Liverpool’s new signing Virgil van Dijk says he expects so many people to judge his every move because of his huge transfer fee, but he is not bothered especially as the opinion of his critics don’t matter. The Dutchman has come under some scrutiny for his roles in Liverpool’s recent games as he has been on the winning side only once since his move from Southampton. He fouled Eric Lamela for Tottenham’s equalizing goal in their game on Sunday and several fans are beginning to question his quality. However, Van Dijk who missed almost a year out of action last year has spoken of the lack of attention he gives to his critics, claiming that he only listens to his manager and his teammates whom he knows genuinely want to help him improve. The Reds would be visiting his former club next and the Dutchman who claims they were unlucky not to get all three points against Tottenham would be hoping they can win at the Saint Mary Stadium in the South Coast. Liverpool also return to Champions League action next week, and van Dijk who made 19 appearances in the competition for Celtic would be hoping to help the Reds get as far as they can get in the competition.

Barcelona played out a 1-1 draw against Espanyol on Sunday. The game was very tough for the Catalans both on the pitch and off it, and Samuel Umtiti was reportedly racially abused by an opponent. The French defender was seen on Camera being held back by GerardPique as he attempted to confront the opponent who racially abused him. It is still unclear who is the Espanyol player that had rained the abuse on him, and the player may go unpunished if the referee did not see the incident. Pique netted the equalizing goal for the Catalans on Sunday, but he was booed for much of the game, after claiming that Espanyol was a small town club in the pre-match press conference. Ernesto Valverde decided to start Lionel Messi from the bench, and it was only when the Argentine had come on that Barcelona finally scored having gone a goal down in the 66th minute, courtesy of a Gerard Moreno header. This win leaves Barcelona at the top of the league with 12 points separating them and second-placed Atletico Madrid.

Reports in Spain are claiming that a young Spanish footballer named Nacho Barbera has died after suffering a Cardiac arrest while playing for his club, UD Alzira. The young football was said to have suddenly fallen ill and was taken to a hospital where attempts to save his life ultimately proved unsuccessful. La UD Alzira está de luto. Esta tarde ha fallecido durante un partido en Ontinyent su futbolista Nacho Barberà. D.E.P. Quedan suspendidos todos los partidos de los equipos del fútbol base, tanto en casa como de visitantes. pic.twitter.com/Zr1cdWk85Q — UD Alzira (@UDAlzira) February 3, 2018 He had been training all week, and the club confirmed that he had never suffered any symptom to suggest that he had such a health problem before his demise. Based in Valencia, UD Alzira were playing against CD Esport Base Ontinyent when the incident occurred and all of the club’s games for the weekend has been canceled. #LaLiga lamenta el fallecimiento de Nacho Barberá, futbolista del @UDAlzira, y muestra sus condolencias a sus familiares y allegados. — LaLiga (@LaLiga) February 3, 2018 El FC Barcelona desea expresar sus condolencias a la familia y a la @UDAlzira por la pérdida del cadete Nacho Barberà. Descanse en paz — FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona_es) February 4, 2018 Several La Liga sides have offered their condolences including Sevilla and Alaves, while some football stars in the La Liga have also put up messages of condolence for the youngster’s family.  

Liverpool drew a high profile game against Tottenham on Sunday, but it was a game full of drama late on with the referee decisions taking centre stage. The Reds appear to have won the game after Mohamed Salah scored what looked like the winner in the 91st minute. However, in the 94th minute, the Lilywhites were awarded a penalty for a very soft challenge by Virgil van Dijk on Erik Lamela. The centre referee, Jon Moss did not appear to be convinced at first, but his lineman had his flag up for a foul and he awarded it. After the penalty was taken, Jurgen Klopp appeared to sarcastically clap for the linesman. Immediately after the final whistle, the Liverpool manager rushed to confront the linesman, and he had to be held back by even his opposing number Mauricio Pochettino. When asked if he had gotten an explanation from the referee about the goal, the enraged German claimed: “Did you ever hear? I am not allowed to go in their room until half an hour after. “It was clear offside, unbelievable, I don’t know what they were discussing. “Yes, Virgil van Dijk touches him, but we all know Lamela wants the touch and we all know there were some hard fouls in the first half and we didn’t get any fouls. “That was the level for the game today, but then a situation in the last minute like that? Wow. He wanted to be middle of interest and he is.” He added.

Jamie Vardy’s rise to football prominence is one of the most inspiring stories an amateur footballer would need to keep his hopes of making in to the top flight alive. The England attacker rose from non-league football to win the Premier League with the Foxes two seasons ago. He broke the goal scoring record for the longest number of consecutive games a player played and scored in the Premier League that season. And when he scored in the third minute of their 2-1 loss to Liverpool on Saturday, he set a new record. The 30 years old became the first Leicester City player to score in five consecutive games against Liverpool, and he has netted 7 goals in his last 8 games against the Reds. However, despite scoring first, the former Premier League champions ended up as the losing side. Salah scored twice to help the Reds win 2-1, in the process the Egyptian became the first Liverpool player since Roger Hunt to score 23 goals before the new year, a record that was set in the 1961-1962 season. Salah has now netted 17 times in the Premier League this season.