Tim Sherwood betting on Christian Benteke staying at Aston Villa

Christian Benteke: Coveted by Liverpool

Tim Sherwood is confident of keeping Christian Benteke at Villa Park, and the Aston Villa boss has been willing to put his money where his mouth is.

Sherwood collected £100 after winning a bet with a Sky Sports reporter regarding the status of Aston Villa's ownership – and he’s willing to place another wager that Liverpool target Benteke will be around for the start of the season.

"Yeah, another £100 that he will,” Sherwood said when asked whether Benteke would still be at Bodymoor Heath at the end of the summer. "Listen, we want Christian here, we want to keep our best players and Christian is certainly one of those."

Sherwood, who took over the Villa hotseat in February following the sacking of Paul Lambert, said he is looking to improve on last season’s finish, which saw him lead the side to Premier League safety and an FA Cup final at Wembley.

That ended on a sour note, however, with the side suffering a 4-0 defeat to Arsenal. Sherwood knows that painful memory won’t be forgotten easily but hopes to have the chance to make amends with another trip to the national stadium.

"We are looking for an improvement on last season," Sherwood said. "It would be great to go to Wembley twice like we did last year and improve our league position. We are looking to get ourselves not in a relegation battle and push up that league.

"It’s not easy to (forget the final) because what everyone always remembers out there is the cup final. Forget that Aston Villa hasn't been there since God knows how long, it’s the case that we didn't perform when we got there and we have to take that on the chin and do better.

"I think our fans wills take another couple of appearances at Wembley this year."

Villa will head out to Portugal as part of their preparation for the new Premier League season before kicking off their campaign with a visit to Bournemouth on August 8.

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Raheem Sterling returns to pre-season training with Liverpool.

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Video: 'Does Gerrard play for Man Utd?'

Steven Gerrard received a warm welcome from LA Galaxy fans over the weekend, but in downtown LA he's not quite the big name he was in Liverpool.

"Does he play for Manchester United?"

Watch the video as the citizens of Los Angeles respond to the arrival of Gerrard in MLS.

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Video: 'Does he play for Man Utd'

Steven Gerrard received a warm welcome from LA Galaxy fans over the weekend, but in downtown LA he's not quite the big name he was in Liverpool.

"Does he play for Manchester United?"

Watch the video as the citizens of Los Angeles respond to arrival of Gerrard in the MLS.

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Liverpool appoint Sean O'Driscoll as assistant manager

Sean O'Driscoll: The former England Under-19 head coach has been appointed as Liverpool assistant manager.

Liverpool have confirmed that Sean O'Driscoll has been appointed as the club’s new assistant manager.

The former England Under-19 boss will be joined on Brendan Rodgers’ new-look coaching staff by Pepijn Lijnders, who will take up the newly created position of first-team development coach.

The move comes following the sackings of former Anfield No 2 Colin Pascoe and first-team coach Mike Marsh in June following an end-of-season review into the club's failure to retain Champions League football after a sixth-placed Premier League finish.

Former Bristol City and Nottingham Forrest manager O’Driscoll only took up his role with England last September but will vacate that position to join Rodgers at Anfield.

Sky sources also understand that the club are also still looking to appoint a first-team coach to the staff.

Rodgers told liverpoolfc.com: "I have made these appointments because I want to take us in a new technical direction, in terms of coaching.

"I believe the entire first-team set-up will benefit and I am extremely positive and excited about what we can achieve, as a group, going forward.

"My admiration for Sean, as a professional, is well documented. He is someone with a clear vision and philosophy and has proved he has the ability to transfer that knowledge, through his coaching, to the players.

"I am looking forward to working with him and also learning from his experiences and gaining valuable knowledge from his expertise."

O'Driscoll, who has also had spells in charge of Bournemouth and Doncaster Rovers, said he was looking forward to getting started at Liverpool.

He added: "I am excited to be joining one of the world's most iconic football clubs. The hallmark of any successful club is its culture and that comes from the people who work there, from the chief executive and first-team manager to those people behind the scenes whose faces may not be known but who are the lifeblood of the club.

"From the moment I drove into Melwood last week and was greeted by Kenny the gateman, I could not have been made to feel more welcome. If you are going to have any level of success these people are as crucial as the players; from my experiences so far it is clear everyone wants to help this club succeed."

Lijnders, who has been promoted from his position as academy coach, will join O'Driscoll and the squad at Melwood for the first day of pre-season training.

The Dutchman, who held roles at PSV Eindhoven and FC Porto prior to joining Liverpool in 2014, oversaw the development of the club's Under-16 group last season.

He will continue to work with the elite talent at the academy as part of his new role, which the club say has been created in line with the new technical approach to coaching undertaken at Anfield.

Rodgers said: "This presents a fantastic opportunity for Pep and one I know he will grasp with both hands.

"He has excelled at the academy and I believe this is the perfect time for him to make the step up to the first-team set-up and use his talents for the benefit of the senior squad.

"Pep displays a passion and enthusiasm for his profession that is truly infectious and I believe will have a positive impact."

Lijnders added: "I feel proud and honoured to work closely with Brendan and his staff. I couldn't think of a better attacking manager to assist.

"Everybody knows how I feel about representing this amazing club. The owners have a clear and strong philosophy which is based on developing top young players into elite - I want to thank them for giving me this opportunity.

"I had a great first year at the Liverpool FC Academy; Alex (Inglethorpe) and his coaching staff are creating something unique there. Again, I am proud to be part of the team and we will give everything."

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Gossip: Sterling set for £4m windfall?

Raheem Sterling: Manchester City set to bid again for Liverpool forward

Liverpool to buy Christian Benteke this week, Raheem Sterling to get £4m, and Fernando Muslera to Man Utd are Monday's top newspaper rumours.

LIVERPOOL TO MOVE FOR BENTEKE

Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke is widely reported to be Liverpool's top transfer target following last week's capture of Nathaniel Clyne, but it had also been claimed that the Reds were reluctant to match the £32.5million buy-out clause in the Belgian's contract.

Villa have apparently warned the Reds Benteke would not be sold for anything less, putting the deal in jeopardy, but the Daily Express claims Liverpool's transfer committee has now agreed to splash out the huge fee for a player that Brendan Rodgers believes could replace the goals of Luis Suarez.

Benteke has scored 49 in 101 appearances since moving to Villa Park from Genk in a £7million deal three years ago.

STERLING IN LINE FOR £4M WINDFALL

Raheem Sterling will report for training at Liverpool on Monday morning but could soon be the subject of a third bid from Manchester City that is expected to be close to the Merseysiders' £50million valuation.

And should a transfer go ahead this summer, Sterling is line to receive a £4million cut of his agent's fee, according to The Telegraph, working on the basis that the 20-year-old signs a five-year contract on over £100,000 at the Etihad Stadium which would take the overall cost of the deal to £80million.

'Normally, it is only players who move clubs on Bosman-style free transfers who pocket large signing-on fees, but Sterling's arrangement with his agent is understood to be an unusual one,' the broadsheet adds.

UNITED CONTINUE NEW GOALKEEPER SEARCH

It was reported over the weekend that Manchester United are considering hijacking Chelsea's move for Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic, but a new name to throw into the mix for the No.1 jersey at Old Trafford is Galatasaray's Fernando Muslera.

The 29-year-old recently started all four games for Uruguay at the Copa America before their quarter-final elimination, and United must have been impressed by his performances as, according to Turkish newspaper Vatan, they are preparing a 35million euros offer for his services.

Muslera joins the likes of Begovic, Hugo Lloris, Samir Handanovic and Jan Oblak in being linked with United this summer as Real Madrid continue in their quest to sign David de Gea.

AND THE REST

- Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla is being targeted by Atletico Madrid to replace want away Arda Turan (Daily Mirror)

- Newcastle are closing in on their first signing of the summer after PSV Eindhoven left 24-year-old striker Georginio Wijnaldum out of their squad for a pre-season friendly (Daily Telegraph)

- Liverpool's Luis Alberto looks all set to join Deportivo La Coruna on loan, after the midfielder spent last year on loan at Malaga (Daily Mirror)

- Manchester United have agreed to sell young striker Angelo Henriquez to Dinamo Zagreb, where he scored 20 goals in 25 appearances on loan last season (Daily Mirror)

- West Ham hope to confirm the capture of Alex Song this week (Daily Mirror)

- Juventus defender Angelo Ogbonna is flying in to hold talks with West Ham as they close in on a move to bring him to Upton Park (Daily Mail)

- Premier League newcomers Bournemouth are preparing a club-record £14m bid for QPR striker Charlie Austin (The Sun)

- Doubts over a long-standing shoulder injury mean Newcastle United are only prepared to pay £12m for QPR frontman Charlie Austin (Daily Mail)

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Liverpool set to confirm Sean O'Driscoll

Sean O'Driscoll: New face on Merseyside

Liverpool are set to confirm the appointment of Sean O'Driscoll as assistant manager and the promotion of academy coach Pep Lijnders to Brendan Rodgers' backroom staff on Monday.

Sky Sports understands both will be in their new posts in time for the return to pre-season training of most of the players.

O'Driscoll, who has left his role as England Under-19 manager, will replace Rodgers' former number two Colin Pascoe, who was sacked in June following an end-of-season review into the club's failure to retain Champions League football after a sixth-placed Premier League finish.

However, Lijnders is not a direct replacement for first-team coach Mike Marsh, who did not have his contract renewed last month, and is understood to have been given a role centred around elite player development, having impressed with his one-on-one work with players at the academy. The Dutchman will also continue to work with the best youngsters in the U16 age-group at the academy.

Liverpool are likely to make one further addition to the coaching staff, which possibly leaves the way open for a return for an individual who has previous links with the club.

Former defender Sami Hyypia, who has managed Bayer Leverkusen and Brighton, and ex-assistant to Rafael Benitez Pako Ayesteran, who recently left his job with Maccabi Tel Aviv having led them to a domestic treble, have both been linked with a return to Merseyside, but the recruitment process is still ongoing.

The majority of Liverpool's squad, including all their England internationals - which also means wantaway winger Raheem Sterling - report back to Melwood this week after their summer break.

New arrival James Milner, who arrived on a free transfer from City, will be present while fellow new signing Danny Ings is likely to join up with his new team-mates on Wednesday.

Brazil internationals Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino, who has yet to have his medical having agreed a £29m deal to move from Hoffenheim, are not scheduled to return for some time following their recent involvement at the Copa America.

Liverpool fly out to Bangkok next Sunday for the first leg of their pre-season tour of Asia and Australia.

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