'Pure quality' - Roy Keane and Gary Neville in complete agreement over Liverpool 'target'


Spain booked their place in the knockout stage of Euro 2024 as they continued their perfect start to the competition.
Luis de la Fuente’s side have caught the eye in their opening two games in Germany. They raised the curtain with a 3-0 victory over Croatia before earning a 1-0 triumph over Italy last night.
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Hide AdIn truth, Spain’s triumph should have been more emphatic. They dominated the Azzurri from the outset but had to wait until the 55th minute to break the deadlock. It arrived via an own goal from Riccardo Calafiori as he steered Nico Williams’ cross into the back of the net.
It was nothing less than Spain - and Williams - deserved. The winger ran amok throughout the encounter as he carried on his scintillating form from the 2023-24 season with Athletic Bilbao. He scored eight goals and recorded an incredible 19 assists in 37 appearances as Bilbao were crowned Cope del Rey champions and finished fifth in La Liga.
Williams’ performances have unsurprisingly resulted in him being linked with several clubs. Liverpool are one side who have been credited with an interest. Barcelona are also said to be keen on the 21-year-old along with Arsenal.
Williams’ display saw him earn man of the match against Spain - and he earned the praise of former Manchester United captain Roy Keane. Speaking on ITV, Keane said: “Pure quality. He has pace, you can't coach that. We saw [in] the first half he's a threat.
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Hide Ad“When he gets one-vs-one against the full-back, he's in all sorts of trouble. He can go left or right, we saw with his shooting power and his crossing. Excellent play, best player of the park, strength, a great attitude, strong.”
Fellow ex-Manchester United team-mate Gary Neville agreed and believes that Williams is a ‘nightmare’ for any full-back he plays against.
“That run there he makes is an amazing run,” added Neville. “He should do better with the chance but that hard face run inside will never fail to hurt a full-back. Even if it doesn't come off, you just know you're in for a long game. He goes outside you, inside you, he sets the goal up and would be a nightmare to play against.”
The Athletic has reported that Williams has a release clause of around £47 million in his Bilbao contract.
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