Over the past few seasons, Arsenal have lacked the attacking guile from wide areas which their adversaries flaunt in abundance. While the interminable links to Thomas Lemar and Wilfried Zaha suggest the club have reportedly tried to resolve this issue, the Gunners appear to have stumbled upon one of their own in Bukayo Saka.  …

This past season, several young Norwegian players finally established themselves as elite prospects in Europe’s top five leagues; Erling Haaland netted an astonishing 44 goals and 10 assists at Borussia Dortmund and Red Bull Salzburg, Martin Ødegaard had a brilliant loan spell at Real Sociedad, whilst Sander Berge has won a starting spot for Chris…

After the conclusion of a 15-year spell with his hometown club of OGC Nice on the 1st of July 2020, 21-year-old Malang Sarr has become one of the most sought after and desirable free agents on the market this summer. With a plethora of major European teams chasing him to acquire his services for the…

On April 13, 2014, Martin Ødegaard became the youngest ever player to debut in the Norwegian top flight at 15 years and 118 days old, coming on as a substitute against Aalesunds FK at the Marienlyst Stadion. It took him just 18 minutes to make his mark on the game; he picked up a loose…

In February 2019, FIFA leveed Chelsea with a one-year transfer ban after the English club was found to have breached international regulations in relation to third-party influence and youth player registration.   While Chelsea were able to register Christian Pulisic, who they signed nearly two months prior to the ban before loaning him back to…

Manuel Lanzini burst onto the scene as a 22-year old during West Ham’s outstanding 2015/16 campaign, combining with the extraordinary Dimitri Payet to propel the Hammers to a seventh-place finish in their last season at Upton Park.   The Argentinian attacking midfielder, who was then on loan from Abu Dhabi-based Al-Jazira, scored 8 goals and…

In recent months, United States international Weston McKennie has been linked with a move away from Schalke 04. The 21-year-old has been linked with a wide variety of clubs ranging from Hertha Berlin, Southampton, Everton, Leicester City and Aston Villa, with Schalke reportedly demanding a fee within the region of £20 million.   When McKennie…

From Gaetano Scirea to Franco Baresi, from Paolo Maldini to Giuseppe Bergomi, from Alessandro Nesta to Fabio Cannavaro, Italy has been blessed with a long line of world-class defenders over the years, and the latest examples in this list are Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci.   To paraphrase the words of Tottenham Hotspur manager José…

Over the years, several African nations have become specialists at producing players of a certain position or role. Nigeria has become famed for its lethal, potent forwards such as Rashidi Yekhini and Victor Osimhen, Mali for its long-legged, restless midfield workhorses like Seydou Keïta and Diadie Samassékou, whilst Cameroon has developed a penchant for its…

When the 2018/19 Premier League season concluded, Manchester United finished in a disappointing 6th place, a season in which they conceded a total of 54 league goals, more than any other club inside of the top 6. The oft criticized trio of Chris Smalling, Phil Jones and Marcos Rojo combined for a total of 41…