Juventus have announced the signing of Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira on a free transfer after his contract and role at the Bernabeu have come to an end. He was overshadowed by the dominance of Kroos, his fellow national teammate, in the midfield, and even by Sergio Ramos sporadically throughout European competitions.  

Sweden and Norway fought to a nil-nil draw yesterday, and the balance struck on the score line is a good reflection of the balance that currently exists between the countries’ respective superstars: Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Martin Odegaard. One has been one of the top 5 players in the world for the past decade, but is aging closer and closer to retirement; the other is a 16-year-old that has expectations of greatness on his shoulders, both for Norway and for Real Madrid.

As Carlo Ancelotti leaves the Bernabeu and Benitez takes his place, the rumored starting XI for Real Madrid has consumed the media. It is expected that the former Chelsea and Liverpool boss will look into the Premier League’s talent to complete his squad in order to replace the likes of Iker Casillas and Gareth Bale should they leave the club. A few possibilities:

Manel Vich's job is cooler than your job.

Vich is the voice of Barcelona. He's been annoucing Barca's lineup since 1956.

He precedes Camp Nou. Vich is an emblem of Barcelona more than anyone else in the club's history. This is a man who can tick off the stars he has watched come and go like items on his grocery list. A humorous anecdote about the pronunciation of Johan Cruyff's name, for example. Most people would kill to meet someone as famous as Cruyff, much less argue with him about how his name should be pronounced to the Barcelona faithful.

As expected, Barcelona has won the Copa del Rey, setting a scene in which both the Catalan team and Juventus seek not only the Orejona (a.k.a. the Champions League title), but the coveted treble after winning the League and Cup in their respective countries.

I've thought relentlessly about Saturday's Champions League final, and here's the best question I can find:

"How many times can Juventus spring Carlos Tevez?"

Rafa Benitez has set the bar very high as the manager of Real Madrid. He has lauded the quality of his team, and thrown down the gauntlet in terms of what kinds of expectations he has set for himself. During his official presentation at his new club, Benitez said that he wants to win “each game.”

“The idea is to try and win from the first game, that is what I inherited here, regardless of the competition." 

We’ve all spent countless hours playing FIFA and PES pulling off goals that can only be dreamt of. Real Madrid’s James Rodriguez is no exception, but he has done the unthinkable and turned his virtual footballer into reality.

A video has gone viral of Rodriguez and his mates when he was younger scoring an incredible bending free kick on the video game Pro Evolution Soccer. It only took a few years for the Colombian to don the same white shirt and score an identical goal for Real Madrid against Getafe. 

Gianluigi Buffon is quite possibly the coolest goal keeper to ever live. The kind of net minder to casually give a thumbs up and a wink after saving the day with the kind of tackle or stop that had the other 90,000 people around him gasping for air. He is unflappable, I guess that must be a trait that one picks up after 20 years between the posts at the top of Italian soccer. 

It speaks volumes, then, to hear such a man talk about Lionel Messi the way Buffon has. A picture is worth a thousand words; Buffon’s metaphor might be worth more. 

In a recent interview with Sqwauka, Messi confirmed what nearly any soccer fan in the world could already tell you: Suarez and Neymar are some of the best teammates he has ever had. 

"I had a great connection with Ronaldinho. I played with Samuel Eto'o, with Thierry Henry, with Pedro, David Villa, Alexis [Sanchez].

"But I have to say that it is hard to top lining up alongside Neymar and Suarez. They are two players at the top of their games.”