Bayern Munich has signed 17-year-old Real Salt Lake academy product Taylor Booth on a three-and-a-half-year deal, according to Sports Illustrated. Booth is a member of the USMNT U-18 team, and he was a part of the U.S. squad that advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2017 U-17 World Cup.
FC Barcelona is calling it the goal of the season. Deadspin called it “the platonic ideal of a Barcelona goal.” Ray Hudson said it was “kaleidoscopic football of the highest order." It was the crowning achievement of the club’s remarkable turnaround against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey quarterfinals — shifting a 0-2 first leg deficit into a 6-3 aggregate victory.
On Monday, Italian legend Gianluigi Buffon celebrated his 41st birthday. The man with 176 international appearances to his name is now chasing his personal Holy Grail — the UEFA Champions League title — with Paris Saint-Germain, but recent reports suggest that the birthday boy will carry on playing past his 42nd birthday.
This is Giancarlo Favarin, manager of Serie C club Lucchese. You’re not going to see much of him anymore, because he’s been banned for five months for unloading his cranium straight into the face of an opposing team's assistant coach. During the 2-2 draw between his side and rival Alessandria, Favarin also instructed one of his players to break an opponent’s legs. That’s also a big no-no when it comes to touchline etiquette.
You’ve heard this before: A broken foot is threatening to prematurely end Neymar’s club season, and he could be facing a race for fitness ahead of a major international tournament.
Last season, Neymar sustained a crack to the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot during a match against Marseille on Feb. 25. The injury was worse than first expected, required surgery and Neymar missed PSG’s Champions League Round of 16 return leg against Real Madrid before sitting out the rest of the season.
After scoring only five league goals in 32 appearances last season — coupled with the celebration of his 31st birthday in December — the limelight had decidedly shifted away from Karim Benzema at Real Madrid and onto potential transfer targets like Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford and Eden Hazard.
Barcelona maintained its five-point lead at the top of LaLiga with a 2-0 victory over Girona on Sunday. Nelson Semedo opened the scoring in the ninth minute with his first-ever goal for the club, and Messi completed the scoring in the 68th with a delicate finish. The goal was, of course, assisted by Jordi Alba.
Messi now has 14 goals and nine assists in his last 13 games. He’s also scored in seven straight games in all competitions.
Watching 19-year-old American Tyler Adams make his debut for RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga, it was easy to understand why former New York Red Bulls midfield partner Dax McCarty referred to him as “the Terminator.” Leipzig raced out to a 3-0 lead as early as the 16th minute with a combination of fearlessness, speed and physicality — words that perfectly summed up Adams’ display in the midfield over that period.
On Friday, it was confirmed that Thierry Henry had officially left his position as manager of Monaco after a disastrously short reign of just over 100 days. Henry was appointed back on Oct. 11 with the club languishing in 18th, and after two wins over the following 12 league matches, Henry was dismissed with the club now sitting 19th.
Where did it all go wrong for Henry?
Hirving “Chucky” Lozano had a great start to PSV Eindhoven’s 2-1 win over Groningen on Saturday. He had a finish he’ll want to forget — if he can even remember it at all.
Lozano was vital to helping PSV remain ahead of Ajax in the race for the Eredivisie standings. He scored two goals in the opening 20 minutes as the Boeren moved five points clear of Ajax, which plays rival Feyenoord in De Klassieker on Sunday.