Real Madrid ace's transfer admission, Juventus reject play-off idea - Liverpool's rivals round-up
A round-up of the latest news from Liverpool's rivals at home in the Premier League and abroad.
Josh ChalliesTrainee Sports Wire Writer
Vinicius Jr of Real Madrid in action during the Liga match against Real Betis. (Image: (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images))
Football across Europe has been halted following the outbreak of coronavirus, with the Premier League and all of Europe's top-five divisions announcing a hiatus.
In England, the plan is for the league to resume at the start of April but, with the government warning the peak of the virus is yet to arrive, the general expectation is that an extension will be announced.
How that impacts Liverpool's quest for the title and everything else remains to be seen but these situations highlight that, although we like to think otherwise, football is not a matter of life and death and there are far more important matters at hand.
Despite the crisis, some aspects of the world of football continue to rumble on though and we have gathered some of the latest stories below.
Why Liverpool winning the Premier League would now carry even more meaning than it already did
Klopp's biggest challenge, Reds set European blueprint — Liverpool news round-up
Real Madrid ace's transfer admission
Real Madrid ace Vinicius Junior has revealed he had to choose between a transfer to the Spanish capital or Los Blancos' arch-rivals Barcelona before he moved to Europe from Brazil.
The wonderkid explained that his parents visited both clubs before a decision was made, opening up on his transfer move when speaking to FourFourTwo.
"It was right after a tournament in Chile. There were some rumors on the press but I never believed them. Real Madrid and Barcelona both sent offers my way and I only had three days to make a decision. I always wanted to play for the best club so I ended up choosing Real Madrid.
"My parents visited both clubs and they liked Madrid better. They had what I wanted and I felt like their project was the best for me. They were giving minutes to young players and they were having huge success in the Champions League at the time."
Coronavirus outbreak poses biggest question of all for Liverpool — and it isn't the title
Juventus reject play-off idea
Juventus and other Serie A clubs have rejected the ideal of playing play-offs to decide the outcome of the campaign following the league's suspension due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Italy currently has it's entire nation under quarantine and football has been suspended indefinitely, raising the possibility of the campaign being unable to finish.
One potential outcome to the season, rather than playing all of the remaining matches, is to decide the outcomes with play-offs but La Gazzetta dello Sport journalist Nicolo Schira reports this idea has been rejected.
"The meeting of #SerieA in conference call confirmed the no to the hypothesis playoff / playout for league title and relegations. The goal is to end the season by playing every three days and taking advantage of the whole month of June."
Liverpool's title procession is on hold, but there are more immediate football ramifications
Senna reveals Manchester United offer
Former Spain international Marcos Senna has revealed he received an offer from Manchester United during his career and almost moved to the Premier League.
"I was very close to signing for Manchester United. It was a time for me of a lot… I had a lot of doubts. A time when my wife was pregnant with our first child. We had an excellent adaptation here. Manchester had asked me for [a response in] two weeks," he told Omnisport.
"I would honestly be delighted to play for Manchester United at that time, but I also wanted to stay. Coming from a Champions League semifinal with Villarreal, Villarreal were signing great players.
"And I was half to half, to be honest. Until I spoke to Pellegrini and at the end I signed for three more years here, and I stayed for the rest of my career in Spain, at Villarreal, fortunately."