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Brendan Rogers has described his delight over the 4-0 haul over rivals Everton, as Liverpool continue their dominating presence in the English Premier League, Sky Sports reports.

With less than 25 minutes gone, Liverpool’s home support had something to cheer about as Liverpool showed their attacking class to grab their first of four goals at Anfield.

Goals from Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard and striker Luis Suarez combined with a double from Daniel Sturridge crafted the 4-0 score line, despite Sturridge missing a second-half penalty.

“I’m delighted for the players and obviously the supporters,” said Rodgers.

“I know that feelings run high here on Merseyside for the derby games. It was a brilliant team performance. There was good defensive organisation. We were outstanding on the counter attack and we controlled our spaces really well.

“We were clinical in front of goal. We scored four and could have had arguably two or three more. It was a brilliant win for us and I’m delighted for everyone.

“It’s obviously really special because of the nature of the game – it was two teams that have been doing outstandingly well and doing the city proud throughout the course of the season.

“It was a combination of the players and the supporters – they were brilliant again tonight. I’m delighted for them because I know how special the derby games are here and how special they are for the supporters.

“For them to get that win and the victory, and for the players to perform how they did, was really special. We’ve got a real focus and concentration going into every game.

“This was a massive game tonight as everyone who came to the ground knew, so for us to score goals, defend like we did and attack with that efficiency was very pleasing.

“We knew it was going to be a big match. I’m more delighted for the players and supporters. For me, it’s three points; I’ll be more delighted at the end of the season if we can arrive in the top four. I’ll probably over-analyse the performance and see the areas we can improve on going forward.”

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The Merseyside derby win leaves Liverpool in fourth place, only six points behind league leaders Arsenal.

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Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert has revealed that Stephen Ireland will be out for “a few weeks” after suffering a broken bone in his wrist.

It was initially feared that the midfielder had broken his arm during the 4-1 defeat to Southampton last Saturday and may be facing several months on the sidelines. But thankfully for Ireland, who has been enjoying a new lease of life at Villa recently, he should be back in action much sooner that first expected.

He will still be forced to take some time out, however, after doctors diagnosed a broken bone and placed his wrist in a protective cast. Villa boss Paul Lambert told Sky Sports:

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“It’s not Stephen’s arm. It’s his wrist. I don’t think it’s as bad as we thought. Hopefully he will be back in a few weeks’ time. Injuries happen. It’s unfortunate for Stephen and it’s unfortunate for us, but he won’t be out for the number of weeks we thought he would be.”

West Ham United appointed Manuel Pellegrini as their new manager last Wednesday, and the former Manchester City boss will have already started getting to work on assessing the current squad that he has at his disposal.

The 64-year-old will certainly be keen to give everyone a chance to impress before he makes too many moves in the transfer window, and there may well be some individuals that have a big point to prove following a disappointing campaign where the east London outfit flirted with relegation.

The Chilean boss, who could look to be reunited with three players he has worked with previously this summer, showed during his final season with City in 2015/16 that he isn’t afraid to make big team selection decisions having kept the likes of Vincent Kompany and Yaya Toure on the substitutes’ bench in huge matches, and he will want to be a disciplinarian again to ensure that he doesn’t lose his record of never finishing outside of the top seven while being a manager in European football.

There are certain stars that may not be able to keep up with the 64-year-old’s demands based on previous instances, and those could be the ones that are shipped out of the London Stadium exit door first.

Here are four West Ham players who won’t last long under Pellegrini’s tutelage…

With Joe Hart returning to Manchester City following a disappointing loan spell at the London Stadium it seems almost certain that Pellegrini will look to bring a new goalkeeper in this summer, and he has been linked with a player he worked with at the Etihad in Willy Caballero.

While the stopper is 36, the Chilean manager would likely make him the number one if he did sign him given he is currently back-up at Chelsea, and that may not go down well with Adrian who has reacted badly to being dropped in the past.

Losing his place to Caballero would surely anger the Spaniard, and his 64-year-old manager may choose to wield the axe if that proves to be the case.

While Kompany was City captain and one of their most influential players, Pellegrini showed how ruthless he can be by leaving the Belgian out of the starting XI for a huge Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain even when he was fit again after suffering from injury.

Like Kompany, Reid is an influential member of the West Ham backline but injuries have hampered him over the course of the past few seasons, and the 29-year-old only made 18 Premier League appearances last term as he suffered from calf, groin and knee problems.

Pellegrini likely won’t be willing to put up with the New Zealand international – whose form has clearly dipped – if those issues continue, and if he brings in a new centre-back this summer to join Declan Rice and Angelo Ogbonna in defence, Reid could find himself surplus to requirements.

Pellegrini will demand high work-rate and impeccable tactical awareness from his players next season if they are to push for a top-seven finish, and it is difficult to see Kouyate fitting in under Chilean on that basis.

While the Senegal international did improve towards the end of the campaign following some poor performances previously, he looked at times as though he didn’t know what role he was supposed to be playing.

Whether that was the fault of Slaven Bilic and David Moyes remains to be seen, but if he shows the same lack of quality during pre-season Pellegrini surely won’t put up with him for too long – especially if he has Mark Noble, Pedro Obiang and a potential new midfielder in the squad.

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Like Reid, Carroll is another that has suffered from injury problems during the last couple of seasons – and since he joined the club in general – and while his first-team chances should be boosted if Pellegrini plays two up top, it may not be that easy.

Javier Hernandez is likely to be a regular starter following a difficult debut campaign at the London Stadium, while Marko Arnautovic may keep his spot as a centre-forward having been the first-choice in that position for the majority of the 2017/18 season.

Carroll threw his toys out of the pram when he failed to come on as a substitute in the defeat against Manchester City last month, and if he were to pull a similar stunt again the Chilean would not take to it kindly.

Do you agree, West Ham fans? Let us know below.

As reported by The Daily Record, Rangers are looking to negotiate the transfer of Hamilton midfielder Greg Docherty this weekend.

What’s the story?

Graeme Murty’s side have already made a number of signings during this month’s transfer window, potentially transforming their starting eleven in the second half of the season.

However, it seems Rangers’ business isn’t done quite yet, as they prepare to finalise the signing of Scotland U21 international Greg Docherty.

The Daily Record report that the Ibrox side are locked in talks with Hamilton in an effort to sign the midfielder, but the Lanarkshire side won’t budge on their £600,000 valuation.

If they really are intent on bringing him to Glasgow then they’ll have to act soon, with the paper also reporting that there’s interest from the likes of Cardiff City and Preston North End.

Talent drain

Rangers have seen far too many talented Scottish players leave the country and move to England in recent years and it’s important they secure the futures of the most exciting youngsters before that lure takes hold.

Docherty has shown enough potential to justify his reported £600,000 valuation and the Light Blues shouldn’t be messing about trying to get him on the cheap when it’s clear Accies will hold firm.

With three goals and six assists so far this season, Docherty has been a key man for Hamilton and at just 21 has plenty of room for improvement too.

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After so many loan signings this month, it’s time for the Ibrox side to show a bit of decisiveness and meet his valuation.

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Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund are preparing a shock move for Sunderland forward Ji Dong-Won, according to talkSPORT.

Jurgen Klopp is looking for January reinforcements as his side prepares to battle on all fronts during the second half of the season, and it appears the Black Cats forward is an attractive option.

Ji Dong-Won is out of contract at the Stadium of Light in the summer, and is unlikely to be offered a new deal by manager Gus Poyet.

Dortmund hope to secure the forward’s signature for a knock down price in January, as the striker enters the final six months of his Sunderland contract.

The 22-year-old has made just four appearances for the north east club this season, with his last start coming under former boss Paulo Di Canio way back in August.

The striker has been capped 22 times for South Korea, and moved to the Stadium of Light from Chunnam Dragons in 2011.

He is best remembered for scoring a last minute winner against Manchester City at the Stadium of Light on New Years Day 2012.

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Former Netherlands international Ronald de Boer has stated that the 2022 World Cup should be switched to the winter.

The tournament will be held in Qatar, which has drawn question marks due to the sweltering heat in the country at that time of the year.

However De Boer, who is an ambassador of the Asian nation’s bid, believes that switching the competition to the winter would be a success.

“I think sometimes a change is good, it would be great to have it in the winter,” The Telegraph report De Boer as saying.”Everyone will be fit, physically fit, mentally fit and I don’t see a problem with it. When the African Nations Cup takes place, if you have an African player at your club he has to go and play for his country,” he said.“They play in January and February. Not every league is in synch with the big European leagues: in Russia and Scandinavia they start earlier, and in the United States they have a different schedule.“So I don’t see difficulties. I think its great we have this opportunity and to try it and it will also be beneficial for the tournament itself to be played in the winter. I played there, and for the fans I think it will be great. It would be great if we had it in the winter.“I think all the bodies should come together to find a common solution and try also to change. It’s very easy to stick with the old thing because we’ve done it already for years.“I have said to the supreme committee, ‘I would do it in the winter’. But they can’t say that,” he concluded.

It does not take much for football fans to bask in the misery of their rivals, and on this occasion, Liverpool supporters have taken aim at Everton.

In all honesty, the majority of Toffees fans have been left delighted by the news that Sam Allardyce has left his role as manager.

However, another period of upheaval has caused Liverpool supporters to poke fun at their neighbours.

The Merseyside outfit announced the coaching shift on Wednesday morning, confirming that a new appointment will be made in the summer.

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Allardyce arrived at Goodison Park in November as successor to Ronald Koeman, who was sacked in the previous month for dropping the club towards the relegation zone.

Everton’s new man oversaw an unbeaten run of seven games in all competitions when he took charge of the Toffees, but a number of dismal results followed.

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Fans soon turned against Allardyce, and that theme continued until the end of the season, despite the club finishing eighth in the Premier League table.

Some Liverpool fans launched digs at Everton via social media, while others slammed the Toffees for dismissing the experienced coach.

According to reports in The Telegraph, Southampton are hoping to sign Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge on loan during the January transfer window, and Saints fans have been quick to have their say on the rumour.The Telegraph says that Mauricio Pellegrino wants to strengthen his struggling team in the New Year after selling Virgil van Dijk to the Reds for £75m, and he would be keen on bringing a proven goalscorer like Sturridge to St Mary’s on a temporary deal until the end of the season.The south coast outfit certainly need some help in attack after scoring just 20 goals in 20 Premier League matches so far this term, and with 75 English top flight goals during his career the 28-year-old could be the answer to their goalscoring woes.Southampton supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the story, and while one said “I’m actually desperate to sign Sturridge”, another wasn’t so keen and said he is “such a greedy player who doesn’t pass the ball when he should”.Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has insisted he will not be forced to sell Arsenal target Luis Suarez in January, reports the Daily Star.

The Uruguayan indicated he was ready to quit Anfield in the summer, and was the subject of two official bids from Arsenal, one of which consisted of £40million and £1.

Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard said in the week he does not expect to see a January move for Suarez, but admitted the controversial forward could depart in the summer should the Reds fail to qualify for the Champions League.

However manager Brendan Rodgers insists he has seen nothing but commitment from the striker, who has bagged six Premier League goals in just five games since his return from suspension.

“I haven’t been given anything to the contrary,” Rodgers said.

“Looking and speaking to him, Luis is as happy as he has ever been.

“He recognises we have a real genuine chance this year of breaking in there (the top four) this year.

“Last year was about transition and the second season was about improvement and he has seen that.

“He had a difficult summer but he has come back and he is more mature and his performance level has been really high.

“He sees a genuine chance for us to make that (top four). He is happy here.”

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger last week refused to rule out making a January offer for Suarez, however Rodgers has insisted the club are under no obligation to sell.

“From a club perspective, we made a stance last summer, not only for Luis but for every player,” he added.

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“If we think it is time to sell a player, we will. If not we won’t.”

Suarez told a Uruguayan radio station earlier in the week he was happy to stay in England, and had heard nothing of interest from Real Madrid.

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Jamie Mackie has stated that the current Queens Park Rangers team can beat anyone.

The Scotland international firmly believes it is just a matter of time before QPR’s new players gel and become a force in the Premier League.

Mackie has refused to be disheartened by the R’s lacklustre start where they have picked up just two points from their opening four games, including a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Swansea.

Mackie told the club’s official website, “There is perhaps a bit more belief that we can win these match these sides.

“We showed it last season at home we really need to believe that now. [Against Chelsea] is the best we’ve been in terms of our tempo.”

Much of the sides slow start has been put down to trying to bed in new players, there were 11 summer arrivals at Loftus Road. Mackie added: “Good players can play well together, but knowing each other’s game is an important element.

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“You need to understand where people are comfortable and where they aren’t. But more than anything, new lads need time to get used to the team shape and the demands the manager puts on his players.”