Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game at West Ham.

Here are the key lines from the Liverpool boss:

• Klopp said he is not involved in the process of who succeeds him as manager but he is encouraged by why he knows of reported frontrunner Arne Slot saying, "It all sounds really good." He went on to praise the Feyenoord boss' style of play and reputation for being "a good guy."

• He said he "cannot remember ever being so disappointed and frustrated after a game" as he was following Wednesday's Merseyside defeat to Everton.

• On the defeat: "We were not there. We lost all the decisive battles and that was really bad. I did not see anything of what we want to be against Everton."

• He says it is a quick turnaround and they "have to be positive" and "show a reaction" against West Ham.

• On whether Liverpool's title hopes are over: "They [Arsenal and Manchester City] will see it as a two-horse race now as they don’t expect to lose two games from now on. I don’t expect them too either. I don’t think it will happen, but if it does, then we will be there and that starts with winning games again."

• Diogo Jota and Conor Bradley will not be available but are both "progressing well."

• On goal droughts for Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah: "Strikers not scoring is tricky but they have to go through these things and it is a striker;s life. It says nothing about their quality. You have to go through it and I have to try and help them."

• He said West Ham boss David Moyes has done "a ridiculously good job" and has a "very talented team."

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Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure says the injustice of the point deductions this season has fuelled the team to win games and avoid relegation.

The Toffees have been docked a total of eight points for breaches of the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability rules this season, but have appealed against a two-point deduction for the three-year period to 2022-23.

"We definitely feel the injustice from the Premier League to us," Doucoure told BBC Radio Merseyside. "But we said we just need to hit the ground running and win games.

"This sort of thing hurts but it is out of our control. We can only control what happens on the pitch. It makes the team connected.

"We just said 'guys it is a joke' and we have to play well and win games and move on."

Doucoure added that despite this season's off-field issues, last season was personally more difficult for him.

"This season we have been hit by points deductions but last season was completely different in terms of the football."

Under Frank Lampard the midfielder was sidelined and unable to help his team as they continued to drop down the table.

The Toffees sacked Lampard in January 2023 with the club 19th in the Premier League and two points from safety. Sean Dyche's arrival proceeded and they scraped survival on the final day of the season.

In contrast, if this season's points deductions had not occurred, they would have been mathematically safe by now and in 14th place.

"We had a great season before the point deductions," added Doucoure. "It is quite hard to be hit by so many things but you have to be ready for it as a professional footballer.

"I am always ready to commit to my job and do my best for the team."

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Former Arsenal and Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas believes Arne Slot will have been "well analysed" by Liverpool before becoming their leading candidate.

The Reds are now set to talk to Feyenoord about the possibility of Slot joining the club following Jurgen Klopp's departure in the summer.

Despite the emergence of the 45-year-old coming as a surprise to many, Fabregas feels the Liverpool hierarchy will have looked at both his numbers and his personality.

"You want to know absolutely every detail with managers - this is the same thing," he told the Planet Premier League podcast.

"Of course, the style of play is important and then their personality is important. The character and how he deals with things. Has he had problems with clubs before? How does he handle pressure?

"All of these details are well taken care of and very well analysed. I think it's fair because nowadays you invest a lot of money in players and coaches of your future [and there is] the pressure of the fans. So you need to make sure, or you at least want to make sure that you are taking the best decision possible."

It is the first time in nine years the Reds have had to look for a new manager and outgoing Klopp is currently the longest serving manager in the league.

"From the last couple of years, maybe more the last five years, Liverpool have been one of the clubs that have invested in a very, very smart way - in players and in stuff like the culture, the training ground," added Fabregas.

"I'm not surprised and I think that if they've chosen him [Slot], there must be a reason behind it that I'm sure it would be a positive one."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

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In an interview with Gary Neville on The Overlap, external, Anthony Gordon revealed how meditation helps him to cope with the pressure of playing football. He also talked about how seeing Liverpool's Mohamed Salah talk about visualisation helped him take more interest in it.

"Meditating is more of a coping mechanism to help with pressures of playing and just allows me to react from a higher place than my own emotions as playing emotionally doesn’t help me," said Gorddon.

"My preparation starts two days before the game. I do a lot of meditation and visualisation, so if a chance comes to me in the game, its like I already lived it. It helps me trust in my ability, so when the opportunity comes in the game I don’t overthink it.

"My confidence comes from my preparation. I don’t know where it comes from as no one around me is like that, I love learning stuff and I took a liking to psychology. Some footballers like to play instinctively, but I love the mindset of getting myself into that space before getting into that position. I have seen seen [Mohamed] Salah talk about it and that’s where I took more of a interest in it, as he is a machine and a winner and you wouldn’t go wrong following what he does."

Sean Dyche has been reflecting on a positive message received from Green Day frontman Billie Joe.

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Dutch journalist Marcel van der Kraan joined the Football Daily Podcast to discuss what Feyenoord manager Arne Slot could bring to Liverpool should he be given the job this summer.

The Reds are in talks to appoint the Dutchman as a replacement for Jurgen Klopp, who will depart at the end of the season.

Slot led Feyenoord to the 2022-23 Eredivisie title and this season they have won the Dutch Cup and are second in the league.

So will they let him go?

"Feyenoord understand they can no longer stand in his way of leaving," said Van der Kraan. "But they want some form of compensation because it is the best manager they have had in many years.

"This man has brought such entertaining, almost sexy, football to the Dutch league. He is a manager that Liverpool fans can look forward too and I am just hoping that he can make it through the high level of expectation.

"I really want this manager to make an impact because too many Dutch managers have not had the grip of Premier League football. Being brilliant in Holland is great for Dutch fans, and yes we like to play in football, but to be a real success in England you have to really step it up.

"I just wish Arne Slot had experienced English football as a player because those that have seem to understand the intensity better."

Although unproven in the Premier League, Van der Kraan believes he has the key attributes to succeed in England.

"Liverpool fans should be confident because Slot does not lack any confidence and he will play the way he wants," he said. "He has a super attacking style and it is very similar to that of Pep Guardiola.

"He will not adapt against any opposition. Slot is like Guardiola and it is attack, attack, attack. He demands so much from his players."

"He has a personality where he knows he can carry a club because he has done that with smaller clubs and Feyenoord.

"He is charismatic and if Liverpool have done their homework and studied him, then they will know he is so similar to Klopp. He is full of energy and that is good for the Liverpool team because the players will not see much difference."

Listen to the full discussion on BBC Sounds

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Former Manchester United goalkeeper Raimond van der Gouw believes Arne Slot's style of play "will suit" Liverpool if he is to join the club.

The Reds are set to open talks with Feyenoord over their manager Slot succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool boss.

The 45-year-old has had both league and domestic cup success with the Eredivisie side is known for a high intensity, attacking style of play.

"If it is possible, he will try to press high and all the players know what to do. I think he plays in an attractive way and it's nice to watch for the supporters," Van der Gouw told BBC World Service Sport Today.

"It's difficult to compare [with Liverpool's current style of play] as he has his own style.

"But you can also say they try to play with the same intensity, with a lot of energy and I think that would suit Liverpool as well. The team is always working hard."

Despite having spent all his footballing career in the Netherlands, Van der Gouw does not feel Slot will be affected by the pressure of managing a Premier League club like Liverpool.

"Liverpool is a massive club with a lot of supporters who are very good, but he's coming from Feyenoord and the supporters from Feyenoord are so fanatic," he added.

"He deals with it very well, so I expect he will do the same thing with the supporters from Liverpool."

Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds

Here is a selection of the key facts and figures before West Ham United host Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday (12:00 BST kick-off).

• West Ham have lost 12 of their past 14 Premier League games against Liverpool, with both exceptions in this run coming at home (1-1 in February 2019, 3-2 in November 2021).

• The Reds have already beaten the Hammers 3-1 in the league and 5-1 in the Carabao Cup so far this season. This is the 11th campaign in which the two sides have faced each other three or more times, but Liverpool have never managed to beat them three times.

• West Ham have won just one of their past eight league home games (D5 L2), beating Brentford 4-2 in February. They lost against Fulham last time out but have not been beaten in consecutive home league games since a run of three in November/December 2022.

• Mohamed Salah has scored 11 goals for Liverpool against West Ham, only netting more against Manchester United (14) in his Reds career.

• Jarrod Bowen has scored in both meetings with Liverpool so far this season – the only Hammers player to score in three different games against the Reds in a campaign is Geoff Hurst in 1964-65.

Manchester United are confident a bid of between £60-70m will be enough to sign 21-year-old English defender Jarrad Branthwaite before 30 June, allowing Everton to include the fee in their 2023-24 accounts and avoid any further points deductions. (Football Insider), external

Want more transfer news? Read Friday's full gossip column

Losing derby matches is tough to take. It is even more difficult to come to terms with when it becomes something that rarely happens. When you then factor in the harm it does to your Premier League title ambitions, it becomes a cocktail for catastrophe.

As expected, Liverpool had large periods of the game where they dominated the possession. They created some really good opportunities, notably for Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez in the first half, but both chances were squandered.

Once again Mohamed Salah looked a shadow of the player who has been the scourge of Premier League defenders for such a long time. He is not lacking in terms of appetite, but his ability to change games in an instant has gone missing. Perhaps the injury he suffered during the Africa Cup of Nations proved more difficult to overcome than we imagined.

Diaz was as hungry as ever to contribute but you could perhaps tell it was not to be his night when he struck the post with a magnificent curling shot in the second half. By then, the damage had been done and Everton were 2-0 in front.

The defeat for Liverpool owed much to their inability to cope with Everton’s aerial prowess at set pieces. Their dominance of the far post was almost total, yet Liverpool failed to alter a tactical plan that was not working.

For Darwin Nunez, it was another night where he failed to make the most of chances afforded to him.

Earlier on in the campaign Liverpool were scoring goals from all over the pitch. Missing chances did not really matter, but now when the goals from elsewhere have dried up, it really does. Nunez needs to bring more composure to his finishing and he has to be more clinical.

While the defeat comes as a devastating blow to Liverpool’s title ambitions, it is worth remembering that at the start of the season, very few Reds fans saw their team as realistic title contenders. Given the seismic changes to the squad during the summer, this still has to be viewed as a season of progress and one that still ended with silverware in the trophy cabinet.

The onus on the players now is to make sure the season does not drift away. They have to get back on track and rediscover their desire and determination. Their season is not over yet. It cannot be.

They still have to battle for every point, starting at London Stadium on Saturday lunchtime.

Hearts as big as the city. Smiles as wide as the Mersey Tunnel. And that’s just the players.

My short summary will not do any justice to both them and the manager after what we witnessed last night at Goodison Park.

It was a performance for the ages. A night that will live long in the memories of all Evertonians.

To put it simply, that was Everton Football Club encapsulated in 90-plus minutes of drama and mayhem.

The heart, grit, determination and work rate separated the two sides. You would be forgiven for thinking our opponents had secured mid-table security, instead of being involved in an end-of-season title race.

The fact we have spoiled any title ambitions they may have had, is simply a positive side show to our own club's story.

This is about us and nothing else.

It’s been 14 long years since we last won a home derby. It is fair to say that pent-up emotion was released in spades on the final whistle.

Our fans were simply incredible. The noise was glass-shatteringly loud all night. Goodison was rocked to its creaking foundations. We deserved it. Every single second of it.

Goodison Park will soon be consigned to the pages of history.

Last night will be remembered as one of her spine-tingling best.

Mike can be found at the Unholy Trinity, external