The Paris Saint-Germain forward has now jumped ahead of all his countrymen to become Brazil's most prolific player in the European competition.

Neymar scored Paris Saint-Germain's second goal against Liverpool on Wednesday and, in the process, set yet another record by surpassing a Brazilian legend.

With his goal, the PSG star moved past Kaka as Brazil's all-time leading scorer in the Champions League.

The goal was Neymar's 31st in the competition, one better than the 30 scored by Kaka throughout his stays with AC Milan and Real Madrid.

Sitting in third place is Brazilian legend Rivaldo, who scored 27 during stints with Barcelona and AC Milan.
31 - Neymar is now the best 🇧🇷 goalscorer in the Champions League history.

Neymar : 31
Kaka : 30
Rivaldo : 27

In addition to just the goalscoring numbers, Neymar has 19 career Champions League assists, giving him a hand in 50 goals in 52 Champions League games

The 26-year-old scored in the 37th minute on Wednesday, with PSG already maintaining a 1-0 lead stemming from an early Juan Bernat finish.

The Brazilian started and finished the sequence, which began with a perfectly hit through ball to Kylian Mbappe down the left-hand side.

Mbappe squared a pass to Edinson Cavani, who saw his shot stopped by Alisson only for Neymar to fire home the rebound and double PSG's advantage, though a James Milner penalty just before the break cut the lead in half.

The goal is Neymar's fourth Champions League goal of the season, having scored a hat-trick against Red Star Belgrade in PSG's second group stage match.

PSG went into Wednesday's clash at the Parc des Princes knowing that anything less than a point would all but seal the end of their Champions League run.

It is not a problem Liverpool have faced very often under Jurgen Klopp but, if they are going to beat Napoli next month and reach the Champions League last 16, they will have to improve in attack.

The Reds often blew teams away last season on their way to the final, but it is a different story at the moment - as we saw in Wednesday's 2-1 defeat at Paris St-Germain that has left their progress in the balance.

From 2-0 down, Liverpool got back in the game through James Milner's penalty just before half-time, but they did not cause PSG anywhere near enough problems as they searched for an equaliser after the break.

That was partly down to how well PSG defended, but it is not the first time it has happened in recent weeks - this defeat means Liverpool have lost all three of their away games in Group C, with Milner's spot-kick their only goal on the road.



Yes, they look a lot more solid at the back, but they have not been attacking with the same fluidity that we expect or creating the same number of chances.

Every time I watched Liverpool last season, they always looked dangerous, and I always thought they were capable of doing something to change the game at any moment - but that is not the case right now.

Front three are not firing at the moment

I just don't feel that Liverpool's front three are clicking in the same way they have done in the past.

Sadio Mane was outstanding against PSG and was the one Liverpool forward who looked up for the fight. He got into some good areas, ran at his full-back whenever he could and tried to make things happen.

But Roberto Firmino was very poor. He did not hold the ball up, or do his usual job of bringing other people into play. Too many passes were misplaced, and his touch was not great.

And I know everyone is talking about Mohamed Salah being back in form, but I don't see it myself.

I still think he is out of sorts - he is trying to play as an individual and is not enough of a team player - and that was the case on Wednesday too.



What has Liverpool lost from their attack?

It is not just down to the forwards, though. As former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson said on the Football Daily podcast that we did together after the PSG game, they are not getting the same supply they did last year.

As good as Liverpool's midfield three are at protecting their back four and making it difficult for the opposition, they do not get forward much.

That is the biggest difference between this season and last and is part of the reason why their defensive record is so good.

Every time Liverpool go forward now, Milner and Georginio Wijnaldum hold back when, previously, the team would have midfield runners going beyond their front three.

That occupied opposition defenders and freed up space for Mane, Firmino and Salah - but it does not happen as often any more, and it is an element they have lost from their attack.

Long-ball Liverpool playing fewer intricate passes

The worrying thing I saw against PSG was how many long balls Liverpool played forward. Again, that happened because their midfield was sitting so deep.

Instead of the dynamic and intricate interplay we saw from them last season when they were trying to find the front three with 10 or 15-yard passes, they are playing balls up to them from 30 or 35 yards instead.

That is not the kind of play you would associate with Liverpool but it is a change Klopp made in pre-season and he has carried it through the start of this campaign.

It has been effective in the Premier League - Liverpool is second, still unbeaten and have only conceded five goals in their first 13 games - but it has not worked for them away from home in Europe.



Less pressing is part of the problem too

How could Liverpool find a better balance between defence and attack? Well, we spoke on air about how they could switch to having two sitters in midfield and pushing Xherdan Shaqiri ahead of them, behind the front three.

That would bring a different dynamic but, again, I don't think it just comes down to tweaking one part of the team because so much is different to last year.

The way the front three presses the opposition has also changed, which again is something that will have come from Klopp.

He could be thinking that if he wants to save their legs for when they attack, then he doesn't want them closing defenders down as much.

But, when they were doing that, the Liverpool midfield could get close up to them, and the defence could push high up the pitch too.

So much of the way they hurt teams stemmed from them winning the ball back in those areas, and this season it does not seem like they have got that same edge in the final third that they got from playing their pressing game.

Now is the time to find out how good Liverpool really are

For some fans, everything that Klopp's side did last season - with the success they had in getting to the Champions League final - came from them playing a certain way.

The Liverpool of last year went after teams and took the game to them by going on the attack. They were great to watch.

When the Reds swept West Ham away on the opening weekend of this season, I walked away thinking 'what a performance', and that they are the same team they were last year - but we have not really seen them do anything similar since.

The change in style has not impressed some supporters but you only have to look at the Premier League table to see there are lots to be positive about, despite this lack of fluidity that I have been talking about.



After 13 league games last season, Liverpool were sixth in the Premier League, 14 points behind leaders Manchester City - it is Klopp's changes that have closed that gap.

They still have a chance of progressing in the Champions League too, although it will take a big performance to get the result they need against Napoli.

This is the time we are going to see how good they really are - how strong their squad is, and how they can adapt to the different questions being asked of them in the Premier League and in Europe.

They have not been playing particularly well up until now, but it would not surprise me if they clicked into gear in the next few weeks.

The international breaks during the first few months of the season can be very frustrating when you are working on things as a team because all your players keep disappearing and it is easy to lose your momentum.

But Klopp knows now he has got his players together until March, so he can work on things week in, week out - and try to bring back some rhythm to their attacking play.

The Manchester City squad has been struck with an injury crisis just before Christmas, meaning an upset could be on the cards when they welcome the Cherries to the Etihad.

Meanwhile, the West Ham players are fighting for room on the treatment tables at the London Stadium, with one of their star players in serious doubt this weekend.
Here are all the latest injury updates and team news ahead of this weekend’s fixtures!

UNITED SUPERSTAR SIDELINED
Alexis Sanchez could be set to miss Manchester United’s hectic Christmas schedule with a hamstring injury.



The forward suffered the setback in a session yesterday morning — having been left out of Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League win over Young Boys.

Sanchez missed the Euro tie after feeling a niggle against Crystal Palace on Saturday, which he initially picked up on international duty.

The United source said: “Alexis didn’t feel very well in the minutes he played against Crystal Palace.

“That was the reason why he was not selected for the Champions League match.

“It certainly isn’t true there are any disciplinary problems with him.”

During today's training session, @Alexis_Sanchez sustained a hamstring injury, which will require further investigation to confirm its severity. #MUFC pic.twitter.com/bZw6tcGAJx

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) November 29, 2018


CITY’S TREATMENT ROOM LOOKING VERY FULL

Manchester City welcome Bournemouth to the Etihad this weekend, but Pep Guardiola will have to field a team without five big-name stars.

The City squad has been struck with an injury crisis just before Christmas, with Gabriel Jesus joining Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne and Benjamin Mendy on the casualty ward.

While Jesus, Gundogan and Silva are only in doubt for the Cherries clash, serious knee injuries to Mendy and De Brune will keep them out of action until 2019.


HAZ IN DOUBT

Chelsea superstar Eden Hazard’s ankle injury is proving more of an issue for Maurizio Sarri than first anticipated.

The 27-year-old forward is in doubt for the Blues’ clash with London rivals Fulham, leaving Sarri short on attacking options.

Pedro will likely slot into Hazard’s vacant position, but with seven goals already to his name, the Belgian’s form will be hard to replicate.

“He will not be able to play (in the Europa League), but I think he will be able to recover for the Fulham match,” said the Blues boss.



UNHAPPY HAMMERS IN INJURY CRISIS

The West Ham players are fighting for space on the overcrowded treatment tables in East London.

Main man Marko Arnautovic has been strongly linked with a move to Manchester United in recent weeks, with his wage demands causing headaches for Manuel Pellegrini.

But it’s his fitness which has Hammers coaches worried, with a niggling hip injury likely to keep him out of this weekend’s action.

The powerful Austrian joins Ryan Fredericks, Andriy Yarmolenko, Carlos Sanchez, Jack Wilshere, Winston Reid and Manuel Lanzini on Pellegrini’s long injury list.



FIXTURES (all times in AEDT)

Saturday 1 December

Cardiff v Wolves at Cardiff City Stadium, 7am

Sunday 2 December

Crystal Palace v Burnley at Selhurst Park, 2am

Huddersfield v Brighton at John Smith’s Stadium, 2am

Leicester v Watford at the King Power Stadium, 2am

Man City v Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium, 2am

Newcastle v West Ham at St. James’ Park, 2am

Southampton vMan Utd at St. Mary’s Stadium, 4:30am

Chelsea v Fulham at Stamford Bridge, 11pm

Monday 3 December

Arsenal v Spurs at the Emirates Stadium, 1am

Manchester United have officially released their outlandish leopard-print kit - priced at A$113 - which will never be worn by them in real life.

Midfield ace Jesse Lingard has been pictured in the wacky kit, which appears on the popular FIFA 19 series, in a promo video released by Adidas.

The Premier League giants are not the only side to release a new fourth kit.
Real Madrid, Juventus and Bayern Munich will also have fourth kits available to buy even though the teams themselves, including Jose Mourinho’s United, will not wear them in real life.

In the game itself, the shirts are only available to wear on Ultimate Team mode, which sees users build teams from the bottom to the top with players from all across the world.

The shirt has been met with bemusement by many United fans on social media.
Including an embarrassed emoji, one user said: “My god....a new low for us let’s concentrate on improving the team!”

Another one simply wrote: “Disgraceful.”

Granted it hasn’t been the best year for United, and one Twitter user suggested this topped it all.

He simply said: “This is the worst idea of the year thus far and that’s saying something.”

The shirt is available to buy on both Manchester United’s official website, as well as Adidas’.

You also have the choice of personalising your shirt with your favourite player’s name and number.

Judging by the reaction on social media, it’s doubtful this strip will be a big hit, though.

Chelsea boss, Maurizio Sarri has revealed why defender, David Luiz dodged out of the way of Harry Kane’s strike in Chelsea’s 3-1 defeat to Tottenham.

Sarri said Luiz did not want to deflect the ball.
The Blues suffered their first defeat of the season as Mauricio Pochettino’s men got a deserved 3-1 winners at Wembley.

Dele Alli put Spurs ahead after just eight minutes before Kane doubled the hosts’ lead.
Kane’s strike was from a long-range but instead of attempting to block the effort, Luiz quickly moved out of the ball’s path.

The Brazilian has received blames from supporters and pundits for the act.

But when asked about the goal, Sarri said, “I don’t know, maybe the goalkeeper didn’t see the ball.
“I think that David was afraid to touch the ball and change the direction of the ball.
“But we were passive in all the match, and so it was only a question of minutes.”

Tottenham Hotspur forward, Lucas Moura has named Mauricio Pochettino’s side as the club that can stop Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City from retaining the Premier League title this season.

City won the English top-flight league title last campaign with a record 100 points from 38 matches.

Tottenham is currently occupying the third positions on the Premier League table this term with 30 points from 13 games, five points behind league leaders, Manchester City.

Speaking on which team can stop Manchester City from retaining the Premier League title this season, Moura was quoted by Mirror UK as saying: “I believe we [Tottenham] can stop them.

“It’s very, very difficult, I know. I don’t know when, one or two years ago, but Leicester won the Premier League. So I think we are very good and we can do this.

“In football, we never know what will happen. That’s why football is so beautiful and a lot of people love football.
“So we need to believe, we need to work hard and enjoy each opportunity that we have.”

Moura will hope to lead Spurs to victory when they tackle Arsenal this weekend in the Premier League fixture.