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Mbappe ‘Already Forgotten’, Says Real’s Perez after Champions League Win

Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti (C) and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez after the team won the UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, near Paris, France, 28 May 2022. (EPA)
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti (C) and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez after the team won the UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, near Paris, France, 28 May 2022. (EPA)
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Mbappe ‘Already Forgotten’, Says Real’s Perez after Champions League Win

Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti (C) and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez after the team won the UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, near Paris, France, 28 May 2022. (EPA)
Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti (C) and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez after the team won the UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, near Paris, France, 28 May 2022. (EPA)

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez insisted that Paris St. Germain forward Kylian Mbappe was not on the club's minds as they celebrated a record-extending 14th European Cup crown after victory against Liverpool in Paris on Saturday.

Mbappe was widely tipped for a move to the Spanish capital but signed a contract extension until 2025 at PSG last week in a dramatic U-turn, a decision that irked many Real players and fans.

"Real Madrid will always continue to work on having the best players, but today Mbappe is already forgotten," Perez told reporters after a Vinicius Jr. tap-in gave them a 1-0 win.

"Nothing has happened, Real Madrid have had a perfect season and that is a forgotten issue, there is only a Real Madrid party."

Mbappe's choice to stay at the French champions has triggered a war of words between the parties involved after LaLiga president Javier Tebas said they would file a complaint against PSG to UEFA because the deal "attacked the economic stability" of the European game.

Ligue 1 president Vincent Labrune hit back at Tebas on Thursday, saying his denigration of the French league and its players was "unacceptable".

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United Boss Ten Hag Concedes Liverpool Have Advantage of Mature Team

Soccer Football - Premier League - Brighton & Hove Albion v Manchester United - The American Express Community Stadium, Brighton, Britain - August 24, 2024 Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag reacts REUTERS/Tony O Brien/File photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Soccer Football - Premier League - Brighton & Hove Albion v Manchester United - The American Express Community Stadium, Brighton, Britain - August 24, 2024 Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag reacts REUTERS/Tony O Brien/File photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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United Boss Ten Hag Concedes Liverpool Have Advantage of Mature Team

Soccer Football - Premier League - Brighton & Hove Albion v Manchester United - The American Express Community Stadium, Brighton, Britain - August 24, 2024 Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag reacts REUTERS/Tony O Brien/File photo Purchase Licensing Rights
Soccer Football - Premier League - Brighton & Hove Albion v Manchester United - The American Express Community Stadium, Brighton, Britain - August 24, 2024 Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag reacts REUTERS/Tony O Brien/File photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Liverpool are a more mature side than Manchester United, with the advantage of a cohesive team of established players, United manager Erik ten Hag said ahead of Sunday's Premier League clash between the bitter rivals at Old Trafford.

"Liverpool are in a different phase of the life cycle," Ten Hag told reporters. "We are much more mixed and we have to build a new team."

United have not beaten Liverpool in the league since a 2-1 win at Old Trafford in August 2022 though Ten Hag's men did prevail 4-3 over former Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp's side to win the FA Cup last season, according to Reuters.

Liverpool finished third in the league last season, five places and 22 points ahead of United, but Ten Hag said his side could take heart from their performance in the cup final.

"We can always win, last year we won (in the FA cup) in the second part of the season," the Dutchman said.

"(Liverpool) are a team who are clear in the relationship among their players. It's what (new manager Arne Slot) has inherited. It was built over the last few years."

Slot and Ten Hag have faced each other in the past during their time working in the Dutch top flight, with little to chose between them on paper.

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Both managers have two wins apiece against each other in the Eridivisie, with Sunday's match at Old Trafford their first head-to-head meeting since March 2022.

Liverpool have made a solid start to the season under Slot, who became their first manager since Graeme Souness in 1991 to win his two opening league games in charge with Sunday's 2-0 victory over Brentford.

United, on the other hand, dropped their first points of the campaign when they were beaten 2-1 at Brighton & Hove Albion last Saturday.

"One of the reasons I came here is I knew beforehand it would be the most difficult thing I could ever do in my life, to come in (to) a club with a lot of problems," added Ten Hag, who took charge of United in April 2022.

"I inherited a history of six years and no trophy. We're still in transition. We have young players, academy players, and now we have to construct a team for the future."