First and foremost comment with your FPL picks for this week and hopefully your team did a little better than Chelsea this past weekend. Fun fact for you: The Blues have lost back to back matches by 3+ goal margin for the first time since 1995. Antonio Conte on the hot seat? It looks like it. We know your FPL squad has some players on the hot seat, so here are 3 transfers you could make to replace them:
3 Mans To Transfer For
Gerard Deulofeu (Watford):
The U.S. Soccer Federation will elect its first new president since 2006 on Saturday. Exactly four months after the USMNT’s disastrous loss to Trinidad and Tobago, soccer’s governing body in America will finally be able to move forward with new perspectives, new ideas and, most importantly, a new U.S. Soccer president.
FIFA is an addictive game. After every match of digital football you want to play just one more. If you lose, you don’t want to end on a sour note. If you win, you want to keep that hot streak going. It’s a testament to how fun the game is that you want to keep playing. But, as one Redditor recently highlighted, there’s another aspect of FIFA that is dangerously addictive: the FIFA microtransactions.
When the USMNT lost Jonathan Gonzalez to Mexico, it highlighted a disconnect between U.S. Soccer and the Latino community. It’s an issue that desperately needs to be fixed. But while the U.S. focuses on keeping Mexican dual nationals stateside, they can’t forget about the European-based dual nationals who are eligible to represent multiple countries at the senior level. In particular, five young Americans abroad need to be locked down to ensure they play for the USMNT.
No event defines an athlete’s career quite like the World Cup. It’s why people still look at Lionel Messi like he’s got something to prove (he doesn’t) and why the name Chris Wondolowski still brings a tear to the eye of many Americans. The 2014 World Cup made Mario Gotze an international icon, turned James Rodriguez into the hero of Colombians everywhere and earned DeAndre Yedlin a Spurs contract.
LAFC, the newest MLS expansion team, makes its debut this year. The club is still working on sorting out a number of variables from finalizing its roster to completing construction of its stadium. But a new LAFC YouTubeTV deal announced Wednesday means the club now has a shirt sponsor and a local broadcaster. But the local English-language broadcasts won’t be free.
The story of Bruno Zuculini’s young career is one of fire, fury and loan moves. A product of Buenos Aires club Racing, Zuculini made his first team debut with the club, one of the “big five” clubs of Argentine football, at the tender age of 16. After establishing himself as one of the Primera Division’s top talents, Manchester City signed him at the age of 21 for $3.2 million in 2014.
For most sports in the United States, transfer fees are a foreign idea. Athletes in basketball and American football move as free agents or in trades, but rarely are they outright sold for a lump sum. While Major League Soccer maintains some of these cultural ideals, transfer fees are still commonplace. The most expensive MLS transfer fees highlight some of the league’s most ambitious clubs.
There’s no question that Ronaldinho was at the height of his powers between 2002 and 2007, when he was twice named FIFA World Player of the Year and helped Brazil to the World Cup (’02) and Barcelona to the Champions League (’06). However, given how quickly his star faded after leaving Barca in 2008, you could say that the Brazilian attacker’s prime was a 10-year period beginning with his meteoric rise in 1999.