Julian Green is yet to play a minute in the Bundesliga this season. His only appearance for the Bavarian giants was as a substitute in the DFB Pokal. For the USMNT, Green’s last start prior to this October call-up was back in 2014 — the same year he’d scored his lone, albeit unforgettable, USA goal.
The England National Team's Wayne Rooney era appears to be drawing to a close after interim manager Gareth Southgate announced the captain would be dropped against Slovenia.
After a performance from Rooney against Malta that involved a lot of standing around and not very much doing things, Southgate must have felt he had no choice in the matter, even though Sam Allardyce and Roy Hodgson had been cowed into keeping Rooney in their respective England teams. Southgate appears to have followed the example set by Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho in dropping the player.
In an interview with Corriere dello Sport, Roma captain Francesco Totti shocked many by naming a somewhat controversial figure as his best teammate ever. The player Totti named was Antonio Cassano, the maverick who's appeared for seven different clubs in his career.
Paul pogba is one of those players who can change a match with one kick, seemingly out of nowhere. Here's proof:
That was too much boom for Stekelenburg to handle. #Pogboom #WCQ https://t.co/5uMFtoYabo
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) October 10, 2016
James Rodriguez has been the subject of death threats on Twitter as revealed by his mother. The Colombian international received a photo of a box filled with ammunition and a gun while a couple of other weapons are also visible in frame.
“Do you want to see how James would look dead?” said the message from the anonymous user. “I’m coming to your house now, say goodbye to all your loves ones.”
By any measure, Gerard Pique is one of the best central defenders ever, an omnipresent force in the back lines of Champions League-winning Barcelona sides and World Cup and European Championship-winning Spanish sides. Pique announced his decision to retire from the latter following the 2018 World CUp in Russia, and now everyone is talking about his shirts.
The pre-match team photo is so innocuous and brief that it hardly even registers when watching it take place. Like players holding the hands of little child mascots when entering the field, it's just one of those things that happens. Don't question it, don't even think about it, let's just get it over with.
The starting XI gets in two balanced rows, the players in the back drape their arms over one another and everyone stares blankly into the camera for a moment. What’s the point of the exercise? Where does the photo end up? Who’s getting any joy from this photo op?
After three consecutive major final losses, Argentina decided to rebuild their squad. Edgardo Bauza became their third coach in just over two years, and everybody is hoping for a fresh start after their heart breaking loss to Chile in the Copa America Centenario.
Recently, Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo has been the subject of intense scrutiny, with critics claiming that the two time Ballon d'Or winner has lost a step.
In true superstar fashion, Ronaldo didn’t spend time complaining in the media like Madrid captain Sergio Ramos, but instead fired back at critics with a convincing four-goal performance, just one goal shy of Portugal’s record for goals in a game. This game marks his 42nd career hat trick, as the Portuguese star showed that he is still one of the best.
In a match between the Netherlands and Belarus, the Spartak Moscow striker Quincy Promes drew first blood with a quadruple nutmeg goal in the 14th minute. This was the first of two first half goals from the young winger, and his first ever goal for his country.
It appears that the Netherlands have a never ending supply of fast wingers, as Quincy Promes' value continues to rise.