Premier League's top six biggest wage bills as Liverpool's total drops by £11million

Manchester United have been dealt a boost in their pursuit of Borussia Dortmund defender Manuel Akanji, according to reports.

Liverpool have been overlooked as favourites for the Champions League and 'does not know' how the snub has happened.The Reds are England's most successful European club with six Champions League honours - the most recent of which came in 2019 against Tottenham.But according to the bookmakers, Manchester City are this season's favourites to claim continental glory, despite falling at the final hurdle last season.And though Owen agrees that one of Liverpool or Man City will win the Old Big Ears trophy, the BT Sport pundit cannot believe his former side have been snubbed as top choice for the crown."I see the Champions League as Liverpool's or Manchester City's," Owen told the Liverpool Echo.

Liverpool scraped through to the quarter-finals of the Champions League despite losing 1-0 at home to Inter Milan, as they went through 2-1 on aggregate.Jurgen Klopp's side arrived at Anfield with a healthy 2-0 lead, but that was halved on the hour mark as Lautaro Martinez scored a wondergoal to put Inter back in the tie.But moments later former Arsenal and Manchester United star Alexis Sanchez was sent off for a second bookable offence, throwing all the momentum they had gathered and Liverpool saw out the game against ten men.Although Sanchez' first yellow card was a no-brainer, there was controversy surrounding his second offence, and Arsene Wenger has accuses Fabinho of "cheating".Sanchez was one of Wenger's star men at Arsenal towards the end of his career in management, and sided with the Chilean after he was sent off at Anfield on Tuesday night.Wenger instead pointed the finger at Fabinho, as told beIN Sports: "He rode the line between cheating and being clever. Fabinho on this foul he was on the other side, he was cheating, he made more of it."Maybe he had pain and he was touched by Sanchez.

Kevin De Bruyne is expecting a re-run of the breathless 2019 title race that went right down to the final day of the season. The Manchester City ace scored twice as the Blues blew away Manchester United 4-1 to restore the six-point lead at the top - a lead that will be trimmed to just three, if Liverpool win their game in hand, away at Arsenal, next week.

Manchester United might have to contend with an unhappy Marcus Rashford this summer, who is looking to leave.The England international is said to be considering his options ahead of the transfer window and has grown concerned with life under Ralf Rangnick.Though the German coach will leave his interim role as manager at Old Trafford at the end of the season, the Guardian report that Rashford has fallen down the pecking order.Anthony Elanga is now a preferred option to the 24-year-old, while Jadon Sancho now comfortably owns a spot in the starting XI.But where could Rashford end up in the summer if he does leave United?Perhaps the most favourable destination for Rashford would be Arsenal, a club that appear to be on the up under Mikel Arteta and are desperate for a striker.The Gunners have been in fine form in recent weeks and are the most likely to finish in the top four from the rest of the teams below Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea.Arteta has made signing a forward a priority in the summer, though Rashford is seen more of a winger these days, but Arsenal’s fluid frontline would be suitable for a player that likes to drift in from out wide.There is plenty of speculation that there could be some changes to Chelsea’s attack this summer with Timo Werner, Christian Pulisic and Romelu Lukaku all linked with moves away.The Blues are blessed with plenty of striking options but could see Rashford as an ideal replacement for anyone that is thinking of leaving Stamford Bridge.However, whether Thomas Tuchel can promise the United ace the game-time he would demand is another matter with the German fond of rotating his options.Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?Well then sign up for the brilliant

Gary Neville has still backed Manchester United to finish in the top four this season despite the Reds suffering a hammering at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Former right-back Micah Richards poked fun at Manchester United icon Roy Keane after City hammered their rivals 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Manchester City fans have been reacting with glee after Kevin De Bruyne gave them an early lead in the derby against Manchester United.

Cristiano Ronaldo has been dropped for the game against Manchester City for tactical reasons, according to reports. The Manchester United player is not part of Ralf Rangnick ’s side for the game at the Eithad, with many reports suggesting that he has been ruled out of the game through injury.

Manchester United, but he still ranks among the world’s best goalscorers.The Portuguese superstar remains the Red Devils top scorer this term, having also finished with the most goals in Serie A last year.Despite being 37-years-old, Ronaldo is still capable of performing at the highest level, with United’s interim boss Ralf Rangnick making him his first-choice striker at Old Trafford.A new list showing the highest scorers after turning 30 in the top five European leagues has also shown Ronaldo’s remarkable ability to continue to star in the Premier League.The top 10 of the list comprises players from across Europe, with the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga all featured.At number 10 on the list is Luis Suarez, who has scored 103 goals in the 168 games he has played since turning 30 in 2017, across spells at Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.The next man up also spent his seasons since turning 30 entirely in La Liga, with Artiz Aduriz having hit the back of the net 104 times in 269 games for Valencia and Athletic Bilbao.Italian icon Luca Toni comes in at eight, scoring 104 goals in 227 games for the likes of Bayern Munich, Juventus and Hellas Verona.Who do you think is the best player of all time? Let us know in the comments section...Another Italian, Fabio Quagliarella, sits just above Toni, firing in 108 times in the 288 games and nine years since he turned 30,Roma legend Francesco Totti just misses out on a place in the top five, having hit 125 goals in the 279 games he played after turning 30 until his retirement.Robert Lewandowski should move higher than his current fifth place, having scored an astonishing 125 goals in the three years since his 30th birthday.Ronaldo’s fellow superstar Lionel Messi is

Liverpool fans are ready to put one rivalry aside as another takes centre stage when it comes to backing a team in Sunday's Manchester derby.

Manchester City in the Premier League title race by claiming a narrow 1-0 win over West Ham.In their first league game since lifting the Carabao Cup, the Reds edged out the Hammers despite a lacklustre second-half performance in what was a tight game.Ultimately, Sadio Mane’s first-half tap-in was the difference, but both sides also had efforts cleared off the line, with Aaron Cresswell and Trent Alexander-Arnold coming to the rescue of their teams in quick succession.Andy Robertson and Naby Keita were both forced to make last-ditch challenges to protect Liverpool's lead after the break as the hosts struggled to put the game to bed.Here, Daily Star Sport looks at four things Jurgen Klopp got right to ensure his side closed the gap on City to three points…Klopp opted to hand Luis Diaz his third successive Premier League start for the visit of the Hammers, with the Colombian playing down the left wing.His trust in the new signing from Porto was repaid in bucket loads, with Diaz looking lively throughout the clash.It was a performance that deserved a goal, with one run just after the half-hour mark dragging his side from their own half to winning a free-kick right on the edge of West Ham’s box.Who was your man of the match as Liverpool defeated West Ham? Let us know in the comments section...Diaz’s place on the left meant that Sadio Mane was once again selected in the central role in Liverpool’s front three.It is a position that Diogo Jota has made his own for much of the season, but Mane impressed in the Portuguese’s place at Anfield.He scored the crucial goal to set the Reds on their way to the win when his clever run was picked out by Mohamed Salah and he turned the ball home.Mane ensured that he kept involved with play

Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool among the Premier League sides to have learned of their next FA Cup opponents as the sides still in with a chance of glory continue to halve. Chelsea saw off the threat of Luton on Wednesday (March 2) with Liverpool edging past Norwich - having watched City beat Peterborough by two goals to nil the previous evening.

Liverpool supporters in hysterics during their FA Cup clash against Norwich this week after his voice seemed to break at the worst possible time.The England international midfielder started the fixture on Wednesday (March 2) - as did Japan forward Minamino who scored both home goals to send them into the quarter-finals.However, that form didn't mean that Henderson would choose not to shout instruction to his colleague - but that backfired as his voice broke.A fan, who happened to be filming at the time, caught many around him breaking out in laughter at their skipper - who walked away looking disappointed as Minamino passed to James Milner.In an uncharacteristically high-pitch voice, the 27-year-old screamed: "TAKI, TAKI!"Despite a positive start from Norwich, they were unable to equalise following Minamino's double having got back into the game late on through Lukas Rupp.Jurgen Klopp said of his forward after the match: "His impression was obvious with scoring two goals and not only that – he had a lot more top, top football moments. "He was a constant threat tonight, he was mobile, he was quick.

For Man City fans, the home Manchester derby is traditionally the biggest game in the club’s fixture schedule.

Bolton Wanderers have 11 games left to go of their League One season as they aim to make a late charge for the League One play-offs.

Liverpool won the first domestic trophy of the season on Sunday after Chelsea's substitute goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga missed from the spot to hand Jurgen Klopp victory.As the Reds remain in all other competitions, some fans are starting to believe that Liverpool could in fact do the quadruple this season, as they close in on Manchester City at the top of the Premier League.However, they only have the Carabao Cup to their name for now, and it's a trophy that has received criticism in the past as some of the bigger teams tend to field second-string sides in the earlier stages, including even Liverpool this season.But before rival fans had the chance to mock Liverpool for their celebrations, the Anfield faithful have got in their first with a banner which appears to make a joke of their own success.The Carabao Cup has been labelled as the 'Mickey Mouse Cup' in the past due to the fact it's not always taken seriously, and some of the bigger clubs tend to take their foot off the gas and use it as a chance to utilise their younger talent.However, it is a trophy nonetheless, and usually the fans that tend to mock the competition do so when their team has conveniently been knocked out.But Liverpool fans have brilliantly jumped on the bandwagon and mocked their own success, as a banner was unveiled at Anfield containing images of Mickey Mouse surrounded by trophies.Will Liverpool go on to win the quadruple this season? Comment below.The banner was shown during Liverpool's 2-1 win over the Norwich in the fifth round of the FA Cup, as Klopp progressed to the quarter-finals of the competition for the very first time.Liverpool also have a 2-0 advantage over Inter Milan in the Champions League ahead of the second leg at Anfield, and

Manchester United’s clash away at Liverpool later this month will be rearranged after Jurgen Klopp’s side progressed in the FA Cup.

Liverpool fans reckon Georginio Wijnaldum is missing life at his old club after trawling through his Twitter likes. The Netherlands international called time on his five-year stint at Anfield last summer when his contract expired.

Little Simz has won Best Solo Act From The UK at the BandLab NME Awards 2022 this evening (March 2).The North London musician was up against Arlo Parks, Dave, Rina Sawayama and Sam Fender in the category. She accepted the award on the podium from Ghetts and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.“Can I just say – after the awful two years we had, you look beautiful tonight!” Khan said to the audience.

Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk has been applauded after he stepped up to aid the Netherlands Deaf team in their bid to compete at the Deaflympics in Brazil.Van Dijk is the captain of the Dutch mens team and is set to taste his first major international tournament when he jets off to the World Cup in Qatar later this year.However, the powerful defender has made steps to ensure that other Dutch players will play at an upcoming major tournament.According to De Telegraaf, van Dijk 'did not hesitate' to make a 'substantial private donation' to assist the Dutch Deaf national team in their bid to head to Brazil next year.The team are bidding to raise a sum of around €90,000 (£75,000) to enable them to compete at the extravaganza.As well as his own private donation, van Dijk has reportedly given his match-worn shirt from Sunday's Carabao Cup final win over Chelsea to be auctioned in a bid to raise the remaining funds.“I have discussed this with my family and we are happy to help,” Van Dijk said when discussing the situation.“That’s why we support these guys, who have delivered a great performance by moving from 21st to seventh place in the world ranking. I admire the way these guys practice their sport.”How do you think the Netherlands will get on in the World Cup? Let us know in the comments section.Unsurprisingly, after his generous act hit the news, fans flocked to praise van Dijk for his donation.One user posted: "As a deaf person I find this really nice of him to do.