Neil: Nat to Mend his ways
Kop boss insists he won’t walk away from battle
NEIL WARNOCK is sure Middlesbrough can turn Nathaniel Mendez-laing from sinner to saint.
The Boro chief is ready to hand the ex-cardiff forward his home debut against Huddersfield tonight with his side looking to halt a fourmatch losing run at home.
And he’s already seen evidence that Mendezlaing, who was sacked by his previous club and banned from football for three months following a second drugs offence, is living up to his pledge to mend his ways.
“I came in on Sunday to see a couple of the injured players and Mendez had come in voluntarily,” he said. It was only revealed last week that Mendezlaing had tested positive for cocaine during his time at Cardiff and Warnock is confident the player’s problems are in the past.
He added: “You could see his relief when everything was out in the open. The lad knows he’s made mistakes.
“He’s an exciting footballer who’ll be a real asset to us when he’s up to scratch.”
Town suffered a shock defeat to Wycombe at the weekend and boss Carlos Corberan said: “We need to try not to be anxious.”
JURGEN KLOPP hit back at talk that he will quit Liverpool by insisting: I don’t need a break – I’ll fight with all I have.
The Reds boss reacted to speculation over his future after his team’s third straight defeat at Leicester on Saturday, and a run of three wins in 12 matches.
As Liverpool prepare to face RB Leipzig in the Champions League tonight, Klopp said: “What were the rumours again? Did I get the sack or did I leave by myself? Neither. I don’t need a break.
“Of course I’m influenced by things that are happening around me, but nobody needs to worry about me.
“The situation is a challenge. I don’t want to have the situation but it’s an interesting challenge. Nobody wrote a