The Super Bowl is around the corner, a time when all Americans gather around a TV to shovel nachos into their mouths while drinking copious amounts of beer, all under the guise of watching that abating sport called American football. Of course, all anyone really cares about, besides the food and beer, is the commercials, and we got our nacho-covered hands on the latest 2020 Budweiser Super Bowl ad on Thursday.
Last season’s Champions League semifinals were a romantic’s dream. Such was the scale of the attacking ambitions of the last four clubs remaining that almost all of the tournament’s top providers were on display: With five assists each, Ajax’s Dušan Tadić and the Barcelona duo of Luis Suárez and Jordi Alba finished as joint-leaders (along with Manchester City’s Leroy Sané). Just behind them with four assists was Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Injuries, a contentious World Cup and the personal admission of a desire to abandon the PSG project have all adversely affected Neymar over the past two years — so much so that he found himself omitted entirely from the 30-man list for the 2019 Ballon d’Or.
There’s something deeply visceral about the Premier League. When the wind’s swirling, the temperature’s dropping and a legendary old ground like Anfield or Stamford Bridge is rocking, it’s all equal parts blood and thunder in England. This sort of environment lends itself perfectly to some truly violent screamers, the likes of which we’ve witnessed over the years from famed goal scorers such as Alan Shearer, Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard and Thierry Henry.
At the age of 25, Paulo Dybala’s already conquered much of the footballing world — fitting for a man that celebrates his goals by donning a figurative gladiator mask. This season marks his fifth with Italian power Juventus, and every previous year has finished with a Serie A title to go along with three Coppa Italia triumphs.
Under the leadership of first-year American manager Jesse Marsch, RB Salzburg is running riot at the top of the Austrian Bundesliga. The club is undefeated after nine matches with eight wins, one draw and a goal difference of +31. They’re also through to the Round of 16 in the Austrian Cup, but it’s the club’s early performances in the Champions League that've made Europe take notice.
The heartbreaking DaMarcus Beasley retirement is days away. The legendary American footballer, the only USMNT player to appear in four World Cups, will hang up his boots after the Houston Dynamo host the LA Galaxy on Sunday afternoon.
Beasley announced his plans to retire days before his 37th birthday in May, but it’s still hard to believe the iconic player will call an end to his 20-year career this week.
Evgeni Chernov deserves a raise after making perhaps the best double save of all time.
He’ll have to settle for three points.
Chernov and his FC Rostov crew traveled to Moscow to play Lokomotiv Moscow on Saturday and came away with a 2-1 victory over last season’s runners-up. The Muzhiki (translates to Tough Guys) have Chernov to thank for the win.
A 26-year-old left back, Chernov made an unbelievable double save to deny Lokomotiv, and we’re still trying to wrap our heads around that second block.
It’s Rivalry Week in MLS once again, which means there are some pretty tasty matchups brewing this weekend, perhaps the last weekend that won’t be dominated by American football until next season.