Once upon a time, when a club found its superstar player linked with a move to a bigger club, they used to repeat the same refrain: “We are not a selling club.” It was always a particularly meaningless phrase; every club is a selling club at the right price, not least in this era of
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With Atlanta and Houston among the most recent MLS clubs to be ousted from the CCL, the FC crew assess the root causes of their struggles. MONTERREY – CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani isn’t buying recent reports suggesting that MLS and Liga MX clubs could soon be competing in the Copa Libertadores. Montagliani is confident that
Steve Nicol, Craig Burley and Alejandro Moreno talk Coutinho’s struggles at Barcelona as the former Liverpool man was subjected to jeers by his own fans on Wednesday. Barcelona take a commanding 3-0 lead into the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Liverpool after a dominant performance at home. The ESPN FC panel don’t
The FC’s crew agree that an off-the-pace midfield was a bigger worry for Tottenham than missing key players in their loss to Ajax. Tottenham Hotspur defender Jan Vertonghen did not suffer concussion during Tuesday’s Champions League semifinal first leg loss against Ajax Amsterdam, the north London club said on Thursday. The 32-year-old Belgium international collided
Despite winning their Europa League 1st leg match 3-1 over Valencia, Paul Mariner wasn’t impressed with Arsenal’s night at The Emirates. LONDON — With strikers this good, sometimes everything else just takes care of itself. Arsenal have one foot in the Europa League final, and that is in spite of the fact that nobody would
Xavi Hernandez spent the majority of his storied career at Barcelona. Barcelona and Spain legend Xavi Hernandez has officially announced that he will retire from football after 21 years. The Spanish national team veteran, who plays in Qatar for Al Sadd, confirmed in an open letter on Thursday that this will be his last season
Gab Marcotti shares his thoughts on where David De Gea might end up if he decides to leave Manchester United this summer. After another David De Gea blunder against Chelsea, Craig Burley examines the Man United keeper’s struggles and ponders his frame of mind. The transfer window for Europe’s biggest clubs is closed, but you
By Andrew Cesare Richardson, ESPN writer With Milan’s season spiraling toward disaster, Gab Marcotti examines Gennaro Gattuso’s future and whether Antonio Conte is waiting in the wings. A loss leaves free falling Milan two points off Roma for fourth and level with Torino, who announced themselves as top four contenders with the win. AC Milan’s
Barcelona take a commanding 3-0 lead into the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Liverpool after a dominant performance at home. Lionel Messi produced the latest in his long line of incredible moments with a picture-perfect dead ball strike against Liverpool. The ESPN FC panel don’t have a bad word to say about
Atletico Madrid will face the MLS All-Stars this summer. Atletico Madrid have been confirmed as opponents for the MLS All-Star Game in Orlando on July 31, continuing the trend of an elite European team playing against the best in Major League Soccer. “The atmosphere in Orlando will be intense and memorable when Atletico Madrid takes
Eintracht Frankfurt hung on in the Bundesliga but have established themselves as a consistent developer of young talent and a team to be reckoned with. “Best football team in Germany,” read the Eintracht Frankfurt supporters’ banner and over the course of the game, it went from being vaguely funny to painfully ridiculous. Their side were
The transfer window for Europe’s biggest clubs is closed, but you can click here to review all the deals. Transfer Talk will continue to scour the world’s media and set correspondents loose to see what’s on the agenda for the summer. Jump to: De Ligt to lead exodus? | Insigne in demand | Rangers eye strikers | Bakayoko
Julien Laurens explains what sort of punishment Neymar faces for an alleged swipe at a spectator and whether it affects how PSG fans perceive him. Frank Leboeuf explains why PSG need to do everything they can to keep Kylian Mbappe around and why they’d be better off letting Neymar go. The mother and agent of
The transfer window for Europe’s biggest clubs is closed, but you can click here to review all the deals. Transfer Talk will continue to scour the world’s media and set correspondents loose to see what’s on the agenda for the summer. TOP STORY: “Manchester United have stepped up their pursuit of Portuguese duo Joao Felix
Take a look at all the goals from this weeks Premier league fixtures, including Sergio Agüero’s stunner to keep Manchester City’s league title hopes alive. An ESPN FC viewer asks the crew if they think Manchester City and Liverpool would swap Premier League and Champions League positions if they could. Manchester City scraped to a
Gab Marcotti shares his thoughts on where David De Gea might end up if he decides to leave Manchester United this summer. Manchester United must win their final two games and rely on other results to have any hope of making the top four after a 1-1 draw with Chelsea. After another David De Gea
Join the Exploding Heads as they reflect back at April’s highlights, including Chris Hughton’s April Fools’ fallout, Tottenham’s new stadium tilting London and more. The best way to deal with Lionel Messi is to treat him like football’s version of The Incredible Hulk: Don’t make him angry and you might just be spared an ordeal
David Beckham delves into the thought process behind Inter Miami CF’s crest and his vision of creating one that has both South American flavour and modern flare. Landon Donovan? Sebastian Giovinco? MLS stars tell ESPN which iconic players in league history deserve to be immortalized like David Beckham. The much-anticipated statue of David Beckham outside
Craig Burley says Tottenham-Ajax is a 50-50 call, but he lays out how Ajax can extend their unlikely run into the Champions League final. The FC’s crew agree that an off-the-pace midfield was a bigger worry for Tottenham than missing key players in their loss to Ajax. Three police officers were injured and eight arrests
Craig Burley has been unimpressed by Maurizio Sarri’s first season at Chelsea but explains why he deserves another season at Stamford Bridge. Manchester United must win their final two games and rely on other results to have any hope of making the top four after a 1-1 draw with Chelsea. After another David De Gea