Finalists in two of the last three seasons Liverpool are facing a must-win tie at home to Besiktas of Turkey in the fourth round of Champions League group games today.
The Reds slumped to a 2-1 defeat against the same opponents in the last round of games and are bottom of Group A with just one point from three games.
Group leaders Marseille travel to Porto, and Liverpool need all three points at Anfield to retain a hope of grabbing one of the two qualifying slots for the last 16.
A 0-0 draw in the Premier League at Blackburn on Saturday did little to relieve the pressure on coach Rafael Benitez whose side have drawn six out of 11 domestic league games this season.
"I think about the positive things," said Benitez after watching his lineup scorn several good scoring opportunities.
"If we create those chances against Beskitas, I'm sure we will score. It is important for me to see the team going forward with confidence at the end and pressing," he said.
Marseille, who scored an upset win at Anfield, also have their problems though after a dismal 0-0 draw against Lorient left them stuck in the relegation zone in the French first division.
Porto look likely to be without influential midfielder Lucho Gonzalez after he sustained an ankle injury in the 1-1 draw at home to Belenenses on Friday.
English rivals Chelsea were in a far more comfortable position travelling to Schalke 04 in Germany as leaders in Group B,
The Londoners defeated the German side 2-0 at Stamford Bridge last time out and under new coach Avram Grant have won their last seven league and cup games scoring 12 goals in their last three outings.
The other game in the group sees Valencia take on Rosenborg in Spain with both sides having changed their coaches since the Norwegians won 2-0 at home just two weeks ago.
Ronald Koeman has taken over the reins at Valencia, after the sacking of Quique Sanchez Flores, while assistant coach Trond Henriksen is filling in for Knut Torum who paid the price for his side's poor league form.
In Group D Celtic will be looking once again to use home advantage in Glasgow to leapfrog ahead of Portugal's Benfica against whom they lost 0-1 to a late goal in Lisbon two weeks ago.
The Scots stunned Champions League holders AC Milan 2-1 in their last match at Parkhead.
AC Milan will be looking to consolidate their position at the top of the group by doing the double over Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine who they beat 4-1 at home last time out.
Likewise Real Madrid travel to Olympiakos knowing that a second straight win over the Greek side will all but clinch their place in the last 16. Lazio host Werder Bremen in Rome in the other game in Group C.
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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