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Liverpool Must Plan for Summer Signings Now, Says Klopp

Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp watches his players warming up before the UEFA Champions League, Round of 16, 1st leg match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid in Liverpool, Britain, 21 February 2023. (EPA)
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp watches his players warming up before the UEFA Champions League, Round of 16, 1st leg match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid in Liverpool, Britain, 21 February 2023. (EPA)
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Liverpool Must Plan for Summer Signings Now, Says Klopp

Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp watches his players warming up before the UEFA Champions League, Round of 16, 1st leg match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid in Liverpool, Britain, 21 February 2023. (EPA)
Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp watches his players warming up before the UEFA Champions League, Round of 16, 1st leg match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid in Liverpool, Britain, 21 February 2023. (EPA)

Liverpool have to start working on their player recruitment plans for the summer transfer window regardless of their Champions League status next season, manager Juergen Klopp said, highlighting the spending power of other Premier League clubs.

Liverpool lost 5-2 to Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 clash and they are eighth in the league, seven points adrift of the fourth spot which secures Champions League qualification, albeit with two games in hand.

"I'm sorry that I cannot guarantee Champions League at this moment but we fight for it and it is not done yet," Klopp told reporters.

"But it is tricky and it will be a late decision. We have to start work earlier before we know where we will end up position-wise and European competition-wise. These things are clear."

Liverpool are six-times Champions League winners, last lifting the trophy in 2018-19.

"I think we played five years in a row in the Champions League, which is massive money, and went to the final three times in that time, which is also massive from a money point of view," added Klopp, whose team play at Crystal Palace later on Saturday.

"We built a stand, we built a training ground, and the club is in a really good place, but around us obviously a few people (clubs) are speeding up a little bit and you cannot ignore that. We cannot ignore these kind of things."

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Barcelona Reaches Copa Del Rey Quarterfinals. Atletico Also Advances

Barcelona's Gavi gestures during a Spanish Copa del Rey round of 16 soccer match between Barcelona and Real Betis at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)
Barcelona's Gavi gestures during a Spanish Copa del Rey round of 16 soccer match between Barcelona and Real Betis at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)
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Barcelona Reaches Copa Del Rey Quarterfinals. Atletico Also Advances

Barcelona's Gavi gestures during a Spanish Copa del Rey round of 16 soccer match between Barcelona and Real Betis at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)
Barcelona's Gavi gestures during a Spanish Copa del Rey round of 16 soccer match between Barcelona and Real Betis at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)

Barcelona followed up its rout of Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final with a comfortable 5-1 victory over Real Betis in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday.
Gavi and Jules Koundé scored a goal each in the first half-hour and Raphinha, Ferran Torres and Lamine Yamal added to the lead in the second half to give the Catalan club the win and a spot in the quarterfinals.
It was the fourth straight victory in 2025 for Barcelona, which on Sunday defeated Madrid 5-2 in Saudi Arabia to win the Spanish Super Cup.
“We wanted to keep the momentum from the Super Cup here at home in front of our fans,” Barcelona defender Pau Cubarsí said. “We continue like this and keep the foot on the throttle. The (Christmas) break did well for us, we were able to refresh.”
Barcelona had lost its last two games in 2024 before going on a winning streak against Barbastro in the Copa del Rey and Athletic Bilbao and Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup.
Playmaker Dani Olmo, registered in the last minute after a long battle between Barcelona, the Spanish league and Spain's federation because of a missed deadline by the club, helped set up Gavi's opening goal in the third minute at Montjuic stadium. Yamal gave the pass for Koundé's goal in the 27th.
Koundé thought he had added to the lead in first-half stoppage time but his effort was disallowed by video review because he was offside. Yamal also had one called back by the VAR because of offside early in the second half.
Barcelona's third goal finally counted when Raphinha found the net in a breakaway in the 58th. Torres scored the fourth from inside the area in the 67th, a few minutes after coming off the bench, and Yamal sealed it after a nice run in the 75th.
Vitor Roque scored Betis' lone goal by converting an 84th-minute penalty kick.
Atletico Madrid, playing without many regular starters, routed second-division club Elche 4-0 to extend its record winning streak to 15 matches.
The club had never won more than 13 games in a row across all competitions before.
Alexander Sorloth scored from close range in the eighth and converted a 29th-minute penalty kick. Rodrigo Riquelme scored the third from long range in the 61st, and Julián Álvarez closed the scoring in the 75th.
Elche played a man down from the 50th after Nicolás Fernández was sent off with a second yellow card.
Other results Álvaro Rodríguez scored two minutes into the match as Getafe won 1-0 at fourth-division club Pontevedra.
The visitors played a man down from the 41st after a straight red card was shown to Rodríguez.
An 86th-minute goal by Diego García gave Leganes a 3-2 win at second-division club Almeria.
In other round-of-16 matches on Thursday, defending champion Athletic Bilbao hosts Osasuna and Real Madrid welcomes Celta Vigo.