MLS needs more David Ochoas. It needs more players that “enjoy being the villain” and who aren’t — in a league that prides itself on providing the joyful unpredictably of parity — afraid of taking the spotlight and shining it firmly on themselves.
It makes the atmosphere in stadiums better. It makes matchups more intriguing. It creates headlines.
With the OL Reign taking center stage at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma on Sunday, all eyes were on the attacking riches of the No. 2 seed in the NWSL playoffs, including the USWNT duo of Megan Rapinoe and Rose Lavelle, France’s Eugénie Le Sommer, Germany’s Dzsenifer Marozsán and Wales’ Jess Fishlock.
They were collectively outplayed and humbled by the Washington Spirit’s 19-year-old sensation Trinity Rodman and 22-year-old attacker Ashley Sanchez.
PARIS - Kylian Mbappé continued his meteoric rise on Saturday with another jaw-dropping performance as France qualified for next year's World Cup with an 8-0 demolition of Kazakhstan.
The Paris Saint-Germain striker became the first player to score four goals for France in a single game since Just Fontaine against Sweden at the 1958 World Cup.
Five weeks before his 23rd birthday, Mbappé has scored 23 international goals from 52 caps — bettering the marks of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo at the same age.
For the Chicago Fire, 2021 marked a fourth straight season without qualifying for the playoffs. After finishing 22nd overall in 2020 with an average of 1.00 points claimed per game, the Fire where remarkably consistent with regards to being terrible in 2021, finishing 22nd overall with an average of 1.00 points per game.
Forward Christian Pulisic headlines the 25-man roster announced Thursday for the United States Men's National Team's upcoming World Cup qualifiers.
Players will begin reporting to camp in Cincinnati this Sunday. The USMNT will face Mexico at Cincinnati's TQL Stadium on Nov. 12 before traveling to face Jamaica in Kingston on Nov. 16.
The U.S. (3-1-2, 11 points) is currently in second place behind Mexico (4-0-2, 14 points) in the CONCACAF qualifying table for the Qatar World Cup. Canada (2-0-4, 10 points) is third.
MADRID - The first Barcelona v Real Madrid meeting after the departure of Lionel Messi to Paris St Germain will be headlined on Sunday by two youngsters as a game typically billed as a clash of superstars instead looks to the upcoming talent of Vinícius Jr and Ansu Fati.
The two players still have a lot to prove, but their talent has elevated them to a point where they are becoming the new faces of their clubs.
BARCELONA - Ansu Fati marked his first start in almost a year by scoring one goal and creating another as Barcelona came from behind to beat Valencia 3-1 in LaLiga at Camp Nou on Sunday.
Despite being allowed a full capacity crowd for the first time since March 2020, Barça's ground was only half full — and those in attendance were silenced after five minutes as José Gayà's long-range strike swerved into the far corner.
The 2021 Golden Boy finalists list was revealed on Friday and USMNT star Gio Reyna’s name is on the list. The Golden Boy is an annual award voted on by 30 different journalists to determine the best under-21 player in Europe.
The Golden Boy was created in 2003 and has been won by notable names like Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney, Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland. An American has never won the award before.
Reyna is the third American in the last four years to make the cut as a finalist for the honor. Here are the players he will be competing with this year.
Everyone is well-versed in Alphonso Davies’ game-changing pace and ability to dice any defender on the planet off the dribble, but it’s his increasing effectiveness in the final third that makes the 20-year-old standout as one of football’s brightest talents.
That’s not to say it’s a new development in his game. At the tender age of 17 Davies was already one of Major League Soccer’s most devastating players in attack, scoring eight goals and providing 10 assists in 31 games to help facilitate his $11 million move to Bayern. (He’s now valued at $155 million.)