Premier League team news, Gerrard's new Rangers deal: football countdown – live!

Some Steven Gerrard quotes …

I’m delighted to be extending my stay at this fantastic football club. When Dave King approached me about the possibility of extending my contract with Rangers, it was a very easy decision to make because I’m very happy and feel that we are building something special together at the club. I’d like to thank the board for the backing they have given me already in my time at the club and also most importantly, the Rangers fans who have given me and the team such tremendous backing both this season and last.

Breaking … Manager Steven Gerrard has signed a new contract with Rangers until 2024, the club have announced.

Is that when Jürgen Klopp is leaving Liverpool? Just saying.

I’ll run you through the best Opta stats later (yes, I know you can’t wait). But yesterday evening before I turned in for the night (in a huff and about five hours earlier than expected), I did this research:

The last time Liverpool played the weekend after a General Election was 2015 (2017’s was held in June). On that occasion, there was no overall majority with the Reds of Liverpool drawing 1-1 with the Blues of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Notably, both party leaders, John Terry and Steven Gerrard, got the goals. There was also a Johnson on the pitch, Glenn, who had once wanted to remain but then decided to leave Chelsea for Portsmouth. Erm, what else. Courtois sounds like Corbyn. Oh, forget it. I’m not helping my mood here.

In the ‘who’s got the biggest injury list’ competition, Newcastle are certainly contenders too.

“We’ve got a few out, yeah,” says boss Steve Bruce, who then has to read from his notes to list all the names. “Certainly (Ciaran), Clark, (Matt) Ritchie, (Jamaal) Lascelles, (Allan) Saint-Maximin, Ki (Sung-yeung) are all struggling… well, they’re out. We’ve got a couple of question marks over (Miguel) Almiron and (Jonjo) Shelvey so we’ll see how they are today.”

Nathan Ake added to Bournemouth’s injury woes last weekend. The defender limped off during the 3-0 home defeat by Liverpool and looked set for a lengthy absence. Boss Eddie Howe is putting a positive spin on matters though.

It was relatively good news on Nathan’s scan. The trouble with hamstring injuries is it’s very difficult to give definitive timelines. I think we’re looking at about six weeks. That’s conservative. Nathan could come back sooner than that but I think six weeks is probably a fair timeline.

It’s been a tough time for Eddie Howe of late. Some words from him soon but, first, this piece from Eni Aluko …

Right, let’s pretend last night didn’t happen and lose ourselves in some Premier League football. No, I’m not convincing myself either.

Anyway, life looks good for one set of reds, with Liverpool eight points clear at the top and facing a home game with Watford on Saturday lunchtime.

Here’s your weekend fixture list (all times GMT):

Saturday
Liverpool v Watford – 12.30pm
Burnley v Newcastle – 3pm
Chelsea v Bournemouth – 3pm
Leicester v Norwich – 3pm
Sheffield United v Aston Villa – 3pm
Southampton v West Ham – 3pm

Sunday
Man Utd v Everton – 2pm
Wolves v Spurs – 2pm
Arsenal v Man City – 4.30pm

Monday
Crystal Palace v Brighton – 7.45pm