UEFA

It’s with great sadness that our summer of soccer 2019 draws to a close. The USWNT lifted the World Cup, Brazil triumphed on home soil at the Copa América, Mexico reclaimed the Gold Cup and we’re into the final week of the Africa Cup of Nations. Unless you’re eagerly anticipating the ICC, our glorious summer is at an end.

Tottenham Hotspur is already trying to put it’s Champions League failure in the past. It’s been over a full calendar year since Tottenham has signed a player, and the fact that Mauricio Pochettino was able to take his squad this far without any help from new players is commendable. Though, the only thing Spurs have to show for it is a Champions League berth via a third-place finish in the Premier League and a loss in the previous season’s Champions League final.

In a rematch of the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Final, Spain got revenge on Germany to capture its fifth title, moving the nation level with Italy as the most successful in the history of the Euro U-21 competition.

Spain last achieved U-21 glory when winning back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2013. That extremely skilled cohort included the likes of Juan Mata, David de Gea, Cesar Azpilicueta, Javi Martinez, Isco, Koke and Dani Carvajal, and the 2019 group is sure to achieve just as much international success, if not more than that highly skilled generation.

The story of the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship so far has been the play of Romania, which is participating at the tournament for the first time since 1998. After finishing above Portugal in qualifying, there was a sense that this could be the finest Romanian generation in 20 years, but no one could’ve predicted the start they’d make at this U-21 Championship.

Romania began play last Tuesday with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Croatia, including goals from the highly touted Ianis Hagi and Tudor Băluță. 

It’s been 576 days since the Italian apocalypse at the San Siro in Milan. It was on that fateful evening that Sweden held Italy to a 0-0 draw in a playoff for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, sending the Scandinavian country through 1-0 on aggregate while the Azzurri missed out on their first World Cup in 60 years. 

For Cristiano Ronaldo, the path to UEFA Nations League glory was exceptionally similar to the one he trod to victory at Euro 2016. After a stunning hat trick in the semis to lift Portugal to the final — much like the towering, match-winning header he planted against Wales at the same stage in 2016 — Ronaldo was subdued at the tournament’s climax.

After finishing in fourth place at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and following that up with victories over Spain and Croatia in the inaugural UEFA Nations League, support for England is at a fever pitch. 

There’s a profound sense of optimism surrounding Gareth Southgate’s side, and the nation is relishing an exciting crop of players that features Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Marcus Rashford. 

After a minor injury that spiraled into 10 operations, an infection that ate away at his tendon and threatened foot amputation, a skin graft that resulted in part of his left arm tattoo moving to his right foot and ultimately, a spell of 636 days without football, Santi Cazorla made a remarkable comeback with Villarreal last season, appearing in 46 matches, scoring seven goals and providing 11 assists. 

Liverpool FC returned home on Sunday to present its sixth European Cup on an open-top bus parade through the city’s streets. It’s the club’s first major title since the 2006 FA Cup (no, we don’t count the 2012 League Cup), and a massive crowd turned out to greet the players and staff as they made their way around the city before finishing near Strand Street, where the River Mersey empties into Liverpool Bay.