It is always interesting to keep a watch over how the careers of former stars continue once they leave Liverpool.

The Reds have become good at recognising when it’s time to move a player on over recent years, with a number of top players failing to get going after leaving Anfield.

One of those who falls into this category is Sadio Mane. Mane earned the status of Liverpool legend during his six years with the Reds, winning everything he possibly could under Jurgen Klopp.

And although it was a real blow to lose the forward back in 2022, he flopped at Bayern Munich and has since moved to the Saudi Pro League with Al Nassr.

After watching his time at Al Nassr so far, it has even been claimed that Mohamed Salah is using Mane’s fall from grace as a reason not to join the Saudi Pro Leauge.

Whether that’s true or not, it is clear that the best time of Mane’s career came at Liverpool. And the Senegalese has now revealed that his years on Merseyside also led to him making a friend for life.

Sadio Mane reveals Gini Wijnaldum friendship

Mane is of course far from being the only former Liverpool star currently playing out in Saudi Arabia.

Roberto Firmino made up the second third of the Reds all-star forward line under Klopp and Bobby is also over in the Middle East turning out for Al Ahli. Fabinho, who spent four years alongside Mane at Liverpool, is at Al Ittihad.

Finally, Fabinho’s former midfield partner Gini Wijnaldum is another who calls the Pro League home. Wijnaldum plays for Steven Gerrard’s side Al Ettifaq.

And according to Mane, it is Wijnaldum who he has continued to be in contact with more than three years after their shared time at Liverpool came to a close.

“Gini is one of my very good friends,” the 32-year-old said in quotes via the Liverpool ECHO.

“And (with) Gini, it’s more than football, because our relationship came naturally. Because, when I was in Liverpool, we came at the same time, and he is this kind of person that once he is in the team he becomes friends with everybody. Everybody likes him.

“He is special,” adds Mane. “And this is the reason when I was there we’ve been good friends – and he was always in my house. Sometimes he would call me to come to my house, and I’m like ‘No, not yet. Get out of here!’.

“He always wants to make fun, and I like this about him. He has a good heart; I can speak about him until tomorrow non-stop. He is amazing and we’re still keeping contact. And that’s really important.”

How is Gini Wijnaldum doing in Saudi Arabia?

With so many of Klopp’s great Liverpool squad now departed – and the German himself now a ‘former’ manager – it feels a long time ago since Mane and Wijnaldum were in red together.

In hindsight, although Liverpool let Mane leave at the right time, the same can possibly not be said for Wijnaldum.

It took the Reds a long, long time to replace Gini and although his career has suffered since his exit, the Dutchman could surely have done a job for Liverpool for a few more years.

Almost 34 and seeing his career wind down, Wijnaldum perhaps feels the same way. The former Liverpool No.5 is a key player for Gerrard, starting six out of six in their league campaign so far. But it’s a far cry from winning a Champions League and Premier League with the Reds.

It would be interesting to hear if Mane and Wijnaldum ever reminisce about their days conquering world football together with Liverpool while hanging out these days.

The Reds have started the season on fire and a big part of that is down to the form of their defense, leaving some of their biggest rivals praising Arne Slot for the job he has done so far.

Wayne Rooney has credited Liverpool’s transition from Jurgen Klopp to Arne Slot despite its lack of transfer business during the summer

The Reds have started the season on fire with nine wins from 10 games in all competitions and sit top of the Premier League following six wins from seven, leaving them one point ahead of reigning champions Manchester City and title rivals Arsenal.

In that time, Liverpool has conceded just two goals, by far the top flight’s best defensive record, and kept four clean sheets. Having also scored 13 goals in their seven games, the Reds even boast the league’s best goal difference.

While there was a minor blip in the 1-0 defeat at home to Nottingham Forest last month, Slot’s side have been near-on perfect in the opening stages of the 2024-25 campaign and it’s led former Manchester United and Everton striker Wayne Rooney to praise their solidity under the Dutchman.

When asked which side has impressed him the most this season on The Overlap’s Stick to Football podcast, the 38-year-old said: “I would go Liverpool. The manager coming in after Klopp was obviously under big pressure but they look more solid. I think they look really hard to beat.

“Sometimes you are better [not signing players] as you keep the group together. They have a solid base and Slot comes across really well.”

Perhaps surprisingly, Rooney’s former fellow teammate and podcast host Neville agreed, highlighting that Liverpool’s back five have been instrumental in Slot’s early success as manager so far.

“The back five has played together for a long time, more than any other I can think of,” Neville said. “I know Konate hasn’t played every game but with Alisson behind that defense, it does feel solid.”

But the Sky Sports pundit is right, Liverpool’s back five of Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk and Andrew Robertson has remained relatively unchanged for a number of years, with the exception of Konate being in and out of the team in that time as Neville says.

Yet the Frenchman has taken things up another level this season and performed admirably alongside Van Dijk at the heart of Liverpool’s defense, playing a major role in helping to keep six clean sheets in all competitions this season – and even contributing with two goals.

Granted, the Reds are yet to really face a tough opponent, regardless of the shock 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest, with the ‘hardest’ games so far coming away to Man United and AC Milan, of which they won 3-0 and 3-1, respectively.

Much harder tests are to come following the current international break, where the likes of Chelsea, Brighton, Aston Villa and Bayer Leverkusen visit Anfield, while there are trips to Arsenal and RB Leipzig, too.

But should Liverpool’s defense continue to stand firm in those next six matches, then plenty more plaudits can be expected to come their way – as can the remarks about the Reds being true title contenders this season.

After retiring from soccer Jamie Carragher opened a bar in downtown New York City, and it’s become extremely popular with a little help from Jurgen Klopp and Arne Slot.

Jamie Carragher has asked Arne Slot to keep up his record-breaking start to the season with Liverpool as it’s keeping his sports bar in New York City extremely busy during matchdays.

Slot became the first head coach in Liverpool history to win eight of his first nine games, and improved that record to nine of ten when Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 1-0 before the international break. Liverpool are top of the Premier League and flawless in all cup competitions, as the transition from Jurgen Klopp’s golden era to now has been seamless.

Carragher missed out on the Klopp era after announcing his retirement from soccer in 2013 while Brendan Rodgers was in charge. Post-career, Carragher has become one of the most popular soccer analysts and also opened a successful bar in NYC’s financial district.

The bar opened in 2015 and is a popular hangout spot for locals, also offering karaoke nights and special events. It’s also become one of the most popular venues to watch soccer and of course, Liverpool.

The rise of Carragher’s bar in the city has aligned with Liverpool’s recent success, and the Reds legend is hoping Slot can keep it going. “It helps that Liverpool are doing well or have done well over the last few years,” Carragher told Liverpool.com. “So hopefully Arne Slot can continue the ride that we’ve all been on with Jurgen Klopp because that’s a massive help.

“Especially the Champions League nights because we know what the time difference is. Probably a lot easier to get in there than watching Premier League football as well. So I think the European nights are a big help.”

Carragher has filled the bar with pieces of memorabilia and artifacts from his playing days and visits the venue at least once a year to check-in. However, Carragher doesn’t class himself as the owner after handing over responsibility to experienced bar manager Brian McLaughlin.

McLaughlin is a huge Liverpool fan from Ireland and owns several bars in New York City and Pennsylvania, and Carragher revealed how a brief chat ended up leading to the creation of Carragher’s Bar. “I mean, I say I’m the owner, my name is associated with it. I wouldn’t class myself as the owner,” Carragher added.

“That’s down to Brian, a big Irish Liverpool fan who was living in New York and had not just a reputation, he had four or five bars already in New York. I think he must have been talking to my dad after a game that he’d come over to watch Liverpool or he’d see my dad in a pub.

“Basically, they built a connection up over a few months to somebody else. And then he asked about the idea of naming a bar Carragher’s in New York. It’s not something normally that a lad from Bootle growing up gets, a bar named after in New York, so it was always going to get the green light and it’s gone from there.

“I’ve tried to help in terms of sending memorabilia over there and different bits and bobs and, and popping over once or twice a year. The credits go to the staff and Brian, they’ve made the bar what it is really it’s all down to them.”

Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold has ‘zero chance’ of leaving Anfield in the January transfer window, according to The Athletic journalist James Pearce – who claims that recent reports suggesting that the homegrown defender could join Real Madrid in the January transfer window are ‘absolute nonsense’.

Alexander-Arnold has been a first-team player for Liverpool since coming into the first-team fold in 2017, and has become one of the best attacking defenders in the world with an array of qualities that puts him joint-top for all-time Premier League assists for defenders in history, alongside teammate Andy Robertson. However, his contract is set to expire at the end of the season and that is lingering in the background, with fans understandably wary that he could seek new pastures next summer. But Pearce believes that he definitely won’t be going in the winter window, labelling the notion of that as ‘nonsense’.

Pearce: Trent to Real Madrid Links Are ‘Nonsense’

The journalist has completely ruled out a move to Spain.

Speaking on The Athletic’s ‘Walk On’ podcast, Pearce stated that there would be ‘zero chance’ of Alexander-Arnold moving anywhere in January, and though clubs will be keeping a very close eye on his future, there have not been talks just yet over his contract, but the situation has not changed. He said:

Alexander-Arnold Would Be Liverpool’s Biggest Miss

Other stars are expiring but he would be their most heartbreaking exit

Alexander-Arnold is not the only key player with an expiring contract at Anfield. The local lad is joined by stalwart defender Virgil van Dijk and goalscoring winger Mohamed Salah in that regard, with Reds fans wary of losing even one of their top players, let alone three.

However, there is a huge argument that Alexander-Arnold would be the biggest miss of the trio. Whilst Salah has become one of the top scoring players in the club’s history alongside continuing the form he set out back in 2017, he would be sorely missed in terms of a goalscoring sense – but he is turning 33 at the end of the season.

Van Dijk is in a similar predicament. He has been one of the best defenders in the world for a number of years, but he will be 34 at the start of next season and there may not be a lot of years left in his tank.

Alexander-Arnold, however, will be 26 even at the start of next season, and he has at least a decade left to play at the top level before he begins to decline. He would be a huge asset to lose in both future value and potential moments that he could supply to Arne Slot throughout his career in a red shirt.

Spain international Martin Zubimendi was the subject of interest from Liverpool in the summer transfer window, and is now being linked with a move to Manchester City.

Real Sociedad star Martin Zubimendi has spoken about his future amid rumours of a potential move to Manchester City.

The Spanish international was on the brink of a transfer to Liverpool in the summer, following his standout performances at Euro 2024. Liverpool were ready to activate the midfielder’s £51million release clause in August, convinced he wanted to make the switch to Anfield.

However, the deal fell through after a last-minute appeal from his childhood club, with Zubimendi choosing to stay with Sociedad. Despite Liverpool currently leading the Premier League and Ryan Gravenberch thriving in a defensive midfield role under Arne Slot, Zubimendi recently stated he doesn’t regret his decision to remain at Sociedad, who have only managed two wins from their nine matches this season.

Reports from Spain suggest that Zubimendi could attract more interest from the Premier League in January, with City reportedly considering a move for the midfielder following Rodri’s season-ending ACL injury during a match against Arsenal last month. Yet, when asked about City’s alleged interest in a press conference ahead of Spain’s upcoming UEFA Nations League matches against Denmark and Serbia, Zubimendi reiterated his happiness to stay in San Sebastian.

“There are always rumours but until now I’ve always thought that the best solution for me is staying at Real Sociedad,” he expressed. “I’ve still a lot of things to give to this club, I still want to grow and develop here.”

If City hope to secure Zubimendi’s signature, they’ll have to do what Liverpool couldn’t – persuade the Spanish international to leave the club he’s been with since he was 12.

However, their chase for the midfielder might be helped by the fact that he hasn’t yet signed a new contract at Sociedad, meaning a buy-out clause in his agreement remains active until June 2027.

Current back-up goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher had a tempered debut season – but new Liverpool arrival Mamardashvili might not.

Alisson appears to have picked up an ongoing problem that keeps rearing its head. It’s unclear whether his latest hamstring injury is the same one that went in February, but it is nevertheless that muscle type which is sidelining him until at least late November.

That is now three hamstring flare-ups in nine months and four in a year. He already missed the win over Bournemouth due to the issue and sat out 13 Liverpool games upon his setback picked up around Valentine’s Day.

Punching the ground in frustration upon the emergence of his latest issue, Alisson cast a heartbroken figure on the Selhurst Park turf last weekend knowing he could miss a similar amount of matches. He limped out of the ground with his fifth clean sheet in eight outings but also with long-term worries.

He remained injury-free for the two seasons before last, negating too much thought for the back-up due to his arguable status as the world’s best goalkeeper. Having already made his first-team breakthrough a few years earlier, second-choice Caoimhin Kelleher was helped to ease into the senior set-up by Alisson’s healthy injury record.

The Irishman has been called upon more regularly over the past 12 months due to Alisson’s setbacks and has seen his reliability rating increase thanks to his noble deputising performances. He’ll now be needed again.

This current scenario is exactly why Arne Slot refused his transfer request this summer and maybe why Giorgi Mamardashvili’s arrival has been held off for a year. Kelleher is a familiar and trusted face within the first-team with pedigree already behind him.

He is the perfect cushion for an Alisson injury during Slot’s first year in charge as the head coach beds into life at Anfield. If he had arrived this summer, Mamardashvili would have been a new face in a pressurised scenario under a new manager vying for fan trust – not necessarily an ideal circumstance for a No.2 at this stage.

February’s injury to Alisson was significant – his longest in terms of Liverpool games – and the medical team and Slot will have noted that. Mamardashvili has meanwhile been given a year to prepare to replace Kelleher as the back-up goalkeeper aged 24.

Of course, the 6ft 6in Georgian will still face the same new-boy situation next season but by then Slot will have become a part of the Liverpool furniture with a year’s worth of credit behind him. And maybe by that time, Alisson might have got to the bottom of his hamstring woes.

But then again, he might not. Alisson has just turned 32 and while goalkeepers tend to have longer careers than their outfield colleagues, the natural ageing process means injuries take a greater amount of time to recover from. There is no guarantee the Brazilian’s muscle issues don’t persist.

Saturday was a clear warning about that, and sends Mamardashvili a message: Don’t necessarily expect a quiet first season. Kelleher is expected to leave next summer having gone public with his desire to be a No.1 elsewhere and Mamardashvili’s scheduled arrival essentially rubber-stamps that.

Kelleher played four senior games during his debut season in the first-team. Mamardashvili might not have such a spare-some introduction should Alisson’s hamstring injuries persist. The message is clear – be prepared to be used more than planned.

Liverpool striker Diogo Jota is big in the gaming world, and he has agreed on a deal with one of his former clubs in Portugal, FC Porto, in the entertainment space.

Liverpool forward Diogo Jota has struck a deal with FC Porto, a club where he spent a year on loan in 2016/17, which involves his eSports team Luna. The pair will join forces in the entertainment space.

“FC Porto already has a rich and successful history in eSports and we believe that this partnership we have now established will allow us to grow even more, cement our position nationally and internationally in an area in permanent development and, of course, help us fight for more victories and win more titles,” FC Porto said in a statement, via the Portuguese outlet Record.

“The eSports market is very important in the expansion of our brand with a very specific audience, but where many of our fans are. And, finally, it’s always good when we can combine the interests of FC Porto with someone as special as Diogo, who already had a connection as a former athlete to this club.”

“It’s a pride to join Luna Galaxy to a club with the history of FC Porto, which I had the honor of representing as an athlete,” Jota added. “It is the right step for this project because we joined a club that is world famous for its will to win and this ambition is something that is also present in us since the day we started this adventure.”

Luna plays EAFC, DOTA 2 and Rocket League. It started out as Diogo Jota eSPorts and Galaxy Racer before the two companies joined together and they are now linking up with FC Porto as Luna. Liverpool striker Jota is clearly aiming to further his eSports interests even further with this latest move.

FC Porto moved into the eSports field in 2020. It has since won two Men’s FPF Virtual Football Portuguese Cups, three eLiga Portugal Cups (one men’s and two women’s), and one Men’s eLiga Portugal Super Cup.

Liverpool.com says: It is always interesting to see what soccer players get up to in their spare time. As well as being a gamer, Jota is also studying for his coaching badges at the moment. He definitely seems like the kind of player who could move into that field and do really well.

Jurgen Klopp’s first post-Liverpool role has been announced but the German has a special clause in his contract.

Jurgen Klopp’s new contract in his first post-Liverpool role contains a key clause which allows him to leave for one job, it is claimed.

Klopp ended his memorable nine-year run in charge of Liverpool in May, having announced he would be stepping down a few months early after running out of energy.

He led Liverpool to a host of silverware such as the Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup and Club World Cup.

The 57-year-old has been linked with a host of managerial positions in recent times, including Barcelona, the USMNT and Inter Milan.

But on Wednesday morning it was communicated that Klopp had penned a deal to become Red Bull’s ‘Global Head of Soccer’.

Klopp will officially assume the position from the 1 January as part of a long-term contract.

He will act as a key advisor to the likes of RB Leipzig, Red Bull Salzburg and New York Red Bulls when it comes to coaching, player development and recruitment

However, according to Sky Sport’s Florian Plettenberg, Klopp does have an exit clause in his deal.

He would be allowed to leave if the DFB want him to replace Julian Nagelsmann, who has a deal until the end of 2026.

In 2023, Klopp said it was “not completely out of the question” that he would manage Germany in the future.

Klopp will not work day-to-day and can therefore still enjoy time with his family, but he is tasked with supporting directors across Red Bull’s pool of clubs.

Oliver Mintzlaff, CEO of Corporate Projects and Investments at Red Bull, was instrumental in securing Klopp’s services.

“We are very proud of this outstanding and certainly the strongest signing in Red Bull’s soccer history,” Mintzlaff said, as per the Red Bull content pool.

“Jurgen Klopp is one of the greatest and most influential figures in world soccer, with extraordinary skills and charisma.

“In his role as Head of Soccer, he will be a game changer for our involvement in international soccer and its continued development.

“We are hoping for valuable and decisive impulses in key areas to make the clubs even better, both collectively and individually.”

Klopp is to be officially unveiled in his new role at a press conference in mid-January.

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