Liverpool and RB Salzburg played a frenzied game of Champions League football on Wednesday. It was the sort of match that makes you question everything — from Virgil van Dijk’s shaky status as godhead to Erling Braut Håland’s growing status as Pelé.
The Best FIFA Football Awards 2019 went down in Milan today, and you can rest assured that The18 tried its best to watch on YouTube, but good lord, this stuff is mostly unwatchable. It's remarkably drawn out, full of self-aggrandizing nonsense from FIFA and the forced banter between hosts Ilaria D'Amico, Ruud Gullit and the guests makes you search for the mute button while your skin crawls.
But other than that it's pretty good!
Let’s go to the green carpet for some select photos before the ceremony. Here’s Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe looking fly.
Maybe Jürgen Klopp saw something on film, but I doubt it. I think Liverpool simply exploited the almighty power of the backheel on a whimsy, as is befitting of the European champions. Klopp’s prematch team talk probably went something like this (sung to the tune of Men at Work):
We can backheel if we want to, we can leave England behind
Cause Man United don’t backheel and Chelsea don’t backheel
And they’re no friends of mine
Loris Karius bloopers are like the Rolling Stones: They never get old and they never stop entertaining.
Napoli downed visiting Liverpool in their Champions League opener 2-0 in a tight match until the game slipped away in the final minutes.
Both sides looked evenly matched throughout with a box score to prove. Aside from a few offside calls and sloppy tackling by the Italian side, the team stats were all near identical.
Both keepers played phenomenal but Napoli’s Alex Meret would come away with the clean sheet in his Champions League debut.
Liverpool’s defense of its Champions League crown is off to a shaky start following a 2-0 defeat to Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo in Italy on Tuesday. Liverpool supporters will disagree with the game-changing penalty that Felix Brych awarded Napoli in the 82nd minute, but it certainly wasn’t a vintage performance from the Reds.
108 days after Liverpool lifted the Champions League trophy in Madrid, we’re set to do it all over again with a competition that’ll reach its conclusion on May 30 in Istanbul. Matchday one begins tomorrow (Tuesday, Sept. 17) with a couple massive group stage encounters before carrying through to Wednesday with a couple more.
Below, we’ll highlight those four games while also breaking down the Champions League TV schedule on TNT.
Tuesday, September 17
Those shouting at your screen after reading the title because we are only four games into the season, because you don't like Kevin De Bruyne or for a number of other reasons, I get it. Believe me, I do, I’ve been there. Just hear me out.
“I was really wasted.”
Those are the first words from Jürgen Klopp in Episode 3 of Inside Borussia Dortmund, Amazon Prime’s docuseries on the German club, which came out last week.
It only got better from the current Liverpool coach.
The 2019 Ballon d’Or will be presented in December, and the three front runners will all be confident of their chances at lifting the famous award. For both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, it could just be one of their final chances. They're each aiming for a sixth win. Meanwhile, for Virgil van Dijk it would be tremendous recognition of a fine season spent leading Liverpool to European glory and an incredible run in the Premier League.