The United States opened U-20 World Cup play with a frustrating 2-1 loss to Ukraine in Bielsko-Biała, Poland, on Friday. Ukraine scored with its first shot on target, but the U.S. responded with a brilliant 14-pass move to equalize. However, despite holding 67 percent of possession and registering 10 shots, Ukraine scored the game-winner off a corner kick in the 51st minute.
In great news for Jamaica, the 2019 Gold Cup and fans attending the USMNT’s upcoming friendly against the Reggae Boyz at Audi Field in Washington, D.C., 21-year-old Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey is reportedly finally set to make his international debut for the side after years of disputes between the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), the player and his representative, step-father Craig Butler.
It’s raining sideways in Herzogenaurach on Monday evening with the temperature hovering in the low 40s. With a colossal match against Augsburg — one place above Schalke in the desperate battle to avoid the Bundesliga relegation playoff — looming the following Sunday, you could forgive Weston McKennie for being in a foul mood after traveling over 400 kilometers from Gelsenkirchen to arrive at adidas headquarters in Herzo for an evening of interviews.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Wayne Rooney may grab the headlines, but Major League Soccer is seeing noticeable growth from the other side of the career timeline. Efrain Alvarez, Paxton Pomykal and Gianluca Busio have already had tremendous starts to their 2019 campaigns and should continue to be regular contributors for the Galaxy, FC Dallas, and Sporting Kansas City, respectively.
When Garth Lagerway joined the Seattle Sounders in 2015 as the General Manager and President of Soccer, it wasn't just to get Seattle its first MLS Cup. The Sounders wanted to build an entirely revamped academy system — one able to develop talent for the MLS side, challenge at the youth level, gain pro experience at a USL affiliate (the Tacoma Defiance), and potentially be sold on to Europe.
The club's recent historic achievement in the Generation Adidas Cup was a major step in the evolution of the process.
With a home match to come against Levante on Saturday followed by next Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal first leg against Liverpool, Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde elected to begin today’s away match versus Alavés with Lionel Messi on the bench.
No matter.
Before Messi entered the match in the 61st minute, goals from Carles Aleñá and Luis Suárez had already put Barça on the verge of a second straight LaLiga title. If Atlético Madrid loses to Valencia tomorrow, the crown belongs to Barcelona. Regardless, there’s no way in hell Barça loses it now.
During Monday’s Premier League matchup with Burnley, Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi was subbed off after an apparent foot injury in the first half. The 18-year-old phenom had to be helped off the field in the 42nd minute and was replaced by Pedro. Chelsea went on to draw 2-2 with Burnley as both teams went scoreless in the second half after a frantic opening 45 minutes.
After the game, Chelsea fans' worst fears were confirmed as the attacker said his Achilles was ruptured in a tweet.
After two consecutive defeats turned the narrative surrounding PSG into the sort of existential crisis that could only be penned by compatriot Jean-Paul Sartre, Kylian Mbappé’s 55-minute hat trick — taking him to 30 goals on the year and just three behind Lionel Messi in the race for the European Golden Shoe — propelled the club to a sixth Ligue 1 title in seven seasons.
When you’ve recently churned out talent like Marco Reus, Mario Götze and Christian Pulisic, people get a bit more interested in the next generation of young lads at the Hohenbuschei training ground in the quiet Dortmund suburb of Brackel.
The adventures of 19-year-old Benfica phenom João Félix continue. Days after becoming the youngest-ever scorer of a hat trick in the Europa League, Félix scored his 11th goal of the Primeira Liga season in Benfica’s 4-2 victory over Setúbal.
The kid’s been dubbed “the next Cristiano Ronaldo” because he comes from Portugal, does a lot of goals and that’s a really good moniker to drive clicks, but he really doesn’t play like Ronaldo. He’s probably more akin to “the next Kaká.”