On July 28, 2019, Filipe Luís joined Flamengo on a free transfer, returning to Brazil after 15 years abroad. He ended a glorious spell with Atlético Madrid that was interrupted only by an ill-fated season at José Mourinho’s Chelsea.   The long-haired left back left behind an unforgettable career, one in which he lifted domestic…

Matthijs De Ligt grabbed the attention of the football world as a young defender who had emerged from the Ajax youth academy and became an integral part of the senior squad.   At the tender age of 19, he led the Amsterdammers to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2018/19, defeating some illustrious clubs…

England has always produced centre-backs who look like Max Kilman. He’s 6-foot-4, capable in the air, and is more than happy to engage in physical contests.   From a distance, he bears similarities to someone like Craig Dawson, the archetypal ‘head it, punt it, tackle it’ defender who defined the nation’s approach for a generation.…

One of the first things to do when a relatively obscure striker is reported to be {signing for your club} is head to a reliable stats page. A simple one highlighting goals and assist will do. And that’s just what Newcastle fans did.   There, they would have seen that Joelinton scored seven times the season…

From Chelsea academy graduate to rising Premier League star, Valentino Livramento has emerged as England’s latest gem.   Despite a rough start to the 2021–22 Premier League season for Southampton, the Saints have recently been a force to reckon with, leaping up to 9th in the table with 35 points after 26 matches played.  …

After being a bit-part player for so long down on the South Coast, Mark Travers has slowly become one of the best goalkeepers in the Championship this season under Scott Parker.   Making fleeting appearances here and there in the Premier League and the second tier for The Cherries, he has become a first-team regular…

After taking charge of the club in October 2015, Jürgen Klopp led Liverpool to an eighth-place finish in the Premier League in his first season and took them past Manchester United and former side Borussia Dortmund en route to the Europa League Final, where they would lose to Unai Emery’s Sevilla.   The following summer…

Clermont Foot have managed to fill 76% of their available stadium capacity across the 21/22 season. That’s the sixth-best attendance in Ligue 1 but in all honesty, if it wasn’t for striker Mohamed Bayo, the attendance (and Clermont’s place in Ligue 1) would sink.   The 23-year-old Guinea forward is responsible for ten league goals…

Since ending a 34-year absence from the top-flight in 2017, Brighton & Hove Albion have gained a reputation for being a club that, perhaps more than any other Premier League team, scours the entire world for raw youngsters for bargain prices.   It has reaped benefits, with the likes of Alexis Mac Allister, Leandro Trossard,…

In a Manchester City side so jam-packed with unbelievably talented footballers, it can be difficult for the slightly less glamorous players to shine.   The technical quality of Pep Guardiola’s squad is eye-watering and it seems ridiculous that a player as brilliant as Rodri goes relatively unnoticed, but that’s the nature of the beast with…