Analysis

The left back position is one of the most talent scarce in world football by virtue of the fact that fullbacks are difficult to find, and especially left-footed fullbacks who can fulfill all the duties a modern-day LB is expected to perform. Although the Bundesliga don't have a great left back for every team in the league, they have quite a few talents at the top who are among the best left backs in all of European football. So here is a look at the 10 best Bundesliga left backs heading into the new 2024/25 season, with breakout stars joining familiar faces like Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies and RB Leipzig's David Raum. 10. Phillipp Mwene, Mainz After two seasons of starting in the Europa League for PSV, Phillipp Mwene returned to man the left back position for Mainz. The 30-year...

Atalanta have been fixtures in European football since Gian Piero Gasperini arrived in Bergamo in 2016, and La Dea will be headed to their fourth Champions League appearance under the leadership of the Italian manager after winning the Europa League over a previously undefeated Bayer Leverkusen and holding off a challenge from fairytale side Bologna. With smart transfer business and a fluid tactical system, Atalanta often unearth some of European football's most exciting players and biggest gems - stars like Rasmus Hojlund that go on to play for Manchester United. The 2024/25 Atalanta side is no exception and may be their most gifted in years. Here are five players on La Dea you need to know before the next Serie A season kicks off. Note: Teun Koopmeiners would be on this list but...

Perhaps no league in the world is more famous for creating quality goalkeeping talent than the Bundesliga, and that goes beyond the obvious fact that the literal GOAT of goalkeepers, Manuel Neuer, was made in the Bundesliga at Schalke and became a legend at Bayern Munich. Keepers like Kevin Trapp, Koen Casteels, Peter Gulasci, Lukas Hradecky, Oliver Baumann, Yann Sommer, and now Gregor Kobel have been operating at the highest level for years in the Bundesliga, ranking themselves among the best on the continent. But who are the best Bundesliga goalkeepers heading into a fresh season? Here is a ranking of the top 10 shot-stoppers to know. 10. Alexander Nubel, Stuttgart Alexander Nubel is a pretty recognizable goalkeeper in German football because he was Schalke's captain before movin...

Addressing the topic of a player's value is extremely difficult in world football, especially when comparing across positions and even ascribing value to a player specific to the team they play for. One way to define "value" is an equivalence to importance. That is to say, a player is valuable because he is important to his team, and the "Most Valuable Player", which is the phrasing Serie A uses for its annual award in a hearken to American sports, is therefore the player who helped his team the most. But in this article ,I'd like to discuss value in a less nebulous but equally challenging realm, which is a player's financial value on the transfer market in a perfect vacuum in which leverage, contract, and overall situation are taken out. Let's take a look at the most valuable pla...

As a position, center backs are underrated in general, because they have to do so much heavy lifting to stop the opposition's best attackers and are being tasked with more playmaking and on-the-ball ability under pressure - even moreso in modern football than ever before. Here are 10 center backs who are especially underrated. These are young players who haven't yet been picked out as top transfer targets, or they are more experienced players in their primes who have somehow flown under the radar, largely because they star for clubs outside of the spotlight. Joachim Andersen, Crystal Palace Even though Joachim Anderen has been operating at the highest level while starting for Crystal Palace in the Premier League, the vast majority of fans around the world don't know how good he is. ...

The 2024/25 Serie A season will kick off on Aug. 17 with the likes of Inter Milan and AC Milan in action, and after winning the league by nearly 20 points, the Nerazzurri will be out to achieve even more, perhaps looking to get back to the Champions League Final. Serie A underwent a lot of turnover this past summer, mainly from perennial disappointments Juventus, who finally axed Max Allegri and replaced him with Thiago Motta - the darling manager who nearly led fairytale side Bologna to the Champions League. Although the summer 2024 transfer window in Serie A is far from settled with players like Federico Chiesa and Tammy Abraham mired in intraleague transfer rumors, enough deals have been made so that we can fairly take stock of the window thus far. Here is a look at every team'...

After finishing sixth in LaLiga and missing out on the Champions League, Real Sociedad will head into the 2024/25 without their top-performing player of the previous campaign, center midfielder Mikel Merino. Despite that, there are still plenty of great Real Sociedad players worth knowing and watching closely next season - and not just because a couple of them could be headed to "bigger" European clubs. Before the 2024/25 LaLiga season gets under way, let's take a look at a handful of the best Real Sociedad players every world football fan needs to know. AM Takefusa Kubo Takefusa Kubo has to be the most recognizable name in the Real Sociedad squad, as he is legitimately one of the most exciting players to watch in world football because of his acceleration, close control, and emerg...

Before Schalke nearly became the worst team in the history of German football, they were literally the third-biggest club in the country behind Bayern Munich and arch rivals Borussia Dortmund. In fact, just two years before the bottom started to fall out, Schalke finished the season second behind Bayern. Heck, that very 2019/20 season during which they collapsed in the second half of the campaign, the Royal Blues were second at the end of the Hinrunde. Schalke are a proud club, and their "Knappenschmiede" academy has literally produced some of the greatest players in the history of German football. So let's honor Schalke and some of its legends of the recent past by looking at the 10 best players the Royal Blues ever developed from the ground up. GK Manuel Neuer We have to begin wi...