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5 players who tanked their stock with nightmare Champions League Round of 16 performances

19Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

5 players who tanked their stock with nightmare Champions League Round of 16 performances

The Champions League Round of 16 is officially in the books, but the fallout from the biggest club tournament in world football has not been fully digested yet. Here are five players who were so poor in the second leg of the tournament that fans are having new doubts about them. Chelsea CB Mamadou Sarr To be honest, Chelsea fans were already having doubts about Mamadou Sarr. He's only getting starts because the rest of the Chelsea center backs have been so underwhelming this season, but he was so horrendous in the latest loss to PSG that maybe Blues fans will appreciate Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile a little bit more in comparison. Out of all the underwhelming center backs on this team, Sarr is the worst. He almost never wins possession for this team, and his passive playing sty...

No, the Premier League isn’t dead after its Champions League losses

19Mar

By Cody AcevedaNo Comments

Analysis

No, the Premier League isn’t dead after its Champions League losses

The football world is reeling after Chelsea, Manchester City, Tottenham, and Newcastle were eliminated from the Champions League this week. The four English Premier League teams lost by a combined score of 28-12. LaLiga sides alone scored 20 goals against English opposition in the Round of 16. Newcastle’s 7-2 loss to Barcelona is one of the heaviest defeats in UCL history. Because of these results, there’s never been a better time to say that the Premier League is dead. And plenty of people are saying that, but those people are wrong. As bad as these losses were for EPL sides, they say nothing about the overall quality of English football. The Premier League is still the best league in the world. This week’s defeats only tell us that the gap between the Premier League and the elit...

Manchester United fans get crucial Sandro Tonali transfer news

18Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

Manchester United fans get crucial Sandro Tonali transfer news

The Sandro Tonali transfer saga is going to be one of the biggest stories of the Premier League transfer window this summer, as rivals Arsenal and Manchester United are pushing hard for the Newcastle United star as a dream signing. Manchester United have by far the biggest need for Tonali's profile, as he is the sort of athlete and playmaker who can be a center piece player for a midfield that lacks a top class player in his prime. According to a report from transfer insider Christopher Michel, Manchester United are now "seriously working" on a move for Tonali, and while that is huge for United fans to hear, the bigger part of the report is Michel's info that Tonali himself is "apparently quite open" to moving to Old Trafford. Michel further adds that he has heard Manchester Unite...

18Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

Manchester United doubling down on unpopular Casemiro decision

Manchester United defensive midfielder Casemiro is getting up there in age, but he has still been one of the best players in his position this season, including scoring important goals for the club. So with Man United already needing a lot of help in the middle of the park, many fans want to see the Red Devils extending the impending free agent for at least one more season. However, talkSPORT's Alex Crook reports that Man United are sticking to their guns and are not going to be re-signing Casemiro this summer, because even though he is still playing well, the Red Devils want to overhaul their club in a younger direction with proven Premier League players who can perform more than one game per week. After all, Manchester United are going to be qualifying for European football next...

Enzo Maresca is Chelsea’s only winner right now

18Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

Enzo Maresca is Chelsea’s only winner right now

Enzo Maresca walked away from Chelsea in the middle of the season after realizing that the board had screwed him over with no intention to sign a defender despite his begging for a second straight transfer window. At the time, if some Chelsea fans had sour grapes, those same fans have likely seen the light after watching the Blues get dismantled a second time in the Champions League Round of 16 by reigning winners PSG, who are through to the quarterfinals on an 8-2 aggregate. Filip Jorgensen could be blamed for the first leg, but the second leg was on the defense. Right now, Chelsea's best healthy center back is Wesley Fofana, and, well, nobody would mistake him for world class. Malang Sarr is nowhere near Chelsea quality, Tosin Adarabioyo should have never been signed, Trevoh Cha...

Bruno Fernandes’ all-time great season is going overlooked

17Mar

By Cody AcevedaNo Comments

Analysis

Bruno Fernandes’ all-time great season is going overlooked

Most people know that Manchester United are over-performing expectations this season. The Red Devils are third in the table after Premier League Matchweek 30 and odds-on favorites to qualify for the Champions League. At the heart of this success is an all-time great season by Bruno Fernandes. On Sunday, the Portuguese international broke David Beckham’s Man Utd club record for most assists in a season. He has 16 in the EPL so far this campaign, double the second-ranked player (Manchester City’s Rayan Cherki). In case there was any doubt about whether Fernandes’ assists were flukes, you just have to look at his chance creation numbers. Per FotMob, the Man Utd captain has created 98 chances in the EPL. That’s 40 more than Declan Rice, who has created the second most chances this season...

2026 Champions League picks, score predictions for Round of 16 second leg

16Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

2026 Champions League picks, score predictions for Round of 16 second leg

The Champions League Round of 16 definitely delivered on the drama and the goals in the first leg, and the second leg promises to be even better. Here are the full score predictions for each of the eight games. Chelsea 2-2 PSG Chelsea will rue Liam Rosenior's decision to give Filip Jorgensen the nod, and the most laughable part of that whole ordeal is that the manager's reasoning was that Jorgensen would be better on the ball. Whoops. At home, Chelsea will have a point to prove and will go into this game with no fear, but they just do not have the quality to turn the tie around against a PSG side that is finally starting to play to its talent level when it matters most. Liverpool 2-1 Galatasaray Trips to Istanbul are never easy, and while Liverpool have major issues with their squad...

Arda Guler, 3 Real Madrid players who proved they deserve better in 4-1 win vs. Elche

14Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

Arda Guler, 3 Real Madrid players who proved they deserve better in 4-1 win vs. Elche

Real Madrid dominated Elche despite resting some key players and having several more injured. Here are three stars who proved they either deserve better from their teams or from the fans in the 4-1 win. CM Arda Guler Real Madrid actually started Thiago Pitarch, but Arda Guler came in around the hour mark and proved why he is one of the finest playmakers in all the land. He created two chances in 30 minutes, scored a goal, and delivered a monstrous performance. But it was the ball winning that really stood out. He had an insane six tackles in that time span. Guler may not be the biggest, but he has so much heart. And we saw his competitive fire in this one, coming off the bench with an intensity we have not seen in a long time, especially when pressing and winning possession. CM Fede ...

Chelsea’s Reece James mistake has been horribly exposed

14Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

Chelsea’s Reece James mistake has been horribly exposed

Chelsea started Reece James in the midfield again to get Malo Gusto a starting opportunity to overlap on the right hand side, and Chelsea fans could not help but think, coming out of the game, that this farce needs to end. James is a clearly superior player to Gusto, both defensively and, yes, offensively. He is more safe, more consistent, more intelligent, and better technically. So the only way Gusto and James can play together and the only way Gusto can play is for James to play in midfield. But all those things that make James so good at right back are not true in midfield. Look, it is true that James is versatile enough to be a passable midfielder, and he was far from the biggest problem in the team - actually, Gusto playing in his natural position was even worse than James, whi...

Chelsea fans are coming to a heartbreaking Cole Palmer conclusion

14Mar

By Joe SorianoNo Comments

Analysis

Chelsea fans are coming to a heartbreaking Cole Palmer conclusion

It has been a rough 2025/26 season for former Premier League Player of the Season candidate Cole Palmer, and after watching him struggle yet again vs. Newcastle United, Chelsea fans can only come to the heartbreaking conclusion that he is himself to blame for his issues. Just as Arsenal fans are watching Bukayo Saka look a step off this season, the young Palmer is, likewise, playing below his level and genuinely looking both gassed and lacking sharpness in his decision making. Chelsea thought they would be skating with an in form Joao Pedro and Palmer together in the attack again, and just as Pedro had been improving under Liam Rosenior, there was a prevailing belief that Palmer would improve away from Enzo Maresca and with health on his side. But watching Palmer struggle to win o...