DOMINIC KING — MERSEY BEAT: Pep Guardiola saw an opportunity to get at Trent Alexander-Arnold on Wednesday. The Liverpool defender, however, did not read the script.

DOMINIC KING'S MERSEY BEAT: Even after Liverpool beat Crystal Palace on Monday, the focus after the game was about the obduracy of Jurgen Klopp’s defence and the impact of Alisson.

DOMINIC KING'S MERSEY BEAT: The list, even now, cannot fail to raise eyebrows. First, you see Oxford United; then names such as Luton, Sunderland and Birmingham pop up.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: Jordan Henderson was approaching the final 12 months of his contract and with Liverpool dallying, some of their rivals began to take notice.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: Watching Lookman on Tuesday in the remote Latvian town of Jelgava, there was no frisson of excitement. All you could feel was concern.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: It is three years to the day since Liverpool sacked Brendan Rodgers. We must start with that fact in an attempt to apply some context about the club's situation.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: In the days before he named his squad for Russia, one player kept popping into Gareth Southgate's head more than anyone else: Adam Lallana.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: Liverpool look like they need an individual to spring forward and take things by the scruff of the neck. Jurgen Klopp will hope Naby Keita steps forward.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: It is difficult to know what to get most angry about: the man who made the idea, the potential recipient or some clubs for contemplating it.

DOMINIC KING - MERSEY BEAT: Towards the end of 2020, Liverpool will have a new £50million complex. The renovation of their Academy at Kirkby is well underway.

Defi Du Seuil showed that if there is a vacancy to take over as king of the two-mile chase division he will be a contender with a length and a quarter win in the Shloer Chase at Cheltenham.

The Willie Mullins-trained gelding looked a superstar in the making after going through his novice season over fences unbeaten in five starts - a campaign which featured four Grade One wins,

Trainer Dan Skelton had indicated the gelding Allmankind, who won at Cheltenham on Saturday, might be given a break before one prep-run for March's Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.

If his recovery goes to plan, Tiger Roll will return to action in the Boyne Hurdle at Navan in February - a race he won last year - before bidding for a fifth Cheltenham Festival victory.

The seven-year-old, who won the Grade One Stayers' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, runs for the first time this season in the Ladbrokes Long Distance Hurdle at Newbury on Friday.

The Colin Tizzard-trained 1-2 favourite gave 6lb and a seven-length beating to Jonjo O'Neill-trained Papa Tango Charly in the Conundrum Stallions National Hunt Novices' Hurdle.

Jockey Robbie Power made all the running on the Colin Tizzard-trained gelding to draw eight lengths clear of runner-up Ribble Valley. Master Debonair has shown improved form.

Jockey Robbie Power sang the praises of Fiddlerontheroof after the 5-4 favourite landed the Tolworth Hurdle at Sandown by six lengths.

Envoi Allen has been cut to 5-4 favourite for the Ballymore Novices' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival after extending his unbeaten record to seven races.

The Gordon Elliott-trained six-year-old had to dig deep under jockey Mark Walsh to peg back free-running second-placed Captain Guiness but came through to win by three-quarters of a length.

Thyme Hill completed his hat-trick in the Grade One Challow Novices' Hurdle late last month and is set to head straight to the showpiece meeting in the Cotswolds.

Model Frankie Herbert, 24, is the granddaughter of Lord 'Porchie' Porchester, the 7th Earl of Carnarvon and a lifelong friend of the Queen. She is the glamorous face of the Cheltenham Festival.

Santini heads the nine entries for the Paddy Power Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham on Saturday but fellow entry Delta Work looks unlikely to line up.

Connections of Douvan remain hopeful of getting the classy two-miler to the Cheltenham Festival for the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Aidan Coleman is looking forward to being reunited with Paisley Park in the Cleeve Hurdle at Cheltenham on Saturday.

Johnson sustained the injury when unseated from Philip Hobbs-trained West End Story in the Dare To Dream Novices' Chase. But the damage looked to be done when Johnson was kicked by Fox Pro.

Irish trainer Willie Mullins says Benie Des Dieux might be the best mare he has trained after she romped home in the Galmoy Hurdle at Gowran Park.

Zara, 38, donned a navy coat, with a Jockey Club brooch, and a grey fedora hat for the Festival Trials Day at Cheltenham Racecourse. The mother-of-two is a regular visitor to the racecourse.

Brian Hughes continued to build what he hopes will be an unassailable lead in the jump jockeys title race as a 49-1 treble at Carlisle took him 13 winners clear (124-111) of champion Richard Johnson.

Henderson committed Shishkin to the Supreme Novices' Hurdle on the opening day of next month's Cheltenham Festival after he brushed aside proven performers on Thursday.

Trainer Willie Mullins suffered a triple blow on Friday when he had to rule Saldier, Douvan and Klassical Dream out of next month's Cheltenham Festival.

A new guarantee that the Tote win dividends will at least match starting-price returns will be a 'game changer' for pool betting in this country, it has been claimed.

Champion trainer Paul Nicholls has admitted his preference would be to direct in-form Cyrname straight to the Grade One Melling Chase at Aintree's Grand National meeting in April.

The chances of Tiger Roll attempting to win an historic third consecutive Randox Health Grand National at Aintree in April continued to hang in the balance on Tuesday night.

Trainer Gordon Elliott says he expects Tiger Roll to race on next season despite many believing his bid for a third win in the Randox Health Grand National on April 4 would be his swansong.

Solo is 3-1 favourite for the Triumph Hurdle after sweeping to a 13-length demolition job from Fujimoto Flyer in the Adonis Hurdle at Kempton for trainer Paul Nicholls and jockey Harry Cobden.

Racing officials are confident the Cheltenham Festival will go ahead next month despite the disruption to travel caused by the spread of the coronavirus.

Those withdrawn included Tiger Roll's Cheltenham Gold Cup-bound stablemate Delta Work, Chris's Dream, Missed Approach, the injured Native River and Noble Endeavor.

Nigel Twiston-Davies hopes Ballyandy can continue his revival by getting the victory former stable star The New One could not manage in his attempts at the Unibet Champion Hurdle.

The killer coronavirus outbreak across the globe has lead to a host of sporting events being cancelled, postponed or placed in serious doubt with the Six Nations among impacted events.

Running the Cheltenham Festival virtually behind closed doors if a spread of the Coronavirus restricts major sporting events is not an option according to the man overseeing the jumps meeting.

Champion trainer Paul Nicholls views both Politologue and Dynamite Dollars as lively outsiders for the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase at next month's Cheltenham Festival.

Popular chaser Un De Sceaux has been retired after sustaining a career-ending injury. The Willie Mullins-trained 12-year-old was found to have a ligament injury after working on Thursday.

Popular chaser Un De Sceaux has been retired after sustaining a ligament injury.

Trainer David Pipe is eyeing potential Cheltenham Festival targets for Brinkley after the five-year-old gelding produced an eye-catching performance in landing the West Berkshire Mencap.

Joe Tizzard is confident forgotten horse Lostintranslation can sneak in under the radar and bounce back to his best in the Magners Cheltenham Gold Cup on Friday week.

Relegate will bid to earn both herself and trainer Colm Murphy a return to the Cheltenham Festival winner's enclosure when she lines up for the Pertemps Final next week.

In the first of a look at the big races, SAM TURNER (Robin Goodfellow) starts by looking at some race trends for races on day one and highlights some of the main contenders.

Henry De Bromhead-trained Honeysuckle had been as short as 4-1 to add the Champion Hurdle to her success in the Irish Champion Hurdle at Leopardstown last month.

Trainer Willie Mullins opted to add the eight-year-old to the field after Cilaos Emery landed with an easy victory in the Red Mills Trial Hurdle at Gowran last month.