Chelsea are reportedly the latest Premier League club to signal their interest in 25-year-old Inter striker Lautaro Martinez.

Martinez, who has also scored 21 senior goals for Argentina in 40 international appearances, is coming off a career-best season in the Serie A.

He set a new personal-best with 21 league goals in 35 games in 2021-22, and has started this season in similar fashion, netting six times in 11 Serie A fixtures.

Martinez also showed his quality with a goal and an assist in the dramatic 3-3 Champions League draw against Barcelona.

TOP STORY – CHELSEA LOOK TO INTER FOR STRIKER SOLUTION

According to InterLive, what separates Chelsea's chances from Martinez's other Premier League suitors is their potential to include current loanee Romelu Lukaku in their bid.

The report states Inter's starting point for an acceptable price tag will be €90million, which is what Tottenham are said to have offered before the beginning of last season.

Tottenham are one of the other Premier League teams named in the report, while Manchester United and Newcastle United have previously been connected with a pursuit of Martinez.

Inter will have all the leverage in any negotiations, with Martinez's contract tying him to the club until 2026.

ROUND-UP

– De Telegraaf claims PSV are in such a dire financial situation that they will be forced to accept a €30m bid for 23-year-old breakout star Cody Gakpo. 

– According to Calciomercato, Arsenal, Newcastle and West Ham are all circling 21-year-old Midtjylland winger Gustav Isaksen.

– Diario Sport is reporting Paris Saint-Germain are the favourites to land prized 16-year-old Palmeiras prospect Endrick, while Real Madrid are also said to be all-in, and Barcelona may turn their attention to more pressing matters.

– Spezia are looking for €30m to part ways with 22-year-old centre-back Jakub Kiwior, with Milan, Juventus and West Ham said to have strong interest, per Tuttomercatoweb.

– The Chronicle is reporting Newcastle are weighing up a move for 18-year-old winger Eguinaldo, who plays for Vasco Da Gama in the Brazilian second division and has a £26m release clause in his contract.

Erik ten Hag believes Cristiano Ronaldo can return to the level he reached last season for Manchester United if he wants.

Ronaldo scored only his third goal of the campaign on Thursday, a header that wrapped up a comfortable 3-0 Europa League win over Sheriff.

Ten Hag restored Ronaldo to his starting XI after dropping the 37-year-old for last weekend's trip to Chelsea as punishment for refusing to come on as a substitute against Tottenham.

Ronaldo was United's top scorer with 24 goals across all competitions last season but has found himself behind Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial – when fit – this term.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner is only averaging a goal every 260 minutes across all competitions, his worst such record since 2005-06 (one every 284 minutes).

Despite Ronaldo's misdemeanours under Ten Hag, the Dutchman has routinely talked up the striker's importance.

But he feels it is on Ronaldo to prove he can still be as productive as last season.

Speaking to reporters ahead of Sunday's visit of West Ham, Ten Hag said: "It's up to him, but I think when you collect all the chances he creates, the team creates for him, in the last weeks I've been here, you see he is still capable to get into the right positions.

"I know he's capable of finishing that. So, it's possible."

Indeed, finding openings has not been a problem for Ronaldo. Only Rashford (6.3) has a better expected goals (xG) tally in the United squad than Ronaldo (5.6), but the latter leads the way for xG per 90 minutes (0.65).

Granted, much of Ronaldo's football this term has been against seemingly lesser opposition in the Europa League, but the fact remains: he has had chances, the problem is his inability to take them, perhaps a by-product of the veteran not having much of a pre-season.

Ten Hag liked what he saw when Ronaldo and Rashford worked in tandem during the second half against Sheriff, however, hinting he sees a way of fitting both forwards into the team on a more regular basis.

"I think [against Sheriff] with Cristiano and Marcus in the attack, that worked very well. I was happy about that," the manager said.

The prolonged absence of Martial will help Ronaldo's bid for regular football and Ten Hag could not guarantee the Frenchman will be back before the break for the World Cup, though he is optimistic.

"I hope," Ten Hag said of Martial, who has scored three goals in just 133 minutes of action this term.

"He is making progress. He is outside and he's working there. So, we are waiting for his step back in team training."

Clearly, Ten Hag would regard Martial's return to be a major boost after showing highly promising flashes during his limited time on the pitch this term.

"The setback was that he fell against Everton with his back, so we had some injuries which were really frustrating for us but also for him, and we have seen him play really good in pre-season," Ten Hag said.

"He has already scored three goals, yet in Everton he also had an important role with the first goal, his assist to Antony.

"So it would be really good to have him back because he can make a difference, he can score goals, but also in linking up he is really important, and the pressing from him is really good."

Ben Johnson says West Ham will score when they need to after sealing their place in the Europa Conference League last-16 by beating Silkeborg 1-0 at London Stadium.

David Moyes' side sealed victory thanks to Manuel Lanzini's lone penalty in the capital, to maintain their unbeaten record in Group B this season.

But spurned chances elsewhere meant a surprisingly tight scoreline, with the Hammers having previously put three past the Danish outfit in the return fixture.

Johnson, however, is unconcerned by the narrow margins as long as he and his team-mates get the win, stating they will score when they need to.

"We won the game, we got the three points, we're through and we're top," he told BT Sport. "In the games where we need to put the ball in the net, I'm sure we will do."

Moyes was less enthused about wasted opportunities, though, suggesting his side needed to sharpen their calls on the field in order to yield greater returns.

"I thought we did enough to get two or three goals," he added. "I wouldn't put it simply down to poor finishing, but decisions in the final third more generally.

"We still had chances, and two or three players who probably should have got themselves a goal."

Cristiano Ronaldo remains in limbo at Manchester United after being exiled after exiting their 2-0 win over Tottenham prematurely last week.

Ronaldo and United manager Erik ten Hag were set for talks before a decision was made on letting him return to first-team training and be considered to play.

The 37-year-old Portuguese apologised for the incident on social media, but the situation appears delicate after an off-season where Ronaldo chased a move away from United.

TOP STORY – TEN HAG WILLING TO LET RONALDO GO IN JANUARY

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is willing to let Cristiano Ronaldo leave in January, reports The Mirror.

The Dutchman has publicly said Ronaldo is wanted at Old Trafford, but is ready to allow him to move on should an appropriate suitor be found, amid fresh links with Chelsea via Sunday World.

Ronaldo had pushed for an off-season move to a Champions League club but was unable to find a home, while he rejected a lucrative offer from an unnamed Saudi Arabian club.

ROUND-UP

– Le10Sport claims that Paris Saint-Germain are open to renewal talks with veteran Spanish defender Sergio Ramos ,   who is out of contract at the end of this season.

– Chelsea are eager to sign Inter right-back Denzel Dumfries amid interest from Juventus , claims Calciomercato.

– Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are both weighing up making an offer to sign Juve midfielder Adrien Rabiot , Calciomercato also reports.

– Arsenal 's interest in Eintracht Frankfurt defender Evan Ndicka has cooled, according to the Express. West Ham are also interested in the Frenchman.

Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez is a "goal machine" and will only improve as he grows in confidence, according to team-mate Kostas Tsimikas.

Nunez scored his second goal in his last two Premier League starts to guide Liverpool to a 1-0 win over West Ham on Wednesday, a result which moved Jurgen Klopp's men to within four points of the top four.

The Uruguay striker was criticised by some for starting slowly following his big-money move from Benfica, but he has now hit five goals for Liverpool in all competitions this season.

That tally has only been bettered by two of his team-mates: Mohamed Salah (nine) and Roberto Firmino (eight).

Asked about Nunez's qualities, Tsimikas said: "He's always there. He can score with the left, with the right, with the head – he's a goal machine.

"He needs confidence, [which] is coming, and I hope for him all the best [to] score more and more goals to help the team, to give us more wins. For us, he is a very, very important player."

Tsimikas teed up Nunez's headed winner with a pinpoint delivery from the left flank, and has now provided five assists in all competitions this season – a tally only matched by Diogo Jota among fellow Liverpool players.

The Greece international was particularly pleased to have laid on a goal for Nunez, adding: "It's a very good moment for me. Especially because it was a cross for Darwin, because I wanted to assist him."

Tsimikas, quoted on Liverpool's website, said: "I'm very, very happy for him because I know he wanted to score also. Obviously he would [want] to score more goals but hopefully he keeps his energy and his goals for the next games. 

"I'm very, very happy for that. Every day, I work to make better crosses and to have better performances. So, I'm very happy for that."

Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 29 Premier League games at Anfield (W22 D7), and have scored 100 goals against West Ham in the competition, making the Irons the fourth side they have reached a century of goals against, after Newcastle United, Arsenal and Tottenham.

Barcelona, Liverpool and Chelsea are reportedly all interested in 21-year-old Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

Fernandez arrived at Benfica from River Plate just four months ago in June for a fee of €10million, and immediately took the Primeira Liga by storm, with the league naming him August's player of the month.

He has since helped Benfica to an undefeated record in both the league (8W 1D) and the Champions League (2W 2D), playing in every game, and his exploits in back-to-back draws against Paris Saint-Germain seem to have convinced some of the world's top clubs that he is up to the level.

TOP STORY – WORLD POWERHOUSES CLAMOUR FOR 21-YEAR-OLD BENFICA MIDFIELDER

According to a report from Sport, Barcelona had the chance to sign Fernandez for €10m but opted against it, allowing Benfica to swoop in, and he is now said to be valued at over €50m.

That figure could continue to rise as well. Having made his senior international debut for Argentina in September, Fernandez could play a significant role in his country's World Cup campaign as they enter the tournament on a 35-match unbeaten streak.

The report claims Barcelona will face opposition from Premier League giants Liverpool and Chelsea, and while there is no indication that Benfica would be willing to let Fernandez go six months into a five-year contract, the club that specialise in turning a profit in the transfer market could be faced with an offer they cannot refuse.

ROUND-UP

– 90min is reporting Chelsea have made Napoli striker Victor Osimhen their priority forward target, following reports they are also heavily interested in RB Leipzig's Christopher Nkunku and Lille's Jonathan David.

– According to Sky Sport in Germany, Everton have also been keen on Lille's David, with the 22-year-old Canadian tied with Neymar for the most goals in Ligue 1 this season (nine in 11 games).

– The Evening Standard is reporting Chelsea are also weighing up moves for Borussia Dortmund's teenage English star Jude Bellingham, as well as West Ham's Declan Rice.

– Arsenal are said to be joining Barcelona and Real Madrid in the chase of 16-year-old Palmeiras striker Endrick, per FourFourTwo.

– Calciomercato claims Milan are considering a move for Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech in January, with Chelsea said to be open to a loan move for the 29-year-old.

Jurgen Klopp believes Darwin Nunez has "arrived 100 per cent" after the Uruguayan striker scored the winner for Liverpool against West Ham on Wednesday.

Nunez initially struggled following his move from Benfica at the end of last season for a reported initial fee of £64million (€73.5m) that could rise to £85m (€97.6m).

However, an all-action performance from the 23-year-old against the Hammers saw him score the only goal of the game with a header from a Kostas Tsimikas cross, while also forcing Lukasz Fabianski into a fine save and hitting the post among his six efforts on total from 56 minutes on the pitch, before being substituted as a precaution.

Nunez now has five goals in 12 games (six starts), and has netted three times in his last four appearances in all competitions.

"It is important. He has scored now a couple of times in the last few games. He arrived 100 per cent, now even with numbers, which is fine," Klopp said at his post-match press conference. 

"He felt a little bit the muscles at half-time but it was all fine and after five minutes [of the second half] I was just a bit concerned about long sprints for him and balls where he stretches his legs. I thought, 'Come on, we cannot take that risk' and that's why we changed."

Despite having a number of chances to score again after Nunez's 22nd-minute goal, Liverpool came under pressure as David Moyes' men grew into the game, with Alisson having to save a penalty from Jarrod Bowen after the forward was brought down by Joe Gomez just before half-time.

The Reds held on the for their second 1-0 win in a week, having beaten Manchester City by the same score on Sunday, and Klopp conceded it had been another tough three points to claim.

"It is a Premier League game and I cannot remember an easy game in all of the seven years and few days, and that was for sure not easy tonight," he said. "But we played well enough – and in moments, really good. In the end, altogether, well enough to deserve three points.

"It's the second 1-0 in a row which is absolutely fine. It's a brilliant result... that we have space for improvement I think is clear, it was always the case and is tonight the case.

"But in this moment, we have three points more than before and that feels massive."

Bruno Fernandes' spectacular finish helped Manchester United make a statement of their top-four credentials with a 2-0 win over Tottenham in the Premier League on Wednesday.

The Portugal midfielder volleyed into the top-right corner to add to Fred's opener, lifting the Red Devils to a deserved victory over Antonio Conte's men, who they now trail by just four points.

Elsewhere, Newcastle United continued their fine start to the season and Chelsea were held by Brentford, as West Ham paid the penalty in a narrow loss to Liverpool at Anfield.

Here, Stats Perform picks out the best Opta facts from an intriguing Wednesday in the Premier League.

Manchester United 2-0 Tottenham: Fernandes continues Spurs' Red Devils hoodoo

Wednesday's headline clash saw United claim an important win over third-placed Spurs, Erik ten Hag's second win in as many home Premier League games against top-three opponents (also 3-1 v Arsenal in September).

That is as many home wins against sides in the top three as predecessors Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick managed between them in the competition.

Fernandes was the star of the show, creating nine chances – the most by a player in a Premier League match this season and most overall in the competition since Fernandes himself in September 2021 (10 v Aston Villa).

The hosts also kept Spurs' attackers quiet during a controlled display – Harry Kane has now failed to score in 13 of his 17 appearances against United in the Premier League, more than against any other opponent.

The victory is United's fourth in their last four Premier League meetings with Tottenham, the first time they have enjoyed such a run in the competition since April 2009-October 2010.

Liverpool 1-0 West Ham: Alisson and Nunez hand Reds hard-fought win

At Anfield, Liverpool built on Sunday's victory over Manchester City by clinching a 1-0 win over West Ham, extending their unbeaten run to 29 home league games (W22 D7).

Darwin Nunez headed home the only goal, which also represented Liverpool's 100th Premier League goal against West Ham – the fourth side they've reached a century against in the competition.

That goal was also the 800th West Ham have conceded in the Premier League – a tally only previously reached by Everton, Newcastle and Tottenham.

The Hammers were handed a chance to respond before the break, but Jarrod Bowen saw his penalty saved by Alisson. Since the start of the 2020-21 season, no team has missed more Premier League spot-kicks than West Ham's six.

Newcastle United 1-0 Everton: Solid Toon continue rise

Eddie Howe's Newcastle recorded a 1-0 win over Everton at St James' Park, posting their fifth clean sheet of the Premier League season – a tally only matched by Manchester City.

In truth, the Magpies' rearguard was never seriously tested: Everton's one shot in this match was their joint-worst tally in a Premier League game since data collection began in 2003-04 (also v Chelsea in November 2016).

Newcastle are sixth in the early-season standings after combining that solidity with an eye for the spectacular – only Leicester City (six) can better their tally of five Premier League goals from outside the penalty area this season. 

Match-winner Miguel Almiron, meanwhile, has netted five goals in 11 league appearances this term, matching his return from his previous 64 outings.

Brentford 0-0 Chelsea: Bees hold firm in West London Derby

Chelsea are yet to taste defeat under Graham Potter, but the Blues boss saw his team drop league points for the first time in his tenure at Brentford.

The Blues' familiar lack of creativity came to the fore as they hit the target with just five of their 14 shots (36 per cent), three of which came after the 85th minute.

Despite not starting the match, Mateo Kovacic was directly involved in seven of Chelsea's 14 shots, creating a game-high four chances as he outshone his team-mates.

However, the Croatian was unable to drive his side to a win, and Brentford have now kept consecutive clean sheets in the Premier League for just the second time – last doing so in their first two games in the competition in August 2021.

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson said he and his team-mates told each other to "stick together" during their recent difficult run of form.

The Reds won just two of their first eight Premier League games as they fell away from any talk of the title race in the early weeks of the season.

However, back-to-back 1-0 home wins against Manchester City and West Ham have restored some feel-good factor at Anfield, with the Brazilian's penalty save on Wednesday helping his team narrowly beat the Hammers.

A 22nd-minute header from Darwin Nunez put Liverpool in front, before Jarrod Bowen was brought down in the box by Joe Gomez just before half-time.

However, Alisson dived down to his right to palm Bowen's spot-kick away, before some nervy defending in the second half eventually led to a win for Jurgen Klopp's men.

Speaking to Amazon Prime after the game, Alisson said: "Since the beginning of the season we have big goals to win trophies, to fight for every competition that we are in.

"Things didn't work out so good for us. We started well with the Community Shield [victory] against Man City, an important game against an important, big opponent. It gave us a little bit of confidence but we didn't use that for the Premier League and then suddenly we lost confidence during the games, we lost players as well for injuries.

"And this is something that affected the team, the rhythm, some players coming back from a long time not playing. All the circumstances around affected us a little bit. On the pitch as well, performances weren't so bad but they weren't enough to get the three points, to get the win.

"We just stick together – it was something that we were speaking about a lot, to stick together at this difficult time, difficult moment. Working hard, working every day – not only on matchdays.

"Now things are coming out, the results are coming but we don't have to be too excited about that. We have to keep our feet on the ground and just stick together, keep on working because it's a long and tough season for everybody."

Alisson has only conceded seven of the 13 penalties he has faced in the Premier League (54 per cent, with two saved and four off target), the lowest percentage of any goalkeeper to face at least 10 spot-kicks in the competition.

Nunez's goal was his first at Anfield as a Liverpool player, and his fifth in all competitions since arriving from Benfica at the end of last season.

"We are helping him a lot, we keep him really close," Alisson said of the Uruguayan striker, who had six shots against West Ham before being taken off before the hour. 

"He's a really good lad. I know that it's not easy, it's really difficult to settle in a different country. When I came here, I knew a little bit more English than him – he's learning. He's working hard on that – not only on the pitch but outside to learn English.

"He's a really disciplined man and we are trying to help him, help Lucho [Luis Diaz]. We are a really strong team who works together and sticks together all the time when we are at the training ground.

"Sometimes outside the pitch we come together to spend time together – and this is important not only for him but for his family and for all our families."

Liverpool secured a second 1-0 win in the space of a few days after beating West Ham in the Premier League on Wednesday.

Darwin Nunez's first-half header was enough to seal the points for Jurgen Klopp's men, his first goal at Anfield for his new club.

West Ham were second best for most of the game but will still be disappointed to leave empty-handed after Jarrod Bowen saw a penalty saved by Alisson just before the break.

It ends a run of five games without defeat for David Moyes' team, while Liverpool followed up their impressive victory over Manchester City on Sunday.

The first chance of note came in the 15th minute when a long pass from Thiago Alcantara found Nunez, whose fierce 25-yard strike was tipped over by Lukasz Fabianski.

But the Uruguayan was not to be denied seven minutes later as he ran onto Kostas Tsimikas' pinpoint left-wing delivery to head past the despairing Fabianski into the far corner of the net.

Liverpool almost scored again when Nunez rattled the post from the edge of the box but nearly had their lead wiped out just before half-time.

Bowen was felled in the box by Joe Gomez, only for Alisson to save the England international's resulting penalty low to his right.

Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino went close to adding to the hosts' lead in the second half, while Kurt Zouma hit his own crossbar with an attempted block.

West Ham could have snatched a late equaliser when the ball fell kindly for Tomas Soucek in front of goal, only for substitute James Milner to deflect it off target and ultimately seal the win for Liverpool.

Jurgen Klopp expects to be on the Liverpool bench for the visit of West Ham on Wednesday, which is just where David Moyes wants him.

Hammers boss Moyes said he would want a fair fight at Anfield by being pitched head to head against the Liverpool boss, who is facing a touchline ban.

Klopp raged so hard at assistant referee Gary Beswick in Liverpool's 1-0 win against Manchester City on Sunday that he was sent off by Anthony Taylor.

He had been furious when no foul was given against Bernardo Silva for a challenge on Mohamed Salah, after finding fault with a number of earlier decisions.

According to Moyes, a former Everton boss, referees would do well to understand that managers "sometimes lose our heads here or there".

Moyes also said that Klopp had a strong argument in this case, adding: "I think if you look at the incident why he got angry, he was correct, wasn’t he?"

Klopp indicated the disciplinary process had barely begun when he spoke in a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

For that reason, he cannot see why he would not be at pitchside for the Premier League game.

"I think I will be there because there's nothing really happened yet," Klopp said. "But I don't think something will happen...a few hours before the game.

"I know where David is coming from. I still think I should have dealt differently with the situation, which I actually do usually.

"The whole game led to that maybe a little bit, the way it went. It was a very intense game with a lot of decisions the managers didn't understand, on both sides.

"This was then for me like, in Germany we would say one drop will let the bucket overflow. Does that make sense somehow? I'm not happy with my reaction, but that's the way it was. Everybody saw it.

"I was sitting after the game in the office of Anthony Taylor and spoke completely calm about the situations, how he saw the game and how I saw the game. It was a fair and calm discussion, but anyway that's the situation. I got the red card, and now we wait for the process pretty much."

Klopp compared the rising tensions in Sunday's game to the fiery London derby between Chelsea and Tottenham in August that finished 2-2 and ended with red cards for bosses Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte.

"No excuses," he added. "I don't use that as an excuse for me."

Jurgen Klopp says there is no reason for Liverpool and Manchester City to be "best friends" after tensions ignited at the weekend.

Liverpool manager Klopp insisted he did not mean to inflame the rivalry between the clubs by referencing the wealth of Premier League champions City ahead of their game on Sunday, in which his team snatched a 1-0 win.

"There are three clubs in world football who can do what they want financially," Klopp said, two days ahead of the City clash.

That has been widely taken as a reference to City, Newcastle United and Paris Saint-Germain, each with wealthy Middle East owners.

City were reported to have considered the comments from Klopp to be almost xenophobic, and the Anfield tussle between the teams became an explosive affair, with Klopp sent off after snapping at assistant referee Gary Beswick.

There was trouble in the stands, too, with Pep Guardiola pelted with coins, while a number of City fans sang offensive songs about the Hillsborough and Heysel stadium disasters.

"I'm not sure we have to be best friends with other clubs, to be honest," Klopp said in a press conference on Tuesday.

"I don't think anybody wants to be best friends with us. I never heard about that at least. It's a completely normal competition.

"But apart from that, it started here with a question and I answered it, and all the rest was made of it.

"I know what I thought when I said it. I thought I had put it all in perspective and said how much I respect all that they are doing, and obviously it was still not right for some.

"But the most important thing, as a club and as a team together with our supporters, we showed an incredible performance on Sunday."

Klopp added: "It's not the first time I've been misunderstood."

He said supporters would be held to account if they stepped out of line. As well as incidents in the stadium, City complained their team bus was attacked as it left Anfield.

"If something happens, if one guy throws a coin, it's one fan and it's a massive mistake, definitely, and will get punished," Klopp said. "And after the game, if something happens, it's one supporter or maybe two supporters and not all of them."

Liverpool host David Moyes' West Ham on Wednesday, looking to back up what Klopp called a "massive" win over City, which came after a rocky start to the season for the Reds.

They remain 14 points behind leaders Arsenal, albeit with a game in hand, so Klopp says the Hammers clash is another huge fixture.

"We're at the moment in the season when you realise from now on they're all finals," Klopp said. "I'm not sure you can give games more importance than we already put in. It's very important absolutely.

"We respect them a lot. They've caused us a lot of problems here and there as well. David is doing an incredible job."

David Moyes professed his delight to see West Ham qualify for the UEFA Europa Conference League knockout stages but warned his side the job is not yet done after a 2-1 victory over Anderlecht.

The Hammers saw off their Belgian Pro League rivals at London Stadium on Thursday thanks to goals from Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen, in a match marred late on by crowd trouble in the stands.

Victory further cements West Ham's place atop Group B with four wins from four, six points ahead of Danish outfit Silkeborg, who they face in a fortnight.

But with sides finishing in first place heading straight to the last-16, and runners-up having to settle for an additional play-off round with teams eliminated from the Europa League, Moyes cautioned there remains work to be done.

"I'm really pleased we've qualified for the next stage," he stated. "The big thing is to always be in Europe still after Christmas.

"[But] the form of Silkeborg at the moment looks a problem given the goals they're scoring, so we still need a point to be winners of the group.

"Hopefully we can do that but winning tonight was important. We deserved to win, but we made it much harder for ourselves than it should've been."

The final act in London - during which Anderlecht scored a late penalty to set up a tense last few minutes - was overshadowed by off-field events, with police required to keep supporters at bay.

Anderlecht subsequently criticised their own supporters in a statement after the full-time whistle, a move Moyes applauded, though the Scotsman was at pains to limit discussion on the matter.

"It's good for the press officer to stand up for the club," he added. "It's a big credit to them as they're a really good football club. They want to protect their own club and rightly so.

"Everyone's focus is taken away when there's crowd trouble in some way. I didn't have any interest in it as it's one of those things you don't want to talk about. I don't want to draw any more attention to it."

Real Madrid had a drawn-out pursuit of Kylian Mbappe earlier this year but ultimately missed out on the France forward.

Mbappe opted to sign a lucrative contract extension with Paris Saint-Germain in May, tying him to the Parisians until 2025.

But earlier this week, Fabrizio Romano reported the situation between PSG and Mbappe had got tense, with the player keen to depart.

TOP STORY – MADRID MOVE ON FROM MBAPPE AMID TRANSFER TWIST

Marca claims that Real Madrid are no longer have interest in signing Mbappe amid reports that he is unsettled at PSG and wants to leave.

The report claims that Los Blancos are observing the situation from afar with no desire to participate in the latest drama.

Romano also said PSG had no intention of selling Mbappe in January amid the speculation he wanted out. PSG director Luis Campos denied the report on Tuesday.

ROUND-UP

– Bayern Munich will turn to Borussia Monchengladbach forward Marcus Thuram should they fail to land Tottenham's Harry Kane , reports TZ. Thuram's Gladbach deal ends at the end of this season.

– Sky Sport's Florian Plettenberg reports that Toni Kroos and Real Madrid are set to commence talks on a new deal running until 2024, with his currently deal expiring at season's end.

– Barcelona will try to lure Chelsea pair N'Golo Kante and Jorginho to Camp Nou as free agents at the end of this season, claims the Evening Standard. The Blues are currently trying to convince both to re-sign.

– 90min claims Manchester City have told Bayern Munich and Inter that defender Nathan Ake is not for sale in January, following speculation about their interest.

– West Ham have joined Roma and Manchester United in pursuing a deal for Sassuolo midfielder Davide Frattesi, according to Calciomercato.

– Football Insider reports Brentford have commenced discussions with England international striker Ivan Toney on a new deal, with Tottenham linked to him.

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 700th goal in club football as Manchester United came from behind to beat Everton 2-1 at Goodison Park on Sunday.

Ronaldo reached the latest landmark of his spectacular career after coming on as a first-half substitute for the injured Anthony Martial, ensuring United returned to winning ways in the Premier League after the dismal derby defeat to Manchester City.

Elsewhere, Arsenal's young guns continued their stunning start to the season as Bukayo Saka's double and Gabriel Martinelli's early strike secured a thrilling 3-2 win over Liverpool at Emirates Stadium.

Crystal Palace came from behind to beat Leeds United 2-1 at Selhurst Park, while West Ham roared back to overcome Fulham 3-1.

Here, Stats Perform picks out the best data from another day of mouth-watering Premier League action.

Everton 1-2 Manchester United: Ronaldo hits yet another landmark

Ronaldo did not start on United's visit to Merseyside, but a first-half injury to Martial paved the way for him to create yet another slice of history.

The 37-year-old, who has also scored a record 117 international goals, has now taken his overall tally for United to 144 across two spells at Old Trafford, adding to a combined tally of 556 from his time at Sporting CP, Real Madrid and Juventus.

United had started sluggishly at Goodison Park and fell behind early on to Alex Iwobi's superb strike from 25 yards. The Nigerian has either scored or assisted in three consecutive Premier League appearances for only the second time in his career (also April 2016).

The Red Devils levelled soon after when Antony latched on to Martial's pass and beat Jordan Pickford, the Brazilian becoming the first United player to score in each of his first three appearances in the Premier League for the club.

Ronaldo then ensured United became the first team in Premier League history to have won 100 games after conceding the first goal.

Arsenal 3-2 Liverpool: Young guns pile on misery for Reds

This stirring victory meant Arsenal have won at least eight of their first nine league matches in a top-flight campaign for only the fourth time, after 2007-08, 2004-05 and 1947-48.

This latest triumph helped them sit atop the table nine or more games into a season for the first time since December 2016 (15th game).

Their three goals came from Saka (2) and Martinelli, who are both 21 years old. The Gunners have now scored 54 goals courtesy of players aged 21 and under in the Premier League under manager Mikel Arteta – 22 more than any other side since the Spaniard's first game in charge.

Liverpool are yet to win away from home in the Premier League this season (D2 L2); this is the first time since 2010-11 under Roy Hodgson that they have failed to win any of their opening four away games in a Premier League campaign.

With 10 points from eight games so far, it is their worst return at this stage of a Premier League campaign since 2012-13 (nine points), when they ultimately finished seventh.

Crystal Palace 2-1 Leeds United: Eagles bounce back as Yorkshiremen continue to struggle on the road

Eberechi Eze's fine strike helped Palace earn their first Premier League win since August (3-1 v Aston Villa), another game in which they conceded first. In this one, Pascal Struijk put Leeds ahead, but Odsonne Edouard soon got the Eagles back on level terms.

Palace have now won as many Premier League home games when conceding first this season as they did across the 2019-20 and 2021-22 campaigns (two). 

Leeds, meanwhile, are winless away from home in the Premier League this season (D1 L3), losing each of the last three in a row.

It is the second time in 2022 that the Whites have lost three consecutive away games, with the previous occasion coming in March.

West Ham 3-1 Fulham: In-form Scamacca strikes again for the Hammers

West Ham recovered from conceding Andreas Pereira's early strike to make it back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time since January, having beaten Wolves last time out.

Jarrod Bowen pulled the Hammers level from the penalty spot, before Gianluca Scamacca put them ahead with a cool lofted finish over Bernd Leno.

The Italian became the ninth player to score in both of his first two home starts in the Premier League for West Ham, and the first since their move to the London Stadium, with Diafra Sakho the previous player to do so at Upton Park in October 2014.

Michail Antonio added a late third to move level with Carlton Cole as the top scorer for West Ham in London derbies in the Premier League (14).