Jurgen Klopp has conceded Diogo Jota will likely miss the Community Shield final for Liverpool, while Alisson "should be fit" to face Manchester City.

Jota sat out of the pre-season opener in Bangkok on Tuesday, a 4-0 defeat to Manchester United, before Alisson joined the forward on the injury list ahead of the 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Friday.

Klopp had previously suggested he was concerned by a recurrence of Jota's hamstring issues, the forward having initially aggravated the problem he suffered when away with Portugal on international duty in June.

After victory over Palace in Singapore, where Mohamed Salah and Jordan Henderson were on target, Klopp provided an update on the injured duo.

"Ali, I think, has the chance for City and Diogo not," Reds manager Klopp told reporters as he discussed the upcoming Community Shield on July 30.

"Ali, he feels a muscle, abdominal. It's nothing serious but, again, we prepare a full season. So he can train but just not like before, so he should not play in the moment. Not normal goalie training but he has a pre-season, so he doesn't lose time. 

"But yeah, these kind of things happen. The boys have to travel a lot and train and you never know exactly. 

"It's only little things, nothing serious but we have to be careful because the rest of the season is much longer than the start."

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was another to limp off in the pre-season clash with Patrick Vieira's side, and Klopp hopes the "top-class" England international will soon recover from a muscle injury setback.

"Of course, it's very disappointing for us because Oxlade trained all the time really well since the pre-season started," he added.

"It happened obviously with Ox in the past when it gets more intense and something can happen. Now this is just a muscle thing and that's OK. We had worse situations, so I'm OK with it. 

"I don't know exactly how long it will take but he will be back and then it's all fine. He is obviously a top-class player and he can help us."

As injury fears mount, Klopp's attention turned to the upcoming Qatar World Cup, with July effectively serving as the first pre-season before unselected players will have to keep fitness across November and December.

Klopp, a regular critic of the Nations League and international football schedule, labelled this pre-season as like no other as he lamented the lack of concern for player welfare.

"Normally our pre-season is always the basis for the rest of the season, this time we have the first part of the season that's interrupted," he continued. 

"We are already kind of used to it because with the pandemic we had breaks and starting again.

"So it's not completely new to us anymore and when these players have time off, for example, if they are not at the World Cup, they never have real time off, they have a training schedule to fulfil so they don't lose a lot in these periods, which is very important for us.

"That's why we can give them at least as long as possible time off with family and holiday and stuff like this, but they just need it.

"Apart from that, the World Cup is for all top teams in football pretty much the same, especially in England it's the same because we play immediately.

"If you are in the final or the third-place [game] then you play again a week later - and then you play 26th, 31st, 2nd and stuff like this.

"Obviously the guys in the Premier League like the spectacular. I've said it often enough, nobody really cares about the players in these moments but that's how it is."

Liverpool face a nervous wait to discover if Diogo Jota is set for another injury absence, with Jurgen Klopp fearing a recurrence of the forward's hamstring problems.

Jota sat out the Reds' first game of their pre-season tour, as a heavily rotated side went down 4-0 to Manchester United in Bangkok.

The Champions League finalists have now flown on to Singapore for their next friendly, against Crystal Palace on Friday, but they are set to be without the Portugal attacker again.

Jota originally injured his hamstring while with Portugal during the international break in June, and Klopp speculated that the issue has been aggravated upon his return to training on Wednesday.

"Diogo is unlucky," Klopp told Liverpool's website. "Diogo was not involved [against United] because of an injury he got at the end of his season.

"He trained yesterday fully and got injured again, so that's really not cool. But we have to wait for the results. He had further assessments this morning, so we have to see."

Jota is not the only player who looks poised to miss the clash with Patrick Vieira's side, with Alisson a doubt.

"Ali was not 100 per cent, he finished the session earlier, was doing the warm-up and felt something, so now there we have to wait as well," Klopp added.

While Klopp's heavy rotation against United did not prove conducive to the final result, it nevertheless banked crucial minutes for several squad members, with 32 players used in all in Thailand.

Klopp hinted at a similar approach for Palace, adding: "Some might get 45 minutes tomorrow, we have to see, but again it's the period of the year where we have to be really careful with different things. 

"These are our footballers, these are the only boys we have. We have a lot of them, but these are the only ones we have, so we have to take care, and we bring them in the best possible situation."

Jordan Henderson is excited by Darwin Nunez, who he feels brings "a new dimension" to Liverpool ahead of a likely debut against Manchester United.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has confirmed Nunez and fellow new signing Fabio Carvalho are to be included in his squad to face United in Bangkok on Tuesday, as the Reds open their pre-season campaign.

Uruguay international forward Nunez was a high-profile arrival from Benfica in a deal that could reach a club-record £85million. He came in this off-season, with Sadio Mane leaving for Bayern Munich.

Nunez played against Liverpool in the Champions League last season and captain Henderson has already seen enough to believe the striker will make a big impact.

"Darwin performed well and scored in both games," Henderson said ahead of the United clash.

"That is probably a big reason why we signed him, but also the recruitment staff will have watched him in plenty of other games and will have seen a lot of quality. 

"Hopefully, he can settle in and hit the ground running. He is a new option, a new dimension for us with the way we play. We have got to adapt to that quickly and get used to it.

"Darwin certainly gives us a different option in the way he plays and is hopefully a huge player for us going forward. He can score goals, the staff will have seen a lot of quality and seen a very good player. 

"He is settling in really well. Don't get me wrong, it was his first proper session on Monday really, so [he] is still quite new into the group.

"But this group has shown in the past that it is easy to settle in quickly, he can already speak with some of the lads who speak Portuguese, but hopefully he can pick up English quickly.

"For us hopefully he can settle in and hit the ground running. Things move on, change, and hopefully we can adapt to that quickly."

Henderson was sad to see Mane depart but believes the attacking unit is still in strong shape, with Luis Diaz having impressed since joining from Porto in January.

The midfielder added: "Sadio would be a big miss for anybody, he is a world-class player, for me one of the best forwards in the world, so it's always going to be difficult losing him.

"We are sad to see him leave, but we wish him all the best. But you look at the forward line and it's still very, very strong. 

"We have brought new players in, but we also have world-class players who performed last season. Luis Diaz has come in and performed phenomenally well.

"Bobby [Roberto Firmino] coming back is a big bonus for us, he was injured for a large part of last season. We have plenty of options for sure."

With the new season fast approaching – Liverpool open their competitive campaign against Manchester City in the Community Shield on July 30 – Henderson does not believe the title race will again be between only those two teams.

"I never think it will be just us and City," he said. "Other teams strengthen.

"You look at Chelsea, they are strengthening, United will strengthen, Spurs will strengthen – they have done so quite a lot so far. 

"You look at other teams who are also going to strengthen.

"Yes, we have bought some new players and hopefully they can help us going forward and freshen things up, but we have to keep doing what we have been doing for a large period of time."

Jordan Henderson believes Liverpool are well-equipped to avoid a hangover from their Premier League and Champions League disappointments at the end of last season.

Liverpool lost out to Manchester City on the last day in their bid for top-flight glory, while Real Madrid beat them 1-0 in the Champions League final in Paris to earn continental glory.

The Reds did triumph in the FA Cup and EFL Cup, with captain Henderson confident there will be no adverse effects from missing out on the biggest two trophies that were up for grabs in their quadruple pursuit.

"There's no need for that," he said. "We have had disappointments in the past and didn't have hangovers, so we have always reacted in the right way. 

"We still won two trophies last year so it's not all negative – there were still positives to take out of it.

"It was a fantastic season. Yes, it didn't end the way we would have liked, but that’s football, that's life, you get on with it and react in the right way and we just want to go again, to perform." 

Henderson added: "I wouldn't say it [the disappointment] has made us more motivated, but you are always motivated to win the biggest trophies.

"That is why we play. We want to be successful; we want to win things and we managed to win two last year.

"It didn't end the way we would like, but we pushed all the way and that is all you can ask for, so you move on, you take the positives, improve on the things we can and try and perform in every game we play. 

"We have done that for a long period of time and now we just have to keep going, keep pushing."

Henderson was speaking in Bangkok before Liverpool get their pre-season campaign under way against rivals Manchester United on Tuesday.

"We are constantly working to improve; we can't worry about other people [teams] around us – that's not in your control," added the England international. 

"This is a good moment for us in pre-season to get everyone back to work so that when the season comes, we're at a good base level of fitness and ready to go."

Liverpool face City in the Community Shield on July 30 before opening their Premier League campaign for the 2022-23 season against newly promoted Fulham on August 6.

Nani is relishing the prospect of a Manchester United reunion after joining A-League side Melbourne Victory.

The 35-year-old former Portugal star has moved to Australia on a two-year contract, with his Victory deal announced on Tuesday.

Nani left United eight years ago and has since had spells at Sporting CP, Fenerbahce, Valencia, Lazio, Orlando City and Venezia.

He could line up against United on Friday, however, with his new team facing the Premier League giants in a friendly at the MCG.

Nani, who won the 2007-08 Champions League and four Premier League titles with United, was asked about his prospects of playing in that game.

"I would like to, I don't know. I just arrived in the country, and it's a long flight, so there are lots of things to do," Nani said.

"The body must be ready to compete. I think the fans and everyone expecting me to be able to perform with all my qualities, so playing that game could be not a good idea, but as a player I always want to play, so give me five minutes and I will be ready."

Nani won 112 caps for Portugal, scoring 24 goals for his country.

As his international career was winding down, so Bruno Fernandes was emerging as a candidate to come into the Portugal side and stamp his own mark.

The pair were team-mates at Sporting for a short time and could now go head-to-head, with Nani saying he had yet to speak to Fernandes about his Melbourne move.

"Not yet, we had to be a little bit quiet about this transfer," Nani said. "I know there will be time for us to meet here and talk about everything."

Nani was impressed with Melbourne boss Tony Popovic's plans, persuading him to try his luck in Australia for the first time.

He said: "I had some clubs interested in me, but Melbourne Victory is a club that has been trying to contact me for a long time. I had the opportunity to talk with the coach and had great feelings, and that was one of the good reasons to make me come here."

Mainz will push ahead with plans to face Newcastle United in a pre-season friendly despite backlash from their supporters.

Newcastle will face German clubs Mainz and 1860 Munich in Austria ahead of the 2022-23 season.

But the scheduled matches have not been welcomed by supporters of those clubs due to the identity of Newcastle's owners.

The consortium that bought Newcastle last October includes Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), which owns 80 per cent of the club.

Saudi Arabia's human rights record is of major concern, along with its role in the war in Yemen.

But Mainz insist they cannot afford to cancel the Newcastle friendly, both because of the need to prepare for the Bundesliga season and due to contractual obligations.

"A friendly against a big English club is first of all a really good test for us," said chairman Stefan Hofmann in a statement in which Mainz confirmed they had held further talks with Newcastle and would plan to meet with fans. "It's also important for our team’s pre-season preparations.

"After weighing up our options and not having an appropriate alternative opponent of this standard available, we agreed to play this game.

"We didn't expect the reaction we got from some fans. We respect them and regret that these concerns have arisen because it's our responsibility to start the new season as one big unit together with our fans."

Mainz board member Christian Heidel added: "From a footballing perspective, we can't afford to miss out on this friendly.

"A one-sided cancellation of the fixture, as has been demanded by some fans, is not feasible, because were we to not honour our contractual obligations, this could have serious legal and economic consequences for us, and so we're going to stand by the contractual agreement."

Mainz coach Bo Svensson had already addressed the concerns, saying as reported by Bild: "On the one hand, I can understand the arguments.

"[But] whenever it comes to football, things get very inflated and become huge issues."

Referring to the PIF's shares in Disney, Svensson added: "How far are we going? Will we then also forego Disney films with our children?"

1860 coach Michael Kollner said to db24: "You always have to be a bit careful when conducting a moral discussion. I find that difficult. You can find something in everyone.

"We haven't done everything right in the past either – and teams are still playing against us in preparation.

"Newcastle was bought by someone with the money he has. I don't know if we are always entitled to evaluate things – especially in times when we have completely different issues in Europe.

"Unity looks different. I'm responsible for the sport – and I'm glad we got this test match."

Brazil earned a 1-0 friendly win against Japan in Tokyo on Monday thanks to a penalty from Neymar.

Tite's side dominated for large periods in the pouring rain at the New Japan National Stadium and squandered several chances before Neymar's spot-kick finally broke the deadlock in the 77th minute.

The victory means the Selecao have won five consecutive games, and have not lost since July when they were beaten by Argentina in the Copa America final.

Both teams came into the came on the back of big wins last time out, with Japan thumping Paraguay 4-1 on Thursday, while Brazil went one better in beating South Korea 5-1 the same day.

Brazil almost took the lead inside two minutes as neat play between Vinicius Junior and Neymar ended with the latter backheeling to Lucas Paqueta, who hit the post after shooting across Shuichi Gonda in the Japan goal.

Japan had a brief period in the first half where they caused some problems for Tite's side, with Takumi Minamino getting some joy between the lines, but Brazil soon established their dominance as they created more chances.

Casemiro should have put the visitors ahead in the 26th minute but could only guide a header from a Raphinha free-kick over the crossbar, before Neymar had a shot parried away by Gonda and Raphinha bent a direct free-kick just wide of the left-hand post.

Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus were introduced just after the hour and the Arsenal forward almost made an immediate impact, but could only guide his shot wide of the far post after the ball was cushioned down for him by Casemiro.

The hosts' only real chance of note came in the 72nd minute, when Junya Ito fired over with a volley at the far post.

Brazil were awarded a penalty shortly after when another substitute, Richarlison, was fouled by Wataru Endo and Neymar sent Gonda the wrong way from the spot to win it.

Lionel Messi was likened to Rafael Nadal by Lionel Scaloni after scoring all five of Argentina's goals in a 5-0 friendly rout of Estonia on Sunday.

Barcelona legend Messi moved to 86 international goals, two more than Hungary legend Ferenc Puskas, now leaving him fourth on the all-time men's list.

Messi's exploits occurred on the same day as tennis legend Rafael Nadal defeated Casper Ruud in straight sets to win a 14th French Open title and extend his record for most men's grand slam titles to 22.

For Argentina boss Scaloni, there are simply no more superlatives left for him to describe either man's seismic impact on the world of sports.

"I don't know what else to say. It's very difficult; it's like Rafa Nadal, what are you going to say?" Scaloni told TVP.

"It is preferable that the journalists speak, that they speak. You have no words left to describe it, and above all, for everything it generates."

The result saw Argentina extend their unbeaten run to 33 matches, fine form just five months out from the start of the World Cup in Qatar.

Messi had completed his hat-trick early in the second half before scoring twice more in the final 20 minutes.

Scaloni added of his talisman: "He is something unique, and it is a pleasure to have him in this group. It is a pleasure to train him, the entire coaching staff. And it's a pleasure his behaviour and how he toasts to his shirt.

"We only have words of thanks. I don't think he's just the heritage of Argentina; he's the heritage of the world, of world football. The day he doesn't play anymore, we are going to miss him."

Mexico only managed a scoreless draw, their fourth in 10 matches over 2022, playing out a 0-0 stalemate Ecuador on Sunday.

The draw marked El Tri's 100th Mextour match in the United States, having held home fixtures there since 2002.

In an otherwise uneventful match on the pitch, Tata Martino's side had a late shout for a penalty waved away when Uriel Antuna appeared to have been brought down in the penalty area in 78th minute.

The game faced late controversy when it was momentarily suspended, however, following discriminatory chanting towards Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez with each goal-kick.

Ecuador will now host Cape Verde on Saturday, while Mexico commence their CONCACAF Nations League campaign hosting Suriname.

Lionel Messi scored all five goals as Argentina made it 33 matches unbeaten with a 5-0 friendly win over Estonia on Sunday.

Coach Lionel Scaloni's side set a new national record of 32 matches unbeaten with the 3-0 Finalissima win over Italy on Wednesday, and they never looked like failing to extend that run – the longest currently intact in international football – against a limited Estonia outfit.

Messi got them on their way from the penalty spot, before doubling his tally with a sumptuous finish on the stroke of half-time.

He completed a treble early in the second half, before adding further goals inside the final 20 minutes as Argentina cruised to victory at Estadio El Sadar in Pamplona, Spain.

Argentina wasted little time in stamping their authority on the game, Messi stroking home from the spot in the eighth minute after Estonia goalkeeper Matvei Igonen wiped out German Pezzella.

Messi grabbed his second in the 45th minute, the Paris Saint-Germain forward superbly curling over Igonen from 10 yards after being played in by Alejandro Gomez.

Argentina's captain and talisman sealed a hat-trick two minutes after the interval, steering home Nahuel Molina's cross from the right wing from 10 yards.

Julian Alvarez and Rodrigo de Paul went close for La Albiceleste, before Messi netted a fourth with a cool finish past Igonen in the 71st minute after taking advantage of uncertainty in the Estonia defence.

He put the seal on a remarkable individual performance to make it 5-0 five minutes later, slotting home from 12 yards after a scramble in the opposition penalty area.

What does it mean? Argentina lay down World Cup marker

Despite not winning the World Cup since 1986, Argentina are among the favourites to triumph in Qatar later this year.

They will need to overcome significantly sterner opposition than Estonia to get their hands on the trophy, yet all the signs point to them being a side to be reckoned with, particularly if Messi plays like this.

Magical Messi

He had a subdued season with PSG, scoring just 11 goals across all competitions, but Messi was at his electric best here. The 34-year-old scored with all five of his shots on target, while he also made three key passes – a tally bettered only by team-mate Alejandro Gomez.

Wasteful Alvarez

New Manchester City signing Alvarez will hope Messi's finishing prowess rubs off on him, with the 22-year-old failing to find the back of the net with his four shots – three of which were on target.

What's next?

Argentina's attention turns towards Qatar 2022, although their warm-up games for the tournament have yet to be scheduled, while Estonia face Malta in the Nations League on Thursday.

Giorgio Chiellini bowed out of international football and warned a "difficult period" awaited Italy as Roberto Mancini bids to get the Azzurri back on track.

The joy of winning last year's delayed Euro 2020 tournament has been replaced by rapid deflation after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup.

Having also missed out on the Russia 2018 finals, falling short of a place at Qatar 2022 represented crushing disappointment for the four-time winners.

Chiellini, the 37-year-old defensive titan who is leaving Juventus and expected to join Los Angeles FC, has called time on his Italy career.

He played the first half on Wednesday in a 3-0 defeat to Argentina at Wembley, in a match tagged as the Finalissima, a clash of the champions of Europe and South America.

"We were hoping to win the match and the trophy," Chiellini told Italian broadcaster RAI. "We knew it would be tough, but the defeat does not cancel what has gone before.

"Now I expect a difficult period. We need everyone to support this group."

Chiellini lasted just 45 minutes in his farewell game, with Italy 2-0 up by the time he departed.

This was the first staging of the CONMEBOL/UEFA 'Cup of Champions' since 1993. Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala got the goals as Lionel Messi pulled the strings

It was a sorry way for Chiellini to go out, and he said: "It's a shame because in the first half we made a lot of mistakes and we ruined the match by ourselves."

Turning his attention to Argentina, he added: "Above all, at this moment they are too strong, they have confidence and they are a team. They look like us a year ago."

Italy, without Chiellini, will switch their focus to the Nations League. They face Germany on Saturday and again on June 14 – matches against Hungary and England are sandwiched in between.

Writing on his Instagram page, Chiellini reflected on the end of a 117-cap career.

He wrote: "Thanks to everyone, it's been a beautiful journey."

Italy coach Roberto Mancini promised changes after a difficult few months for the Azzurri was compounded by a crushing defeat to Argentina in Wednesday's Finalissima.

Argentina were comprehensive 3-0 winners at Wembley, as the CONMEBOL/UEFA 'Cup of Champions' was revived for the first time since 1993.

Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala got the goals as Lionel Messi pulled the strings, but in truth Italy were fortunate to only lose 3-0 against a hugely impressive Albiceleste.

It was only Italy's second match since their shock World Cup qualifying defeat to North Macedonia in March, with that loss preventing them from reaching Qatar 2022.

Despite the Azzurri winning Euro 2020 less than a year ago, Mancini is already looking to instigate something of a rebuild.

But he was keen to pay tribute to those who have played a key role over the past four years.

"In the first half we made two mistakes on their two goals, then they were better at keeping the ball," Mancini is quoted as saying by Sky Italia.

"They were better than us, but I must say thanks to these guys who have played in these four years.

"There is regret for the lack of qualification for the World Cup, and tonight's match was initially balanced, then they had superior quality to us.

"After this match we had in mind to change several things and we will do it. We need to find the players, put together a team that will suffer at the beginning and that in the future will be able to give us joy."

Clearly, the attack will be Mancini's primary focus in any rebuild as he rued a lack of threat going forward.

"We have great difficulty scoring at the moment, and we have to work a lot knowing that it will not be so simple and it will take time [to overcome their issues]," he continued.

"After the European Championship we struggled to score and we have to find solutions in this sense and try to be fast, but it will not be easy to put together a team that gives us short-term satisfaction even if there are good guys. We will have to make as few mistakes as possible.

"I have optimism. I like to work and train. It's true that we lost against a great Argentina team, but we must know that there will also be these moments and we must make sure that the youngest players learn quickly."

Italy now turn their attention to the Nations League. They face Germany on Saturday and again on June 14 – matches against Hungary and England are sandwiched in between.

Argentina's impressive 3-0 Finalissima win over Italy saw La Albiceleste set a national new record of 32 matches unbeaten.

Lionel Scaloni's men were sensational at Wembley, producing a dominant and rampant performance that could have seen them claim an even more one-sided victory.

Lautaro Martinez, Angel Di Maria and Paulo Dybala got the goals, while Lionel Messi pulled the strings as Argentina made something of a statement less than six months before the World Cup.

Argentina's last defeat was a 2-0 loss to bitter rivals Brazil in the semi-finals of the 2019 Copa America, but they got their revenge in the final last year, beating the Selecao 1-0 at the Maracana to clinch their first title in 28 years.

Their 32 games unbeaten is a new record for official games, though Argentina did go 33 matches without defeat under Alfio Basile – that run included two fixtures not recognised by FIFA as they were against the Rest of America and the Rest of World in 1991.

Argentina's streak is the longest currently intact in international football and leaves them just five adrift of the all-time record set by Italy themselves last year.

Argentina made an early statement of intent ahead of the World Cup with an impressively dominant 3-0 win over Italy to win the UEFA/CONMEBOL Finalissima at Wembley.

Although Italy failed to qualify for Qatar 2022, few would have expected the European champions to be so stunningly outclassed by the Copa America 2021 winners.

Much of the pre-game focus was on Giorgio Chiellini, but the last game of his distinguished international career ended at half-time with Argentina deservedly 2-0 up thanks to goals from Lautaro Martinez and Angel Di Maria.

Italy somehow prevented the inspired Lionel Messi and Di Maria adding more gloss to the scoreline, but Paulo Dybala finally got their third with the last kick of the game.

A brilliant intervention by Cristian Romero had earlier denied Andrea Belotti a simple finish in the 20th minute, with the striker then seeing a looping header saved by Emiliano Martinez a few moments later.

But Argentina soon took charge.

Messi wonderfully turned away from Giovanni Di Lorenzo and held him off before passing across goal for Martinez to tap home.

The Inter forward then turned provider on the stroke of half-time, spinning Leonardo Bonucci and feeding Di Maria, who lifted an audacious chip over the helpless Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Roberto Mancini made three changes at the break but if anything Argentina only became more dominant – Donnarumma desperately scurried back to stop a Bonucci back-pass going in, before importantly denying the excellent Di Maria twice.

Giovani Lo Celso then missed an open goal – albeit from a slightly tight angle – after great work by Messi, who subsequently tested Donnarumma twice.

But Donnarumma was eventually beaten again at the end, substitute Dybala finding the bottom-right corner after a solo Messi run terrified the Italy defence.

Mexico got their international window off to a positive start, earning a 2-1 win over Nigeria in Arlington on Saturday.

In front of a healthy crowd in Texas, William Troost-Ekong's own-goal in the 56th minute eventually proved the difference between the two sides, only two minutes after Cyriel Dessers equalised for Nigeria.

Though Nigeria failed to qualify for this year's World Cup, El Tri are ramping up preparations for the event in Qatar, with this being the first of three friendlies before the CONCACAF Nations League opener against Suriname in June.

Santiago Gimenez opened the scoring for a makeshift Mexico squad in the 12th minute, with Gerardo Martino using the second half primarily as an opportunity to integrate Diego Lainez and Edson Alvarez from the bench.