WCL and Championship playoff finals, Klopp disappointed with boos for Alexander-Arnold – matchday live

Fifa’s president Gianni Infantino says “there are discussions” over a move that could see Cristiano Ronaldo play at the Club World Cup this summer.

Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr failed to qualify for the expanded tournament, which will feature 32 clubs for the first time, but Infantino appeared to talk up the prospect of a transfer for the 40-year-old Portugal forward in time for him to appear in the world governing body’s new-look event.

Speaking to YouTuber and streamer IShowSpeed, Infantino said: “Ronaldo might play for one of the teams as well at the Club World Cup. There are discussions… Yeah. Cristiano Ronaldo might play in the Club World Cup.

“There are discussions with some clubs, so if any club is watching and is interested in hiring Ronaldo for the Club World Cup… who knows, who knows.” PA Media

In other news, Manchester United have shortlisted Simon Cowell as a potential replacement for Ruben Amorim.

Gary Lineker and the BBC will consciously uncouple after tomorrow night’s Match of the Day. Barney Ronay has written a seriously good piece, even by his standards, on the utter state of everything Lineker’s 33 years at the Beeb.

And so, here we are, talking about this crap as though it is genuine political discourse. But there are still some things worth saying about this same crap. The first, and most obvious, is that Lineker should also not be dehumanised for making this mistake. He is not an avatar of hate, just as he also not a free speech hero silenced by The Cabal. He is, like all of us, a human trying to understand the world, while being bombarded by extreme information via a deeply addictive and confusing platform, one that also offers the chance for an instant, emotive response. Mistakes will be made. Minds will be bent into strange shapes. Odd stuff will happen.

We’ll have a Championship playoff final Q&A with Ben Fisher just after 1pm. Please do send your questions to matchday.live@theguardian.com or post them before the line.

Nerves are normal. Nerves are okay. Nerves are a g- oh bloody hell SOMEBODY PICK UP BONMATI.

Currently in Lisbon, excited but nervous. The Fan Zone yesterday was so much fun. So many Arsenal fans of all ages.Let’s hope we get a competitive game and a win today. It’s not going to be easy but who knows. COYG!

McTominay wins Serie A player of the year award

It’s worth looking at the company Scott McTominay joined last night when he was announced as the Serie A player of the season. In the immortal words of Richie Aprile, look at this [expletive] line-up.

Roberto Mancini, Ronaldo, Francesco Totti, Christian Vieri, Kaka, Andrea Pirlo, Fabio Cannavaro, Pavel Nedved, Cristiano Ronaldo, Victor Osimhen, Gianluigi Buffon, Leonardo Bonucci, Alberto Gilardino, Carlos Tevez, Zlatan, Mauco Icardi, Rafael Leao, Diego Milito, Zinedine Zidane, Lautaro Martinez. And Scott Francis McTominay.

Another plug for Tom Garry’s WCL final preview

Saturday’s final is Barcelona’s 100th women’s European fixture. Their first came against Arsenal, in the 2012-13 season. The Gunners ran out 3-0 winners against a team that included a young Alexia Putellas. “Arsenal are a great team with great players and a great coach,” said the Spain midfielder on Friday. “They are in the final for a reason. They eliminated Real Madrid and scored four against Lyon, but if we are in our best version then many things can turn out well. We trust our match plan.

Was McTominay played inthe wrong position?

So Scott McTominay was basically played in the wrong position by United? Is that what we are saying?

This isn’t really true, certainly not in his last season at Old Trafford. Erik ten Hag usually played McTominay as a goalscoring midfielder; the problem was how to fit McTominay and Bruno Fernandes in the same team in a 4-2-3-1 formation. United also needed money to buy a defensive midfielder (whether they bought the right one is a different discussion).

I’d have tried to keep him as a squad player and impact sub, not least because Man Utd need as many reliable characters as they can get. But as with the ostensibly ridiculous sale of Gerard Pique to Barcelona for peanuts in 2008, there were sound reasons for it. I doubt it’s in the 100 unfathomable decisions that United’s suits have made in the past decade.

Talking of club legends, Napoli’s four Serie A titles are indelibly associated with three players: Diego Maradona, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Scott McTominay. There have been some classic feelgood stories this season; McTominay’s might be the best of the lot.

Thanks Emillia, morning everyone. Let’s start with a bit of news from the north east, where – on today of all days – Newcastle legend* Dan Burn has signed a one-year extension to his contract. That’ll take him through to 2027.

“I’m delighted to sign a new deal here,” Burn said. “I knew that I was going into my last year and I really wanted to get my future tied down. I’ve said before that I would love to finish my career here so to be given that opportunity, I’m very grateful.

“I still feel like I’m getting better and I don’t feel that I’ve hit the top of the hill yet. It’ll be tough to top this season but hopefully we can do that over the next couple of years. It’s a dream come true to be playing for this club and I’m delighted that I get to keep doing it.”

* I think we can call him taht after the Carabao Cup final, can’t we.

Rob Smyth will be taking the reins of this matchday live for the next few hours while I head off for a break. Over to you, Rob!

Manchester United Women runners-up in Portugal

Tom Garry

Manchester United’s women picked up a significant cash injection of $1m US dollars after finishing as the runners-up in the inaugural World Sevens Football event in Estoril, Portugal, but ultimately missed out on the top prize of $2.5m as Bayern Munich struck late through Sarah Zadrazil to win the final 2-1.

The German club, whose humorous goal celebrations became a running theme throughout the tournament, clearly rejoiced in the small-sided, fun-orientated format and their captain Glódís Perla Viggósdóttir said: “From the moment we got here, we were all in a tournament that you would play when you were a kid. We enjoyed it as a team. We came with everyone and winning is just a bonus because it is fun. We’re used to playing with a lot of pressure on our shoulders so to just come here and enjoy it was nice.”

Fans of National League playoff finalists Southend United and Oldham Athletic face a nightmare journey to Wembley Stadium next Sunday due to TfL engineering works.

The works are set to affect the Jubilee and Metropolitan lines, meaning no trains will stop at Wembley Park station – the main station used by fans on a Wembley matchday. Most people will therefore be forced to travel via Wembley Central, which can only be accessed through the Bakerloo Line and Lioness Line.

As a result, ticket sales have been capped at 17,500 per club due to safety concerns. Around 30,000 Southend fans were initially expected to attend the match. The club has since sourced 28 coaches for supporters in order to ease the travel difficulties.

Essex-based newspaper The Echo has also started a petition asking for both teams to be given more tickets for the occasion, citing the significance of the match for supporters.

All three playoff finals this weekend are scheduled to kick-off one minute past the hour as part of the Every Minute Matters campaign.

You may be wondering why the Championship playoff final kicks off at 3:01pm rather than 3pm this afternoon.

The change has been made as part of the Every Minute Matters campaign – a collaboration between the EFL and the British Heart Foundation which aims to inspire supporters to learn CPR, equipping them with vital skills that could help them save someone’s life.

Launching at the playoffs last season, the campaign has already inspired 270,000 people to learn CPR. Now, the EFL and the British Heart Foundation want to encourage 360,000 people to learn a lifesaving CPR technique.

The EFL Chief Executive Officer, Trevor Birch, said: “The Sky Bet Play-Offs are a special moment in the football calendar and tens of thousands of supporters will be at Wembley Stadium across the weekend with millions more tuning in from home. By kicking off all three Play-Off Finals one minute later, Every Minute Matters continues to harness the power and visibility of football to encourage even more people to learn CPR, which could ultimately help to save even more lives.”

Arsenal are ready…

Manchester City wrap up their Premier League campaign on Sunday with a game Pep Guardiola believes is “by far” their most important of the season. City head to Fulham knowing a draw will almost certainly secure a top-five spot and a place in the Champions League for next season.

After winning the title in the past four seasons, it is a relatively modest target but Guardiola recognises it is the least of the club’s expectations. The City manager said: “If we want to play in the Champions League, we have to take a result there. This is what we are going to do. Of course, it’s really important.” Asked if it was the most important game of the season, Guardiola said at a press conference: “By far.”

City go into the game in third place on 68 points, two ahead of Newcastle, Chelsea and Aston Villa. Nottingham Forest, a point further back, are also still in contention for a place in the top five. Given a superior goal difference over all their rivals, a draw should be sufficient for City but Guardiola is taking nothing for granted against a Fulham side that could finish as high as ninth. PA Media

“Maybe it’s age, maybe it’s having the experience of doing it in other moments,” Leah Williamson told The Guardian this week. “The Euros final was fairly level to this in terms of testing my ability to manage the emotions of the day and occasion. I’m just going to enjoy it.

“If I think that the fact that I’m an Arsenal fan is going to get in the way I have to shift, because that’s not my focus for the day – my job is to be a player, a player that wants to do it for the fan in me.”

Suzanne Wrack spoke to Arsenal defender Leah Williamson this week about her journey from being a mascot for the Gunners in 2007 to now playing in a Champions League final.

Sam has messaged in from Lisbon…

“In Lisbon for the WCL final with my daughter Eleanor. Weather fantastic – just nailed our first Pastel de Nata for breakfast. Going to wander round taking in the sights and then head to the stadium around 3. Seen a couple of Barca fans also far.

“Predicting an Arsenal victory (please) COYG.”

Today’s key fixtures (all times BST)

Women’s Champions League (5pm)

Championship (3:01)

Scottish Cup (3pm)

Serie A

La Liga

• Real Madrid v Real Sociedad (3:15pm)

• Espanyol v Las Palmas (5:30pm)

• Leganes v Valladolid (5:30pm)

• Alaves v Osasuna (8pm)

• Getafe v Celta Vigo (8pm)

• Rayo Vallecano v Mallorca (8pm)

Our very own Ben Fisher will be on hand to answer any Championship playoff final questions at around 1:15pm BST this afternoon. Send them in to Matchdaylive@theguardian.com or leave a comment below!

In case you missed it, Scott McTominay was the hero as Napoli secured the Serie A title with a 2-0 win over Cagliari last night.

As always, I want to hear from you today! Are you off to a match? Are you in Lisbon for the Women’s Champions League final? If so, what’s the weather like? Because I can confirm that in London it’s absolutely miserable – take note if you’re heading to Wembley.

Feel free to also send in any score predictions, feelings, thoughts and all that jazz.

A disappointed Jurgen Klopp turned off the TV when he heard fans of his former team Liverpool booing Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is set to leave this summer after two decades at the club, during a 2-2 home draw with Arsenal earlier this month.

Liverpool-born Alexander-Arnold, who joined the club in 2004 when he was six, debuted for the senior team when Klopp was the manager.

The 26-year-old, who is regarded as one of the best right-backs in the world, has made 353 appearances for Liverpool, winning the Premier League, the Champions League and the Club World Cup during Klopp’s tenure.

“I watched the game when he came on and I heard the booing,” Klopp said at a fundraising event for the LFC foundation on Friday. “I am old so I thought it might be my hearing, so I switched up the volume … I needed another 10 seconds to realise and I switched the TV off. I honestly couldn’t have been more disappointed in this moment. This is not us, 100% not us.”

England international Alexander-Arnold also featured prominently as Liverpool won the Premier League again this season under new manager Arne Slot.

Slot earlier said he was not sure if Alexander-Arnold would make his final appearance for the club in Sunday’s home game against Crystal Palace, after which Liverpool would lift the Premier League trophy.

Klopp, who is set to attend Sunday’s match, held up an Alexander-Arnold Liverpool shirt to show his support for the player. Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, who leads the league’s scoring charts with 28 goals, also spoke out earlier in support of his teammate, saying Alexander-Arnold did not deserve the boos.

Klopp said Liverpool fans should not forget what Alexander-Arnold has done for the club. “I don’t tell you, you should not be disappointed, you should not be angry. I tell you, don’t forget. This club doesn’t forget,” he said. “Every day he gave absolutely everything for this badge … after 20 years he decided he wanted to go somewhere else. If somebody should be angry about this, it’s the owners, but they’re not.”

Hello, good morning and welcome to another matchday live! We have some huge games to look forward to this afternoon – including a European final.

Arsenal face Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League final at Estádio José Alvalade, with Renée Slegers in search of her first major trophy as a manager. The North London side go into the match as major underdogs having not won the Champions League since 2007 – back when Leah Williamson was just a mascot. Meanwhile, the Liga F giants have their sights set on their third successive European title.

Also this afternoon is the Championship playoff final between Sheffield United and Sunderland. Fans were in full voice across London yesterday as they prepared for the highly-anticipated Wembley meeting, with a place in the Premier League at stake. Sheffield United finished 14 points above their rivals in the table earlier this month, but as we all know anything can happen at the home of English football.

And it’s the Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park, where Aberdeen take on league champions Celtic. I’ll be getting you warmed up and ready for these games throughout the day with the help of Rob Smyth, so be sure to stick with us!