Latest news with #PrestonNorthEnd
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Florian Wirtz about to answer key Jurgen Klopp question after 'insane' Liverpool decision
Florian Wirtz missed Liverpool's pre-season friendly against Preston North End but fans have now been given their first glimpse of the £116million signing with his new team-mates Florian Wirtz has been pictured training for the first time since Liverpool shattered the British transfer record to sign him. Wirtz, 22, moved to Anfield last month after Liverpool reached a £116million agreement with Bayer Leverkusen, beating both Manchester City and Bayern Munich to his signature. The Reds have agreed to pay an initial £100m plus £16m in potential add-ons. Wirtz put pen to paper on a five-year contract and has a huge amount of pressure on his shoulders thanks to his price tag. Fans had hoped to see the playmaker during Sunday's pre-season friendly against Preston North End. But unlike Liverpool's other new signings - Giorgi Mamardashvili, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez and Freddie Woodman - Wirtz didn't feature in the 3-1 victory in order to manage his fitness after he played for Germany in the Nations League last month. When he does eventually make his bow in a red shirt, it'll be interesting to see where he fits in. Liverpool romped to the Premier League title during Arne Slot's first season as manager and improving their starting lineup is a tall order. Jurgen Klopp believes that Wirtz is good enough to break into Slot's first XI but just where he'll do that is a mystery to him. Asked whether the former Leverkusen star will be able to establish himself on Merseyside, Klopp replied: "Yes, although of course I don't know exactly which position Arne has in mind for Florian. "He's an outstanding player who can give any club something great. Whether he'll make the reigning English champions even better remains to be seen." Wirtz was seen smiling at Liverpool's AXA Training Centre in Kirkby on Tuesday, the first time that he's been spotted with his new team-mates. The 22-year-old already knows Frimpong, who he played alongside at Leverkusen. Liverpool will jet off for their pre-season tour of Asia next week, with Wirtz expected to be on the plane ahead of clashes with AC Milan and Yokohama F. Marinos. That's before Slot's squad face Athletic Bilbao in two fixtures on the same night back at Anfield next month. Wirtz's competitive debut is likely to come against Crystal Palace in the Community Shield on Saturday, August 10. The Germany international will have the spotlight on him after Klopp labelled his fee 'insane'. "There's no question about it, that's an insane sum," the former Reds boss admitted. "We all agree that we're talking about a great player here. I know I once said that I'm out if we pay 100m euros for a player. "But the world keeps changing. That is how the market is. My part of football will always remain the game itself, but if you want to play at the top level, you can't train all your players yourself. Sometimes you need to get hold [of players from] somewhere else."
Irish Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Irish singer recalls moment she felt Diogo Jota's presence before Liverpool game
Claudia Rose Maguire has opened up about the poignant moment when he felt the presence of Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva during the minute's silence held in their honour last weekend. The Irish singer, and wife of former Preston North End striker Sean Magure, also revealed how she got the call to sing You'll Never Walk Alone at a packed Deepdale ahead of the pre-season friendly. Tributes were paid to the two brothers, who passed away earlier this month in a car crash in Spain, before and during the game between Preston and Liverpool. As Maguire sang, Lilywhites captain Ben Whiteman laid a wreath in front of the away fans, and a minute's silence was held ahead of kick-off. Recalling the day, Maguire told Newstalk's Lunchtime show: 'They had the Preston North End captain, he presented the Liverpool fans with a wreath in the Preston colours, just to honour them and let them know, yeah, okay, it's a pre-season friendly game, but there is a much bigger meaning behind it, and we are all treating it as a game to pay our respects to Diogo Jota and his brother as well, and all the players as well. 'For the Liverpool players, it must have been the most emotional thing for them to have to step onto the pitch for the first time knowing he is sadly not with them on the pitch. So it was a big build up before the game.' Then she revealed the moment she felt that the late Liverpool striker's presence on the pitch. 'They had the minute's silence. During the minute's silence I was being taken back to my seat,' she said. 'Obviously we stopped to pay our respects, but there was a white butterfly just flying around the pitch, near the players. I was trying to signal to the photographer, can you get that. But because it was a minute's silence, I couldn't say anything. 'But that, to me, I felt like that was their presence, to let his teammates know, I'm here and I'm with you on the pitch.' Claudia Rose Maguire (Image: Dave Howarth - CameraSport via Getty Images) Maguire added that her husband, capped 11 times for Ireland, took the call from his former club that led to her flying over from Cork to sing in front of the Preston and Liverpool fans. 'Ben Rhodes, I don't even know what his job title is because that man is absolutely amazing, he runs Preston North End, he does everyone's job, he gave Sean a call,' she said. 'We've always kept in touch, so we just thought maybe, I don't know, there was a reason for calling. We weren't thinking of anything like that. 'Then Sean hung up and said, 'I have a major thing to ask you'. I thought he was going to tell me we have to move again. I was like, 'No way, I'm sorry, the answer is no'. He was, like, 'No, it's about you'. 'He explained what the match was for and he said they want you to sing Can't Help Falling in Love With You. Even then my legs went like jelly when he said it to me. But I knew that song and because I had sung it there before, I thought, okay, of course I'm not passing up that opportunity. 'It wasn't until Friday that Ben Rhodes called me himself. We were just chatting and he said, 'You do know you are singing the two songs, don't you?'. And I was like, 'No, Sean left that little detail out, that I was singing You'll Never Walk Alone as well'. 'So, he said, 'Yeah, we want you to sing both, is that okay with you?'. I wasn't going to say no, of course, so I was like, 'Yeah, I know it so well'. 'I do know the song, but I wouldn't have known it to stand on the spot and just belt it out in front of however many fans. 'I said, 'Yeah, no problem', and I hung up the phone. Then for two days straight, You'll Never Walk Alone was played over and over. My neighbours were probably pulling their hair out of their heads, I was singing it so much. But I didn't want to mess it up.' Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email .
BBC News
6 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Vukcevic joins North End for training camp trial
Montenegro defender Andrija Vukcevic has joined up with Preston North End for a week-long trial at their training camp in 28-year-old, who has 18 international caps, is without a club after leaving Mexican side FC Juarez in spent last season on loan to Spanish side FC Cartagena, making 23 appearances in LaLiga2, plus one in their Copa del Rey match against SD could face a Spanish team during his trial with the Lilywhites as North End's training week will culminate with a pre-season friendly against Getafe.
Hindustan Times
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Liverpool's moving Diogo Jota homage after Preston win leaves Andy Robertson in tears, chokes up commentators
After the full-time whistle was blown by referee Darren England at the pre-season match at Deepdale Stadium in Preston—where Liverpool defeated Preston North End 3-1—fans at the away end paid an emotional tribute to Diogo Jota. The scenes left Liverpool commentators and Scottish left-back Andy Robertson visibly moved. Andy Robertson overcome with emotion during the tributes to Diogo Jota(PA) The Portuguese forward, who played 182 games for the Reds and scored 65 goals, tragically passed away in a car crash in Spain earlier this month, alongside his brother André Silva. The accident came barely two weeks after Jota had married his wife, Rute, leaving her and their three children behind. Sunday's match marked Liverpool's first outing since the devastating news. Tributes to Jota were seen all around the pitch. Liverpool fans held up banners and sang the iconic anthem 'You'll Never Walk Alone.' Liverpool academy player Conor Bradley chose not to celebrate his goal out of respect for the late forward. Meanwhile, striker Darwin Núñez paid homage by mimicking two of Jota's signature goal celebrations—the famous 'Shark' and the 'Gaming' gestures. Left-winger Cody Gakpo joined in as well, performing the Shark celebration after scoring Liverpool's third goal. One of the most poignant moments came after the final whistle, when players and coaching staff—including those who didn't feature in the match—stood together and applauded for five minutes as Jota's tribute song echoed around the stadium. It was a lot to take in for Liverpool FC commentators Gary Gillespie and John Bradley on LFC TV, who were audibly emotional as they described the moving scenes. Andy Robertson, one of Jota's closest friends at the club, shared on social media that he had to step aside during the tribute, admitting he found it tough to be around his mates and needed a moment alone.
The National
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Liverpool remember 'champion in everything' Diogo Jota in first match since tragic death
Liverpool manager Arne Slot paid tribute to 'champion' Diogo Jota as the Reds returned to the field for the first time since the Portuguese player's death. Jota died alongside his brother Andre Silva on July 3, barely a week after marrying his long-term partner Rute Cardoso, after their car came off the road and burst into flames in northern Spain. On Sunday, Liverpool played their first match since the tragedy, defeating Preston North End 3-1 in a pre-season friendly. A rendition of Liverpool's anthem You'll Never Walk Alone was played before the start of the match at Deepdale, and Preston captain Ben Whiteman laid a wreath in front of the away supporters. At the start of the 20th minute, the crowd burst into Jota's song, set to the tune of Bad Moon Rising. Darwin Nunez paid tribute to Jota after scoring Liverpool's second to make it 2-0 with Jota's goal celebration, dropping to the floor to mimic playing a video game. Conor Bradley and Cody Gakpo were also on target for Liverpool. Liverpool had delayed the return of players to pre-season training as most of them attended the funeral in Portugal last week. The club announced on Friday that they would permanently retire Jota's number 20 shirt. Jota was part of the Liverpool side that won the Premier League last season and in his final match won the Uefa Nations League with Portugal against Spain in June. 'I think what I take comfort in is that in the last month of his life he was a champion in everything,' Slot said ahead of the match. 'A champion for his family, which is the main and most important thing, because he got married. 'A champion for his country because he won the Nations League with a country that he cared about so much, because he also wore the flag when we had celebrations. 'And of course a champion for us by winning the Premier League.' Slot admitted it had been difficult for the team to get back to work. 'What I've said to the players, it's very difficult to find the right words because we constantly debate what is appropriate,' Slot said. 'What is appropriate in our actions? What is appropriate [for] what we have to say? Can we train again? Can we laugh again? Can we be angry if there's a wrong decision? 'And I've said to them, maybe the best thing for us to do is handle this situation like Jota was,' he added. 'And what I meant with that is that Jota was always himself, it didn't matter if he was talking to me, to his teammates, to the staff, he was always himself. 'So let us try to be ourselves as well. So, if we want to laugh we laugh; if we want to cry we're going to cry.' Several Liverpool players attended the funeral in Portugal, with others at a memorial that took place in midweek. There had been question marks over whether this fixture would go ahead, but Slot said: 'We are a football club and we need to train and we need to play again, if we want it or not.'
