Southampton keeper Alex McCarthy out of Liverpool test

Alex McCarthy

Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy will miss Monday night's Premier League game against Liverpool after testing positive for coronavirus.

McCarthy was the only Saints player or staff member to prove positive after the latest round of tests and is now in isolation.

The club posted on Twitter: "Ralph Hasenhuttl has confirmed Alex McCarthy will miss the Liverpool game following a positive Covid-19 test.

"McCarthy is currently self-isolating at home, in line with government guidelines and club protocols."

Saints head coach Ralph Hasenhuttl is hoping to return to the dugout for the visit of the champions following a period of isolation after he recently tested positive. 

McCarthy, in his fifth season at St Mary's after joining from Crystal Palace, has started in all 16 of their top-flight matches this season and has kept seven clean sheets. Fraser Forster is likely to take his place.

Meanwhile, with the January transfer window open, Pep Guardiola has identified Real Madrid forward Eden Hazard as a dream transfer target at Man City, according to reports from Spanish outlet OkDiario.

Guardiola has long been an admirer of Hazard. In an interview last year, the Man City manager said: “Not a top player, another level above. What we saw in England… he is world-class. The whole world knows that you need a period of adaptation.” 

The Sunday Mirror claims that Manchester United will sell France midfielder Paul Pogba in the summer after accepting that he will not sign a new contract. However United are unsure whether to pursue 20-year-old England winger Jadon Sancho, with manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer more interested in his Borussia Dortmund colleague and 20-year-old Norway striker Erling Braut Haaland.

Newcastle are among the clubs offered the chance to sign Leicester's former England Under-21 midfielder Hamza Choudhury, says the Newcastle Chronicle.

Inter Milan have offered former Tottenham midfielder Christian Eriksen to Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid. The Dane has also been linked with a move to Paris St-Germain, where he could reunite with former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino.