The signing of forward Gabriel Pec has proved to be a vital part of the Galaxy's transformation into an MLS Cup contender after an eight-win season.
USMNT eke out win, Stefan Frei talks MLS playoffs & Marta turns back the clock!
Christian and Alexis discuss the USMNT’s gutsy 1-0 win over Jamaica. Then, Stefan Frei joins the show to chat MLS playoffs. Later, Christian and Alexis break down Marta’s wonder goal to sent the Orlando Pride to the NWSL Cup final.
Onana to Delap: a Premier League XI of this season’s surprises so far
The Premier League players who have belied expectations (in a good way) so far this season
The Cameroonian had a debut season to forget in England. A series of blunders during a nightmarish Champions League campaign helped contribute to Manchester United’s group-stage exit, while high-profile errors on the domestic front led to serious questions about his future. Onana has enjoyed a far better start this time, dropping no conspicuous clangers and keeping five clean sheets in 11 games, the highest of any goalkeeper. He is overperforming in shot-stopping metrics and boasts a pass-completion rate that is on course to be higher than last season. An unexpectedly reassuring presence during another period of early-season turmoil at Old Trafford.
Continue reading...From Maupay to Doak: how Premier League players are faring on loan
We assess 10 players who made temporary summer moves, including an unusually small goalkeeper who is thriving
It seemed very sensible to send the creative midfielder to learn more about top-flight football under the tutelage of Cesc Fàbregas, although Perrone would probably have had opportunities at City amid their recent injury crisis. Como are back in Serie A and have attracted an eclectic group of players, including Sergi Roberto and Alberto Moreno. Perrone has made eight league appearances and sits alongside Roberto in front of the defence where he has looked composed and capable of instigating attacks with his intelligent use of the ball. The Argentinian is happy to collect facing his own goal and smart in tight spaces.
Continue reading...NWSL taking a different approach than MLS in gaining an audience
While the MLS plays many of its games on subscription television, the NWSL is putting its playoffs on good, old-fashioned network TV.
Claudio Ranieri comes out of retirement to become Roma head coach aged 73
- Ranieri to take role as adviser to owners at end of season
- He becomes Roma’s fourth head coach of the year
Claudio Ranieri has come out of retirement at the age of 73 to take charge of Roma until the end of the season, the Serie A club have announced, days after sacking the Croatian Ivan Juric.
Ranieri is Roma’s third coach of the season and this is his third time coaching his home-town club, having guided the Giallorossi from 2009-11 and in 2019. He began his playing career with Roma.
Continue reading...MLS is exploring a calendar overhaul. The case for (and against) change is clear
Major League Soccer faces pressure to shift its season calendar to align with Europe's in order to maximize playoff exposure and synchronize with global transfer windows.
MLS and Ecuador midfielder Marco Angulo dies from car crash injuries at 22
- Player had been placed into artificial coma
- Midfielder was married with a young son
Ecuador and FC Cincinnati midfielder Marco Angulo has died from his injuries sustained in a car crash that also killed his former youth team teammate Roberto Cabezas, the Ecuadorian Football Association said on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old Angulo was a passenger in the car that crashed into a metal barrier on the Rumiñahui highway southeast of Quito on 7 October. The driver and Cabezas, who played for Independiente Juniors, were killed in the incident.
Continue reading...FC Cincinnati’s Marco Angulo dies from injuries sustained in October car crash
The 22-year-old Angulo was on loan to Ecuadorian side L.D.U. Quito this season.
Galaxy and LAFC vying to host MLS Cup now that Inter Miami has been ousted
While MLS and its Apple broadcast partners were deeply invested in Lionel Messi leading Inter Miami to the MLS Cup, parity has again leveled the field.
Frank Lampard in the running to replace Mark Robins at Coventry
- Robins sacked last week after seven years in charge
- Doug King, the club’s owner, confirms Lampard’s interest
Doug King, the Coventry owner, has revealed that Frank Lampard is a contender to replace Mark Robins as the Championship club’s next manager.
King has said the former Chelsea, Derby County and Everton coach is among a large number of interested parties in the vacant post.
Continue reading...Calhanoglu’s penalty miss shows nothing is certain in Serie A title race | Nicky Bandini
Inter midfielder never fails from 12 yards. This weekend he did – and now the top of the table is tighter than ever
Would it be too dramatic to portray a November missed penalty as a sign to let go of everything we thought we knew about the Serie A title race? Well, yes, OK, probably it would. But seeing Hakan Calhanoglu’s spot-kick carom back off a post in the second-half of Inter’s 1-1 draw with Napoli was at the least a shock to the system.
He had converted all his previous 19 attempts since joining the Nerazzurri from Milan in 2021. “It had to happen sooner or later,” said the player. Were the rest of us ready, though, to live in a world shorn of such certainties? As commentator Patrick Kendrick put it: “With Calhanoglu missing, we’re just left with the misery of death and taxes”.
Continue reading...What kind of host will Donald Trump be for the World Cup and Olympics?
The president-elect could spark tension between the culturally open cities staging events and a national government promoting insularity
Very soon after the outcome of the US presidential election was clear, Fifa’s president issued an old photograph of himself shaking hands with a beaming, football-clasping, Donald Trump.
“Congratulations Mr President! We will have a great Fifa World Cup and a great Fifa Club World Cup in the United States of America!” Gianni Infantino wrote on social media. It was the latest example of Infantino’s oleaginous flattery of Trump, whom in 2018 Infantino called “part of the Fifa team”. And vice versa, it seems.
Continue reading...Premier League: 10 talking points from the weekend’s action
Ipswich’s young English duo catch the eye, Liverpool march on and the brilliance of Brighton’s Carlos Baleba
It took them an hour of huffing and puffing, but Arsenal did something at Stamford Bridge they hadn’t managed since September – they scored an away goal in the Premier League. After toothless performances at Newcastle and Inter in the past week – and last month at Bournemouth – Gabriel Martinelli’s cute finish was itself a moment of relief, but Mikel Arteta was frustrated that his team didn’t find a winner. Their expected goals figure was lower than Chelsea’s (1.27 to 1.69) but that does not account for Leandro Trossard’s costly miskick at the death nor Kai Havertz’s would-be opener, which was just offside. The Gunners will almost always control games, especially now Martin Ødegaard is fit and firing again, but that age-old itch has not been scratched. They are not ruthless enough and they still lack a penalty box killer. Dominic Booth
Match report: Chelsea 1-1 Arsenal
Match report: Liverpool 2-0 Aston Villa
Match report: Brighton 2-1 Manchester City
Match report: Manchester United 3-0 Leicester
Match report: Nottingham Forest 1-3 Newcastle
Match report: Tottenham 1-2 Ipswich
Match report: Brentford 3-2 Bournemouth
Continue reading...Where do Lionel Messi and Inter Miami go from here?
Inter Miami heads into a pivotal 2025 season with a Club World Cup spot, potential roster upgrades hindered by MLS restrictions, and the ticking question of whether Messi will stay beyond his current contract.