Martin Zubimendi has revealed why he really rejected a transfer to Liverpool last summer

Martin Zubimendi has revealed why he really rejected a transfer to Liverpool last summer

Liverpool has been handed a possible transfer boost after it was reported that Manchester City is not considering moving for Martin Zubimendi during the January transfer window.

It had been claimed in recent weeks that City was considering Zubimendi as a possible winter addition to help the team deal with the absence of Rodri, but City sources have indicated to a number of journalists who report on the club that a move for Zubimendi in January is currently not on the cards.

City do have money to spend during the winter window but Pep Guardiola spoke of the difficulties of buying in January during a press conference on Friday.

"It is not easy to do that. Teams don’t sell, maybe it has to be players who don’t play. They don’t want to sell and they are so expensive," Guardiola said of the January window.

"It depends on the market and we’ll see. It’s simple: get players back. Except Rodri. We have the squad there and after that maybe we’ll have the team that we were. We were not able to solve it.

"We’ve spoken about doing something and if it’s in winter it’s if we really we need it or if we can really find something. Not for just four or five months. In the winter it is more difficult to do. We’ll see.

"I don’t know how many times we’ve got into the winter (market) – maybe just Aymeric Laporte seven years ago. We’re not a big fan of that but the circumstances of this season have been special.

"We have to see if something is possible and if not we will wait until the summer time – how we finish the season, how the players perform, knowing we’ve got short holidays. We’ll talk and see what is possible in the market."

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Tottenham could welcome back Destiny Udogie and Timo Werner for Sunday's match against Liverpool but Ange Postecoglou remains without a host of first-team players against the league leaders.

Udogie was forced off during Spurs' win against Southampton last weekend but the problem clearly wasn't serious, while Werner was absent for the League Cup win against Manchester United through illness.

"Timo was unwell yesterday so we've got 48 hours or so before the game and hopefully he will recover [in time to face Liverpool]," Postecoglou said. "The plan is Destiny should be ok."

Both of Spurs' first-choice center-backs, Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero, will miss the match with muscle injuries, as will first-choice goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, who is a long-term absentee with an ankle injury.

Richarlison, Ben Davies and Wilson Odobert are all also sidelined, while Rodrigo Bentancur is currently serving a seven-match suspension.

Meanwhile, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot defended Ange Postecoglou's style of play after the Australian came in for criticism for his all-or-nothing approach in recent weeks.

Spurs have recorded some excellent results this season but have been wildly inconsistent, letting two-goal leads slip on multiple occasions and losing the joint-highest amount of league matches outside of the Premier League's bottom four.

Still, Slot is an admirer of Postecoglou and willed him to win some silverware in North London: “They’ve always been a certain brand of football for me and have a certain identity. I think Ange ­Postecoglou gives them that identity back completely. Ange is doing great work over there. I hope this is seen a bit more. I also hope, hope, hope that he wins a trophy – not the League Cup.

“I’m completely a fan of his team for the Europa League because people always talk about trophies and that it’s so important. For his brand of football and his style, it is so much more important and if he can combine that with winning something that would be so good for football in general because people can stop talking about it’s too attacking or ­whatever. How on earth can you play too [much] attacking football?”

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Liverpool's injury crisis has eased in recent weeks and the Reds will be without just two first-team players versus Tottenham on Sunday.

Up until fairly recently, Liverpool had several times that amount of players sidelined, but the recent returns of Alisson, Diogo Jota, Federico Chiesa, Harvey Elliott and Kostas Tsimikas have improved the situation.

Now, the Reds are just waiting on Ibrahima Konate and Conor Bradley to return after the pair sustained injuries during the 2-0 win over Real Madrid at the end of November.

Konate limped off with a knee problem during stoppage time after a coming-together with Virgil van Dijk and Endrick, while Bradley pulled up with hamstring discomfort during the second half.

Speaking ahead of the trip to Spurs, Arne Slot gave an update on the pair's recoveries: “If I’m correct, I think it’s only two players in the red [zone] at the moment and that means only two injuries left – and a few of them are coming back from injuries.

“I think we only miss two players (Konate and Bradley) on the training ground today, which is a positive thing. These are the two who are still in red so they don’t train with us at the moment. They are on their way back, but they don’t train with the team yet.”

When asked about possible return dates for the duo, Slot responded: “That is quite difficult. I thought Jota would have been back a bit earlier already, but sometimes the end stage of rehab takes a bit longer.

“Let’s wait and see, but we have very good rehab personnel over here and they have done some good work already with Alisson and some others.

“The main thing is if they come back, they are ready to come back. We must not focus on one, two or three days, it’s more important for the long term that they stay fit afterwards.”

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Pep Guardiola has suggested a verdict in Manchester City's '115 charges' trial could be delivered before the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season

Pep Guardiola has suggested a verdict in Manchester City's '115 charges' trial could be delivered before the end of the 2024/25 Premier League season

Latest Liverpool transfer news and gossip with updates on Bayern Munich defender Alphonso Davies and Lyon forward Rayan Cherki

Latest Liverpool transfer news and gossip with updates on Bayern Munich defender Alphonso Davies and Lyon forward Rayan Cherki

The latest Liverpool news and transfer rumours with updates on Alexis Mac Allister and Dani Olmo ahead of January

The latest Liverpool news and transfer rumours with updates on Alexis Mac Allister and Dani Olmo ahead of January

This week's Blood Red column on Trent Alexander-Arnold's future and why his next decision will shape the "legacy" he is so keen to cultivate

This week's Blood Red column on Trent Alexander-Arnold's future and why his next decision will shape the "legacy" he is so keen to cultivate

Michael Owen tells the ECHO which out of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold Liverpool can afford to lose most.

Michael Owen tells the ECHO which out of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold Liverpool can afford to lose most.

Arne Slot rejects theories Trent Alexander-Arnold is more likely to leave Liverpool than Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk as the contract impasse for all three looks set to rumble on into 2025

Arne Slot rejects theories Trent Alexander-Arnold is more likely to leave Liverpool than Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk as the contract impasse for all three looks set to rumble on into 2025

Liverpool boss Arne Slot discussed rumours he was offered the Tottenham Hotspur job before he joined the Reds

Liverpool boss Arne Slot discussed rumours he was offered the Tottenham Hotspur job before he joined the Reds

When it comes to Trent Alexander-Arnold, Liverpool manager Arne Slot prefers to steer clear of contract talk.

“We don’t talk about contracts in here,” laughed the Liverpool boss in a small room at the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby. While the Dutchman avoided speculation about his vice-captain’s future, he was open about Alexander-Arnold’s aspirations to leave 'a lasting legacy' and his fluctuating form this season.

The England defender is one of three marquee Liverpool names who, as things stand, will be able to leave Anfield on a free transfer at the end of the season. And while Slot would clearly love Alexander-Arnold to stay, he was not afraid to give a frank and honest appraisal of the 26-year-old’s form this season.

“He’s done well but I still see with him ups and downs, during games or in between games," the Dutchman said. "His performances against (Manchester) City and Newcastle, when he came in, were incredible.

“But I don’t think he reached the same level against Fulham. We are all trying to find a certain consistency in our performances. He has gotten better at this but still has room for improvement.”

Alexander-Arnold recently spoke about his personal ambitions, saying: “In 10 or 15 years, if I’m spoken about as one of the best right-backs or the best right-back, then that’s what I’m playing for now and using it as motivation.”

Slot is a fan of this mindset, and praised his vice-captain’s ambition. “I definitely like this in a player,” Slot said. "I think this is something every player must have if you play at this level. If you don’t have this you probably don’t play at this level - as long as they understand that they need the team to be special as an individual."

Trent Alexander-Arnold says he wants to leave a legacy (Image: Getty Images)

“As long as they put the team first and as a result, be special themselves, that is what they all do – including Trent. All the top players have this, they want to be special, they want to be the best" added Slot.

Alexander-Arnold will start against Tottenham on Sunday, as Slot selects from a squad that is only missing Ibrahima Konate and Conor Bradley. Slot puts his squad’s relatively clean bill of health down to extra holidays he gave to the players.

“We put a lot of effort in pre-season and made the decision to give them quite a lot of days off and I think we find the benefits," he said.

“In Holland, some of the clubs only gave them seven or eight days off and they got injured. I have to make compliments for the performance staff. I think it is only two injuries left and a few are coming back - we only miss two on the training ground.”

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