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Marseille vs Liverpool: Champions League – Salah, team news, start, lineup

By in News, World News

Who: Liverpool vs. Marseille
What: Match day 7 (of 8), league phase, UEFA Champions League
Where: Stade Velodrome in Marseille, France
When: Wednesday at 9pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our text commentary stream.

Liverpool travels to southern France to face Marseille in their final group match as they cultivate top-eight ambitions in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) hierarchy.

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The Reds, who have won three of their final four UCL games, are currently ninth in the standings and face a risky playoff round if they can’t advance in their final two games.

With only three points left to play for in their clash against the English Premier League champions, Marseille are also in top-eight contention.

The crucial game on Wednesday may determine which team will ultimately advance to the last 16 and which will win the playoff.

Mohamed Salah’s opponent: Marseilles?

Following the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco on Tuesday, Mohamed Salah made his eagerly awaited return to Liverpool’s training.

At the club’s training facility, the Egypt forward was gentle exercised while he was with the rest of the squad.

Since taking aim at Liverpool in an egregious interview early last month, Salah has been a major talking point since claiming that he had never had a relationship with manager Arne Slot and that they had never been in contact with him. He also claimed in an interview that they had been “under the bus” about his three consecutive games of benching.

However, he made an assist-filled substitute appearance for Brighton in the 2-0 Premier League victory on December 13 and Slot later claimed the team had overcame the furore.

Slot vowed to return last week, saying he was “happy” Salah would, but he would not reveal the details of his conversations with the 33-year-old.

The Liverpool manager expressed doubts about the forward’s future against Marseille.

As Liverpool won their 20th English league title last year, Salah won the Premier League Golden Boot after scoring 29 league goals, but he has only managed four goals this campaign.

Marseille is in the lead with Englishman Greenwood and Ligue 1 Golden Boot.

With 12 goals in 17 games for Marseille, the former Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood is the top scorer in the Ligue 1 from 2026 to 2026.

With a thumping 5-2 victory over Angers, Marseille kept up the pressure at the top of the table on Saturday, and he continued his hot scoring run. He scored in the 24th minute to cap a tense 5-2 victory.

Greenwood led Marseille to an impressive 2024-2025 season, where he finished with 21 goals, a feat that included Paris Saint-Germain legend Ousmane Dembele.

The 24-year-old joined Manchester United from 2018 to 2018 and started for the Red Devils, scoring 22 goals in 83 games.

Five years ago, Greenwood only made his one England appearance, which was a close call against Iceland.

Mason Greenwood’s goal exploits include putting himself in contention for an England call-up for the World Cup and playing Marseille in front of the league title.

In what position does the Champions League match between Marseille and Liverpool stand?

Liverpool are currently ninth in the Champions League group stage with 12 points after two game days left.

Marseille have won three of their six matches while falling to 16th place. With nine points, they are one of five.

How many league teams make the last 16 automatically?

The round of 16 is automatically drawn up for the top eight league teams.

Teams that finish ninth through 24th will face a two-legged knockout playoff round, with the winners advancing to the tournament’s last 16 if they place.

When did the Champions League’s final victory come against Liverpool and Marseille?

Liverpool have won the UEFA Champions League six times, most recently under the leadership of Jurgen Klopp in the 2018-2019 campaign.

With a 1-0 victory over AC Milan, Marseille won their only UEFA Champions League title in 1993.

When did Liverpool last play in the Champions League against Marseille?

For the first time since the 2008-2009 campaign, Liverpool and Marseille will face off in the Champions League.

In Champions League history, Liverpool and Liverpool have met four times, and the French side leads 3-1.

news from the Liverpool team

Just days after Salah returned from AFCON, Slot has remained tittered about whether the Egyptian star will have a run against Marseille.

Alexander Isak, a star offseason signing, is expected to miss the next few weeks with a leg injury. Lower body injuries are also affecting Giovanni Leoni and Conor Bradley.

Liverpool’s predicted starting lineup (4-2-3-1):

Alisson (goalkeeper), Frimpong, Konate, van Dijk, van Dijk, van Dijk, Mac Allister, Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Wirtz, Gakpo, Ekitike, and others.

Mohamed Salah reacts.
On January 20, 2026, Salah, second from right, and Liverpool teammate Jeremie Frimpong laugh during a training session in Kirkby, northwest England [Oli Scarff/AFP]

news from the Marseille team

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, a striker from Gabon who also participated in the AFCON, has a strong chance of making his return to Marseille when they face Liverpool.

Ruben Blanco and Derek Cornelius will not be able to play under the new coach Roberto De Zerbi.

Marseille’s predicted starting lineup (4-2-3-1):

Rulli (goalkeeper), Murillo, Balerdi, Medina, Emerson, O’Riley, Hojbjerg, Weah, Greenwood, Paixao, Aubameyang, and others

Final five games

Marseille: W-L-L-W-W (last most recent result in all competitions)

Doha hosts maritime defence exhibition amid rising regional tensions

By in News, World News
Doha, Qatar – Leading security and defense companies from around the world are gathered for the ninth edition of the Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX 2026).

This week’s event, which takes place at the Qatar National Convention Center, features the latest technologies from the manufacturers, including advanced systems for naval shipbuilding, counterpiracy, and communications, among others.

With a number of contracts, memoranda of understandings, and strategic agreements signed by the end of the first day on Monday, Turkiye, the United States, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, and France are represented at DIMDEX.

The Middle East Naval Commanders Conference (MENC), which brings together military, government, and leaders from the defense sector, serves as one of the highlights of DIMDEX. Defense diplomacy and maritime security issues are the topics of this year’s focus.

The exhibition is displayed in a tense, regional setting.

In retaliation for US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, Iran launched a missile attack on a military base in Qatar in June of last year, raising concerns about a wider conflict and highlighting the vulnerability of Gulf nations that house foreign forces.

Victoria Beckham admits she hates ‘nasty children’ in unearthed interview and shares Brooklyn hopes

By in Entertainment News, News
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As the Beckham family feud ramps up with a public statement and shocking allegations, an unearthed interview with Victoria Beckham reveals her heartbreaking hopes for her now estranged son

Brooklyn Beckham has ruled out any hopes of a reconciliation with his A-list mum and dad following months of rumours of a serious family fall-out. The 26-year-old broke his silence on Monday to accuse Victoria and David of “controlling” him for his entire life and attempting to “endlessly ruin his relationship” with his wife Nicola Peltz-Beckham.

While the former Spice Girl and England footballing ace have remained publicly silent on his bombshell statement, an unearthed interview from April 1999 – the month after Brooklyn was born – reveals just far off track things have gone for the family.

Then known as Victoria Adams, the pop singer and her footballer beau were living in a penthouse apartment in a 100-year-old block in rural Sussex, and were new parents to four-week-old Brooklyn, who was described at the time as “Britain’s most famous baby”.

READ MORE: Stacey Solomon’s £10 Amazon ‘best leggings ever’ that she owns in every colour

In the exclusive interview and photoshoot with OK! magazine, they opened up about the hopes and dreams for their precious newborn – who Victoria insisted was “not a money-spinner” – and said they felt “so complete” as a family of three.

“It’s just amazing how much you can love another person,” Victoria said. “And I feel really protective of him. When I was in hospital I didn’t see all the people that were outside… I was just in there in my own little world, with Brooklyn, and it was lovely.”

In his lengthy statement this week, aspiring chef Brooklyn accused his parents of leaking information about the family and said he’d been left with “no choice” but to “speak for himself and tell the truth”. “For my entire life, my parents have controlled narratives in the press about our family,” he wrote. “The performative social media posts, family events and inauthentic relationships have been a fixture of the life I was born into.”

The topic of selling photographs of her children also came up in her historic OK! interview, with Victoria revealing: “I obviously did see a lot of newspaper cuttings and there were people saying that I was selling pictures of him and I was doing this and I was doing that. That was just people being cynical.

“The one thing I said, right from the start, which is why Brooklyn isn’t in the pictures that we’ve done today, is that he’s the one thing that is totally private for us. He’s not a money-spinner. People were saying ‘they left the hospital with their little asset’, and that really hurt a lot.”

Victoria, who turned 25 in April 1999, insisted she didn’t want to raise a “spoilt little boy”, and stressed the importance of her and David staying “level-headed”. “A lot of people have said ‘Oh Brooklyn’s going to be a very spoilt little boy’,” she revealed.

“But I hate nasty children. I like well-behaved, polite children, and you don’t have to have money to have those. The only way he’s going to be spoilt is with love. Obviously he’s going to realise that his life is going to be different but he will be a polite little boy!”

The topic of so-called pushy parents was also addressed, and David said he planned to copy the approach taken by his own parents, Sandra and Ted, when it came to Brooklyn making big life decisions, adding that he and Victoria were “the most important things in his life”.

“My mum and dad have always helped me and given me all the advice that I needed, but in the end they said, ‘What do you want to do?’, and they left the big decisions up to me,” he said. “Whether it was the move up to Manchester or whether to stay in London and play for Tottenham or Arsenal. It was never ‘We support Man Utd, so you’re going up there’. I think that’s important because if you’re pushed into something you tend to go the other way.”

Victoria also said she wanted to encourage their firstborn “to be sensitive, to show his feelings”, adding, “I think it’s very important that he feels he can come to us if he’s got a problem. But I’m going to be strict with him because I do like well-behaved children.”

David, who was playing for Manchester United at the time, also proudly shared that he had secured a signed Ronaldo football shirt for Brooklyn, and it was ready to be hung up in his nursery. “Before the game I said to Victoria, wouldn’t it be really cool if I got Ronaldo’s shirt signed for Brooklyn?’,” he recalled.

“But he went off before the end of the game and I thought, ‘Oh I’ve got no chance of getting it now’…So with five minutes to go, I started playing right back so that I was really near their bench and after the whistle blew, I went straight up to him and just asked if I could change. He came up to me after the game and we swapped and we got it signed for Brooklyn. I’m really pleased with it. It’s something nice to keep.”

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The couple got married a few months after their OK! interview, saying their I Dos at LLuttrellstown Castle in Dublin, Ireland on July 4, 1999. Four-month-old Brooklyn acted as ring bearer and adoringly wore an all-white suit to match his dad’s.

Victoria Beckham admits she hates ‘nasty children’ in unearthed interview and shares Brooklyn hopes

By in Entertainment News, News
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An unearthed interview with Victoria Beckham reveals her heartbreaking hopes for her now-divorced son as the Beckham family feud escalates due to a public statement and shocking allegations.

Mitya Underwood Senior Celebrity and Royal Writer

Following months of rumors about a serious family feud, Brooklyn Beckham has ruled out any chance of reconciliation with his famous parents. The 26-year-old accused Victoria and David of “controlling” him his entire life and making an effort to “endlessly ruin his relationship” with Nicola Peltz-Beckham, his wife, on Monday.

An unearthed interview from April 1999, the month after Brooklyn was born, reveals how far things have gone for the family while the former Spice Girl and England football ace have been silent about his bombshell statement.

Brooklyn, who was born in 1942 as “Britain’s most famous baby,” and the pop singer, then known as Victoria Adams, and her footballer boyfriend were living in a penthouse apartment in a 100-year-old block in rural Sussex.

READ MORE: Stacey Solomon’s £10 Amazon ‘best leggings ever’ that she owns in every colour

In the exclusive interview and photo shoot with OK! They shared their hopes and aspirations for their precious newborn, who Victoria insisted was “not a money-spinner,” and said they felt “so complete” as a family of three.

“It’s just amazing how much you can love another person,” Victoria said. “And I feel really protective of him. When I was in hospital I didn’t see all the people that were outside… I was just in there in my own little world, with Brooklyn, and it was lovely.”

Assistant chef Brooklyn claimed in a lengthy statement that he had been given “no choice” but to “speak for himself and tell the truth and accuse his parents of leaking information about the family. He wrote that “my parents have controlled narratives about our family in the press for their entire lives.” The life I was born into was characterized by the performative social media posts, extended family events, and unauthentic relationships.

In her historic OK, the subject of selling photos of her children was also brought up. Victoria reveals during the interview that she revealed that she “always believed that I was selling pictures of him and that I was doing that.” That was simply cynical behavior.

Brooklyn is the one thing that is completely private for us, which is why I said that right away, which is why we aren’t in the pictures that we have today. He doesn’t spin money. People were complaining that they had “their little asset” when they left the hospital, which was very unfortunate.

In April 1999, Victoria, who turned 25 years old, stressed the value of keeping her and David “level-headed” was paramount. She revealed that many people have said, “Oh Brooklyn’s going to be a very spoilt little boy.”

But I detest evil children. You don’t need to have well-behaved, polite children; I like them. He won’t be spoilt unless he has a good heart. He will be a polite little boy, but it will be obvious that his life will change.

David also addressed the issue of “pushy parents,” adding that he and Victoria were “the most important things in his life” and that he planned to imitate Sandra and Ted’s approach when it came to making big decisions in Brooklyn.

My parents have always been there for me and given me helpful advice, but they ultimately said, “What do you want to do? ” He said, “They left the big decisions up to me,” whether to relocate to Manchester or remain in London and join Tottenham or Arsenal. Never was it “We support Man Utd, so you’re going up there.” Because I believe that’s crucial because you tend to turn the other way when you’re pressured into something.

Victoria added that she wanted to encourage their firstborn to show emotion and to be sensitive, and that she thought it was crucial that he feel he can approach us if he had a problem. But because I like well-behaved kids, I’m going to be strict with him.

David, who was playing for Manchester United at the time, also proudly shared that he had secured a signed Ronaldo football shirt for Brooklyn, and it was ready to be hung up in his nursery. “Before the game I said to Victoria, wouldn’t it be really cool if I got Ronaldo’s shirt signed for Brooklyn?’,” he recalled.

But he left before the game’s conclusion, and I realized, “Oh, I have no chance of getting it now.” So I immediately began playing right back so that I was right next to their bench and immediately asked if I could change after the whistle blew. After the game, he approached me and we exchanged a signed Brooklyn card. I’m pleased with it a lot. It’s a nice thing to keep.

Continue reading the article.

A few months after their OK, the couple wed. I Dos at LLuttrellstown Castle in Dublin, Ireland on July 4, 1999, during an interview. Brooklyn, a four-month-old, adoringly wore an all-white suit to match his father’s and served as the ring bearer.

Court Jails Man For Life For Sexually Assaulting Wife’s Niece

By in News, Nigeria News

Olumuyiwa Adjoto, a 50-year-old artisan from Ikeja, was found guilty and given life in prison for the defilement and sexual assault of his wife’s six-year-old niece by the Special Offences Division of the Lagos High Court in Ikeja.

After convicting Adjoto of two counts of defilment and sexual assault by penetration under Sections 137 and 261 of the Lagos State Criminal Law 2015, Justice Rahman Oshodi handed him the rest of his life.

Due to lack of sufficient evidence, the judge, however, found the defendant innocent of indecent treatment and rubbing hands against the victim’s body.

The convict testified in his own defense before the prosecutor, Babajide Boye, who called four witnesses, including the convict’s wife, Olayemi Hunsa, the survivor, the Investigative Police Officer, and a doctor.

Justice Oshodi analyzed the testimony of the convict’s wife, Olayemi Hunsa, who claimed the survivor, her younger sister’s granddaughter, stayed with them in Mowo, Badagry, over the Easter holiday in 2022.

He stated, “Olayemi left the girl at home around 5 a.m. to go to the Idumota market on April 22.” The prosecutor’s office was at her home around 5:00 pm when she returned.
The child remained grouchy throughout dinner, despite the child’s usual appearance.

They then went outside for some fresh air after eating. Olayemi placed the prosecutor’s lap on her lap as they sat down, and the child yelled and jumped down in disbelief, “My bum bum.” When questioned about what had happened, the child responded, “It’s dad.”

Olayemi claimed that she was inside while carrying the prosecutor’s hand. The defendant allegedly shoved her on the bed, put his hand in her bum, then proceeded to do this to the prosecutor’s account, narrating the incident.

He slapped her mouth and instructed her to keep quiet as she was shouting. After washing her, he bathed her, dressed her, and instructed her to play with Aliya with a white cloth.

Olayemi explained that she had been “dis-virgin” when she had examined the child with a torchlight following this narration.

The young girl had also been “dis-virgined,” according to a medical examination that was conducted a few hours later.

Adjoto defended himself by claiming to be present at his first wife’s home in Igborosun and Premium Pension in Agbara up until 8 p.m.

He claimed that Olayemi’s relationship with his first wife caused the false allegations.

You have been found guilty of defilment, according to Justice Oshodi’s ruling, Olumuyiwa Adjoto, and sexual assault by penetration, according to section 261 of the same law, according to Justice Oshodi’s ruling. These are serious crimes.

“I have taken into account both the prosecution’s remarks during sentencing and your remarks urging me to show mercy to you.

The evidence before this court establishes that you sexually assaulted and defiled a child under the age of six. You caused her extensive physical and psychological trauma by causing her to have both her vagina and anus infected.

The impact of your actions on this child was witnessed by Dr. Olubukola Elizabeth Olatunji, a senior registrar at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital.

She explained that fear, apprehension about people, social withdrawal, possible urinary incontinence, and declining academic performance are all immediate effects.

“Depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and difficulty maintaining relationships, including marital relationships,” are some of the delayed psychological effects.

You have caused this young child some unheard wounds that may never fully heal.

Life in prison is the term of imprisonment for the offense of defilement, as defined by section 137 of the Criminal Law.

According to section 261 of the same law, “sexual assault by penetration” is punishable by life in prison. The judge held that these sentences reflect society’s condemnation of such vile acts against children.

In response, I say this:
You are sentenced to life in prison for count one (defilement).

You are sentenced to life in prison for count two (sexual assault by penetration).

(c) Both sentences must continue concurrently.