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Speak to your friends about the last few months and you'll often be met with post-holiday depression and holiday blues. You may even be met with a review of that dreaded Euro 2024 campaign for England. Try as they might, Arsenal's Bukayo Saka, Bayern Munich's Harry Kane and Real Madrid's Jude Bellingham could not drag the Three Lions across the line in the final against Spain.

Gunners hero Saka did at least get redemption for that spot-kick miss in 2021, scoring a vital goal against the Swiss and then bagging in the shoot-out too. Mikel Arteta no doubt will have had a wry smile on his face.

However, we're done with international football now. As Andy said in Toy Story, we don't want to play with you anymore. The Premier League is back and Arsenal are unbeaten.

But wait, what's that? It's the horrible screech of yet more international football. Lee Carsley's first match as England manager was no doubt intriguing, and the Gunners' very own Declan Rice scored, but come on, let's put all of that on hold for now.

There aren't many supporters of international football so soon into a new campaign and that's now been hammered home following a huge injury blow ahead of the north London derby.

Martin Odegaard's injury on international duty

With Rice already out of this coming weekend's north London derby, Arsenal knew they were going to have to make some changes to their midfield.

Mikel Merino's shoulder injury means that he won't be seen until October, cruelly ruled out following his very first training session with the club.

There are also some doubts surrounding Riccardo Calafiori too who has been sent back to London following an issue he sustained on duty with Italy.

However, the biggest blow lies with Martin Odegaard, Arsenal and Norway's captain. As the Scandinavian country defeated Austria 2-1 on Monday evening, the attacking midfielder limped off the field with a nasty looking ankle injury.

The prognosis is that the 25-year-old has suffered a small sprain and now faces a race against time to make the match with Tottenham on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking after the game, Norway team doctor Ola Sand stated: "He got a small ankle sprain. We will see, maybe we use ultrasound to look at it. If we are unsure, there will be an MRI tomorrow [Tuesday]."

How Arsenal can overcome Odegaard's injury

In a normal set of circumstances then Arsenal likely would have handed a debut to Merino in this situation. However, with the Spaniard, Rice and Odegaard potentially missing, it leaves a huge hole in Arteta's midfield.

One option could be to move Kai Havertz back into a role behind the striker with Jorginho and Thomas Partey sitting.

The German was selected in that role for Germany as they defeated Hungary 5-0 over the course of the current break. Havertz scored from the penalty spot and caused all sorts of havoc, winning said penalty, completing 92% of his passes and producing five shots. It's a valid solution for Arteta to take.

Yet, if he wants to keep the German up top and play with a more defensive-looking midfield on Sunday, he could move Jurrien Timber into the centre of the park.

Timber, who has only played in midfield twice throughout his career to date, certainly has the attributes to feature there on a more regular basis.

He arrived at the club primarily as a centre-back but has been seen more as an inverted full-back (example below) by Arteta, notably featuring in that role for his first two starts of 2024/25. The Dutchman has thrived too, offering another body in the centre of the pitch and progressing play brilliantly.

So, why could he thrive more centrally? Well, with the help of analyst Ben Mattinson, who labelled him "elite", we have the answer.

Taking to social media, he wrote: "A total football like Timber is capable of playing there and adding physicality in ground duels and ball progression via carrying or line-breakers."

A look at his heat map for the season to date and the numbers supplement this vision. As you can see below, he doesn't hug the touchline by any means and is already playing most of his football (in possession) in central areas. Remarkably, for a left full-back, he's even appearing quite regularly on the edge of the opposition's penalty area.

So, on that evidence, he shouldn't have too much trouble adapting to a role in the centre of the field. The numbers suggest so too.

Data is slim on the ground for last season considering Timber only played one match but if we assess his 2022/23 numbers from centre-back in the Champions League, we can build a stronger case.

The 23-year-old ranked inside the top 4% of positionally similar players in Europe's elite competition for pass success rate per 90 minutes, as well as among the best 12% for progressive passes and progressive carries per 90, illuminating the aforementioned skillset that Mattinson outlined.

So, while it's certainly not an ideal scenario for Arsenal, Timber could well be a short-term solution among all of the chaos in Arteta's midfield.

Odegaard 2.0: Arsenal's teen “diamond” can follow in Saka's footsteps

He could be Mikel Arteta’s next Odegaard…

By
Angus Sinclair

Sep 8, 2024

Ahead of the visit of West Ham United, Fulham have been hit with frustrating injury news which has ruled one forward out for multiple games including the clash with the Hammers.

Fulham injury news

The Cottagers have shown glimpses of their quality so far this season, with their one victory over Leicester City arguably coming at an important time in between a narrow 1-0 loss against Manchester United and a frustrating draw against Ipswich Town. Marco Silva’s side are a difficult side to judge these days.

Fulham struck gold on "insane" star who's worth more than Smith Rowe

He is a key player under Marco Silva

By
Joe Nuttall

Aug 27, 2024

Avoiding relegation will still be their first goal, but it wouldn’t be absurd to suggest that Fulham are now in position to set their sights on causing a few shocks towards the Premier League’s top-half. Just last season, they found themselves sat in 13th and just two points shy of the top 10. A repeat of such an achievement or potentially more would undoubtedly receive rightful applause around Craven Cottage.

Fulham’s first task will be to get back to winning ways in a London derby against West Ham, which they’ll be forced to do without the attacking impetus of one player. As confirmed by Silva, Carlos Vinicius will now miss the West Ham game through injury and is also likely to miss Fulham’s Carabao Cup tie against Preston North End on Tuesday.

The forward should feel particularly frustrated about the Preston game, given that it represented a chance to make his first appearance of the season. Ruled out, however, the Brazilian must now wait for an opportunity to come his way in the Premier League.

"Decisive" Vinicius is at a crossroads

After failing to get his move away amid links to the likes of Red Bull Bragantino in the summer, Vinicius finds himself at a slight crossroads. Whilst Fulham are yet to find a like-for-like replacement for Aleksandar Mitrovic over a year on from his departure to Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal, Vinicius seems unlikely to emerge ahead of Raul Jimenez and particularly Rodrigo Muniz.

Making the former Tottenham Hotspur loanee a third-choice under Silva, he may be left with little choice but to pursue a January departure. Whether Silva would be keen to part ways with the forward is another argument in itself though, having praised Vinicius’ performance against Luton Town last season.

Silva said via West London Sports: “He made the impact that we needed in that moment on the pitch, not just because he scored – but of course scoring is always the most important thing for a striker.

“It was nice to see Carlos score. He deserved the chance to go in and it was nice to see him be decisive for us. The competition (with Raúl Jiménez) is also important to us.”

Of course, Muniz proves that form will earn a place in the current Fulham side, but whether Vinicius can finally find his goalscoring touch at Craven Cottage remains to be seen.

West Bromwich Albion last competed in the Premier League during the 2020/21 campaign but will be looking to return back to the promised land at the end of this current season under Carlos Corberan.

The early signs are that Corberan’s Baggies could even be in and around the automatic promotion spots come next May, providing they can keep up their blistering start which has seen them pick up four wins and one draw from their opening five Championship clashes to sit top of the early second-tier standings.

If they do make the jump back up to the top flight, the Spaniard in the Hawthorns dug-out will be wary about making statement signings for the sake of it, with West Brom caught out in their not-so-distant past by many a flop signing.

Tony Pulis fell victim to a lot of transfer duds during his spell in charge of the West Midlands outfit in the Premier League, with the old-school former West Brom boss even luring this ex-Paris St. Germain midfielder to the club back in 2017, only for this buy to be remembered now as a colossal waste of time.

Krychowiak's time at West Brom

At the time of the midfielder’s arrival, Pulis labelled the loan signing of Grzegorz Krychowiak as a “coup”, which it arguably was, considering the Polish holding midfielder once had admirers in the form of Arsenal and Liverpool over the lowly Baggies.

However, it would quickly become known to those watching week in week out at the Hawthorns why neither the Gunners nor the Reds went out of their way to purchase him, with West Brom never getting the best out of their underwhelming loanee despite his PSG pedigree.

Krychowiak would go on to make 31 forgettable appearances for his short-term employers during his only season in the West Midlands, picking up three assists along the way before finding his mojo again playing out in Russia with Lokomotiv Moscow.

Pulis’ comments right after signing the Ligue 1 winning midfielder made it out as if he was going to leave a lasting impact on the Premier League during his short stay, but he entered and exited the English game in a flash, without ever really putting in a shift in that would be memorable to the Baggies masses.

Now, the well-travelled West Brom dud has played for numerous clubs since this uninspiring stint, with Krychowiak even playing out in Saudi Arabia at one point.

Krychowiak's career since West Brom

An apt word to describe the 34-year-old’s career would be nomadic, as Krychowiak has played all over the world from his time in England to playing in Russia, Greece and even out in the Middle East.

The 6 foot 1 defensive midfielder unexpectedly found his shooting boots when playing in Moscow, helping himself to 23 goals and 15 assists across 109 games, as Krychowiak managed to reinvent himself after a poor spell under Pulis.

The ex-PSG man does, however, now find himself without a club after walking away from his last employers in Abha Club when his contract was up in July.

He had managed to find the back of the net nine times during his one season stay in Saudi Arabia, but like many of the top performers he played alongside during his short Baggies stints such as Gareth Barry and Ben Foster, he could soon be heading towards his retirement date as well.

Full West Brom line-up for Krychowiak’s debut

Brighton 3-1 West Brom (September 2017)

1. GK – Ben Foster

2. RB – Allan Nyom

3. CB – Jonny Evans

4. CB – Ahmed Hegazy

5. LB – Craig Dawson

6. CDM – Grzegorz Krychowiak

7. RM – Jay Rodriguez

8. CM – Gareth Barry

9. CM – Jay Livermore

10. LM – Matt Phillips

11. ST – Salomon Rondon

Whilst faces from yesteryear such as Salomon Rondon and Ahmed Hegazy will be remembered fondly to those at West Brom, Krychowiak’s name won’t mean much to the Hawthorns faithful now, as an expectant Baggies fanbase hope this season is the time when they leap back up to the top-flight.

Related West Brom will regret not selling star who earns more than Mowatt & Furlong

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Posts 1 ByKelan Sarson Sep 13, 2024

Uncapped offspinning-allrounder Prenelan Subrayen and fast bowler Lizaad Williams, who recently made his T20I debut, have received maiden call-ups to the South Africa Test squad for the two-match series against West Indies in St Lucia in June. Kyle Verreynne, Keegan Petersen, Sarel Erwee and Marco Jansen are the other uncapped picks in the line-up of 19, to be led by Dean Elgar for the first time.

South Africa’s schedule

In West Indies
June 10: 1st Test
June 18: 2nd Test
June 26: 1st T20I
June 27: 2nd T20I
June 29: 3rd T20I
July 1: 4th T20I
July 3: 5th T20I

In Ireland
July 11: 1st ODI
July 13: 2nd ODI
July 16: 3rd ODI
July 20: 1st T20I
July 22: 2nd T20I
July 25: 3rd T20I

The white-ball squads, now led by Temba Bavuma, for the fixtures against West Indies and Ireland has also been announced, and included few surprises, with Sisanda Magala and Williams, who were blooded in the recent series against Pakistan, retained. A total of 19 players will travel for the series of five T20Is in the Caribbean, and Keshav Maharaj will join the squad for the games in Ireland afterwards.Subrayen, 27, finished third in the wicket-takers’ list at the 2020-21 CSA Franchise 4-Day Cup with 19 strikes in four matches at an average of 18.89, and best returns of 6 for 24. That helped him get into a spin-bowling pack that also includes Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi and George Linde as frontline spinners.Related

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“The Caribbean [South Africa are travelling there for a bilateral tour in 11 years] is well-known for its low and slow wickets and we have ensured that we have chosen the personnel needed for every eventuality on this very important excursion,” explained CSA convenor of selectors Victor Mpitsang in a press statement. “While there aren’t any (World Test Championship) points to play for, it is still of vital importance for South Africa to produce winning results through a steadily growing and high-performing cricket pipeline.While the tour of West Indies runs from June 10 to July 3 – two Test matches to start with, followed by five T20Is – the series of three ODIs and three T20Is in Ireland begin on July 11 and end on July 25.”The historic tour to Ireland is crucial for points towards our qualification for the 2023 Cricket World Cup and preparation for the T20 World Cup later this year,” Mpitsang added. “This is the start of our road to these trophies and every tour will see us field our absolute best sides.”The team has been in a rebuilding phase for a while now but we are satisfied that the return on investment is going to show itself sooner rather than later. We have to trust the process that has been put in place and support our team while they find themselves and their way. These are truly exciting times in South African cricket, with an exciting new leadership group that is determined to return the team back to its winning ways.”Squads
Test: Dean Elgar (capt), Temba Bavuma (vice-capt), Quinton de Kock (wk), Sarel Erwee, Beuran Hendricks, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Anrich Nortje, Keegan Peterson, Kagiso Rabada, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lizaad Williams, Prenelan Subrayen, Marco Jansen.
T20Is and ODIs: Temba Bavuma (capt), Quinton de Kock (wk), Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, George Linde, Sisanda Magala, Keshav Maharaj (only for Ireland), Janneman Malan, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams.

Since 2005, 85 players have appeared in the FIFPRO Men’s World 11 – none more than Messi, who has been voted in 17 times

Lionel Messi is very good at football. This much is known. There are the endless accolades: eight Ballons d'Or, 850 goals, 46 career trophies. And then there are the fun bits in between. The drops of the shoulder, the left footed curlers, that one pass against the Netherlands in the World Cup in which he did not look up once – but knew exactly where Nahuel Molina would be.

The GOAT case is well established at this point. And his 17 FIFPRO Men's World 11 spots underscore now just how great he is, but for how long. Since 2005, 85 players have appeared in the Men’s World 11 – none more than Messi. And while the 2024 list is not yet final – it will be revealed Dec. 9 – Messi is again one of the nominees. How has this all happened for the Argentine? GOAL takes a look.

The beginnings

It was no secret that Messi was going to be the next big thing. Coaches from La Masia, Barca's famed youth academy, had seen this coming for years. There was a kid from Argentina who needed special growth hormones to make it to 5-7 – with cleats on. But he was always going to be special. He may not have cracked the FIFPRO 11 until 2007, but it was clear in 2005 that something special was happening.

On Aug. 24, 2005, Barca hosted Juventus for the Joan Gamper trophy – a glorified preseason friendly. Juve won on penalties after the two sides played out a 2-2 draw in normal time. That day a diminutive right winger – wearing Nike boots – ran the show. He assisted Barca's first goal, and set Camp Nou alight. Just 18 at the time, Messi had arrived.

It took a couple years, of course, for the stratospheric launch. But even before he was a regular, there was a sense that Messi could be massive.

AdvertisementAFPThe 'breakout' season

Can it really be considered a breakout season if there was never any doubt that a footballer would be world-class? Maybe not, but Messi went about his meteoric rise all the same. He broke into the Barcelona first team for good in the 2006-07 season.

Then 19, he turned in quality performance after quality performance. In 23 La Liga starts, he tallied 17 goal contributions, including a hat-trick against Real Madrid (becoming the first player to bag three in El Clasico in 12 years in the process.) His first FIFPRO World 11 acknowledgment came after that. And from there, he never dropped out.

Perhaps the most important moment in his young career, though, was the promotion of a former Barca midfielder through the coaching ranks. Pep Guardiola had been a stalwart for the Blaugrana as a player, and was proving himself as a coach. And he was the perfect manager for Messi. After Frank Rijkaard was let go following a trophy-less 2007-08 campaign, Guardiola came in.

The results were immediate. Barca won the treble in his first season in charge – becoming the first team in Spanish history to do so.

AFP100 goals in a year

The rest of the story is well known. From right winger, to false nine, Messi thrived under Guardiola. They won 14 trophies across four seasons, becoming the envy of Europe with their fluid, innovative style. The Spanish manager constantly fiddled with his side, but Messi was always the focal point. If all else failed, give him the ball and things would happen.

It is fair to debate which version of Messi is the best. There are certainly appeals to all of them, from frantic teenager to cerebral veteran. Statistically, though, the most effective version of the great Argentine was the one from Feb. 19, 2012 to Feb. 16, 2013. It was an uncharacteristically dry year for Barca, who were still wavering after Guardiola's departure.

For Messi, though, it was record breaking. Over 363 days, Messi scored 100 goals and added 21 assists. The numbers over that period are staggering: 68 games played, nine hat-tricks, 21 braces, 10 goals in one week. Everything came together, at least in a statistical sense.

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AFPThose around him

Messi has never been a one-man team, though. It helped, of course, that he had Ronaldinho, then the reigning Ballon d'Or winner, playing on the opposite wing during his breakout year. And when he left, there was always quality in the side. First, it was Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry – the trio combining for 100 goal contributions in Guardiola's first campaign in charge. Later came David Villa and Pedro.

Then, in 2014, one of the most deadly attacking trios in football history formed. Luis Suarez had just come off one of the better campaigns in Premier League history when he joined Barca in August 2014, while Neymar had just shown signs that he had found his feet in Catalonia. The three were unstoppable for two years, winning a treble under Luis Enrique in 2015. Admittedly, they probably spent too little time together.

But it wasn't just the attacking talent. Messi spent large parts of his career surrounded by some of the most talented midfielders and defenders out there. He operated in front of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets for almost 10 years. And there are the others: Gerard Pique, Carles Puyol, Jordi Alba, et al. Even his latter-day Argentina teams have been packed with Angel Di Maria, Alexis Mac Allister and Rodrigo De Paul – some of the best connective tissue around.

Home advantage does not carry quite the same weight as it used to do

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Apr-2021

The final act of the Australian season starts on Thursday with the Sheffield Shield final between Queensland and New South Wales at Allan Border Field in Brisbane.New South Wales are aiming to defend the title awarded to them last season when the tournament was curtailed by the onset of the pandemic while Queensland last won the Shield in 2017-18.Queensland finished top of the table after the final-round draw against New South Wales in Wollongong, but that does not carry the significant advantage it used to do when, in the event of a drawn final, the leaders would be awarded the title.Now if there is a draw the title would be decided by the same bonus points system that is in place during the regular season. It was brought in as a trial in the 2018-19 season (although wasn’t needed as Victoria won the final outright) and after last season’s final was cancelled it will be used again should the situation arise.This is how the bonus points system works: the batting side earns 0.01 points for every run scored above 200 in the first 100 overs of the first innings and the bowling side earns 0.1 points for every wicket taken in the same period.So, if we use the previous match between these two sides last week as an example it would work out like this: New South Wales were 4 for 310 after 100 overs so that earns them 1.1 batting points and Queensland get 0.4 bowling points. Queensland were then 4 for 293 after 100 overs earning them 0.93 batting points and New South Wales 0.4 bowling points.In total that would be 1.5 bonus points for New South Wales and 1.33 for Queensland.”It means the game is in play the whole time,” Mitchell Starc said. “We’ve seen in years gone by the home team don’t have to win so they can play the way they want and not have to worry about pushing for victory. To have the bonus points system there is a big carrot for us, we’ll be in the game for the five days.”The one caveat with the bonus points is that they only become the decider if a minimum 270 overs have been bowled in the match. If weather means that mark hasn’t been reached then the tiebreaker reverts to who led the table. Also, if the bonus points are tied in a drawn game the top team is declared the winner.The final is played over five days so there is extra time to get an outright result. The forecast also looks good for the duration of the game with just a few showers predicted for Saturday at the moment. The last Shield match in Brisbane, which was set to take place at Ian Healy Oval, was abandoned without a ball bowled largely due to a saturated outfield following heavy rain. The match before, at Allan Border Field, had just 76 overs across the first two days.The other factor with the final taking place much later than usual is the length of daylight hours (Allan Border field doesn’t have floodlights). Play will begin at 9.30am to try and ensure the 96 overs per day can be completed.

A Manchester United flop reportedly has 'no intention' of leaving the club – potentially posing new boss Ruben Amorim a squad headache.

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Amorim takes over at Man UtdRed Devils flop linked with exitHe has 'no intention' of leavingFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to journalist Jorge Nicole, United winger Antony does not want to leave the Premier League side anytime soon and talk of a potential swap deal involving Flamengo's 19-year-old attacking midfielder Lorran are wide of the mark. He added that with Amorim just coming on board, the Brazilian is hopeful of getting more minutes in the Red Devils' first-team than he did under former boss Erik ten Hag this season.

AdvertisementAFPTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Antony swapped Ajax for United for £85 million ($99m) in 2022 but since then he has scored just 12 goals and bagged five assists in 87 appearances. GOAL understands the Red Devils were open to the 24-year-old heading out on loan in January but whether the winger does that remains to be seen. It may be best for both parties to go their separate ways, however.

DID YOU KNOW?

Antony, whose contract at Old Trafford runs until 2027, hinted earlier this season that he sees his future at United.

"I definitely need more goal participations and to score more goals. It's something I demand from myself. Rest assured, you'll hear the name Antony in relation to goals and assists," he said.

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AFPWHAT NEXT?

Amorim's first game in charge as United boss is away to lowly Ipswich Town on November 24. Antony will hope for some minutes in that game after making just five appearances this season. The Portuguese may need to give it some thought about what to do with the Brazilian going forward.

Formal announcements to be made once tour dates are confirmed by the boards

Mohammad Isam10-Feb-2021Following news that Australia will tour Bangladesh ahead of this year’s T20 World Cup, BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury has said that they will also host England and New Zealand. He, however, said that formal announcements will only be made once the tour dates are confirmed by the boards.Chowdhury had said that Australia would play three T20Is as well as a two-match Test series in Bangladesh. But since CA and BCB couldn’t quite fit in the Tests, they have found time for an extra T20I match.”Both boards (CA and BCB) have agreed in principle for Australia’s tour of Bangladesh before the World Cup T20, which is going to be held in October,” Chowdhury said. “It has been scheduled as such. Ahead of the World Cup T20, England, Australia and New Zealand will tour Bangladesh, but a tri-series hasn’t yet been decided.”I think we had a commitment with Australia that they would play two Tests and two T20Is. Since we could fit the T20s we will increase it to three. It is not that it is replacing anything. We would have fit in a Test match if there was enough space. It will be a good preparation for us ahead of the World T20. We have an opportunity to play some high-profile teams.”According to the ICC’s published FTP, England are scheduled to tour Bangladesh in October to play three ODIs (as part of the ICC’s ODI Super League) and three T20Is.Meanwhile, Chowdhury added that all teams can fit in their World Test Championship matches until April after the timeline was extended from March. As such, the BCB is working on a tour of Sri Lanka to play the three-match Test series that was postponed twice last year.”It should be clarified that most of the FTP commitments currently are for the World Test Championships and the ODI competition (ODI Super League). There’s a guideline to complete the WTC matches before the final in June. The guideline to arrange those matches has been extended to April, from March.”To fit in these postponed series, both teams have to be available. At the moment only Sri Lanka is available till April. It is not possible to fit in the rest of the (postponed) matches. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are free in April so we are trying to schedule the two or three Tests of the WTC during that time.”

GOAL reviews the takeaways from Americans playing in Europe, including big moments for Adams, McKennie, Weah and Pepi

With Christian Pulisic unexpectedly off for the weekend, with flooding in Bologna forcing a postponement of their match with AC Milan, the focus turned toward the U.S. men's national team's supporting cast. So many key players were missing during the October international break, largely due to injury. Several are on the mend and several made huge impacts this weekend as we start looking ahead to the November window.

When healthy, Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie and Tim Weah are among the USMNT's most important players. All three were vital at the 2022 World Cup and, despite all of the changes since, all three will almost certainly be important again on the road to 2026. Yet, to start the season, all three have had ups and downs. This weekend, though, they were on the field in big moments for their clubs.

Adams made his long-awaited return from injury, while McKennie and Weah were the defining forces of a major derby in Italy, scoring and assisting in what was no doubt the game of the weekend in Europe. Meanwhile, Cole Campbell, a player that very well could be the future of the USMNT made his debut in Germany for the world's biggest talent developer, and Ricardo Pepi, No. 9 contender, sent another message to Mauricio Pochettino with a big-time brace.

It was a busy week of Americans Abroad, and GOAL breaks it all down.

GettyAdams is back

It was a welcome sight for American soccer, to put it lightly. It was a welcome sight for Bournemouth, too. Tyler Adams is back on the field, and the hope is that it's for good this time.

Adams has been in battling the injury bug essentially since the 2022 World Cup. He went down in March 2023, keeping him out until the start of the 2023 season. In that time, he moved to Bournemouth after that injury prevented him from saving Leeds from relegation. He made just four appearances for Bournemouth last season before injuries took him out again. Now healthy, Adams made his first appearance of the season, coming off the bench in a 1-1 draw with surging Aston Villa.

It's a small step, but in some ways also a monumental one. Adams has played for the USMNT in the midst of all of this, famously scoring a stunner against Mexico before also featuring at the Copa America. That always looked like Adams at 70 or 80 percent max, though. He never quite looked himself and, ultimately, he paid the price for those moments by missing more time on the club level.

For the USMNT to be the best team it can be, Adams needs to be there. He's clearly still the best No. 6 in this group when healthy. Mauricio Pochettino will love him but, as they say, the best ability is availability.

Hopefully, Adams can feature in the USMNT's upcoming November camp, at least to just get acclimated to life under the new boss. If we've learned anything, though, it's that Adams should take it steady as he ramps up ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

AdvertisementAFPMcKennie and Weah headline wild derby

Juventus may or may not be title contenders this season. Their 4-4 back-and-forth duel with Inter Sunday showed they can go toe-to-toe with anyone, but there are still points to prove for the Old Lady.

And whatever Juventus do accomplish, McKennie and Weah are assured to be a big part of it, just as they were in an incredible derby.

McKennie assisted Juve's opening goal, setting up Dusan Vlahovic to give his side an early equalizer. Six minutes later, Weah got a goal of his own, scoring his second of the season. McKennie wasn't done in the second half, either, as he assisted Kenan Yildiz's goal to bring Juve back within a goal. Yildiz, of course, was the hero from there, scoring again to earn Juve a point with a 4-4 draw, but McKennie and Weah were major catalysts in Juve's goal explosion.

Both have a point to prove under new coach Thiago Motta, and both showed that they can directly contribute to goals. The result wasn't ideal but, for McKennie and Weah, the performance was timely as both look to get going after stop-start beginnings to the season.

Getty ImagesWelcome to the show, Cole Campbell

Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna and now Cole Campbell – the Borussia Dortmund-USMNT connection continues on.

Campbell became the latest American to make his senior debut for Dortmund on Saturday, as he came on in the final minutes of a 2-1 loss to Augsburg. Given the scoreline, this wasn't a ceremonial appearance – Dortmund thought he could influence the game. He only got four touches but, hey, it was still a big night.

Dortmund are high on Campbell, which means America should be, too. The teenager made the one-time switch from Iceland to the U.S. earlier this year, committing his future to American soccer going forward. It's was a big risk, in a way, but Campbell is betting on himself to be a USMNT star – and given the track record at Dortmund, in particular, that bet feels safe.

There is no better club in the world at turning young players into stars. Campbell is the latest to arrive on that conveyor belt looking to become a regular at Dortmund. If he does, if he follows in the footsteps of players such as Pulisic, Jude Bellingham and Erling Haaland – no easy task – he'll be one heck of a player. It's early, though, but, even so, it's worth keeping an eye on Dortmund's newest rising star.

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Getty ImagesPepi just keeps scoring

When Ricardo Pepi plays, he scores. When he starts, it feels like he scores multiple.

That's what happened on Saturday, when Pepi accounted for two of PSV's six goals in a win over PEC Zwolle. That takes him to five goals in just 340 Eredivisie minutes. It's an absurd goal haul, even for a team as dominant as PSV.

That's what PSV is: dominant. Through 10 matches, they're unbeaten with a +29 goal difference. After winning the league last season, PSV look like they're going to cruise again this time around.

In addition to Pepi, it's also worth shouting out Malik Tillman, who was also on the scoresheet for the Dutch giants. He how has five goals and an assist in 10 matches, continuing his stellar start to the campaign.

For American fans, PSV is about as fun as it gets. American stars are putting up videogame numbers in the Eredivisie, and that's even before Sergino Dest returns to provide some sauce at fullback. Pepi and Tillman are thriving, and both look like players that could be poached by big teams going forward thanks to their incredible form.

With Douglas Luiz already set to leave, Aston Villa could now suffer another transfer blow, with Al-Nassr now eyeing a move to sign one of Unai Emery's attacking stars who they believe can partner Cristiano Ronaldo and replace Sadio Mane.

Aston Villa transfer news

Emery has already suffered quite the blow in the form of Luiz's pending exit. The defensive midfielder is set to swap Villa Park for Juventus in a deal that will see Samuel Iling-Junior and Enzo Barrenechea arrive in the other direction. But even with such arrivals, Emery will still struggle to replace the impact that Luiz had on his side, especially as they finished inside the Premier League's top four last season.

Attempting to comply with the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules, however, those in the Midlands may yet suffer another frustrating exit. According to The Daily Mail, Al-Nassr are willing to sell Sadio Mane to sign Moussa Diaby from Aston Villa just one year after the winger joined the Midlands club for a reported £52m.

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The Saudi Club reportedly believe that the former Bayer Leverkusen man can replace Mane to become Ronaldo's partner next season. Diaby endured a mixed debut campaign at Villa Park, having started well before seeing his form fall away as the season progressed. Now, a year later, he could have the chance to bring an end to his time in the Premier League before Villa fans have really seen him at his best.

With that said, after already seemingly bidding farewell to Luiz, it remains to be seen whether Villa would be willing to show Diaby the exit door this summer.

"Versatile" Diaby yet to show best form at Aston Villa

Whilst Diaby didn't show his best form in his debut season, he isn't the first to take such time to adapt to Premier League football and he won't be the last. Given further time, there's no doubt that, like others, the winger will finally burst into life on a consistent basis in the Midlands to hand Emery a true attacking asset.

The Spaniard was full of praise for Diaby last season and the role he was playing, despite arguably not being at his best, telling Aston Villa's official website: “Moussa’s adaptation is going fast but he needs this adaptation. Each match for him, to know his teammates better, is very important.

"He is a player being versatile for us and I’m going to use him for the next matches and over the season in different positions. It’s very important for him and the team his capacity to assist and score goals. His qualities are adding to us being stronger in our squad.”

Ending the last campaign with 10 goals and nine assists in all competitions, Diaby will hope to take that extra step towards his best form to arguably hand Villa one of the most electric wingers in the Premier League.