2 in the Champions League play-off first leg] – even at 2-0 down, you take out Ousmane Dembélé, you bring on Désiré Doué who plays so well, Luis Enrique is intelligent, he did what he needed to de with Doué for him to react and play well. But I find them a little less strong, a little less focussed on what they need to do.

And Lens – with their fans – it’s the same as with Marseille, you need to know les Ch’tis, as we say, the people of the North. You have to understand the atmosphere. I was in a play in Lens a month ago and the theatre was next to the Stade Bollaert so I went there because there is something special about Lens, as there is at Marseille and Saint-Étienne. I consider these three clubs as special in terms of the supporters. I would add Strasbourg but they’re going through a delicate period right now.

But I always loved playing at Lens because, win or lose, there is always a crazy atmosphere, the people are nice, you go to eat chips afterwards! It’s great. And the stadium is a real English-style stadium. It’s really a great vibe.

And next to the stadium you have the Traversée Marc-Vivien Foé, the Cameroonian player who died a few years ago, and I went for a walk there because – you can smell the football. And the players who join Lens know what they need to do. The supporters – I’m not going to say that that is all they have because that’s not nice – but, unlike Marseille, you can’t count on the sun and the good weather to be able to warm your heart. So they need the Stade Bollaert and the amazing atmosphere and to win matches to be happy for the week ahead.

And if Lens manage to do it [win the league] I will be the first to congratulate them because competing with Paris is very tough. But like I said, you have two matches against Paris and then you have 32 other games and I think the coach, the players, are giving it their all. It’s going to be tough but it is possible.

Lens also have the best song, right?

Oh la la! I sing it too when I go to the Bollaert. I’ve been two of three times the last couple of years and you sing [breaks into song] “Au Nord, c’était les Corons”! It’s amazing, amazing. It’s like at Sunderland. I love the Sunderland song. What is it again? I showed it to my wife – it’s so great because the whole crowd sings it and it’s really not a football song. It’s I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You.

If you like that, you have to check out the Hibernian fans, when they sing Sunshine on Leith.

Wow! It’s magnificent. I find that when people sing these songs and les Corons, Falling In Love with You and the Hibernian song – it’s not really football but regional identity and I think that’s brilliant, I love it. I’m going to listen to Hibernian’s.

Franck Leboeuf was talking to GFFN courtesy of BetVictor Online Casino

GFFN | Jeremy Smith

Nederlandske Jorrit Bergsma og danske Viktor Hald Thorup gjekk offensivt til verks og skaffa seg ei luke tidleg i finalen i skøyte-fellestarten i OL.
Duoen heldt heilt inn, og Bergsma kunne til slutt juble for siger framfor Thorup.
Thorup tok sølv på fellesstarten. Dette er Danmarks første vinter-OL-medalje sidan 1998, og den andre totalt i historien.
Bak i hovudfeltet var det lita vilje til å ta opp jakta, noko som sikra tetduoen eit avgjerande forsprang.
Italienske Andrea Giovannini vann spurten om bronsen, medan storfavoritt Jordan Stolz måtte nøye seg med fjerdeplass.