Robin van Persie has landed his first head coach role after being appointed the new boss of Eredivisie team Heerenveen.

Van Persie has agreed a two-year contract that will start at the end of the 2023-24 season, with the Dutch club confirming the deal on Friday.

Heerenveen missed out on European qualification this season and can finish no higher than 10th when the top-flight campaign concludes this weekend.

The club said in their statement they were convinced by the ambition and motivational skills of Van Persie, who starred for Arsenal and Manchester United in his playing career, winning the Premier League Golden Boot with both clubs, and the league title at Old Trafford.

That was as well as earning 102 caps and scoring a record 50 goals for the Netherlands at international level.

Van Persie said: "The coaching profession is comprehensive and challenging, and I've practised it with great passion and pleasure.

"I would like to continue my development and the role of head coach fits in perfectly with that goal. I am therefore pleased with the opportunity that Heerenveen offers me.

"Heerenveen is a very nice club with a rich tradition and loyal supporters. 

"It is a fantastic challenge to contribute to the sporting ambitions and development of the club."

While this is the 40-year-old’s first senior coaching role, he has been working under Liverpool-bound Arne Slot as a youth coach with Feyenoord.

He succeeds Kees van Wonderen – who announced his impending departure in March ahead of the expiry of his contract – at Heerenveen.

The club will finish their league campaign away against Sparta Rotterdam on Sunday.

"Although Robin is at the start of his career as head coach, he immediately convinced us," said general manager Ferry de Haan. 

"He is ambitious, passionate and eager to learn. I think he knows how to enthuse and motivate a squad of players."

Van Persie retired in 2019 and had two spells with Feyenoord at either end of his career, as well as a period playing in Turkey for Fenerbahce.

Pep Guardiola has warned Manchester City to expect a repeat of the dramatic final day of 2021-22 when the Premier League title race goes to the wire on Sunday. 

After beating Tottenham 2-0 in midweek, City know a victory at home to West Ham will secure a fourth straight title – a feat never previously achieved in English top-flight history.

Should City fail to win, Arsenal will leapfrog them and claim their first title since 2003-04 if they beat Everton at the Emirates Stadium.

Two of City's previous five title wins under Guardiola were decided on the final day, as they edged out Liverpool at the death in 2018-19 and 2021-22.

On the latter occasion, they went 2-0 down at home to Aston Villa before three goals in five second-half minutes – two from Ilkay Gundogan and one from Rodri – completed a stunning turnaround.  

While many onlookers have already written West Ham off, Guardiola does not think a repeat is out of the question on Sunday.

"I have the feeling it will be like the Aston Villa game again," Guardiola said at Friday's pre-match press conference.

"We would like to be 3-0 up after 10 minutes but it's not going to happen. I've seen enough [West Ham matches].

"I'm ready for it to be a tough, tough game. I want to put in the minds of my players, 'Look at Tottenham, how they fight for every ball, the aggression they had.' I didn't have any doubts about that.

"The 11 players of West Ham will be ready to beat us. Like Aston Villa two seasons ago, they didn't play for anything but I know what happened. 

"Ourselves and our people have to be ready from the first minute, to be with us and do it together."

The WSL title race could hardly be any closer heading into the final game of the season. Chelsea and Manchester City are locked together on 52 points apiece, with goal difference the only factor nudging the Blues ahead.

It is finely poised, and both sets of fans are in for a roller-coaster ride on Saturday.

Chelsea put themselves in pole position on Wednesday by winning their final game in hand, beating Tottenham 1-0. The Blues are now two goals ahead on goal difference ahead of facing Manchester United on Saturday. City, meanwhile, take on Aston Villa.

There could be the scenario that the teams finish level on both goal difference and goals scored. The determining metric would then be the number of league wins, followed by head-to-head record against their title rivals. In that scenario, Man City would be crowned Champions, having won away and drawn at home.

The Opta Supercomputer, though, has Chelsea in the driving seat on the final day with a 56.3 per cent chance of retaining their title.

City manager Garth Taylor, however, backed his team to prove the computer wrong.

"Well, I think we have a great chance. We're capable of going and scoring four," he said.

"We know we're capable. Does it mean obviously that you're able to go and do it at the weekend? Of course, because there are many factors that need to go into that. But yeah, I'll leave the data to the other guys.

"I think what we have to do is really concentrate on ourselves and make sure we don't take our eye off the ball. And like I say, start as impressively and as fast as we possibly can and see where that takes us. But you've seen with this team, they can score goals. 

"So it's just about constantly realigning them on the focus and what we need to do. Like I say, the more we've done that this season, the better we've been."

How many days have each of these teams led the way this term?

Chelsea lead the standings with an impressive 152. City have only managed 64 days at the top, and have spent much of their time chasing down the Blues.

Hayes' last hurrah

Emma Hayes will bid farewell to Chelsea and the WSL, and she is determined to go out in glorious fashion.

The last few weeks have been challenging for Hayes, with Chelsea losing to Arsenal in the League Cup final, going down to Barcelona in a controversial Champions League semi-final and then suffering a heavy defeat to Liverpool days later. Hayes had declared the title race "over" at that stage.

However, her players had other plans, and put themselves back in contention with an emphatic 8-0 win over relegated Bristol City to turn the goal difference in their favour, and followed that up by beating Spurs. City also handed them hope by losing 2-1 to Arsenal.

This last game will be an iconic goodbye, as the Blues travel to Old Trafford and face last season's challengers for the title, Man United. The fact that this match is at the men's stadium really does emphasise the huge growth the women's game has experienced in the 12 years Hayes has been in charge of Chelsea.

The United Way: Will FA Cup winners decide the title?

When Hayes started managing the Blues, United did not even have a professional women's side. United were promoted to the WSL after just one season following their establishment in 2018, and have not looked back.

Last season, it was the red side of Manchester running Hayes and her Chelsea side to the wire for the title race. This season, United created history by winning their first ever major trophy by beating Spurs 4-0 at Wembley.

United now have the fate of the title partly in their hands, though it would mean possibly gifting the crown to their rivals City.

United have won three of their four WSL games on the final day of the season, including the curtailed 2019-20 season, though that sole loss came in a 4-2 defeat to Chelsea in May 2022.

The Blues will also feel confident having got the better of Man Utd of late, unbeaten in their last eight WSL matches (W7 D1 L0).

Chelsea have scored the most goals in the WSL this season (65), six more than Man City (59), at an average of 3.0 per match, while also having the best xG (55.9) in the division.

United are looking for their first league win against Chelsea since November 2019. They have been outscored 21-7 during this streak.

Chelsea have lost just one of their last 11 away league matches played on a Saturday (W9 D1 L1), winning all of their last four on the road on this day while keeping a clean sheet in all of those victories and scoring 20 goals in the process.

United trio Mary Earps, Maya Le Tissier and Katie Zelem have played every minute of their WSL campaign this season, with City in 2019-20 the last team to have three players play 100 per cent of their total minutes in a WSL campaign (Caroline Weir, Gemma Bonner and Steph Houghton).

Zelem has created 55 chances for her team-mates, the most of any player in the competition, as well as playing 198 passes into the box, also a league-high.

Fran Kirby will pull on a Cheslea shirt for one final time. She has the most direct goal contributions 89 under Hayes in the WSL.

With 33, Kirby has also provided the most WSL assists in Hayes' tenure. She has also created the second-most chances (227), behind Ji So-Yun (228). One final crown would mark the end of an iconic stint at her time with Chelsea.

If Chelsea can get in front, they will be confident of the victory, the team have dropped a league-low three points from winning positions this season. 

City always the bridesmaid, never the bride?

City are hoping to end an eight-year wait to lift their second WSL title. In that time City have been runners up on five separate occasions.

Last time out, City suffered a 2-1 defeat against Arsenal at Joie Stadium, handing the momentum back to Chelsea in what has been an enthralling title race. This defeat snapped a 14-match winning streak and was a blow in what has been a record-breaking season.

City are unbeaten on the final day of the season across each of the last four WSL campaigns (W3 D1 – including curtailed 2019-20 season), winning each of the last three in succession.

Meanwhile, no team has had as many shots on target as City (171), who are one ahead of Chelsea's tally of 170.

Lauren Hemp has scored five goals in six prior WSL meetings with Aston Villa, including netting a brace in the reverse fixture earlier this season. She has also recorded seven assists so far in the league this season, the most of any player in the competition.

City will be without leading scorer Khadija Shaw, but they have been imperious at the back.

They have the best defence in the league in terms of goals against, having conceded only 14 times in 21 matches. However, their xGA of 18.8 is actually second-best, ranking behind Arsenal (17.7)

The star of the City defence has been shot-stopper extraordinaire Khiara Keating, in her first full season as City number one. Even ahead of the final game, the 19-year-old has been named the Golden Glove winner with nine clean sheets, beating England's number one Earps (seven).

Keating is the youngest goalkeeper ever to bag the award. Villa will present a stern test, having opened the scoring in each of their last three WSL home games, but they have failed to win any of them (D2 L1); in fact, the Villans have failed to win six of the seven home league games theyve taken a 1-0 lead in this season (W1 D3 L3).

However it plays out, one thing is for sure - Saturday will be filled with drama, tension and goals.

As these two heavyweights go toe to toe, history will be made. Either a fifth consecutive crown for Hayes as she bows out, or for the first time in many years, Chelsea could end a campaign with no silverware. 

The accolades of Jamaica and Manchester City striker Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw continue to mount, as she was voted the 2023/24 Barclays Women’s Super League (WSL) Player of the Season, on Friday.

This announcement came on the heels of Thursday’s Football Writers’ Association (FWA) awards gala, where Shaw was officially presented with the FWA Women Footballer of the Year trophy, alongside fellow Manchester City star Phil Foden.

To say these individual acclaims are very much deserving would be an understatement given her exploits this season, as she has been a key figure in City’s push for the WSL title.

The 27-year-old, whose season was cut short due to a broken leg, has registered 21 goals in just 18 appearances, while also providing three assists. She’s on course for another prestigious honour of finishing as the league’s top scorer, having incredibly averaged a goal every 66 minutes this season.

And it is just rewards for another phenomenal campaign in which she once again broke new ground in Gareth Taylor’s side.

Shaw is the first player to score three WSL hat-tricks in a calendar year, last year, and between November 2023 and January 2024, the forward again registered three trebles in just four matches.

Finding the net in both WSL Manchester derbies, the Jamaican’s clinical finish at the Etihad Stadium in March also saw her become City’s record goalscorer, as she swept past Georgia Stanway in the process.

Another crucial strike from Shaw came in City’s 1-0 win over Chelsea in February, as they secured the honour of being the first away side to take three points off the reigning champions at Kingsmeadow, in over three years.

In securing the Player of the Season title, the prolific Jamaican fought off the sizeable challenge of City teammate Khiara Keating, who won the Golden Glove, as well as Chelsea duo Lauren James and Niamh Charles. Arsenal’s Lotte Wubben-Moy, Tottenham Hotspurs youngster Grace Clinton, Leicester’s Jutta Rantala, and Brighton’s forward Elisabeth Terland, were also in the mix.

Mats Hummels was hurt by Julian Nagelsmann's decision to leave him out of his preliminary Germany squad for Euro 2024, Borussia Dortmund boss Edin Terzic has revealed.

The 35-year-old centre-back has joined BVB teammates Julian Brandt, Emre Can and Karim Adeyemi in being omitted from Germany's party for their home tournament.

Terzic believes Hummels – who helped his country win the 2014 World Cup – will now put all his energy into Dortmund's Champions League final clash with Real Madrid on June 1.

"I felt that the decision affected Mats and after the discussion [with Nagelsmann], he was very disappointed," Terzic said ahead of Dortmund's clash with Darmstadt 98 on Saturday.

"He assured me we will now go for the one goal left, the Champions League.

"He absolutely deserved to be at the Euros. But it is not our decision."

Nico Schlotterbeck and Niclas Fullkrug were the only Dortmund players to make Nagelsmann's squad, with the tournament set to begin on June 14.

"We tried in the past months to help the players reach their personal goals as well as the team goals," Terzic added. 

"It worked for Nico and Niclas but unfortunately not for Mats.

"He will deal with this situation very professionally and tomorrow and in the Champions League final he will be one of our most important players."

Harry Kane will miss Bayern Munich's final game of the Bundesliga season after leaving Germany to undergo treatment on a back problem.

Kane has scored 36 league goals in his debut campaign in Bavaria, though he will finish yet another season without silverware, with Bayer Leverkusen having clinched their first top-flight title.

He will end 2023-24 five goals adrift of Robert Lewandowski's single-season goal record of 41, set in 2019-20, after sustaining a back injury.

Ahead of Saturday's trip to Hoffenheim, departing Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel revealed Kane had been struggling before the second leg of their Champions League semi-final loss to Real Madrid.

"Harry is being treated by his personal doctor and he is not here anymore," Tuchel said. 

"He won't be with us. In Madrid it was already touch and go."

Kane missed Bayern's 2-0 win over Wolfsburg in their penultimate game of 2023-24 last week, with Lovro Zvonarek and Leon Goretzka on target in his absence.

The news will cause concern for Gareth Southgate, who is set to name his preliminary England squad for Euro 2024 on Tuesday.

The Three Lions' final squad for the tournament – which is being held in Kane's new home of Germany – will be revealed after they face Iceland in a friendly on June 7.  

Manchester City Women and Jamaica striker Khadija 'Bunny' Shaw graciously credited her teammates after being awarded the Football Writers’ Association Women’s Footballer of the Year. Shaw, who received the prestigious accolade on Thursday, expressed her gratitude towards her fellow players for their role in her success.

The prolific Jamaican striker received an impressive 53 per cent of all votes cast, setting a new record for the highest percentage received by a player in FWA history for a women’s award. She edged out colleagues Alex Greenwood and Chelsea’s Lauren James to claim the top spot, capping off another phenomenal season where she scored 22 goals and provided five assists before an unfortunate injury cut short her campaign.

Reflecting on her achievement and the season, Shaw emphasized the importance of her teammates in her individual accolades. "I’ve had a little hiccup, but overall it’s been a good season and I’m happy," Shaw commented at the FWA awards evening. "It’s been a good season. I’ve always said that the team makes me look good. I’m playing with world class players and that makes me look good at the end of the day."

Shaw highlighted her team-first mentality, focusing on contributing to the collective success rather than individual accolades. "I just try to do the bits I can at the end of the pitch and work for the team and ultimately arrive at the end of the season winning stuff. Here we are," she added.

Despite being sidelined due to injury for Manchester City Women's crucial WSL match against Aston Villa, where a victory could secure them the league title, Shaw expressed her confidence and support for her teammates. "It’s exciting times. I’m going to be very nervous to be honest but I believe in my team and I love every single one of them out there," she shared. "Once we do our best, hopefully the best is good enough."

As Manchester City Women aim to clinch their second-ever league title, Shaw's recognition as the FWA Player of the Year underscores her impact and the team's collective drive for success. With inspiration drawn from the club's men's team and a shared commitment to achieving excellence, Shaw and her teammates are poised to continue pushing boundaries and striving for further glory in women's football.

Brazil have seen off competition from a joint bid by Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany to earn the right to host the 2027 Women's World Cup.

The United States and Mexico were thought to be favourites to host the next edition of FIFA's showpiece women's football tournament, but they withdrew their bid in April.

They signalled their intention to focus on a bid for the 2031 tournament, while a South African bid for the 2027 event was also withdrawn last November.

That left Brazil and the joint European bid as the only contenders, and on Friday, it was confirmed the 2027 tournament will be the first to be held in South America.

"Congratulations to Brazil," FIFA president Gianni Infantino said.

"We will have the best World Cup in Brazil. Many thanks as well to the BNG bid, who have been fantastic."

The decision was made at FIFA's annual congress in Bangkok, becoming the first Women's World Cup to be awarded via an open vote of member nations.

Brazil – the host nation for two men's World Cups in 1950 and 2014 – garnered 119 votes to their rivals' 78. 

Brazil had launched a bid to hold the 2023 tournament, only to withdraw it due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Australia and New Zealand ultimately co-hosted, with Spain beating England in the final for their first world crown.

Thomas Tuchel has confirmed he will leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season after failing to reach an agreement with the club to stay on as coach after talks this week.

Tuchel took over last March and steered them to the Bundesliga title last season but Bayern will finish the current campaign without any silverware for the first time in more than a decade.

Bayern bosses had informed Tuchel in February he would not stay on for the last year of his contract and would leave at the end of the season.

But after several prospective successors, including Julian Nagelsmann, Ralf Rangnick and Xabi Alonso, decided to remain in their current jobs, Bayern turned to Tuchel to discuss the possibility of him staying on.

"This is the last press conference here. The February decision remains," Tuchel said on Friday.

"There were talks again with the club in the past week but we did not reach an agreement on a continued cooperation so we stick with the February decision.

"We did not agree but I won't go into individual points. That all happens behind closed doors."

The Bavarians, who travel to Hoffenheim on the last matchday of the season on Saturday, are battling to hold on to second place in the table and are two points ahead of Stuttgart.

They crashed out to third-tier Saarbrucken in the DFB-Pokal and were eliminated by Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals, ending the campaign without a trophy despite spending a league-record €100 million to sign striker Harry Kane.

"The decision for me to leave was taken in February so you can imagine that my head, after processing, was 1000% behind that decision," Tuchel said.

"There was the theoretical possibility of a 180 degree turn now and the initiative came from the club.

"The reasons why it did not happen, I don't know, are minimal. Maybe the reasons are not clear, also for the decision in February, but it is what it is." 

Departing Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp would vote to remove VAR in its current guise from the Premier League, though he also believes officiating standards are a problem.

On Wednesday, it was revealed that Wolves – who have been on the wrong end of several contentious decisions this season – had tabled a motion to abolish VAR from the top flight.

The club listed several "negative consequences" brought on by the technology's introduction, including an impact on in-stadium atmospheres, diminished accountability of match officials and its role in furthering "completely nonsensical" allegations of corruption from fans. 

The role of VAR is now set to be discussed at an annual shareholders' meeting on June 6, though Wolves' motion is thought unlikely to garner the 14 votes needed to pass. 

Liverpool were on the wrong end of perhaps the most high-profile VAR error this season, when Darren England mistakenly cleared an incorrect offside call on a Luis Diaz goal against Tottenham.

Liverpool face Wolves in their final game under Klopp on Sunday, and the Reds boss believes they are right to say VAR is not working in its current guise.

"I don't think they're voting against VAR, I think they'll vote about how it gets used, because that's definitely not right. I understand that," Klopp said.

"In the way they do it, I would vote against it, because these people are not able to use it properly.

"I do not think VAR is the problem but the way we use it is the problem. You cannot change the people, it's clear. You need them. So yeah, I would vote for scrapping VAR."

Meanwhile, it was also announced on Friday that midfielder Thiago Alcantara will leave Liverpool when his contract expires in June, after four injury-hit years at Anfield.

Thiago has been limited to just 68 Premier League appearances throughout his time with the Reds, including one match this campaign. 

"Before he even came to Liverpool I believed that if you really love football it would make a lot of sense if you watched Thiago Alcantara play," Klopp said of the Spaniard.

"Technically, he is so, so good, a talent who could play in any team in the world, and it was a privilege to have him with us."

Ethan Ampadu said Leeds United's players never let their belief waver despite a poor end to their Championship campaign, with a trip to Wembley now coming up.

Leeds will face either Southampton or West Brom in the play-off final on May 26 after thrashing Norwich City 4-0 at Elland Road on Thursday.

The Whites endured a miserable end to their campaign, losing 4-0 at Queens Park Rangers before going down at home to Southampton on the final day, as Ipswich Town claimed automatic promotion behind Leicester City.

But after their emphatic defeat of the Canaries, who they drew with 0-0 in the first leg, Ampadu claimed Leeds never lost their way.

"Towards the end of the season there was a lot of talk about how we were playing, how we weren't on the front foot, how we weren't aggressive or clinical," he told Sky Sports.

"But we always had our belief that on our day, when we are firing, we can be hard for anyone to play against.

"When the front four, five, six play like that, they make the job of us defenders a lot easier.

"Whoever we play in the final it's going to be a hard game but to go in like this, to put in a performance like this, we can take momentum and confidence into it.

"The fans were second to none and we enjoyed their support – now we are going to prepare for the big one."

Georginio Rutter scored one and set up another in the rout, and he put the onus on Leeds to replicate the same level at Wembley.

"It's incredible. Today we go to Wembley," he said.

"We played a good game. I'm happy, everybody is happy. One more game and we will see.

"We played very good. 4-0 is a clean sheet. Today, we were mature. It's a very good performance from the team.

"I want to try my best and help the team. If we play like this [at the final], we have a good chance but we have to play like this."

Manchester United defender Luke Shaw is fighting against the odds to be passed fit for the crucial FA Cup final against rivals Manchester City.

Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag revealed the left-back’s injury has proven more complicated than first thought and added his chances of making the game are low, but has not definitively ruled out the England international.

He is more optimistic about Harry Maguire, though even the centre-back was only rated as having a “fair chance” of being passed fit to face Pep Guardiola’s men at Wembley on May 25.

Before that, United will finish their Premier League campaign with a match away to Brighton on Sunday.

Despite a desperately disappointing campaign, there are still two potential routes for United to make it into Europe for next season.

Ten Hag's side are eighth in the table, level on 57 points with seventh-placed Newcastle United, who visit Brentford on the final day.

If United beat FA Cup holders City, they will play in the Europa League next season.

Failure to do so would mean they must have finished seventh in the league to secure a spot in the Europa Conference League, so they will need to better Newcastle’s result on the final day.

Shaw has been restricted to playing in 15 games for United across all competitions this season. He was expected to return before the end of the campaign when he suffered a muscle problem in the away win over Luton Town in February.

Ten Hag was asked about Shaw and Maguire ahead of the last two games of United’s season, a fitness update which has added importance due to their likely inclusion, if fit, in England’s squad for Euro 2024 this summer.

"For England, I can't say, it's not up to me," Ten Hag said. "But for the cup final, we're working on it.

"Harry Maguire, it's a fair chance that he will be available. 

“Luke is more complicated, in this moment, let's say it's a low chance that he will make it. But there is still a very small, reduced chance."

As well as giving Maguire a chance of making the final, Ten Hag also confirmed fellow defenders Raphael Varane and Victor Lindelof have returned to training in a boost ahead of the Man City clash.

Varane is leaving Man Utd at the end of the season, with a number of other players expected to follow him out the exit door, but Ten Hag wants his squad fully focused amid frenzied speculation over transfer activity.

"All the issues will only distract us,” he said.

“We know what we are building on, and we have to keep this process going.”

Shaw, 28, played in last season’s FA Cup final defeat to City and has also been a runner-up at the Euros, having scored in England’s eventual defeat on penalties to Italy in the Euro 2020 final.

Barcelona coach Xavi reached 100 league games in charge of the club with a 2-0 win over Almeria, and although being on the verge of a second-place finish in LaLiga, he made it clear that he wants to win championships.

Xavi, who last month reversed his decision to leave the club at the end of the season, said he is concentrating on the future with changes already in mind for the club.

"I have every ambition to win titles. The economic situation is not the best and we are working to reverse it. We are planning the next season and I see it as an opportunity," Xavi told a press conference.

"We are getting the games ready to play the Super Cup next year. I really want Barca to win titles again.

"This year we haven't competed well enough to win them, but we've come close. I'm eager, excited and ambitious."

Xavi spent 17 years at Barcelona, making 767 appearances and winning 25 trophies, including four Champions Leagues and eight LaLiga titles.

Despite being a club great and winning LaLiga last year as coach, he has come under pressure this season after failing to catch Real Madrid, who have already secured the title, and losing to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarter-finals.

There are also the challenges of a bloated wage bill and a 1.6 billion euro ($1.7 billion) renovation project at the Camp Nou stadium.

But Xavi is clear that the club will fight to change.

"It's not an easy or pleasant situation. We want to win titles and we haven't done our homework, but we have a very good squad and I am happy with the level of ambition of the players," he added.

"We tell the players the importance of finishing second, but I want to compete and fight for titles."

Fermin Lopez's brace sealed a 2-0 win over bottom side Almeria on Thursday, with Barca now four points clear of Girona in third, with two games to play.

"I'm happy to help the team with goals and for the win, which we needed. We're going to fight for second place until the end and we're on the right track," said Fermin.

Liverpool have confirmed the impending departure of long-serving defender Joel Matip.

The centre-back joined Liverpool as one of Jurgen Klopp's first signings back in 2016, and over an eight-year spell, has played a key role in the Reds' success.

Matip, 32, is out of contract at the end of the season, having not featured since December due to a serious knee injury.

On Friday, the club confirmed the former Schalke defender would be following Klopp in leaving Anfield.

Speaking to Liverpool's official club channels, Matip said: "It has been eight wonderful years here in Liverpool.

"I was allowed to be part of an exciting history with a great coach and an astonishing team in an extraordinary club. We have achieved great titles and have the best fans in the world.

"I am full of gratitude for the wonderful time I was able to experience with these unique people supporting the club and the fans who love Liverpool.

"My wife and I have felt welcomed and supported from day one and together with the kids we had the best imaginable time here. We will always keep it in special memories."

Klopp added: "In all the years that I have been involved in football, I am not sure I have come across too many players who are more loved than Joel.

"I'm not even sure it would be possible to say anything bad about him."

Injuries have curtailed Matip's recent seasons, with the former Cameroon international managing just 24 Premier League appearances across the last two campaigns.

He leaves Liverpool having won one league title, the Champions League, the FA Cup, EFL Cup, Community Shield and Super Cup.

Matip will get the chance to say goodbye to the Anfield faithful when Liverpool face Wolves in Klopp's final game on Sunday.

Gary Smith has left Nashville SC, with the team confirming they have parted company with their long-serving head coach.

Nashville beat Toronto FC on Wednesday, moving up to 10th in the Eastern Conference.

Yet on Thursday, the team confirmed they had decided to part ways with Smith, who had been in charge for seven seasons.

Smith won 52 MLS games during his spell in charge, while also leading Nashville to the Leagues Cup final in 2023.

Nashville face Atlanta United on Saturday, with ex-player and now player development coach Rumba Munthali stepping in as interim head coach.

No reason was provided for Smith's departure. He has been joined in leaving the club by assistant coach Steve Guppy.

A Nashville statement read: "Nashville SC extends its gratitude to Smith and Guppy for their dedication and contributions to our team and wishes them and their families all the best in their future endeavours.

"Under Smith's leadership, Nashville SC emerged as a very organised and hard-to-beat team in both leagues.

"In the USL Championship, Smith guided the team to a 32-win record over two seasons, including two playoff appearances and a second-place finish in the Eastern Conference in 2019.

"His transition to MLS with the club was seamless, leading Nashville to four consecutive MLS Cup playoff appearances, a feat only achieved by two other teams in the league's history."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Nashville SC - Hany Mukhtar

Mukhtar has scored five goals in nine career regular-season matches against Atlanta. Only Luciano Acosta (nine goals in 17 games) has scored more times against the Five Stripes.

Atlanta United - Thiago Almada

Almada has scored in all three of his career MLS matches against Nashville. No player has ever scored in four consecutive regular-season meetings versus Nashville, though Daryl Dike did score in four straight for Orlando City, including playoff games.

MATCH PREDICTION: NASHVILLE WIN

Despite Smith's departure, Opta's model still predicts a positive outcome for Nashville.

Atlanta are winless in 11 straight MLS away matches (D5 L6 incl. playoffs) dating back to last September. It is the longest active road winless run in MLS.

Nashville have won two straight home matches, their first regular-season home winning streak since a run of six straight last April-July. They managed just two wins in 12 home league games between the two streaks (D6 L4).

Atlanta's 4-0 home win over Nashville last August ended a seven-match winless run for them in the series (D3 L4). Atlanta won their first visit to Nashville, 2-1, in the latter's inaugural match in March 2020, but the Five Stripes are winless in five visits in all competitions since (D2 L3).

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Nashville SC - 46.2%

Atlanta United - 25.5%

Draw - 28.3%