Author: Joe Soriano

Joe Soriano is the editor of The Trivela Effect and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2010. He’s led top digital communities like The Real Champs (Real Madrid) and has run sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. He also helped manage NFL Spin Zone and Daily DDT, covering the NFL and pro wrestling.

Ranking The 5 Best Young Midfielders In The Premier League Right Now
21Jun By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Rankings

Ranking The 5 Best Young Midfielders In The Premier League Right Now

In a league defined by its physicality, speed, and tactical fluidity, the role of the midfielder is as crucial as ever. But it’s not just seasoned veterans running the show — a new generation of midfielders, 23 or younger, are making their mark with maturity well beyond their years. From deep-lying anchors to silky number 10s, here are the top 5 young midfielders lighting up the Premier League in 2025, ranked from 5 to 1. 5. Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace, 21 years old, CM/DM) When Crystal Palace signed Adam Wharton from Blackburn in January 2024, few expected the quiet 20-year-old to become one of the best ball-progressors in the league within months. But that’s exactly what he’s done under Oliver Glasner, slotting seamlessly into Palace’s midfield with a calmness that belies his age. ...
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Top 10 Premier League Wingers to Know in 2025
19Jun By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Rankings

Top 10 Premier League Wingers to Know in 2025

There may not be a more important position in the Premier League these days than the winger. The two best players in the entire league, after all, are wingers in Liverpool's Mohamed Salah and Arsenal's Bukayo Saka, who rank among the top wingers in the Premier League. Every single year, the title contenders in the Premier League are chock full of great winger options, whether it's been the tandem of Salah and Luis Diaz or Sadio Mane or the formidable Manchester City partnerships forged with Riyad Mahrez or Bernardo Silva taking up residence on the right-hand side. You need players out wide who can take defenders on, create chances, progress the ball, and score, too. There are so many different styles of winger, and while inverted goal-scorers like Mane and Salah ruled the roost for y...
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Ranking the 5 best Barcelona players in 2025
8Apr By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Rankings

Ranking the 5 best Barcelona players in 2025

Who are the best Barcelona players right now in 2025? 5. CB Inigo Martinez I bounced back and forth between Pau Cubarsi and Inigo Martinez, and I also think fellow central defenders Ronald Araujo and Jules Kounde merit serious consideration here, especially since Kounde has become such a great right back in his own right despite being a center back at heart. Cubarsi is even better on the ball and has more future potential as an 18-year-old phenom who is, in a way, Lamine Yamal's defensive equivalent. But how could I leave Martinez off a list of the best Barcelona players RIGHT NOW, when, RIGHT NOW, Martinez is one of the best center backs on the planet. That may seem like a crazy statement, but it's only absurd to the uninformed. Martinez has been a top-level center back in LaLiga ...
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Ranking the 5 best AC Milan players in 2025
8Apr By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Rankings

Ranking the 5 best AC Milan players in 2025

Who are AC Milan's best players right now in 2025? 5. RW Christian Pulisic Although a certain segment of Serie A fans hailing from a certain country will overrate Christian Pulisic and bloviate about how he's a better player than Rafael Leao despite having a fraction of the Portuguese international's ability, there's no questioning the fact that Pulisic is one of the best wingers in Serie A in his own right and is capable of outplaying his left-sided teammate for stretches. Pulisic has gone from overhyped Dortmund prospect and inconsistent Chelsea rotational piece to one of the best attacking players in Serie A and someone AC Milan can legitimately build their team around. He's also become more unselfish in Italian football, improving as a passer and creator with a superior work ra...
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Ranking the 5 best Serie A managers in 2025
6Apr By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Rankings

Ranking the 5 best Serie A managers in 2025

A ranking of the best managers in Serie A right now in 2025, based solely on current coaching quality. 5. Claudio Ranieri, Roma Claudio Ranieri took over from stopgap coach Ivan Juric (now at Juventus, interestingly enough) in November for a Roma side that was seemingly doomed following their dismissal of club legend Daniele De Rossi, who had already replaced another great coach in Jose Mourinho. Both the Mourinho and De Rossi firings were wildly unpopular with Roma fans, as both coaches were beloved by the Giallorossi faithful and had shown that they could be the right men to lead Roma. In his third stint with Roma, the latest club icon to take the reins has quickly turned things around in the capital, and Roma are now ahead of local rivals Lazio. They have been impressive with th...
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Ranking the 10 best center midfielders of the 2010s
10Jul By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Analysis

Ranking the 10 best center midfielders of the 2010s

Throughout the 2010s, Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Lionel Messi was the most heated debate on the lips of world football fans, but as time has passed and the discussions have become more retrospective, much of the discussion has moved towards the midfield. It isn't just Real Madrid and Barcelona fans getting into it about their elite midfields that dominated the 2010s, as Premier League supporters, Serie A fans, and, of course, the Bayern Munich faithful are wondering where their midfield stars stack up. When looking back at the best center midfielders of the 2010s, it is no surprise to see that the teams that dominated the Champions League that decade - Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich - also dominate this list. It's fair to say that this observation is yet another endorsement ...
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Ranking the 10 best Bayern Munich transfers since 2010
9Jul By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Analysis

Ranking the 10 best Bayern Munich transfers since 2010

Bayern Munich have turned winning into a tradition, to the point where their success is taken for granted more than at any other club in world football. One of the best-run organizations in professional sports, Bayern's excellence has recently been called into question after a host of rash managerial decisions, poor signings, and dysfunctional executives. But Bayern's track record of success in the 2010s decade speaks for itself, and looking at their list of transfers over the last 15 years provides a clear example of why they achieved consistent Champions League success and perennial Bundesliga dominance. Here are the 10 best transfers in Bayern Munich's recent history since 2010, ranked in order. 10. Leon Goretzka, CM Leon Goretzka helped lead Schalke to an unlikely second-pla...
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Ranking the 10 best midfielders at Euro 2024
17Jun By Joe SorianoNo Comments
Analysis

Ranking the 10 best midfielders at Euro 2024

As Jorginho showed the world in the last European Championships, in addition to Luka Modric and Enzo Fernandez at previous World Cups, great midfielders can make a world of difference at the international stage. Here are the 10 best midfielders you need to know at Euro 2024, ranked in order. 10. Dominik Szoboszlai, Hungary Dominik Szoboszlai's match-winning performance against Montenegro will forever live in the lore of Hungarian football. The Liverpool star is the modern day hope of the country in football, carrying a legacy that includes some of the greatest players in history, most namely Ferenc Puskas A playmaker who has become a more robust midfielder by working on his physical strength, Szoboszlai can play virtually any position for Hungary but is currently being utilized as ...
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Ranking the 10 best Juventus players of all time
29Aug By Joe SorianoNo Comments
All-Time Lists

Ranking the 10 best Juventus players of all time

Juventus may be in a difficult period in 2023 after years of mismanagement, but they remain the biggest club in Italian football and an institution of historic proportions. Many of the world's biggest legends have played for Juve, whether they were Ballon d'Or winners spending a few peak years in Turin or long-time legends who spent more than a decade with the Old Lady. To honor the absolute best Juventus players in the club's storied history, let's rank the top 10 of all time, focusing on those who had an extended spell with the Bianconeri. 10. David Trézéguet Equally adept at scoring and creating, David Trézéguet formed one of the most formidable partnerships in the history of world football with Alessandro Del Piero. Trézéguet was at the peak of his powers in French football ...
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Ranking the 10 best Bayern Munich players of all time
28Aug By Joe SorianoNo Comments
All-Time Lists

Ranking the 10 best Bayern Munich players of all time

Bayern Munich hold a hallowed level of respect in the lore of world football. They are one of the clubs players from around the world aspire to play for one day, and while the lack of success of other Bundesliga clubs has caused Die Roten to fall behind the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona in terms of popularity, their credibility and respect remain as high as ever. Winning in a dominant fashion is synonymous with this historic club, and so many wonderful footballers have created this winning tradition in Bavaria over the decades. Bayern always boast the best players in Germany and are Champions League contenders every single season. So let's honor Germany's richest and most powerful club by taking a look at the 10 best players to ever grace the pitch with a Bayern Munich kit...
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