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Ange Postecoglou, who is known for his bullish belief in his ability to win silverware, declared he is aiming to do what he always does at Nottingham Forest: win. Just months after being shown the door at Tottenham despite delivering the Europa League, the 60-year-old is back in English football, replacing Nuno Espirito Santo only three games into the new Premier League campaign. Postecoglou vows to bring silverware Forest gamble on trophy-winning coach First clash looms against Arsenal on Saturday WHAT HAPPENED? Forest’s decision shocked some, especially as Nuno had delivered the club’s most successful season in decades. But with owner Evangelos Marinakis demanding more, Postecoglou has been handed the keys to a squad with European football on the horizon. THE BIGGER PICTURE At Spurs, Postecoglou once famously quipped that he always secures silverware by his second season. Now, with Forest’s ambitious board breathing down his neck, he admitted the timeline might have to be sped up.
Thiago Alcantara has started his new role as Barcelona assistant coach under Hansi Flick, bringing his vision and experience to the first-team setup. Thiago confirmed as Barca coach La Masia graduate returns Work already underway with Flick WHAT HAPPENED? Thiago has officially began work at Barcelona as a first-team assistant coach to Flick. The 34-year-old, who previously starred for Barca before winning titles with Bayern Munich and Liverpool, was spotted at the club’s facilities earlier this week and joined the players on the pitch in his new role. He will be responsible for tactical preparation, planning training sessions and providing his vision to support the squad’s daily work. His first day back at the club coincided with the return of the likes of Marcus Rashford, Jules Kounde, Raphinha, Andreas Christensen, Ronald Araujo and Roony Bardghji from international duty. WHAT BARCELONA SAID The Catalan giants officially welcomed Thiago back into the fold with a statement confirming his new role on Flick’s coaching staff. "First official day on the job for Thiago Alcántara as a member of the coaching staff. The former blaugrana player started work on the grass today as a member of the first team coaching staff as an assistant coach to Hansi Flick. His role will involve helping with tactical aspects and preparing training sessions, among other things, bringing his experience and vision of the game to enrich the squad's day to day work," the club announced. THE BIGGER PICTURE The Spaniard's return is a symbolic and strategic move as Barca undergo a rebuild under Flick. A La Masia product with Champions League pedigree, he blends deep knowledge of the club’s style with...
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher fears the club's failure to sign Marc Guehi could come back to haunt them in the Premier League title race. Liverpool missed out on Guehi signing Crystal Palace pulled plug late on Carragher fears it could cost Liverpool WHAT HAPPENED? Guehi, 25, was on the brink of joining the Reds on transfer deadline day after they agreed a £35 million fee (€40.5m/$47m] with Crystal Palace for the defender. However despite undergoing a medical with Liverpool, Palace pulled the plug at the last moment following reports that manager Oliver Glasner threatened to quit should the transfer go through without his side securing a replacement THE BIGGER PICTURE And while Carragher believes Liverpool remain firm favourites for the Premier League despite missing out on Guehi, he says the club will now be sweating on the fitness of defensive duo Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk in their pursuit of a second successive title in 2025-26. WHAT CARRAGHER SAID Speaking to The Overlap Podcast, Carragher - who made 737 appearances for Liverpool - said: "Might they [Liverpool] regret that [missing out on Guehi]? Listen, they are three games in, nine points from nine and probably not played that well, so we would probably all say they are big favourites, Liverpool. But that is the one area [defence] where that could come back and blow up in their face because they haven't really got that [cover]. What Guehi was getting was giving Liverpool competition at centre-back. They haven't really got that. They've got two starters and two understudies. "Joe Gomez, injury-prone himself, and the young lad from Italy [Giovanni Leoni], he is going to...
Benfica presidential candidate Cristovao Carvalho has made a bold claim as he vows to replace Bruno Lage with Jurgen Klopp should he be elected. Benfica in middle of a hotly contested presidential election Candidate Carvalho promises to replace Bruno Lage Carvalho's preferred choice is Jurgen Klopp WHAT HAPPENED? The 2025 Benfica presidential election is heating up, with candidates making ambitious and often sensational promises to win over the club's supporters. The race has already seen candidates like Joao Noronha Lopes make big promises of bringing Bernardo Silva back from Manchester City. Now, another candidate, Carvalho, has made the most significant pledge yet, promising to dismiss current coach Bruno Lage at the end of the season and replace him with ex-Liverpool manager Klopp, a coach he believes can lead Benfica to a Champions League title. THE BIGGER PICTURE Candidates are not just vying for power but are presenting radically different visions for the club's strategic direction. While some candidates like Noronha Lopes focus on player recruitment, and Joao Diogo Manteigas on club values and governance, Carvalho has gone for a big-name managerial appointment. The move is a direct challenge to the current administration and a clear statement of Carvalho's intent to bring Benfica back to the elite level of European football. WHAT CARVALHO SAID Speaking with SIC Noticias, Carvalho laid out his plan for the club's managerial future, insisting that a Champions League-winning coach is essential to his project. He said: "With me, Bruno Lage won't stay beyond his contract [which ends at the end of the season]. I need a coach of the highest level, who has already won the Champions League and...
Frenkie De Jong is back in training with no serious injury scare but coach Hansi Flick is taking a cautious approach with the midfielder. Flick exercising extreme caution with de Jong Goal is to have him at his peak for Champions League Club prioritising shift in strategy to avoid setbacks WHAT HAPPENED? Barcelona’s star midfielder De Jong has returned to the training pitch. The 28-year-old, who suffered a gluteal injury while on international duty with Netherlands, trained outside the group under the close supervision of the club’s fitness coaches. According to Sport, he arrived later than his team-mates for a light, partial session, a move that confirms his injury is not a long-term one. However, it also shows the club’s newfound philosophy of extreme caution, prioritising a full recovery over a rushed return. THE BIGGER PICTURE The absence of players like Gavi and Alejandro Balde have created a midfield selection crisis, forcing Flick to rely on others like Marc Casado and Pedri. This situation has been a major blow to Flick's plans, which rely on a physically robust squad to execute his trademark high-pressing and quick-transitioning tactics. The club's medical team are also working to get youth player Marc Bernal back on the pitch, but his return is also being treated with immense caution, given that it has been 365 days since he underwent surgery. TELL ME MORE De Jong’s return to training is a welcome sign, but he has been ruled out of the upcoming La Liga match against Valencia. The club’s main goal are to ensure he is in peak condition for the upcoming Champions League match against Newcastle. Meanwhile, the...
The soccer team, which represents one of the city's major agencies, includes two World Trade Center first responders, and commemorates them in full Ron Mejia was driving uptown to work. A New York City Cop, everything seemed normal. Spanish music was on the radio. He was recovering mentally from a soccer tournament the previous weekend, still getting back into the pulse and rhythm of the city after a few days in Toronto. Then, the music stopped, and an announcement blared through the speakers. A plane had hit the World Trade Center. At first, he thought little of it. But a glimpse downtown revealed smoke rising from a faraway block. It took 10 minutes for him to get down there. He remembers the screams and the shouts. But he also recalls the shoes on the ground, the searing heat, the thick smoke. He was one of two members of the NYPD soccer team to be among the first responders to the attack on Sept. 11, 2001. And still, 25 years later, the events of that day have stuck with him. “An incident like that will carry forever. You don't want the guys to ever forget or like not think about what happened, or give it or minimize the incident, because we lost a lot of guys,” Mejia said. In that light, it seems insensitive to talk about soccer. But Mejia says that the beautiful game is, in some ways, the perfect vessel to continue to process this all. He has been part of NYPDFC for over 20 years now, and oversees the team as a whole (he laces up his boots...
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher fears the club's failure to sign Marc Guehi could come back to haunt them in the Premier League title race. Liverpool missed out on Guehi signing Crystal Palace pulled plug late on Carragher fears it could cost Liverpool WHAT HAPPENED? Guehi, 25, was on the brink of joining the Reds on transfer deadline day after they agreed a £35 million fee (€40.5m/$47m] with Crystal Palace for the defender. However despite undergoing a medical with Liverpool, Palace pulled the plug at the last moment following reports that manager Oliver Glasner threatened to quit should the transfer go through without his side securing a replacement. THE BIGGER PICTURE And while Carragher believes Liverpool remain firm favourites for the Premier League despite missing out on Guehi, he says the club will now be sweating on the fitness of defensive duo Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk in their pursuit of a second successive title in 2025-26. WHAT CARRAGHER SAID Speaking to The Overlap Podcast, Carragher - who made 737 appearances for Liverpool - said: "Might they [Liverpool] regret that [missing out on Guehi]? Listen, they are three games in, nine points from nine and probably not played that well, so we would probably all say they are big favourites, Liverpool. But that is the one area [defence] where that could come back and blow up in their face because they haven't really got that [cover]. What Guehi was getting was giving Liverpool competition at centre-back. They haven't really got that. They've got two starters and two understudies. "Joe Gomez, injury-prone himself, and the young lad from Italy [Giovanni Leoni], he is going to...
Juventus are weighing a January move for Ademola Lookman as they prepare for life without Dusan Vlahovic, with Joshua Zirkzee also on their radar. Juventus are weighing a January move for Ademola Lookman as they prepare for life without Dusan Vlahovic, with Joshua Zirkzee also on their radar. Juventus are weighing a January move for Ademola Lookman as they prepare for life without Dusan Vlahovic, with Joshua Zirkzee also on their radar. Juventus are weighing a January move for Ademola Lookman as they prepare for life without Dusan Vlahovic, with Joshua Zirkzee also on their radar. Juventus are weighing a January move for Ademola Lookman as they prepare for life without Dusan Vlahovic, with Joshua Zirkzee also on their radar. Juventus are weighing a January move for Ademola Lookman as they prepare for life without Dusan Vlahovic, with Joshua Zirkzee also on their radar.
The German coach and his players put their mediocre recent displays against minnows behind them with a top-level performance in Belgrade England finally located their mojo on Tuesday in Belgrade, and Serbia didn't know what had hit them. In case they were wondering, it was five goals, from five different scorers, and the sound they could hear was that of Thomas Tuchel's side finally taking to the skies after several false starts, heading right for the 2026 World Cup, their mission to go all the way in North America back on track. The Three Lions' performance proved that England are not just a squad of incredibly talented and famous individuals, as you might have been forgiven for thinking after their dour win over Andorra and their previous four outings under Tuchel. They can also be remarkably effective when they work together, as they did for the slick second goal scored by Noni Madueke. "Teamwork in its purest form" is how Tuchel described the performance, emphasising the achievement of limiting their hosts to zero shots on target and praising the intensity his players showed throughout. The German also had a pointed message to the doubters, both in the fanbase and in the media: "I’m just glad for the players that they could show to the fans and to you guys what they’re capable of."
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