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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFILE – Liverpool’s manager Arne Slot talks to Mohamed Salah during the Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Tottenham in Liverpool, England, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo\/Jon Super, File)<\/p>\n
That won\u2019t be easy.<\/p>\n
In the Champions League, defending champion Paris Saint-Germain is up next in the two-leg quarterfinals and it\u2019s pretty much as tough in the FA Cup, with Liverpool handed an away match at Manchester City.<\/p>\n
Salah, who has 255 goals in 435 appearances for Liverpool, missed the Reds\u2019 last game before the international break \u2014 a 2-1 loss at Brighton in the league \u2014 with a muscle injury but has told manager Arne Slot he should be healthy enough to return this weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just does so much for his body for such a long time that he recovers so fast,\u201d Slot said on Wednesday. \u201cSo, he will train with the team again tomorrow and if everything works well then he\u2019s available to be with us at City.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 33-year-old Salah was left out of the Liverpool team for four straight games at the end of 2025 in what appeared to be a breakdown in his relationship with Slot and the club.<\/p>\n
Since returning from the Africa Cup of Nations, Salah virtually has been an ever-present in the lineup, seemingly winning the Dutch coach round.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat hunger never drops,\u201d Slot said of Salah. \u201cIt\u2019s the thing I find most special about him. So many good players around the world \u2014 he\u2019s definitely one of them in the last 10 years \u2014 and to show that hunger every three days, that professionalism, that commitment to the club and to the team, wanting to score again, always wanting to play \u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you take him out three minutes before the end, he\u2019s like, \u2018Ah, maybe I could have scored one extra.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
City, meanwhile, is seeking a domestic cup double after beating Arsenal in the English League Cup final on March 22. Pep Guardiola\u2019s team is also chasing Arsenal in the Premier League, which takes a break this weekend to give the FA Cup its own space in the calendar.<\/p>\n
Key matchups<\/p>\n
The other FA Cup quarterfinals take place across Saturday and Sunday.<\/p>\n
After City-Liverpool in the early kickoff on Saturday, Chelsea hosts third-tier Port Vale \u2014 the lowest-ranked team left in the competition \u2014 before Arsenal visits second-tier Southampton.<\/p>\n
On Sunday, West Ham hosts Leeds in an all-Premier League matchup.<\/p>\n
Players to watch<\/p>\n
Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden has less than two months to persuade England coach Thomas Thomas he is worthy of a place in the World Cup squad.<\/p>\n
Foden started both of England\u2019s recent friendly games \u2014 a draw with Uruguay and a loss to Japan \u2014 but failed to impress either in the No. 10 role or as a \u201cfalse nine,\u201d prompting Tuchel to say it\u2019s \u201c not a guarantee \u201d that Foden will be at the World Cup.<\/p>\n
Foden was English soccer\u2019s player of the year in the 2023-24 season but has not maintained his top form and has rarely started for City in recent months.<\/p>\n
Out of action<\/p>\n
Arsenal\u2019s team sheet for the Southampton game will be heavily scrutinized, given 10 players missed games for their national team over the international break because of various issues.<\/p>\n
Eberechi Eze, Jurrien Timber and Martin Odegaard already had injuries that caused them to miss the League Cup final, before Piero Hincapie, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Leandro Trossard all pulled out of international duty.<\/p>\n
England\u2019s Noni Madueke and Spain\u2019s Martin Zubimendi missed the second games for their respective countries after reporting injuries.<\/p>\n
Off the field<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n
Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n
On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n