How much of soccer is becoming — as the kids would say — an ‘aesthetic?’ And a privileged aesthetic at that.
Here in the U.S., soccer is becoming an elitist sport. We talk about how the newest and most expensive boots are the only way to be like Ronaldo or Messi. Hand me downs are a no-go. If you don’t have the best kits or play for the most expensive clubs then you don’t stand a chance.
Paris Saint-Germain striker Kylian Mbappé could start Tuesday's Champions League semifinal against RB Leipzig, as the French club target their first appearance in a Champions League final.
Mbappé came off the bench for the last half hour against Atalanta last week to set up the winning goal, and Thomas Tuchel told a news conference the France World Cup winner had suffered no reaction to his injured ankle.
It’s been over a week since Ciro Immobile’s 36th and final goal of the 2019-20 Serie A season earned him both the Capocannoniere (five goals more than Juventus’ Cristiano Ronaldo) and European Golden Shoe (two more than Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski), but the 30-year-old Lazio striker is still in disbelief, and one look at the last decade of Golden Shoe-winners tells you exactly why.
Julian Nagelsmann is the youngest head coach to take a team to the Champions League quarterfinals but any suggestion he or his RB Leipzig players will be out of their depth against Atletico Madrid should be quickly dismissed.
The 33-year-old will take the German upstarts into new territory on Thursday and admits a meeting with Atletico counterpart Diego Simeone will be a tough proposition.
Chelsea winger Christian Pulisic, widely considered the United States' top soccer export, is expected to miss six weeks with a right hamstring injury that could extend until the start of the next Premier League season.
The Hershey, Penn., native, who will turn 22 next month, came away with his injury during Chelsea's 2-1 FA Cup final loss to Arsenal. Pulisic scored his team's lone goal in the first half.
Barcelona coach Quique Setien says he is not worried that Saturday's Champions League last-16 second leg at home to Napoli could be his last game in charge of the team.
Setien, 61, saw his side surrender the Spanish title to Real Madrid last month, while the tie with Napoli is on a knife edge after the 1-1 draw in Italy back in February.
Ajax will have to change their playing style after the sale of Hakim Ziyech to Chelsea and the possibility of up to six others leaving before the new season in the Netherlands starts, coach Erik ten Hag said as they began pre-season training.
Ziyech was one of the key figures when Ajax reached the Champions League semifinal last season and also dominated in the Dutch league, but success for the club has meant their players have been in high demand.
Manchester City struggles to prevent the best teams from scoring against them and their central defenders could be targeted in Friday's Champions League clash against Spanish champions Real Madrid, former England skipper Wayne Rooney said.
Pep Guardiola's City leads Real after they won the away leg of their last-16 tie 2-1 in March, before Europe's elite club competition was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
When Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte faces the cameras after a match, it is a case of lighting the blue touch paper and standing well back.
In his first season at Inter, the 51-year-old former Juventus, Italy and Chelsea coach has railed against his own club's "poor planning" and an "insane" fixture list, and even blamed one poor performance on the opposition playing the wrong kind of football.
His latest outburst, however, after a 2-0 win at Atalanta on Saturday that clinched second place for Inter in Serie A, has led to all sorts of intrigue.
“It’s the ones with the strongest mentality who make it.”
This was the quote that kept Alphonso Davies in the game. The Canadian star began gaining traction when he became the second-youngest player to play in MLS at the age of 15. Then, when he was 18, Davies completed a record-breaking transfer to Bayern Munich.
But his life hasn't always been studded in glory. Davies opened up about this in an article called "Moving Past The Doubt." In it, we see where the phenom started.