A foul in any sport is almost always detrimental to the team that committed the infraction. In soccer, a single foul can decide the outcome of a match. Mexico can tell you all about it after the infamous Arjen Robben flop at the 2014 World Cup.
Barcelona returned to the top of the LaLiga following a crucial 1-0 victory over Atlético Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano on Sunday, and it was a sensational Lionel Messi effort in 86th minute that secured all three points for the visitors.
When Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus, he immediately became the team’s No. 1 free-kick taker, despite the fact the Old Lady already had a couple world-class free kick takers.
Ronaldo has proven himself to be one of the best at spot kicks, but the numbers show he hasn’t brought that prowess with him to Italy.
Former Atlético Madrid youth/Arsenal flop Lucas Pérez scored the greatest goal of his career (although he did hit a nice bicycle kick earlier this season), earning Alavés a 1-1 draw with Atlético in Basque Country on Tuesday.
This was not a Madrid Derby to remember. Players like João Félix, Eden Hazard and Kieran Trippier received their first taste of the capital-city clasico, but none were able to make much of an imprint in a 0-0 draw between Real and Atlético Madrid on Saturday at the Wanda.
Atleti keeper Jan Oblak was probably the best player on the pitch, making a couple great saves on Toni Kroos and Karim Benzema. But Real Madrid’s offensive forays were summed up most appropriately by an effort from Gareth Bale in the 57th minute.
Tuttosport officially narrowed its Golden Boy (best young player under 21) shortlist to 40 candidates, and before the list gets any smaller I thought it’d be fun to rank the candidates who I believe will end up in the top 10.
A lot of the pregame hype for Juventus vs. Atlético Madrid surrounded the matchup between Portugal’s past-and-current king, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Portugal’s future king, João Félix.
But the match was decided by the matchup between Mexico’s Héctor Herrera and former Arsenal man Aaron Ramsey, two second-half substitutes.
A video of Juventus’ training session Tuesday has taken social media by storm. The clip features a frustrated Gonzalo Higuain lashing out during a game of rondo (monkey in the middle).
Higuain lost it in training today pic.twitter.com/k6BaXEyS6c
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) September 17, 2019
108 days after Liverpool lifted the Champions League trophy in Madrid, we’re set to do it all over again with a competition that’ll reach its conclusion on May 30 in Istanbul. Matchday one begins tomorrow (Tuesday, Sept. 17) with a couple massive group stage encounters before carrying through to Wednesday with a couple more.
Below, we’ll highlight those four games while also breaking down the Champions League TV schedule on TNT.
Tuesday, September 17
The Women’s International Champions Cup kicks off Thursday — and it’s kind of a big deal.
While the men’s International Champions Cup is just a glorified list of preseason exhibitions, the women’s version actually means something. Aside from the UEFA Women’s Champions League, it’s rare for women’s clubs to face off against clubs from other countries, let alone continents. There is no Club World Cup for women, so the Women’s International Champions Cup fills the gaps left by FIFA’s lack of commitment to the women’s game.