Liverpool want to give manager Brendan Rodgers a new contract

Liverpool want to give manager Brendan Rodgers a new contract as the Merseyside club are wary of taking risks over his future. The Northern Irishman has two years left on his current deal but has admirers at Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham.

Parrott: Real Madrid and Bale already feeling the heat

European football expert Chris Parrott says Real Madrid and Gareth Bale will now face a test of their mettle after they lost 1-0 to Atletico Madrid on Saturday evening.

The former Tottenham winger has yet to taste victory since signing for a world record £85.3million.
And Parrott says the pressure is already on after the defeat at Santiago Bernabeu. He said: "When Real Madrid don’t win a game, it’s an enormous thing. I would expect Real Madrid and Gareth Bale will be fine but there’s suddenly early season pressure.
"Pressure does interesting things to any team and how they react to this will be very interesting." Parott also says Atleti's win means they should be considered title candidates.

"Gareth Bale was ten the last time Atletico won a Madrid derby in the league. If this didn’t confirm what we already knew, that Atletico are a serious team and potentially there will be a three way title race in Spain. "Suddenly (Diego) Simone’s team are real challengers."

Cristiano Ronaldo blames Real Madrid's players for Atletico loss

Cristiano Ronaldo has defended Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti, saying the players have to be blamed for their 1-0 loss to Atletico.

 

Real are five points behind their city rivals and Barcelona, who have both won their first seven La Liga matches.

"The manager has nothing to do with it. He is doing a great job. The fault is on the players, we are the ones that have to improve," he told Marca. 
 
"I am happy with Ancelotti; he is one of the best coaches I have ever had."

Diego Costa's eighth league goal of the season was enough to inflict a first defeat on Ancelotti, who was appointed manager at the Bernabeu in the summer.

 

The match saw world-record signing Gareth Bale introduced at half-time for his home Real debut but he was unable to make an impact as Atletico ended their 23-match winless streak against their rivals with a 1-0 victory.

Real had also dropped points earlier this month in a 2-2 draw with Villarreal, Bale's first game for the club, leaving them five points off the top of La Liga.

"We have to keep our heads up because the league is complicated," said Portuguese forward Ronaldo, 28.
"The good thing is that this loss has come early. I have a lot of hope for winning something important this year. I played poorly and so did my team-mates."

Meanwhile, Atletico manager Diego Simeone has urged his players not to get carried away by their perfect start to the season.

The former Argentina international midfielder, 43, said: "In a season, Barca and Real's financial and individual strength is bigger, we have to use our weapons and take it game by game.
"We have to keep calm, the season is very long, we cannot be over-confident."