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Liverpool Players to Wear ‘Forever 20’ Patches in Jota’s Memory

A picture of Liverpool's Portuguese soccer player Diogo Jota stands next to flower tributes, after Jota died in a car crash near Zamora, Spain, outside Anfield Stadium in Liverpool, Britain, July 3, 2025. (Reuters)
A picture of Liverpool's Portuguese soccer player Diogo Jota stands next to flower tributes, after Jota died in a car crash near Zamora, Spain, outside Anfield Stadium in Liverpool, Britain, July 3, 2025. (Reuters)
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Liverpool Players to Wear ‘Forever 20’ Patches in Jota’s Memory

A picture of Liverpool's Portuguese soccer player Diogo Jota stands next to flower tributes, after Jota died in a car crash near Zamora, Spain, outside Anfield Stadium in Liverpool, Britain, July 3, 2025. (Reuters)
A picture of Liverpool's Portuguese soccer player Diogo Jota stands next to flower tributes, after Jota died in a car crash near Zamora, Spain, outside Anfield Stadium in Liverpool, Britain, July 3, 2025. (Reuters)

Liverpool players will wear a "Forever 20" emblem on their shirts and stadium jackets this Premier League season in memory of their former forward Diogo Jota who died in a car crash in Spain three weeks ago.

The club also announced on Saturday a special commemoration including a fan mosaic and a minute's silence ahead of Liverpool's opening game of the season against Bournemouth on August 15.

Thousands of flowers, scarves, banners and other tributes have been laid outside Anfield since Jota and his brother Andre Silva died.

The club said they have been removed over the past week and stored, while the floral tributes will be composted and used in flower beds across club sites, including Anfield, the AXA Training Center and AXA Melwood Training Center.

The remaining artifacts will be recycled and used to create a permanent memorial sculpture that will become a focal point of remembrance at Anfield.

Liverpool had already announced after consultation with Jota's family that his number 20 shirt will be retired across all levels of the club, including the women's and academy teams.

Supporters can have "Diogo J. 20" printed on shirts in club stores, with profits going to LFC Foundation, the club's official charity. The Foundation has committed to creating a grassroots football program in Jota's name.

A floral tribute will be also laid before kickoff at pre-season games in Hong Kong, Tokyo and at Anfield.

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Salah Out of Liverpool Squad for Champions League Game After Rift with Slot

Football - UEFA Champions League - Liverpool Training - AXA Training Center, Liverpool, Britain - December 8, 2025 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah during training. (Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff)
Football - UEFA Champions League - Liverpool Training - AXA Training Center, Liverpool, Britain - December 8, 2025 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah during training. (Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff)
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Salah Out of Liverpool Squad for Champions League Game After Rift with Slot

Football - UEFA Champions League - Liverpool Training - AXA Training Center, Liverpool, Britain - December 8, 2025 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah during training. (Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff)
Football - UEFA Champions League - Liverpool Training - AXA Training Center, Liverpool, Britain - December 8, 2025 Liverpool's Mohamed Salah during training. (Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff)

Mohamed Salah is out of Arne Slot's squad for Liverpool's Champions League game against Inter Milan, following his stinging public criticism of the club.

The Egyptian forward's name was missing from a 19-player squad Monday as the team traveled to Italy. He had earlier seemed in good spirits at training in England.

Salah said it “seems like the club has thrown me under the bus” and he doesn't have “any relationship” with Slot after he was benched for the third game in a row Saturday.

Salah has won two Premier League titles and the Champions League during a trophy-laden eight years at Anfield. He signed a two-year contract extension in April just before he received his second Premier League player of the season award.

Salah is due to go to the Africa Cup of Nations this month with Egypt before the transfer window opens in January.

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Real Madrid Defender Éder Militão Set to Be Sidelined for Few Months because of Injury

Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
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Real Madrid Defender Éder Militão Set to Be Sidelined for Few Months because of Injury

Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)
Real Madrid's Eder Militao is assisted from the pitch after getting an injury during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Celta Vigo in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Real Madrid defender Éder Militão is expected to be sidelined for at least three months because of a left leg injury.

The club said Monday that Militão underwent tests and was diagnosed with a rupture of the biceps femoris tendon in his leg. It said his “progress will be monitored.”

Such injuries could require from three to fourth months of recovery, Spanish media said, The AP news reported.

Militão had to leave Madrid's 2-0 loss to Celta Vigo in the Spanish league on Sunday in the first half. He was assisted off the field at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.

Militão, a Brazil international, had to deal with serious knee injuries in recent years.

He is the latest setback to affect Xabi Alonso's squad that has been depleted by injuries recently.

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Mbappé Faces Haaland in Champions League Appetizer for World Cup. Troubled Liverpool Goes to Inter

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
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Mbappé Faces Haaland in Champions League Appetizer for World Cup. Troubled Liverpool Goes to Inter

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe poses with the trophy after scoring four goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Olympiacos and Real Madrid, in in Piraeus port, near Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A Champions League clash between Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland will surely happen in the final one day.

On Wednesday, it is a routine league-phase game when Real Madrid hosts Manchester City and the most feared forwards in soccer cross paths for the third time in the competition since Haaland debuted in 2019.

Also this week, Liverpool brings its season of turmoil to San Siro against Inter Milan on Tuesday, when Bayern Munich hosts Sporting Lisbon. Paris Saint-Germain is at Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday, The AP news reported.

In the sixth of the eight rounds, league-leading Arsenal can become the first team to reach the 16-point total that last season ensured advancing direct to the round of 16, The AP news reported.

Arsenal is the only team with five straight wins on 15 points and needs to avoid defeat Tuesday at Club Brugge to reach the potential cutoff between eighth and ninth place in January.

Mbappé vs. Haaland Tuesday at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium likely won’t be the last time they meet this season.

France will play Norway on June 26 at the New England Patriots’ stadium in Foxborough, Mass., in one of the most anticipated games from the World Cup draw made Friday.

There might also be more in the Champions League given that Real Madrid and Manchester City met in the knockout rounds in each of the past four seasons. They combined to win three titles in that time though Mbappé still seeks his first.

Mbappé vs. Haaland first happened in the round of 16 in February 2020. Newly arrived at Borussia Dortmund, Haaland scored two in the first leg against Paris Saint-Germain and revealed his “Zen” goal celebration, sitting down cross-legged as if meditating. Mbappé and PSG won in Paris to advance 3-2 on aggregate score.

Last season, in the knockout playoffs in February, Mbappé scored four times including a hat trick in the second leg as Madrid beat Man City in both games, despite Haaland’s two goals in the first leg.

Mbappé’s four goals at Olympiakos last month lifted him to be top scorer in the Champions League this season. He needs one more to reach 10 in a Champions League season for the first time during his decade in the competition.

Haaland has five so far, and already got into double figures in three Champions League campaigns.

Madrid starts the week in fifth place on 12 points, two ahead of City in ninth in the 36-team standings.

Equally prolific Kane Harry Kane is just as prolific for Bayern Munich this season. He has scored 28 in just 22 games for Bayern plus five in five World Cup qualifiers for England.

Kane has kept pace with Haaland’s goal-a-game ratio in the Champions League and kept Bayern third in the standings, despite losing at Arsenal two weeks ago.

Ahead of Kane and Haaland is six-goal Victor Osimhen, who is fit to return with Galatasaray at Monaco on Tuesday. Both teams are in contention for a top-24 finish and places in the knockout stage starting in February.

Frankfurt fans return Barcelona hosting Eintracht Frankfurt is a repeat of a remarkable show of force by visiting fans four seasons ago — and one the Spanish club has now worked to avoid.

Eintracht’s road to winning the Europa League in 2022 included what looked and sounded like a home game to win 3-2 at Camp Nou in the second leg of the quarterfinals.

About 30,000 German fans were there after most bought tickets from Barcelona fans, who last week were warned by their club not to do that again.

“If the traceability of ticket purchases and their final destination reveals fraudulent behavior, the case will be referred to the disciplinary committee,” Barcelona said last week in a statement.

Barcelona is certainly favored to win this time. The La Liga leader scored five in winning at the weekend while Eintracht was routed 6-0 at Leipzig.

Winter is coming It will be an unusually early Champions League kickoff at 4:30 p.m. Central Europe Time when Kairat Almaty hosts Olympiakos on Tuesday. That is 8:30 p.m. in eastern Kazakhstan where evening temperatures can plummet in December.

UEFA planned well to schedule the game Tuesday instead of Wednesday. Forecast temperature at kickoff is about 0 Celsius (32 Fahrenheit) while it should be -12 C (10 F) at the same time one day later.

Bodo/Glimt’s European season continues at Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday after its domestic season finished in Norway being edged for the title by Viking. The Norwegian league avoids the bitter winter and Glimt has two more Champions League games in January, and maybe more in the knockout phase, during the Norwegian offseason.