Xavi Hernandez is a Barcelona legend. While in the Blaugrana, he won damn near everything there is to win. He retired on top, having been an integral part of Barca's treble win. This begs the question, though, now that Xavi is comfortably living out the early stages of his retirement in the Qatari league, where is the next Xavi? How will Barcelona replace one of the best players in its history?
The finalists for the Puskas Award, the award for the best goal scored in a calendar year, have been whittled by voters from 10 down to just three.
One of those finalists was an incredible dribble goal by one Lionel Messi, who also happens to be nominated for the Ballon d'Or, given to the best player on the planet in a given calendar year.
As fans stormed the field, Ross Barkley and Everton thought they’d won the game in the 95th minute. It seemed pretty clear. You score 5 minutes into stoppage time, you win. Bournemouth thought differently. After play resumed, in a matter of seconds, Bournemouth evened the score with a header from Junior Stanislas. And instead of reading "Everton glory," the headlines read "Everton heartbreak" instead.
How did Stanislas' wonder goal come to be? Thanks to the delay of game after fans stormed the field, the match went on for a few more minutes, giving Bournemouth one last chance.
Andres Cantor's most noticable attribute in his broadcasting is his exuberance. Never was that exuberance more on display than his call of Landon Donovan's goal against Algeria in the 2010 World Cup to send the USA to the knockout round.
As successful as Barcelona have been with the current Messi, there is no doubt that they are constantly on the lookout for the next Messi.
And they just might have found what the're looking for in Carles Aleña, a 17-year-old Spaniard who plays for the Barcelona U-19s and has already trained with the first team because of injuries. There is serious speculation that he could be the next big thing out of the academy that produced Lionel Messi, Gerard Pique, Xavi Hernandes, Andres Iniesta, Carles Puyol, Thiago Motta, Cesc Fabregas, Pedro and Sergio Busquets.
Raul Jimenez inspired a Benfica comeback in their Champions League encounter with FC Astana by scoring two goals for the Portuguese side.
Jimenez’s goals in the 40th and 72nd minutes kept Benfica on course for the tournament’s round of 16. The Eagles find themselves atop Group C for the time being, with Atlético Madrid and Galatasaray still to play.
Astana had taken a two-goal lead before Jimenez propelled Benfica back into the match with a powerful header and a predatory finish.
Raul Jimenez goal in the 40th minute:
An old soccer adage tells us that all goals count the same. A howitzer from 40-yards, a rabona from the corner or an own goal off the defender’s ass, each will be rewarded with a solitary point. Soccer doesn’t discriminate. Unless you’re on the training ground. In that case, training ground goals don’t really count for anything.
We missed this, man. We really did. And now he's back, scoring amazing goals that only Messi (and to an extent only Barcelona) can score.
Barcelona obliterated Roma 6-1 in his first start and second game back, and he tallied two goals and an assist. Luis Suarez also scored twice and Gerard Pique and Adriano also scored.
Messi's first goal since injuring his knee in September came after a build-up of 29 straight passes from Barca, a Champions League record.
Barcelona didn't have to twist the knife. But they did.
Leading Real Madrid 3-0 in the Bernabeu, and making a powerful statement in the first Clasico of the year, the Blaugrana could have easily killed the game off and returned to Catalonia the triumphant victors, the clear favorites in La Liga and the masters of El Clasico.
James Rodriguez led his Colombia squad through an epic keepy-uppy bin challenge ahead of their World Cup qualifying clash against Argentina on Tuesday. If you haven't seen one of these challenge videos before, it's a pretty simple concept.
A group of players move the ball in an orderly fashion, never letting it touch the ground, using only their heads. After everyone in the rotation has headed the ball, the final player must head the ball into an empty waste bin.