Sheffield United Injuries “Bigger Loss Than Van Dijk” Says Manager Wilder

Last season’s upstarts have struggled to start 2020-21 and are
will be without three key players on Saturday.

Following a narrow victory over Ajax in the Champions League, one where they weren’t always the
better side, Liverpool return to Premier League action on the
weekend and take on a Sheffield United side with their own injury
concerns.

The Reds may be certain to be without Virgil van Dijk and
Alisson, with Joël Matip also a question mark, but Blades boss
Chris Wilder has three missing stars of his own and thinks that
given the two clubs’ standings theirs will be the tougher to
overcome.

“Us losing these three players is, I’d say, a bigger loss than
losing Van Dijk, relatively,” Wilder said today as he prepared for
Saturday’s league match. “They still have world-class players and
an academy that produces players all the time.”

Wilder, who also pointed to the quality of Liverpool’s attack,
their “three at the top of the pitch,” that can help them overcome
any injury issues at the back. Sheffield are currently without
defender Jack O’Connell, midfielder John Fleck, and forward Lys
Mousset.

However, those injuries and that he’s now had some time to
settle means that it is likely former Liverpool striker Rhian
Brewster will be given a start against his former club on Sunday in
the 8PM BST Premier League kickoff.

After flirting with the European places last season as a newly
promoted side, the start of the 2020-21 season has seen Sheffield
struggle massively, and the Blades currently sit in 19th place with
just one point, only ahead of Fulham on goal differential.

Scores of Lagosians have broken into a warehouse in the Amuwo
area of Lagos State where COVID-19 palliatives were being
stored.

Viral videos on social media on Thursday showed people packing
out bags and cartons of the palliatives which were ought to have
been shared by government to cushion the negative impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic on the economy.

Also spotted in one of the videos, was a van belonging to a
joint Internal Security Operational platform, OP MESA, with people
loading the vehicle with the palliatives.

In a swift reaction, the state government has, however, debunked
reports that the palliatives had been stored in there for
months.

Chief Press Secretary to Governor Sanwo-Olu, Gboyega Akosile, in
a tweet described the comments as ‘falsehood and inciting’.

“The government didn’t lock the food packs in. They’re in
warehouse for distribution,” he said.

According to him, the governor only received the palliatives on
September 22, less than a month ago.

Akosile further explained that Governor Sanwo-Olu had used his
personal and state resources to get food palliatives for vulnerable
Lagosians even before the contributions from the Coalition Against
COVID (CA-COVID).

This is coming amid the chaos, series of destruction and looting
that has occurred in many areas of the state.

Major malls, shops, businesses and even vehicles have been burnt
down – part of an aftermath of shootings that occurred on Tuesday
at the Lekki Toll Gate area of the state.

Peaceful protesters had gathered despite a curfew imposed to end
spiralling protests over police brutality and deep-rooted social
grievances.

At the Lekki Toll Gate which has been one of the major
converging points, peaceful and unarmed protesters, however, defied
the curfew and stayed put, hours after it was to have
commenced.

The situation took a turn for the worse around 7:00 pm when the
security operatives stormed the area and started shooting
sporadically.

“It wasn’t to drive us away, it was to kills us,” one of the
protesters who said he saw the armed soldiers, told Channels
Television.

According to Amnesty International, at least 12 people were
killed in the deadly shooting.