Saturday’s stunning early action between Leeds and Bournemouth at Elland Road saw the home crowd’s halftime boos turn to bliss in the second half as Jesse Marsch’s side snatched a 4-3 win from the jaws of defeat.
It's early in the race for the 2023 Ballon d'Or, but with the season now over 30 percent complete, there's no denying that Real Madrid utility man Federico Valverde has put himself in the conversation with some unbelievable contributions in the Champions League and LaLiga.
It used to be that Valverde was the unsung hero of either the midfield (deputizing effectively for Luka Modrić or Toni Kroos) or right wing (with Karim Benzema and Vini Jr in the spotlight), but this year, whether deployed on the wing or in midfield, the 24-year-old has blossomed into the star of the show.
Every weekend in global football ushers forth a new 30-yard screamer, mesmerizing solo dribble or acrobatic display of technical ability to feast on, but it's a rare thing indeed to see an effort of such bend and swerve that it makes Roberto Carlos weep gentle tears upon his tree trunk legs.
Bend it like Beckham? David Beckham never took a shot near the halfway line that looked destined for a throw-in on the near touchline before violently changing course and swazzing inside the far post. No, bend it like this guy on Kvk Avelgem in Belgium's fourth provisional division.
There have been very few bright spots for Juventus this season. On the back of the club’s humiliation in the Champions League midweek, a host of injuries forced manager Massimiliano Allegri’s hand as he utilized many of his younger players against Lecce. His faith was rewarded by Nicolò Fagioli, who scored a stunning goal to give the Bianconeri a 1-0 win.
21-year-old Nicolò Fagioli delivering for Juve ☄️
PARIS — Lionel Messi grabbed a goal and assist to inspire Paris Saint-Germain to a 4-3 comeback victory over Troyes on Saturday as the Ligue 1 table-toppers extended their lead to five points.
Troyes had stunned the crowd at the Parc des Princes when Mama Balde volleyed home in just the third minute but PSG midfielder Carlos Soler equalized after a superb pass from Neymar as the two teams went into the break at 1-1.
TROYES TAKE THE LEAD EARLY IN THE GAME! ⚽
0-1
Maccabi Haifa's 30-year-old American goalkeeper Josh Cohen was the toast of Europe on Oct. 11 when making five saves en route to a clean sheet during his side's incredible upset of Juventus in the Champions League.
His mission Tuesday? Do it again, but this time against Lionel Messi, Neymar, Kylian Mbappé and PSG at the Parc des Princes in Paris.
This time Cohen faced five shots in the first-half alone and could only watch in agony as four of them found the back of the net.
Cohen couldn't do anything about Messi's opener in the 19th minute.
Chelsea travelled to Red Bull Arena and beat Salzburg 2-1 Tuesday night to clinch passage to the Champions League Round of 16 for the fourth straight year.
Christian Pulisic, making his first start since scoring against Wolves on Oct. 8, played a role in both goals, although they were spectacularly finished by Mateo Kovačić and Kai Havertz.
It's no secret what Youri Tielemans has in his locker. The young Belgian has scored enough stunning goals to fill an impressive YouTube compilation. On Sunday, Leicester City faced off against Wolves and it was his spectacular strike from distance that gave the Foxes the lead en route to an impressive 4-0 win on the road.
Cristian Arango scored in the third minute of second-half stoppage to lift Los Angeles FC to a dramatic 3-2 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Galaxy in a Western Conference semifinal on Thursday night.
Denis Bouanga scored the first two goals for LAFC and also contributed indirectly to Arango's match winner to lift the home side to their second Western Conference final since joining MLS in 2018.
LAFC STRIKES FIRST IN EL TRAFICO! ⚫️
BARCELONA - Barcelona bounced back from their painful Clásico loss in style as they cruised to a 3-0 home LaLiga win over Villarreal with a brace from Robert Lewandowski on Thursday.
Barcelona remained second in the standings on 25 points, three behind Real Madrid and three clear of third-placed Real Sociedad, who have won their last five league games and eight consecutive wins in all competitions.