“Who is Brandon Vazquez?” is a question that United States men’s national team fans could be asking themselves. If you’re a fan of the USMNT who doesn’t pay too much attention to Major League Soccer, then you might not know about the 23-year-old FC Cincinnati forward.
The new "semi-automated offside technology" that's going to be used at the 2022 World Cup made its Champions League debut this week, and guess what, controversy and existential questions regarding humankind's dwindling agency in its own game — at the hands of the robots! — reigned supreme.
The world's love of soccer stems from many reasons, but one of the most fundamental tenets of the game is that it can be played by anyone, anywhere and at anytime. If you have a ball, then you have your Theater of Dreams.
For far too long America remained largely ignorant of this fact — believing that the sport was only played 11-on-11 on the pristine fields of suburban America. Thankfully, that way of thinking has suffered a humiliating death (see: MLS 1.0 to 3.0), and the people's game is now thriving across the country's urban core.
With a new season on the horizon, The18 felt it was appropriate to create Champions League group stage predictions for the 2022-23 season. We’ve already submitted our Champions League predictions for the rest of our league picks such as winner and top scorer. Now it’s time for each group.
The largest club competition in the world returns on Tuesday. Following the draw on Aug. 25, the Champions League groups have been made and play will begin on Sept. 6 when both games in Group G kick off.
The18 staff broke out our crystal balls to make some bold predictions for the 2022-23 Champions League season. Let us know how you feel about our Champions League predictions for 2022-23.
Corey Basciano (Client Experience)
What happens to Christian Pulisic now?
It’s a question on the minds of many U.S. fans after Pulisic didn’t secure a loan or transfer away from Chelsea. With the summer window now closed, the next couple months look bleak for the USMNT’s No. 10.
Pulisic wanted a move out of London, but the club denied him.
Christian Pulisic’s situation at Chelsea worsens by the day and took an even worse turn during Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Southampton on Tuesday.
Before Chelsea’s Premier League game, it was announced that Pulisic wouldn’t be allowed to leave the club for a summer loan or transfer. The summer transfer window closes on Thursday.
Another week, another opportunity to explore the depths to which I will exploit recency bias. Is Leadership Council member Christian Pulisic really being left off the plane or is that just a crutch for article formatting? Is Jesse Marsch a traitor to his nation for taking off Brenden Aaronson before full-time? Is Joe Scally the defensive infiltrator we've been having sleepless nights about?
It's only 25 days until the USMNT plays a friendly against Japan in Germany, and Gregg Berhalter has to answer these questions.
If someone had asked me close to this time last year which USMNT strikers would go to Qatar I would have had Ricadro Pepi top of mind. Fast forward to present day and the job for the starting striker at the World Cup with the USMNT is there for the taking with several bidders.
Josh Sargent is in the best form of his career, Jordan Pefok has been a menace in front of goal for Union Berlin and Haji Wright is racking up the goals in Turkey. All three USMNT strikers had goal contributions this weekend.