When Steven Gerrard was recently named Liverpool’s greatest player of all time, he was the only player in the top 10 not to have a league title to his name.

That his legacy is preserved despite lacking that honour to his name underlines how his performances across 710 appearances for the club, and eight other trophies won, are revered by supporters.

Ask any Liverpool supporter who the one player is who deserved to have won the league; it’s Gerrard, unquestionably. But that shouldn’t be just from a Liverpool perspective, either: Gerrard is simply the best player to have never won the Premier League.

The two chances

There were two occasions when Gerrard did almost get his hands on the Premier League trophy, 2008/09 and 2013/14.

The first was, at the time, Liverpool’s highest league points total, having suffered just two defeats all season as Gerrard combined with Fernando Torres in blistering fashion under Rafa Benitez.

The second was, of course, as Gerrard and Luis Suarez inspired Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool to a completely unexpected title run, pushing Man City all the way thanks to a run of 11 consecutive victories - something that gets forgotten when revisiting the infamous Gerrard slip against Chelsea.

If a Liverpool supporter could have a magic genie lamp to change the result of any match in their history, the defeat to Chelsea in that April of 2014 would be right among the list, if not the top one.

That was meant to be the year that Gerrard got his deserved title, inspiring his team from a new position deeper in midfield, with the virtuoso duo of Suarez and Daniel Sturridge feeding off his ball-playing from deep.

It was a season when the then-34-year-old delivered his second-highest league goals tally and his highest league assists tally.

“This does not f**king slip now,” Gerrard infamously bellowed, his passion and emotion so clearly on display after a dramatic and emotional 3-2 win over City in April that put the Reds top of the table with four games remaining, but with City having two games in hand.

This was his destiny. The perfect end to his Liverpool career. What he'd earned and what he deserved.

That Gerrard came so close to inspiring a Liverpool side that had Jon Flanagan and Aly Cissokho as regular full-backs tells the story of his career.

Alas, Liverpool’s greatest player was denied the title, and the following season the shock from that title loss enveloped the club. It felt like the fans and players were emotionally shot by how it had ended. People within the club admitted as much, and Gerrard announced his departure in January the following season. It wasn’t how it was meant to end.

No wonder Jurgen Klopp spoke of the need to turn doubters to believers and the weight of history upon his arrival 16 months later.

Even two years later, watching Leicester City win the title, taking nothing away from them, you couldn’t help think how Wes Morgan was a title-winning captain, but Gerrard wasn’t. The hurt lingered.

The 2014 asterisk title

Of course, the 2014 title is one of the asterisk titles now, following City being found guilty of 114 charges relating to the period from 2009 to 2018.

Such findings have led to speculation over what will happen when punishment is finally delivered. Whether City will be stripped of their titles, nobody yet knows. But there is precedent from Italy when Juventus were stripped of their 2004 title following the Calciopoli scandal. Officially, no team is recognised as champions of Serie A consequently.

That would likely be the case if the Premier League were to make a similar verdict, but it doesn’t and won’t stop the supporters, players and all involved in trophy challenges with City from feeling aggrieved.

“I still feel cheated,” was Tony Pulis’ reaction to the news - he was Stoke manager when City beat them in the FA Cup final in 2011. He added: “I am sure people connected with the other clubs affected by City’s successes in the same period, between 2009 and 2018, do too.”

Klopp’s Liverpool legacy

Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright accurately assessed the situation, although highlighting Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool - whose title battles with City currently sit outside of the investigation - with Klopp’s team having finished second in 2019 and 2022.

“When you look at the teams who were trying to chase them and were doing it right, it's not right,” says Wright. "What have we taken from Liverpool's legacy, [Jurgen] Klopp and that team? What could they have experienced?

"They [City] cheated to get it done, and people have missed out on that. Players have missed out on unbelievable opportunities for themselves, so I'm glad that we've finally got there.”

While the two second-place finishes, with 97 points and 92 points, aren’t part of the current investigation, they were clearly indirectly affected also. It is the equivalent of getting rich through illicit means, then going straight but reaping the rewards of the illegally acquired finances.

So yes, Klopp was directly denied two more titles. His legacy would be entirely different. He was fighting against a club that had been put into a superior position via illegal methods.

In an interview in 2019, Klopp was discussing legacy, winning trophies, and how life is judged, astutely surmising that “all the other guys who won with ignoring all the rules, all the laws, I think they have to use another door.”

Thankfully, Liverpool supporters recognise what Klopp achieved and what he was up against, and his legacy is and will always be remembered as much more than delivering just one league title.

Just as Gerrard’s legacy is much more than his honours list shows, too.

But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t feel cheated. Every team and supporter involved in the Premier League over the past almost two decades should be sincerely aggrieved.

“It's not so important what people think when you come in, it's much more important what people think when you leave,” said Klopp in his first Liverpool press conference.

His team will be remembered differently, as will City’s era of success.

You know the drill by now. This FourFourTwo Quickfire Quiz consists of 10 tricky football trivia teasers and you have just 90 seconds to answer them all.

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This FourFourTwo Quickfire Quiz, like all FourFourTwo Quickfire Quizzes before and after it, is a simple matter of 10 questions and 90 seconds to answer them.

Handpicked football quizzes we know you'll love

FourFourTwo has many more football quizzes and they're all courtesy of Kwizly. You can begin by naming Arsenal's 50 most expensive signings ever. Good luck with that. It's tougher than you think.

Next up, take on these 15 questions about the 2016-17 season in the Premier League and then try to name every player to have scored a hat-trick in the Premier League. We'll take a high score on that one because you're not getting them all.

We also want you to have a crack at identifying these pointlessly edited football club badges and answer some questions about the streets football won't forget. Yes, you read that correctly.

If you're up for something a bit meatier, we'd advise you to be careful what you wish for. Can you name every team to have ever played in the group stage, league phase or first round of the Champions League?

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When Tottenham Hotspur moved into their state-of-the-art billion-pound stadium, it was supposed to become a fortress where visiting teams feared to tread.

In reality, it's proven to be something far more accommodating: an arena where opposition sides, regardless of their own internal difficulties, routinely rock up and depart with all three points.

The early stages of the new season have laid bare Spurs' poor home form in stark fashion. Tottenham have already suffered two home defeats from three, first succumbing 2-0 to Newcastle United before falling 3-2 to Aston Villa.

Tottenham Hotspur have lost 22 league games AT HOME since the beginning of 2024/25

What makes these early setbacks so damning is not just the dropped points, but the state of the teams that inflicted them.

Both Newcastle and Villa arrived in North London in states of flux and transition. Villa endured a summer exodus that saw nearly half their core squad depart, while Newcastle lost key stalwarts, integrated a raft of new arrivals, and replaced long-serving manager Eddie Howe with Matthias Jaissle in the dugout.

Neither side truly knows their definitive identity yet, and both walked away with victory.

Spurs should have had the decisive upper hand because while Tottenham are still undergoing their own tactical evolution under Roberto De Zerbi, their squad remains far more settled than either Villa's or Newcastle's.

De Zerbi benefited from an invaluable stretch at the tail-end of last season to bed in his principles of play, iron out kinks, and establish a clear playing style.

That a De Zerbi side with a full pre-season under their belts, playing in their own backyard, was picked apart by two teams still searching for their footing is a troubling indictment.

There are fears this the continuation of a rot that has set in over recent years, not simply a slow start or isolated blip.

Across both the 2024/25 and 2025/26 campaigns, Tottenham’s home record was among the poorest in the Premier League. Spurs lost 10 of their 19 league games on home turf, winning just three. Only relegated Wolverhampton Wanderers and Burnley presided over poorer records on their own doorstep.

The season prior, Spurs' home form was better but not by much, winning six league matches, but still losing 10. Ange Postecoglou, Thomas Frank, Igor Tudor and perhaps now De Zerbi, have all found playing at the incredible Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to be more of a curse than a blessing.

In truth, it has become a ground where visiting coaches can sit deep and wait for the home crowd's anxiety to boil over. And can you blame them, when they've seen 22 league defeats since August 2024? Could it be that ailing home form becomes a permanent feature of Tottenham's modern identity?

De Zerbi was handed a lucrative long-term contract in the form of a five-year agreement worth a reported £12 million per season, alongside substantial bonus terms. Aside from correcting their course at the end of 2025/26, he hasn't made good on the Spurs hierarchy's investment just yet.

Tottenham's commitment to De Zerbi in effect strips the club of any easy or inexpensive exit strategy should the Italian be unable to remedy their home complex. Severing ties early would carry with it an eye-watering compensation payout, meaning Spurs are all-in on De Zerbi fixing their home field disadvantage that has beaten his predecessors.

The road ahead offers little margin for error. Tottenham's home fixture list in the coming weeks features Premier League clashes against Coventry City, Crystal Palace, Ipswich Town, and Fulham - all winnable on paper. Whatever the outcome, they could be the making of, or the undoing of De Zerbi and this latest attempt at a Spurs rebuild.

Watch Scotland vs Switzerland for free from anywhere as Sebastien Pocognoli manages in front of the Tartan Army at Hampden Park for the first time. FourFourTwo has all the details on live streams and TV channels, wherever you are in the world.

Pocognoli started his tenure as Scotland boss with a 0-0 draw against Slovenia on Saturday and will be looking for an improved performance in front of goal against Switzerland.

Switzerland had no such problems in their Group B1 opener, easing to a 3-0 victory away to North Macedonia.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information you need to watch Scotland vs Switzerland online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Scotland vs Switzerland: Team News

Scotland XI: Gunn; Hendry, McKenna, Binks; Patterson, Gilmour, Ferguson, Robertson; McGinn; McBurnie, Bowie

Switzerland XI: Kobel; Athekame, Elvedi, Akanji, Rodriguez; Jashari, Freuler; Aebischer, Manzambi, Ndoye; Amdouni.

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Viewers in the UK can watch Scotland vs Switzerland live and for free, with the game being broadcast on BBC Two, BBC Scotland and online on BBC iPlayer. Kick-off is at 7:45pm BST.

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In the US, Fubo Sports Network via Tubi will broadcast the Scotland vs Switzerland game for free.

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Viewers in Australia can watch Scotland vs Switzerland live on beIN SPORTS. The game will be shown on beIN SPORTS 1 and beIN SPORTS CONNECT, with kick-off at 4:45am AEST on Wednesday.

Scotland vs Switzerland: Preview

Scotland fans heading to Hampden Park on Tuesday night will be full of anticipation as they prepare to witness the Sebastien Pocognoli era on home soil for the first time.

The Tartan Army's opening game under their new Belgian boss provided some promising moments without a headline result, and that 0-0 draw in Slovenia will have whetted the appetite for this clash with Switzerland - the strongest team in the group.

Pocognoli is expected to name a largely unchanged lineup from the one that started in Ljubljana, which could see Stephen Welsh and Robbie Ure make their home debuts, and Oli McBurnie feature at Hampden for the first time since March 2021.

SEE ALSO “100 per cent true” How FourFourTwo magazine helped a Premier League goalkeeper earn a call-up for the Scotland international team in the 90s

Whoever starts for Scotland will have their work cut out against a side who are ranked 14th in the world and reached the quarter-finals of the last two major tournaments.

Switzerland are a slick outfit under experienced manager Murat Yakin and started their Nations League campaign with a 3-0 win in North Macedonia to take control of Group B1.

The Swiss are without key men Granit Xhaka and Breel Embolo for the entire international break but have plenty of quality elsewhere, with Burnley's Zeki Amdouni scoring twice and Remo Freuler also on target in their group opener.

Squads

Scotland

Goalkeepers: Scott Bain, Angus Gunn, Liam Kelly, Jon McCracken.

Defenders: Luis Binks, Josh Doig, Colby Donovan, Luke Graham, Jack Hendry, Aaron Hickey, Scott McKenna, Nathan Patterson, Andy Robertson, Stephen Welsh.

Midfielders: Ryan Christie, Lewis Ferguson, Billy Gilmour, John McGinn, Kristi Montgomery, Josh McPake, Lennon Miller.

Forwards: Kieron Bowie, Findlay Curtis, Ben Gannon-Doak, Oli McBurnie, Robbie Ure, James Wilson.

Switzerland

Goalkeepers: Marvin Keller, Gregor Kobel, Yvon Mvogo.

Defenders: Manuel Akanji, Aurele Amenda, Zachary Athekame, Adrian Bajrami, Sascha Britschgi, Eray Comert, Nico Elvedi, Ricardo Rodriguez.

Midfielders: Michel Aebischer, Remo Freuler, Ardon Jashari, Johan Manzambi, Joel Monteiro, Fabian Rieder, Vincent Sierro, Djibril Sow, Denis Zakaria.

Forwards: Zeki Amdouni, Winsley Boteli, Cedric Itten, Dan Ndoye, Alvyn Sanches.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Scotland 1-1 Switzerland

We expect another encouraging performance from Pocognoli's side, even if they fall short of a statement victory.

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Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno is being lined up by Bayern Munich.

Now 34, the Cottagers' No.1 has established himself as one of the most reliable goalkeepers in the Premier League since his move to West London four years ago.

As one of the longer-serving and more experienced of Fulham's current first-teamers, losing Leno to Bayern would be a blow – though the call of the Bundesliga giants may be too great for the German to ignore.

Bernd Leno lined up for Bayern Munich role away from Fulham

According to BILD in Germany, Leno is being lined up in an “easy” to complete deal for the Bavarians to become Manuel Neuer's backup.

The former Arsenal stopper is, of course, used to that role, having played deputy for Neuer for Germany, limiting him to just nine appearances for his country since he made his debut in 2016.

Earlier this summer, however, Neuer retired from international duty at the age of 40, and given that he has just entered his 16th season at the Allianz Arena, there's an opportunity for Leno to usurp his senior, should he make the move.

The stopper has proven himself as statistically one of the more impressive between the sticks in the Premier League over the last decade, and may well put forward a good case to challenge for the No.1 spot – or at least take the shirt if and when Neuer calls it a day.

Leno wouldn't be the first to move to Bayern in recent seasons to compete with Die Roten captain Neuer.

In 2020, the club moved to tie up a deal for highly-touted Alexander Nubel from Schalke, but when asked about the deal, Neuer described the 23-year-old's transfer as “irrelevant” to him – and sure enough, the Gelsenkirchen-born custodian captained his side to six trophies that year.

Yann Sommer and Daniel Peretz, meanwhile, have both moved to Allianz as an understudy – with the former used as an emergency option following Neuer breaking his leg in a freak skiing accident – but neither could oust the veteran from his position for long.

The good news for Fulham is that they have no obligation to sell their No.1.

The German left Arsenal for just £8 million, according to the BBC – a cost-effective deal for the time – and with Fulham having an option to extend his deal until 2028, they may even recoup what they spent on the player.

Leno is worth €6m, according to Transfermarkt. The winless Whites play Ipswich Town when the international break concludes and Premier League action returns.

Watch Spain vs Croatia for free from anywhere as the world champions aim to make it two wins out of two in the Nations League, with FourFourTwo bringing you live stream details and TV channels, wherever you are on the planet.

La Roja are back on home soil after a successful trip to Wembley, where they beat England 3-2 in their Group A3 opener to extend their unbeaten run to an incredible 39 matches.

Croatia have been racking up the air miles over the past few days, with this clash in Seville coming just 72 hours after their 2-1 win over Czechia in Prague.

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Viewers in the UK can watch Spain vs Croatia on Amazon Prime Video, with coverage available on a pay-per-view basis. Kick-off is at 7:45pm BST.

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Fox Sports is the official broadcast partner of the Nations League in the US, with live coverage of Spain vs Croatia on Fox Sports 1. The game will kick-off at 2:45pm ET.

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Spain vs Croatia: Nations League preview

Spain are making international football look very easy right now. The World and European champions went to Wembley on Saturday to face an England side ranked fourth in the world and should have been out of sight before half-time, with their eventual 3-2 victory arguably flattering the hosts.

That win extended their unbeaten run to 39 games in all competitions, and they should stretch that streak against Croatia in Seville. Manager Luis de la Fuente has plenty of options to choose from, with Alex Baena and Mikel Oyarzabal pushing to start after scoring the second and third goals against England.

A victory would put Spain in control of Group A3 ahead of an inviting home game against Czechia on Saturday, before they travel to Croatia for the return fixture this time next week.

Croatia will have done all their travelling in the first half of this international window and will doubtless be glad to return home after matches in Czechia and Spain in the space of 72 hours.

Their opening goal on Saturday was scored by Luka Modric, who celebrated his 41st birthday earlier this month but showed he is still more than good enough to compete at international level. Whether he can still start two games in three days is another matter, though.

That decision will be left to manager Slaven Bilic, back in charge of his country after replacing the hugely successful Zlatko Dalic following the World Cup. The 58-year-old's second spell got off to a winning start on Saturday, but this is a totally different test.

Spain vs Croatia: Team News

Spain XI: Simon; Pubil, Cubarsi, Huijsen, Cucurella; Zubimendi, Fabian, Fermin; Yamal, Baena, Oyarzabal.

Croatia XI: Livakovic; Smolcic, Pongracic, Gvardiol, Perisic; Misic, Sutalo, Kovacic; Sucic, Pasalic, Beljo.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Spain 3-1 Croatia

Anything but a Spain victory would be an almighty shock.

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Watch Czechia vs England for FREE from anywhere as the Three Lions head to Prague for their second Nations League fixture, with FourFourTwo bringing you all the live stream details and TV channels, wherever you are in the world.

Thomas Tuchel's men came out on the wrong side of a five-goal thriller in their Group A3 opener against world champions Spain and will be looking to hit back against Czechia. James Trafford starts again in goal while Trent Alexander-Arnold and Trevoh Chalobah are afforded rare starts. Full team news below.

Czechia side also fell to a narrow defeat on the weekend and have opted for four changes to their starting XI.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information on how to watch Czechia vs England online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Watch Czechia vs England for FREE in the UK

Viewers in the UK can watch Czechia vs England for free on ITV1 and ITVX. Kick-off is at 7:45pm BST.

Czechia vs England: Team News

Czech Republic XI: Kovar, Chaloupek, Hranac, Krejci, Slama, Cerv, Sulc, Sadilek, Radosta, Karabec, Hlozek

Substitutes: Hornicek, Kinsky, Vasulin, Zmrzly, Kricfalusi, Ambros, Vitik, Bucha, Macek, Lingr, Kral, Sacek

England XI: Trafford, Alexander-Arnold, Chalobah, Guehi, Hall, Anderson, Lewis-Skelly, Rogers, Saka, Kane, Gordon

Substitutes: Pickford, Steele, Scott, Konsa, Bellingham, Ngumoha, Branthwaite, Garner, Calvert-Lewin, Gibbs-White, Eze, Quansah

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How to watch Czechia vs England in the US

Fans in the US can watch Czechia vs England on Fubo TV, which is an official broadcast partner of the UEFA Nations League. The game kicks-off at 2:45pm ET.

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Viewers in Australia can watch Czechia vs England live on beIN SPORTS. The game will be shown on beIN SPORTS 3 and beIN SPORTS CONNECT, with kick-off at 4:45am AEST on Wednesday.

See also ► Emile Heskey explains why Real Madrid star WILL inspire Three Lions to glory

Czechia vs England: Nations League Preview

England head to Prague looking to kick-start their Nations League campaign after an entertaining but ultimately fruitless 3-2 defeat by world champions Spain on Saturday.

There were plenty of positives in the Three Lions' performance at Wembley, yet they once again came up short against an elite international side. The good news for manager Thomas Tuchel and his players is that their next opponents are far from a top-tier nation - Czechia are ranked 49 in the world, between Venezuela and South Africa.

England will be expected to win comfortably at the Fortuna Arena, where James Trafford is set to continue in goal ahead of usual No.1 Jordan Pickford. Defenders Ezri Konsa and Nico O'Reilly are injury doubts having been unable to train with the squad on Monday.

Czechia return to the scene of their Group A3 opener, 72 hours after losing 2-1 to Croatia courtesy of a late Marco Pasalic strike.

That was manager Santi Denia's first game in charge after he replaced Miroslav Koubek following a disappointing World Cup, which saw the Czechs pick up just one point as they exited at the group stage.

The Spaniard has not been helped by several players withdrawing from the squad prior to this international camp, while Saturday's goalscorer Adam Karabec is an injury doubt after he was forced off against Croatia. Czechia can take some confidence from the fact that they beat England the last time these sides met in Prague, winning 2-1 in a Euro 2020 qualifier in October 2019.

Squads

Czechia

Goalkeepers: Lukas Hornicek (Newcastle United), Antonin Kinsky (Tottenham Hotspur), Matej Kovar (PSV Eindhoven).

Defenders: Vladimir Coufal, Robin Hranac (both Hoffenheim), Stepan Chaloupek (Slavia Prague), Ladislav Krejci (Wolves), Ondrej Kricfalusi (Union Saint-Gilloise), Michal Sacak, Ondrej Zmrzly (both Gornik Zabrze), Jiri Slama (Jablonec), Martin Vitik (Bologna).

Midfielders: Lukas Ambros (Anderlecht), Pavel Bucha (FC Cincinnati), Lukas Cerv ( Viktoria Plzen), Adam Karabec, Roman Macek (both Sparta Prague), Alex Kral (FC Copenhagen), Ondrej Lingr (Korona Kielce), Michal Sadiilek (Slavia Prague), Matej Radosta (Teplice), Martin Subert (Mlada Boleslav).

Forwards: Adam Hlozek (Hoffenheim), Vaclav Sejk (Sigma Olomouc), Pavel Sulc (Lyon).

England

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Jason Steele (Brighton & Hove Albion), James Trafford (Leeds United).

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Trevoh Chalobah (Como), Marc Guéhi (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Nico O'Reilly (Manchester City), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen).

Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Manchester City), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), James Garner (Everton)*, Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest)* Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Alex Scott (AFC Bournemouth).

Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal).

*Called up after Tino Livramento, Kobbie Mainoo, Cole Palmer, Marcus Rashford and Declan Rice withdrew on Monday 21 September

FourFourTwo's prediction

Czechia 0-3 England

The Three Lions should return to winning ways with little fuss.

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Liverpool have been given fresh hope of landing Alex Scott next summer from Bournemouth.

The Reds have started the season positively and are yet to lose a game under new manager Andoni Iraola, but the midfield remains a concern, with Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister all forward-thinking players in the centre of the park.

While youngster Trey Nyoni has featured in central midfield for Liverpool in recent weeks, it may well take a new signing to regenerate the engine room – and Iraola may get to reunite with Scott, following the pair's time together at Bournemouth.

Bournemouth working on conditional clause for Alex Scott, that would see Liverpool able to sign him

According to TEAMtalk, the Cherries have sent numerous proposals to Scott to renew his contract, with his current contract – signed in 2023 – set to enter its final year next summer.

While Bournemouth have collected big fees over the last couple of years for Antoine Semenyo, Dominic Solanke, Milos Kerkez, Dean Huijsen and Ilya Zabarnyi, they run the risk of having to sell the Guernsey schemer for a reduced price, and are keen to sign him to a deal that ensures a release clause has to be met in order to sign him.

According to the report from TEAMtalk, this has alerted Liverpool, who have joined Chelsea in the race for the 23-year-old.

The Blues were particularly interested in Scott over the summer but were rebuffed, as Bournemouth didn't want to lose one of their key players ahead of playing European football this term on the south coast.

The midfielder has continued the excellent form he displayed in the second half of last season under new manager Marco Rose, and has been rewarded with a second call-up to the England national team, where he is yet to feature for Thomas Tuchel.

FourFourTwo understands that Bournemouth see January as a target to get Scott signed up by, as they look to avoid a scenario like last year.

The Dorset outfit lost Semenyo to Manchester City in the winter transfer window – though did manage to remain unbeaten for the rest of the Premier League campaign and record their highest-ever finish of sixth under Iraola.

With the Basque's new squad currently learning his specific methods and demands out of possession, it is unlikely that the Merseysiders will challenge for the Premier League crown, with the squad in transition and adapting slowly – but Scott may well help with that, should he arrive in January, or even next summer.

The midfielder has plenty of experience working with Iraola, understands his methods, and still under 25, can learn further and develop into a complete midfielder at Anfield.

Scott is worth €50 million, according to Transfermarkt. Liverpool face Man City when the international break concludes and Premier League action returns.

Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard has picked up another injury on international duty that will be sure to worry his employers.

The Gunners midfielder first picked up an ankle problem in 2024/25 while playing for his country, and ended up missing two months of the season – culminating in an injury crisis for Arsenal that saw them surrender the Premier League title to Liverpool.

Odegaard has since suffered a spate of injuries that have prevented him from having a long run in manager Mikel Arteta's side, but after finally returning and looking back to his best at the start of this season, he could yet have been dealt another setback with his fitness.

Norway keeping Arsenal updated, following Martin Odegaard injury

While playing for Norway against Portugal on Sunday, Odegaard was the recipient of a late tackle from Bernardo Silva – which he appeared to be particularly irate about in the aftermath.

Speaking after the game, as relayed by Sport Witness, the playmaker said, “He just kicked me down long after I’d played the ball away: I don’t understand what he’s doing.”

According to TV2 in Norway, Odegaard received “treatment behind closed doors for a long time,” but when asked about the injury, he simply replied that it “probably won't be good tonight [Sunday]”.

Odegaard's participation against Wales this week could well be under threat, but when speaking to Nettavisen, Norwegian manager Stale Solbakken noted that the national team are in close contact with Arsenal over the 27-year-old's fitness.

“The medical sector reports what has happened, and now it is the case that every metre you run here, and all training and everything you have done, is sent to the club. The medical contact is almost continuous,” he said.

“It’s standard procedure. I don’t interfere with that. There are four or five people for that, so they have to manage that.”

Arteta has already been dealt a blow this week with Kai Havertz limping off after sustaining an injury for Germany, while Declan Rice pulled out of England duty altogether.

There are worries in defence, too, with Ezri Konsa sitting out training with England following the Three Lions' defeat at Wembley to Spain, and Jurrien Timber following an individual programme, following his return from injury at the start of this.

Ben White remains an absentee, too, having sustained another knock following his impressive start to the season.

Odegaard is worth €70 million, according to Transfermarkt. Arsenal face Leeds United when the international break concludes and Premier League action returns.

Liverpool have received an update on Cody Gakpo, following the Dutchman's ankle injury on international duty.

Gakpo was injured during the Netherlands' clash with Serbia, following a hard tackle from midfielder Sasa Lukic, and taken off on 17 minutes after initially trying to run the problem off.

The knock is a particular worry for Liverpool, with the 27-year-old in excellent form for the Reds so far this season.

Cody Gakpo to have scan on ankle after returning to Liverpool

New Netherlands boss Xavi Hernandez has got off to a good start with the Oranje, overseeing a draw against Jurgen Klopp's Germany before a win against Serbia.

This was despite losing Gakpo and Sunderland's Brian Brobbey to injury – but the Spaniard claimed after the 2-1 win in Belgrade that he has optimism that Gakpo in particular hasn't suffered long-term damage.

“It’s his ankle, that’s all I know,” Xavi claimed, adding, “Tomorrow we will know, but hopefully it’s not too important.”

The Netherlands confirmed themselves that Gakpo would miss the rest of the international break, following the tackle.

Gakpo has been in fine fettle for new Reds boss Andoni Iraola this season, having almost departed Anfield after two-and-a-half years at the club.

The forward was a target for Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, but remained at Anfield with Iraola lacking numbers – given that the Merseysiders lack a natural right-winger in their squad following the departure of Mohamed Salah.

Gakpo has started three times on the left wing for the Basque and three times on the right, where he may have solved Liverpool's problem position: across both positions this term, he has delivered four goals and assists in just five league games, and managed to both score and assist in the Reds' Carabao Cup victory over Tottenham earlier this month.

His absence may, however, present a chance for summer signing Victor Munoz to step into the first team.

Liverpool are also missing Federico Chiesa and Hugo Ekitike in attack at the moment, while Alexander Isak has a slight thigh problem.

Gakpo is worth €60 million, according to Transfermarkt. Liverpool face Man City when the international break concludes and Premier League action returns.

The Women's League Cup has undergone a major revamp ahead of the 2026/27 season, with the competition now renamed the WSL Players Cup, or Subway Players Cup.

The tournament has also been given a new format, with a Swiss-style league phase replacing the previous group stage.

But the biggest change is that the three clubs who qualified for the Champions League will not compete, meaning there will be a new winner of the competition for the first time since its inception.

What are the main changes?

The Subway Players Cup has been redesigned following a review of the competition involving clubs, players and fans, aiming to prioritise player welfare.

The previous group-stage format has been replaced by a single league table, with 23 teams from the Women's Super League and WSL 2 taking part.

Each club will play a minimum of six matches in the league phase, compared to a minimum of three under last season's format.

This is in order to provide more meaningful playing opportunities for players who are not involved in European competition.

The three clubs competing in the Champions League - Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City - will not enter the Players Cup due to the increased fixture load.

It means none of the three previous winners will be involved this season. Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City are the only clubs to have won the competition since it was introduced in 2011.

Earlier this year, Lucy Bronze said she was 'sad' at the idea of not being able to compete for this piece of domestic silverware.

The competition has also been renamed from the Women's League Cup to the Players Cup.

What is the format of the competition?

A total of 23 clubs from England's top two tiers will compete in the Players Cup this season - 11 from the 14 WSL teams, and all 12 WSL 2 teams.

They will be split into regional sections for the purposes of drawing fixtures, but all 23 teams will compete in one unified league table.

Each side will play three home matches and three away matches during the league phase.

The format is designed to give clubs outside European competition more opportunities to play, while encouraging minutes for younger talent.

The top eight teams in the league table will progress to the knockout phase.

Matches will follow a slightly different points system if they cannot be decided in 90 minutes. A win in normal time is worth three points, while a match that is level after 90 minutes will go straight to penalties. The shootout winner receives two points and the loser one.

What are the key dates?

The league phase will run from September through December 2026, with fixtures primarily scheduled during Champions League match weeks.

The quarter-finals will take place across 13 and 14 January 2027, with the league-phase table determining the ties.

The first-placed team will face eighth, second will play seventh, third will meet sixth and fourth will take on fifth.

The semi-finals are scheduled for 10 and 11 February, with the higher-ranked team from the league phase receiving home advantage.

The final will then take place at a neutral venue across the weekend of 13-14 March 2027, with the location still to be confimred.

UEFA is officially restructuring the Nations League, transitioning from its existing four-league system to a three-tier format beginning with the 2028/29 edition.

Under the approved adjustments, Leagues A, B, and C will each be expanded to 18 teams, while there will no longer be a League D.

The current 2026/27 Nations League campaign will serve as the transitional cycle, using a revised set of promotion, relegation, and play-off permutations to facilitate the new setup.

The new Nations League format (2028/29)

Each of the three remaining leagues will accommodate 18 teams playing across a standard six-matchday format:

League A (18 teams): Made up of the eight 2026/27 quarter-finalists, the two best third-placed teams in League A, the four League B group winners, and the four League A/B play-off winners.

League B (18 teams): Composed of the two worst fourth-placed teams from League A, the four losers of the League A/B play-offs, all four third-placed teams in League B, the four League C group winners, and the four League B/C play-off winners.

League C (18 teams): Formed by the four losers of the League B/C play-offs, all eight teams finishing third and fourth in League C, and all six nations from League D.

Promotion, relegation & play-offs (2026/27)

To adapt the competition from four leagues to three, the following rules will apply at the end of the 2026/27 league phase.

With League D eliminated, all six League D nations receive automatic promotion to League C for 2028/29.

The four group winners in League B earn promotion to League A, while all four group winners in League C move directly to League B. Only the two lowest-ranked 4th-placed teams in League A suffer relegation to League B.

League A/B play-offs will be contested between four top-flight sides (the two lowest third-placed teams and two highest fourth-placed teams in League A) and the four runners-up from League B.

The four winners enter League A, while the four defeated sides head to League B.

League B/C play-offs are contested by the four bottom-finishing sides in League B and the four runners-up in League C. Winners play in League B for 2028/29, while losers are placed in League C.

Talks for a Manchester City player to leave have begun, following last week's bombshell that the club have been found guilty of 114 breaches of Premier League rules.

Although Manchester City are expected to appeal the Premier League's decision, speculation and uncertainty hang over the club, with the Citizens' future remaining unclear.

In the meantime, City have received an offer for one of their players – in what the club hope will not be the start of an exodus.

Manchester City star could leave in January on loan

On the field at least, new manager Enzo Maresca has started brightly despite a Community Shield loss, seizing 15 points from 15 in the Premier League securing passage to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup and winning their first came in the Champions League.

The Italian has gotten to grips with his new squad and stamped his authority on the team – but just two senior players left at the club have failed to make a Premier League appearance thus far, with one of them being backup goalkeeper, Geronimo Rulli.

The other is Rayan Ait-Nouri, who joined from Wolverhampton Wanderers last summer and made just 15 league appearances in Pep Guardiola's final season, with academy graduate Nico O'Reilly taking the left-back spot ahead of him.

With Maresca claiming earlier this season that “I see him more as a winger than full-back,” the Algerian international has a tough task fighting his way into his new boss's plans, with Gazzetta dello Sport reporting that he is a target for Juventus.

Sport Witness have relayed the news, noting that the Old Lady have spoken to the player's entourage and that, “They would like to offer an option to buy, with Ait-Nouri desperate to become a key player.”

FourFourTwo understands that part of Maresca's initial reluctance to seriously integrate Ait-Nouri was down to his profile, with the former Chelsea manager preferring full-backs capable of inverting.

The 25-year-old may not be the first-choice option should he move to Turin either, though, with Andrea Cambiaso likely to feature ahead of him in the pecking order.

Signing for City for a reported £31 million, Ait-Nouri went to the Club World Cup with his new club last summer and looked set to hold down the left-back spot, with Josko Gvardiol moving centrally.

While a Wolves player, the France-born defender had an almost unblemished injury record, but an ankle injury ruled him out for almost two months last autumn, and he never recovered his place as Guardiola's starting left-back.

Ait-Nouri is worth €40m, according to Transfermarkt. City face Liverpool when Premier League action resumes after the international break.

Former Newcastle United boss Alan Pardew still feels he was a bit hard done by during his spell at St James' Park.

Pardew came in as the successor to the highly-popular Chris Hughton in December 2010, just a few months after Hughton he had led Newcastle to promotion back out of the Championship.

A fifth-place finish in Pardew's first full season in charge only briefly quelled the doubters, with Newcastle finishing 16th and 10th before Pardew was finally dismissed in December 2014.

"I’m convinced Mike Ashley would have given me the money to compete in the Champions League"

Pardew believes things were against him from the very beginning, reflecting to FourFourTwo: "My welcome wasn’t particularly warm.

"Rumours started that Mike Ashley had only appointed me because I’d run up huge gambling debts in his casinos.

"There wasn’t a grain of truth in the stories. Maybe I should have addressed them rather than let them run.

"On day one at training, within five minutes, Joey Barton came up to me and said how much the players had loved Chris Hughton and no-one wanted me there. Charming!

"Fortunately, we started out by beating Liverpool 3-1 and our first goal was something we’d been practising on the training ground the previous day so that helped.

"After the game, Joey piped up, thanking me for that routine I’d introduced. That was a great moment."

However, Pardew acknowledges that he didn't win over everybody on on Tyneside.

Pardew said: "I had a difficult relationship with some of the North East media.

"Two or three had an agenda I couldn’t quite understand and at times, it led to a toxic atmosphere.

"We came desperately close to qualifying for the Champions League only to lose our last game at Everton. We still finished fifth and I was named both LMA and Premier League Manager of the Year that season – the last British boss to win those awards.

"Had we come fourth, I’m convinced Mike would have given me the money to compete in the Champions League."

The Gunners' summer signing sat out full group training ahead of the Three Lions' departure for their match against Czechia, sparking fears of another potential injury blow for Mikel Arteta's side.

England released an official update detailing the squad's preparation arrangements, communicating the following message: "Ezri Konsa and Nico O'Reilly are following their own individual programmes at Tottenham Hotspur's training ground this morning. All other 22 players are involved in group training ahead of the squad departing for Prague this afternoon."

When a key defender is sidelined from main training, it inevitably sets off alarm bells, but Arteta and the Arsenal medical staff should not hit the panic button just yet.

Ezri Konsa sits out full England training

Konsa has not been sent back to his club. If the defender had sustained a significant injury, he would have returned to Arsenal immediately for scans and a formal medical evaluation.

The fact that Konsa remained with the squad and boarded the flight to Prague indicates that he remains in contention to feature for Thomas Tuchel's side.

The decision to place Konsa on an individual regime is almost certainly a matter of proactive load management. Modern sports science and physical monitoring track biometric data and workload metrics with precision.

And given Konsa's heavy accumulation of minutes throughout 2026, the medical team likely identified increased fatigue indicators. Tailoring his schedule is a precautionary measure to reduce his heightened risk of injury before it has the chance to occur on the pitch.

Nevertheless, Arteta will be monitoring Konsa’s status with caution. Arsenal’s backline is already under considerable strain following a succession of setbacks. The Gunners are currently without key central defender William Saliba for an extended period, while Jurrien Timber has also been sidelined recently.

A busy schedule of Premier League and European fixtures awaits Arsenal after the international break, and Arteta cannot afford further casualties in his defensive unit.

Konsa's training programme appears to be a preventative step rather than anything more worrisome. Still, those at the Emirates will be hoping the defender returns to London unscathed following England's three remaining Nations League fixtures.

The world of football is jam-packed with superb, stunning and sensational club names. All over the globe, teams are playing under some spectacular monikers that deserve attention in their own right. This new FourFourTwo quiz will find out whether you know where they're from.

Some of these fabulous football clubs are famous and familiar, others more obscure. All they have in common is their unusual names and four options from which to choose the correct nation for each one.

There are 20 club names to go at but just 5 minutes on the clock to rattle your way through them all. It's multiple choice, after all.

Handpicked football quizzes we know you'll love

FourFourTwo has lots more football quizzes and they're all courtesy of Kwizly. If you're eager to get stuck into something chunky, here's a perfect quiz for you: Can you name every player to have ever scored a Premier League hat-trick?

But, if you've got other things to do with your day, we've got a couple of quick ones that might be more suitable for your immediate needs. Can you answer these questions about the Premier League in 2016-17 and name every team in the top two tiers of women's football in England?

There are many, many more, but for now we want you to name the first goalscorer of every Premier League season from the inaugural 1992-93 season right up to 2026-27.

FourFourTwo's Weekend Crossword 71 features clues on derbies, dancers and Dutch delights. Remember to subscribe to our newsletter for your daily afternoon briefing of football trivia and analysis, and don't forget to join The Club: our free membership portal where you can secret hints and get on the leaderboard.

Last Friday, we witnessed one of the most seismic events in Premier League history as Manchester City were found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them for breaching financial regulations.

At first, it was incredible to see, with everyone across the game gathering with their pitchforks, demanding City pay with blood, or at least points deductions, for their heinous crimes.

Even those recently bemoaning PSR and SCR and other financially-relevant initialisms football fans have to know these days were joining in, regardless of whether or not they actually believe those rules are helping their clubs, or hindering them.

No team should be in line for a free trophy parade

Nevertheless, City's guilty verdict has brought with it insistence from supporters of pretty much every club in the country, including Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, that their team is now in line for some sort of free trophy parade. Heck, even Watford and Sunderland fans have got involved.

Well, I hate to break it to you, but handing out trophies to runners up is not only a dreadful idea, it's also the gateway to a maddening, unending spiral of nonsense under which a line could never be drawn.

Let's take the 2017/18 season as an example, in which Manchester United finished runners up behind their noisy, (and now naughty) neighbours. The gap was a massive 19 points, but there are still those from Old Trafford who claim that Jose Mourinho should now be handed another Premier League winner's medal because of City's rule bending.

Surely, if that is to happen, Swansea City have a far more compelling grievance, given that they were relegated that same season, only three points behind 17^th place Southampton, having lost twice to the eventual champions during the campaign.

This is simply one of many examples, with repercussions stretching further than you could ever imagine.

For instance, fans of teams who have been defeated by Manchester City in cup finals are suggesting that, by default, they ought to now be the rightful owners of those trophies, ignoring the fact that City had to beat several other teams to reach those finals in the first place.

Surely all of those previously vanquished teams are just as entitled to consider themselves hard done by to have been beaten by a side financially doping. Who's to say in 2018/19 Brighton wouldn't have reached the FA Cup final instead, or Swansea City, or even Newport County, or any of the teams they faced en route to their crushing 6-0 victory over Watford in the final.

Opening this particular Pandora's box would simply spark an endless slew of clubs trying to manufacture a way of gaining something more than they deserve from this, when the only thing they should be able to take is the moral high ground, and nothing more.

Hypotheticals and assumptions should simply never be the basis for which a trophy is awarded and, as a supporter, I'm not sure it's how I'd want to get one either. I say that as a Newcastle fan, starved of success for years.

Generally speaking, I'd be happy to take any piece of silverware no matter how it comes. Even seeing Fabricio Coloccini sheepishly holding the Trofeu Internacional de Futebol do Guadiana after a successful pre-season tournament in Portugal used to be good enough for me.

But nothing could ever replicate the joy I felt while celebrating Dan Burn's goal against Liverpool in the final of the Carabao Cup in 2025. That was a special moment, one truly worthy of commemoration.

I wouldn't attend a parade for a trophy won by barristers in the Court of Arbitration for Sport, no matter how hard it is to go to CAS and get a result. In fact, I think I'd find it a bit embarrassing and pathetic to see any supporter celebrate it in any meaningful way at all.

I just want to see City punished fairly, with a massive points deduction, a financial penalty that actually means something and, if you really must, whack an official asterisk next to their name in the record books.

But, for me at least, making Brendan Rodgers a Premier League winner will never be justice, no matter how you look at it, and in the end will only cause more trouble than it's worth.

Manchester City deny the charges and are expected to lodge an appeal.

We've got 10 questions. You've got 90 seconds to answer them. This FourFourTwo Quickfire Quiz is a whistlestop tour of football trivia, so what are you waiting for?

Handpicked football quizzes we know you'll love

FourFourTwo has many more football quizzes and they're all courtesy of Kwizly. First up, let's find out whether you can answer all these questions about the great one-club men of world football.

We also want you to name Arsenal's 50 most expensive signings ever. There's a good few decades of history to get dredge there, so get those memory muscles whirring.

In this next simple quiz, we want you to take some groups of four football clubs and put them into the correct order based on the number of league titles they've won, from most to least.

Next, we have 15 questions about the 2016-17 season in the Premier League and we're challenging you to name every player to have scored a hat-trick in the Premier League.

Last but by no means least, why not tackle our biggest ever quiz? Can you name every team to have ever played in the group stage, league phase or first round of the Champions League?

We have puzzles too. Our Weekend Crossword is a regular football teaser for your Sunday, and remember to sign up to the newsletter for more quizzes in your inbox. Don't forget to join The Club for free additional membership benefits!

Manchester City could well be deduced points in the Premier League.

Last week, the six-time winners of the competition were found guilty on 114 of the 115 charges of breaching the Premier League's financial rules, including breaches of Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) – the same exact rule break of the last two sides to face points deductions.

But despite it being 35 years next year since the Premier League was established, there isn't a long history of points deductions.

Every Premier League points deduction

1996/97: Middlesbrough: 3 points

The first time that the Premier League dished out a points deduction came in 1996/97, when Middlesbrough were deducted three points for an unauthorised fixture cancellation against Blackburn Rovers, following a flu outbreak in the Villa camp.

Despite making the finals of both cup competitions that campaign, the Teessiders struggled in the league and were relegated with 39 points – meaning that those three points would have kept them up at Coventry City's expense.

2009/10: Portsmouth: 9 points

In 2008/09, Portsmouth became the first Premier League club to enter financial administration and were slapped with a nine-point deduction – and it remains the biggest that the competition has ever dished out.

Intriguingly like Boro, Pompey reached the final of the FA Cup that season, but finished rooted to the bottom of the league table after remaining there from the second matchday onwards.

2023/24: Everton: 8 points

After finishing 18th in the Premier League in 2023, Everton hit the magical 40-point mark a season later under Sean Dyche – but would have finished sandwiched between Brighton and Bournemouth, had they not had a brush with the law.

The Toffees were deemed to have breached PSR in November 2023, and initially docked a record 10 points – but the club successfully appealed against the decision and saw their deduction reduced to six points.

In April of that season, however, Everton were found guilty of another rule breach, resulting in a further two-point deduction, and earned the dubious honour of being the first club in English top-flight history to have ever received two separate points deductions in a single season.

2023/24: Nottingham Forest

After promotion to the Premier League in 2022, Nottingham Forest enjoyed what can only be described as a thorough squad overhaul, spending well over £200 million on over 40 players in around 18 months, as Pierre van Hooijdonk's two-decade-old record as the Tricky Trees' most expensive buy was smashed twice before Morgan Gibbs-White joined in August of 2022.

It appeared to catch up with Forest, however, with the Premier League acting in January 2024 with a a four-point deduction after they were found guilty of breaching PSR.

Forest appealed to no avail – but given that the Garibaldi went onto scrape survival before qualifying for Europe, there are very few at the City Ground who regret that mad spending spree.

Watch Turkey vs Italy for free from anywhere as two teams aiming to bounce back from opening-day defeats meet in the Nations League. Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the live stream details and TV channels, wherever you are in the world.

Turkey manager Vincenzo Montella won 20 caps for Italy as a player but is now tasked with masterminding his adopted country's first-ever victory over the Azzurri in this Group A1 clash.

Both teams are looking for their first points of the Nations League campaign, after tonight's hosts were beaten 1-0 by France and Roberto Mancini's side lost 2-0 to Belgium on Friday.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information on how to watch Turkey vs Italy online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Watch Turkey vs Italy from anywhere

Away from home? You can still watch Turkey vs Italy. A VPN can, subject to your broadcaster’s T&Cs, bypass geo-restrictions and unblock your usual streaming services abroad, while also improving your general internet security.

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Watch Turkey vs Italy in the UK

Fans in the UK can watch Turkey vs Italy live on Amazon Prime Video, with coverage available on a pay-per-view basis. Kick-off is at 7:45pm BST.

Watch Turkey vs Italy in the US

In the US, Fubo TV is an official broadcast partner of the UEFA Nations League and will show Turkey vs Italy. The game kicks-off at 2:45pm ET.

Watch Turkey vs Italy in Australia

Viewers in Australia can watch Turkey vs Italy live on beIN SPORTS. The game will be shown on beIN SPORTS 2, with kick-off at 4:45am AEST on Tuesday.

Turkey vs Italy: Nations League preview

Vincenzo Montella could do with a boost after Turkey failed to progress beyond the group stage of this summer's World Cup - and guiding his side to their first-ever win over Italy would provide just that.

Turkey are winless in their 14 previous meetings with the Azzurri, losing 10 times, but they have every chance of claiming that elusive victory, with tonight's visitors in a tough spot.

Montella's men pushed France all the way in a 1-0 defeat in their Group A1 opener in Izmit, and they will have home advantage again for this clash in Bursa. However, they will be without goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir after he was sent off for handling the ball outside the penalty area against Les Bleus, with Altay Bayindir poised to step in.

Italy are back under the management of Roberto Mancini, who led the Azzurri to Euro 2020 glory. That triumph over England at Wembley must have seemed a long time ago for the former Manchester City head coach as he watched his side lose 2-0 at home to Belgium on Friday, in which they were booed by sections of the crowd.

It will have left Mancini in no doubt over the scale of the task ahead of him, with the Azzurri at an all-time low after failing to qualify for three successive World Cups.

Italy have no fresh injury concerns, but Serie A stars Hakan Calhanoglu and Kenan Yildiz are unavailable for the hosts.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Turkey 1-0 Italy

Turkey will fancy their chances of claiming a historic first victory over Italy - and so do we.

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Watch Belgium vs France for free from anywhere as the Red Devils host Les Bleus in a Nations League derby, with FourFourTwo bringing you live stream details and TV channels wherever you are in the world.

Both teams made the perfect start to their League A1 campaign, with Belgium winning 2-0 away to Italy and France triumphing 1-0 in Turkey.

However, victory came at a cost for Les Bleus, with Kylian Mbappe forced to withdraw from the squad after sustaining a knee injury while scoring the only goal of the game in Izmit.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information on how to watch Belgium vs France online, on TV, and from anywhere - including for FREE.

Watch Belgium vs France from anywhere

What if you're away from home when Belgium vs France is on, and find access to your usual streaming service geo-blocked? The solution is a VPN, a piece of software that can unblock streaming services from wherever you're in the world.

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Watch Belgium vs France in the UK

Viewers in the UK can watch Belgium vs France on Amazon Prime Video, with coverage available on a pay-per-view basis. Kick-off is at 7:45pm BST.

Watch Belgium vs France in the US

Fox Sports is the official broadcast partner of the Nations League in the US, with live coverage of Belgium vs France on Fox Sports 2. The game will kick-off at 2:45pm ET.

Watch Belgium vs France in Australia

In Australia, Belgium vs France is live on beIN SPORTS. The match will be broadcast on beIN SPORTS 3, with kick-off at 4:45am AEST on Tuesday.

Belgium vs France: Nations League preview

This clash in Brussels features two neighbours with plenty of history, but both are looking to the future after starting their respective new eras with a victory.

Mark van Bommel kicked-off his tenure as Belgium boss with a 2-0 win in Italy on Friday night, courtesy of goals by Mika Godts and Dodi Lukebakio. Left winger Godts, 21, is part of a new crop of youngsters in the Red Devils squad - alongside the likes of centre-back Nathan Ngoy, 23, and fellow wide man Diego Moreira, 22 - which the Dutchman is tasked with moulding into an elite international force.

France are a perfect template to follow after consistently reaching the latter stages of major tournaments over the past 30 years, and if Belgium can end a five-game losing run against their neighbours there will be plenty of excitement over what they can achieve under Van Bommel.

Excitement was also high when legendary midfielder Zinedine Zidane took over as France boss after Didier Deschamps stepped down following this summer's World Cup. The former Real Madrid manager’s reign started in familiar fashion, with Kylian Mbappe scoring the winner in Friday’s 1-0 victory in Turkey.

Joy quickly turned to agony for Les Bleus' captain, though, as he went down with a knee injury during his celebration. He has now withdrawn from the squad and is expected to be sidelined for at least the next couple of weeks.

The riches available to Zidane means he can still field an incredibly strong forward line even without his talisman, with the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise and Desire Doue all available to face Belgium.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Belgium 0-2 France

We expect Les Bleus to make it six wins in a row against the Red Devils.

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The Republic of Ireland’s 3-0 victory over Israel in the UEFA Nations League will be remembered not for the football on the pitch, but as one of the most politically charged and contentious international fixtures in recent memory.

Played at a neutral venue in Hungary following UEFA safety mandates surrounding the conflict in Gaza, the match took place amidst severe backlash across the Republic of Ireland.

Public outrage in Ireland was overwhelming, with politicians, civil society groups, and supporters calling on the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) to forfeit the game entirely in protest.

Ireland and Israel clash in neutral venue fixture

The political pressure also impacted the Irish camp as on the eve of the match, goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu chose to withdraw from the squad, issuing a statement based on his moral belief that "the killing of innocent people is wrong."

Bazunu’s stance triggered an emergency squad meeting, forcing the team to cancel scheduled media duties and training.

According to The Irish Times, the debate turned toxic, with Bazunu reportedly facing verbal abuse from one angry teammate before the squad eventually voted in favour of playing. Manager Heimir Hallgrimsson admitted it was "one of the most challenging weeks" of his managerial career.

When matchday arrived, the hostility between the two sides was evident well before kick-off. The Irish squad collectively refused to participate in the pre-match handshakes with the Israeli team. As the Israeli national anthem played, Hallgrimsson turned his back in a deliberate gesture of protest, while several Irish players stood with their heads bowed.

Both teams wore black armbands, but the Irish side used the gesture as a message of opposition. After Troy Parrott and Adam Idah handed Ireland an early two-goal cushion, Jack Moylan added a third before executing a pointed celebration, removing his black armband and kissing it. Many have perceived this gesture to have been made in solidarity with victims in Gaza.

The toxic atmosphere escalated further off the ball following allegations of racist abuse directed at Irish forward Adam Idah. Midfielder Jayson Molumby alerted match officials during the first half after hearing what he believed to be monkey chants originating from a section of Israeli supporters.

However, because Molumby asked officials to "listen" rather than explicitly using the word "racism," UEFA’s anti-racism protocol was not formally triggered on the pitch. UEFA subsequently confirmed it will not open an official investigation due to the procedural flaw, though the FAI is currently examining match footage with a view to submitting independent evidence to European football's governing body. Irish defender Jake O'Brien was also seen angrily confronting Israeli players over the supporters' behaviour.

The hostility continued after the final whistle, with Israel captain Manor Solomon criticising the Irish players, insinuating they had levelled unpleasant insults at the Israeli players during the 90 minutes.

"If I say what I really think of them, I'd likely be suspended," Solomon told reporters. "Obviously they hate us. We don't like them either. They can play all their tricks. We have a country ten times better than theirs, stronger, an amazing country with amazing people. We are proud of our state and our soldiers."

Israel head coach Ran Ben Shimon admitted his side crumbled under the emotional weight of the occasion. UEFA now faces a major governance challenge as the two nations prepare to meet again behind closed doors in Serbia.

Roberto Mancini claims the club 'are not guilty' and insists that allegations regarding a secondary contract during his tenure are 'not his problem.'

Mancini, currently in his second spell as manager of the Italian national team, addressed the media ahead of Italy’s Nations League fixture against Turkey. When asked about the reported findings and his personal involvement in the long-running case, the 61-year-old offered a defence of his former employers.

"I don't think they [Manchester City] were found guilty," Mancini said. "It's not an issue that concerns me. It's nothing new because this has been discussed for the last four or five years."

Roberto Mancini: 'It's not my concern, it's Manchester City's'

Mancini’s comments come directly after reporting last week revealing that an independent commission had reached a verdict in the landmark case.

The Premier League charged Manchester City in February 2023 following a five-year investigation. The 115 alleged breaches, spanning a nine-year period between 2009 and 2018, centred on accusations that the club failed to provide accurate financial information, disguised owner funding as commercial sponsorship income, breached Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) as well as UEFA Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations, and failed to cooperate with the league's inquiry.

"Manchester City has not been found guilty, and on the double contract it isn't my concern. It's their issue, not mine," Mancini added.

The Italian is implicated in one of the primary allegations. Appointed in December 2009, the point at which the alleged financial discrepancies began, the Italian spent four years in the Etihad Stadium dugout, famously guiding the club to their first Premier League title in 2012.

However, investigation findings allege that City operated an off-the-books payment structure to supplement his managerial wage.

While officially earning £1.45 million per season from Manchester City, Mancini reportedly signed a secondary contract with Abu Dhabi-based club Al Jazira, which is also controlled by Man City owner Sheikh Mansour. The arrangement allegedly paid the Italian coach an additional £1.7m (€2.03m) annually for a minimum of four days of consultancy work per year. The Premier League argued that this structure was used to conceal full manager remuneration, artificially lower City's official operating costs, and circumvent financial regulations.

Despite the reporting surrounding the guilty verdict on 114 counts, Manchester City have maintained their innocence throughout the proceedings and are widely expected to launch an appeal once formal sanctions are determined.

In the wake of the news, Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak issued an open letter to supporters, adopting a defiant stance regarding the ongoing legal battle.

"The Premier League process still has a long way to run, and our confidence and intent in proving the Club's innocence is just as strong as when this began," Al Mubarak wrote. "While some people have been quick to reach their own conclusions, and there is so much noise swirling around us, nothing has changed. There remain many who want to undermine the momentum of our Club. We will not give them that opportunity."

With potential penalties ranging from substantial financial fines and points deductions to potential expulsion from the top flight, the eventual resolution of the case will send shockwaves through world football. For Mancini, whose managerial legacy remains tied to City's breakthrough era, the ongoing battle is one he prefers to view from afar.

No one has scored more England goals than Harry Kane.

The England captain is currently on 86 strikes for his country, over 30 more than the next-placed Wayne Rooney, whom Kane surpassed three years ago – and 39 games sooner – to become the Three Lions' all-time scorer.

With the 33-year-old a spring chicken compared to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, however, it begs the question as to how long Kane can keep netting…

Can Harry Kane surpass Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the all-time international goalscoring chart?

Cristiano Ronaldo broke Ali Daei's long-standing international goal record in 2021 of 108 goals – and with the 41-year-old currently on 146 goals, there's a fair chance he'll get to 150 before he even considers calling it a day.

Messi, meanwhile, is on 125 – a mere 39 ahead of Kane – but with the greatest player of all time retiring imminently from Argentina, that is a little more static as a target for Kane.

So let's do the maths: Kane has a goals-to-game ratio of 0.71 – that means that he would have to play around 54 more times for his country to equal Messi's tally, and 85 more times to equal Ronaldo's (assuming Ronaldo doesn't score again).

That's dependent on many things… not least that Kane continues on his current trajectory.

While there's no obvious successor to the Bayern Munich man, there may yet be by the 2030 World Cup – and given that Kane is 34 years old next summer, there's every chance that time catches up with him and he simply drops off in terms of pure output.

Besides, Kane has played between nine and 14 games for England in each of the last five seasons, meaning that he may have to play every single friendly and tournament qualifier for the Three Lions for another decade, along with hoping that England progress far enough in each competition they play to give him the chance for those elusive goals.

And who's to say that he'll actually want to carry on?

Alan Shearer was just 29 when he retired from international duty: of course, this was a different era, but the Newcastle United legend decided that he simply wanted to focus on club football after a disastrous Euro 2000 campaign.

Kane has very different ambitions and has claimed that he would love to change sport and try his hand in the NFL… which may affect his chances with the national team.

It'll be intriguing to see just how close the striker does get to future milestones and whether he hits 100 goals in an England shirt in the coming years.

The extended September-October international break has threatened to disrupt Michael Carrick’s Old Trafford squad, with news regarding club captain Bruno Fernandes initially setting off alarm bells on Sunday evening.

Manchester United playmaker Fernandes was a notable omission from Portugal’s lineup for their UEFA Nations League victory against Norway, sitting out the match entirely.

Given the midfielder’s durability and workload, any unexpected absence raised fears of a potential injury setback. However, reports from the Manchester Evening News have provided a sense of relief regarding the Man United skipper.

Manchester United suffer injury setback

According to the MEN, Fernandes has not been sent back to Carrington and remains embedded with the Portugal squad.

His decision to stay with his country suggests the issue which kept him sidelined in Oslo is minor, with the midfielder still in contention to feature in their remaining international fixtures before returning to Manchester.

Man United officials will continue to monitor his status closely, but the optimism surrounding his availability is a welcome sigh of relief for the club at this moment in time.

While the initial fears over Fernandes appears to have been allayed, Man United’s medical department has not escaped the international break entirely unscathed. While their talisman remains abroad, another important first-team figure has indeed seen his international campaign cut short and is heading back to Old Trafford prematurely.

Danish international Patrick Dorgu is reportedly returning to Manchester after picking up an injury during Denmark’s match against Wales on Sunday night. The versatile defender, who has established himself as an important component in Carrick's setup, suffered a setback during the contest which the Danes won 2-0.

Dorgu’s return poses a tactical headache for Carrick as his ability to cover multiple positions down the left flank has provided much-needed balance to the squad since his arrival. Losing him ahead of a demanding run of Premier League and European fixtures will be a stern test of Man United's squad depth.

United’s medical staff will now conduct thorough assessments at Carrington to determine the exact extent of Dorgu’s damage and whether he faces a spell on the sidelines. While Carrick will be relieved that Fernandes looks set to avoid a lengthy lay-off, he will be anxiously awaiting the results of Dorgu's scans as the domestic season prepares to resume.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk is to leave the Reds on a free transfer after nine years of service at Anfield.

That's according to a new report, which says that the Dutchman is set to swap Liverpool for Milan “sooner rather than later” – and that a big replacement is already being lined up to take his place at the heart of manager Andoni Iraola's defence.

Van Dijk became the most expensive defender in the world when he swapped Southampton for Anfield, but now 35, his current contract expires at the end of the season.

Liverpool launching move for Premier League rival to replace Virgil van Dijk

Van Dijk has started the season strongly under Iraola alongside new signing Jeremy Jacquet, who is 14 years his junior.

According to veteran Italian journalist Carlo Pellegatti, via Football Italia, the Dutch captain is set to move to Milan next summer, noting, ““Every now and then, people make fun of me for saying Van Dijk would join, but then they [did] the same the January before Zlatan Ibrahimovic arrived.”

“[Milan owner] Gerry Cardinale made clear: ‘Either we get him now by paying or next year for free,’” Pellegatti added, “I said that Van Dijk will arrive at Milan sooner or later.”

According to CaughtOffside, meanwhile, Liverpool are looking at bringing in Tottenham Hotspur captain Micky van de Ven as Van Dijk's replacement.

The 25-year-old plays alongside the Liverpool man for the Netherlands and not only is he capable of playing at left-back – a problem position for the Reds of late – he possesses the kind of recovery pace that could help Iraola to implement his high-risk high press.

Despite back-to-back 17th-placed finishes, Van de Ven is one of Spurs' better players and with the Lilywhites struggling again this season – finding themselves winless after five fixtures – the skipper may look to pastures new this summer.

FourFourTwo understands that Liverpool have admired the defender for a while, while CaughtOffside adds Manchester United to the mix as another Premier League rival interested in the star.

Van de Ven will surely not come cheap, however: the former Wolfsburg man is contracted in N17 until 2031, having signed an extension to his deal over the summer.

Both the Spurs man and Van Dijk are currently on international duty with the Oranje under new boss Xavi Hernandez.

Van de Ven is worth €50 million, according to Transfermarkt. Liverpool host Manchester City when Premier League action returns following the international break.

When you want to be the best, and have to beat the best, you have to take a risk or two. When you’re chasing a game, you have to gamble. Which is why Thomas Tuchel’s continued refusal to trust in Trent Alexander-Arnold has moved from the baffling to the damaging. England’s head coach recalled one of the country’s finest ever passers to the squad, gave him the No.2 shirt, and then ignored him, leaving him on the bench even when England were crying out for proper delivery from the right against Spain at Wembley on Saturday.

The case against Alexander-Arnold rests primarily on a few high-profile incidents of him being caught out defensively. You know the story. Failing to deal with Vinicius Jr’s run to score in the 2022 Champions League final proved expensive. Liverpool lost to the Brazilian’s goal for Real Madrid.

You know the narrative. Alexander-Arnold’s hunger to attack and whip in those enticing crosses for strikers inevitably sees him pushed high up the pitch, leaving space behind. We all know the concern. Yet Jurgen Klopp wouldn’t have picked Alexander-Arnold for so long if he felt he was a serial weakness.

HENRY WINTER: Thomas Tuchel should give Trent Alexander-Arnold a chance for England

Alexander-Arnold played 354 times for Liverpool, becoming a champion of England twice and Europe once. He can defend. He scored 23 times for Liverpool and assisted in an astonishing 86 goals. He can certainly attack.

It’s become almost tiring to have to highlight what Alexander-Arnold can do, rather than obsess only about what he can’t do. It’s not as if Tuchel has seen England turn into George Graham’s Arsenal without Alexander-Arnold. They’ve conceded 13 in the last six games. It’s not as if Alexander-Arnold hasn’t constantly made himself available, waiting hopefully for the call. He’s desperate to represent England again. And the feeling was always that Tuchel called him up begrudgingly for this camp, following Reece James's injury.

In the continued absence of James, a familiar lament, Tuchel should give Alexander-Arnold a chance. He’s worth more than 26 minutes as a sub against Andorra 15 months ago. That’s how much Tuchel has given him. Since then, Jarell Quansah, James, Ezri Konsa, Djed Spence, Ben White, Tino Livramento and Kyle Walker have been Tuchel’s picks at right-backs. And when he did come on against Andorra in 2025, it was in midfield for Jordan Henderson. Curtis Jones, a midfielder, was at right-back.

In explaining why he chose Quansah over Alexander-Arnold against Spain, and kept him on for 90 minutes despite England being behind, Tuchel argued that, “There was a lot of defending to do as well, one-on-one defending. Marc Guehi followed in midfield, so we ended up in a back-three. We needed Jarell’s speed and Jarell’s quality to think also as a central defender. He was top class at the World Cup, he was top class in training this week, he did excellent in this game.” Apart from being caught out for Spain’s winner.

Quansah is a good centre-back, and has been used at right-back by Bayer Leverkusen, but he lacks the range of attacking delivery Alexander-Arnold can produce. Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who thrives on crosses, was sent on for Harry Kane with seven minutes remaining against Spain, yet there was little width. Anthony Gordon had again experienced the early Tuchel hook. Bukayo Saka had just gone off. Morgan Rogers went wide and Morgan Gibbs-White came into the middle.

Alexander-Arnold might have delivered one ball that Calvert-Lewin could have relished. It might have been a cross, a free-kick or a corner. Alexander-Arnold can produce all of those to a very high standard. Instead, Calvert-Lewin was starved of service.

Alexander-Arnold deserves a chance on Tuesday in Prague, where England will enjoy plenty of possession against Czechia, ranked 49th in the world. It’s a game to restore confidence and get England’s Nations League qualifying back on track.

A good manager would ensure cover for Alexander-Arnold. Konsa is quick to cover across, and the Arsenal centre-back has the pace and awareness. Playing a more defensive full-back on the left would give England more security, and allow one defender, Alexander-Arnold, to attack more. Nico O’Reilly kept stepping into midfield from left-back, a noted strength of his (and created Harry Kane’s goal). Lewis Hall, a more natural full-back than O’Reilly, wasn’t considered for the Spain game as a precaution following a slight “injury scare” in training, according to Tuchel.

If he’s fit, England will certainly have a more orthodox full-back. So let Alexander-Arnold roam and create. A strategy with some risk can bring welcome reward. It just depends how bold Tuchel really is.

Alexander-Arnold will be 28 next month. Let’s at least give a special talent another chance for England.

Jonjo Shelvey saw plenty of ups and downs during his time on Tyneside, putting him in a better position than most to offer a verdict on how some of their managers over the past decade took to the job.

Shelvey spent seven years at Newcastle United, arriving in the final weeks of Steve McClaren's reign and leaving just over a year after Eddie Howe made the move to St James' Park.

In the interim, Newcastle were relegated despite Rafa Benitez's best efforts, bounced back into the Premier League, then faced increasingly loud fan protests during Steve Bruce's time in charge before the Saudi takeover precipitated Howe's arrival in 2021.

Pick the ultimate 4-4-2 line-up from players in FourFourTwo's definitive Top 100 List

"Fans loved Rafa"

Shelvey had kind words about all his former gaffers, telling FourFourTwo: "The fans loved Rafa and were sorry to see him go.

"Whoever replaced him, whether it was Steve or someone else, they were always going to struggle to win them over.

"I really loved Steve – he’s a great guy, and I can pick up the phone to him now and ask for advice.

"If you actually look at Steve’s record, it’s about the same as Rafa’s at Newcastle in terms of places and points. He did a good job with the resources he had.

"Being a former Sunderland manager probably didn’t help him, but I have so much admiration for him."

Shelvey admits that he would have liked more time to have worked under Bruce's successor, however.

He said: "I just wished I’d met Eddie when I was a bit younger, because he was amazing. The level of detail in his work was mental, he knew so much.

"He’s a great guy and his training sessions were unbelievable, because they got you so fit.

"Even if you weren’t in the team, you were actually buzzing to go into training, as you got something out of it. For games, everyone knew their roles.

He had a great partnership with Jason Tindall. They were chalk and cheese, but worked so well together. Jason loved to have some banter and a bit of fun, he loved his clothes, but Eddie was the total opposite and was completely focused on football."

The Premier League attracts footballers of the very highest quality from all over the world. By the middle of its fourth decade, this most international of domestic leagues has been graced by players from countless countries. This FourFourTwo football quiz will find out if you can remember some of them.

There are no artificial stipulations here - just good, clean, nationality fun. In all cases where there could be a dispute, the answer is the player's demonstrable allegiance in senior international football. Easy.

We've picked out players from 20 nationalities for you to identify. You have a time limit of 5 minutes to bag them all.

Handpicked football quizzes we know you'll love

FourFourTwo has lots more football quizzes, all courtesy of Kwizly. Let's begin by asking you to name every team competing in the league phase of the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League this season.

We also want you to pick the odd one out in this quiz that asks you to identify which one of four players was never managed by a particular managerial titan of the sport, and to take on our Big Quiz of English Football Grounds.

Finally, we have this absolute colossus with more than 1,000 answers. Can you identify every team ever to have competed in the Champions League, from 1992 all the way up to 2026?

FourFourTwo's Weekend Crossword 71 features clues on derbies, dancers and Dutch delights. Remember to subscribe to our newsletter for your daily afternoon briefing of football trivia and analysis, and don't forget to join The Club: our free membership portal where you can secret hints and get on the leaderboard.

10 big football trivia questions to answer. A tiny time limit of 90 seconds to answer them. It's the new FourFourTwo Quickfire Quiz.

Handpicked football quizzes we know you'll love

FourFourTwo has lots more football quizzes courtesy of Kwizly. If history is your strong suit, take us all the way back to the return of football and name every club to have participated in the top division of English men's football since 1945.

Next, we're exploring the biggest names in management and asking you to identify which players were never managed by some of the true giants of the gaffering game.

Still eager? Then we urge you to tackle 20 questions about great sporting cathedrals in our Big Quiz of English Football Grounds and these questions about the Premier League's one-club wonders.

Let's find out whether you're a transfer expert. Can you name the 50 most expensive signings ever made by Chelsea? And we mean ever, not just this summer.

We also have a football quiz with more than 1,000 correct answers. Don't ask We just do. See how many you can get in 30 minutes of trying to name every team to have ever competed in the Champions League.

We have puzzles too. Our Weekend Crossword is a regular football teaser for your Sunday, and remember to sign up to the newsletter for more quizzes in your inbox. Don't forget to join The Club for free additional membership benefits!

For a generation of younger football fans, Chris Kamara is known as one of the country’s most beloved broadcasters from his time during Soccer Saturday’s Golden Age, when the show redefined the experience of consuming Saturday afternoon football.

But this, in effect, is the third phase in Kamara’s career, which began as a player for Portsmouth in the 1970s and after more than 600 appearances, continued in the dugout when he was given the job at Bradford City in November 1995.

By the end of that season, Kamara was able to guide the Bantams to promotion back to the second tier via the playoffs, the high point in his two-year stint in charge of the West Yorkshire side.

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Why Chris Kamara packed in coaching

“An amazing day and what a memory to give those fans,” Kamara recalls to FourFourTwo on Bradford’s play-off victory.

But just two years after this play-off success, Kamara would find himself at a career crossroads, having endured a difficult ten-week spell at Stoke City.

Ever since his promotion with the Bantams, the former Leeds United midfielder found himself increasingly in demand as a television pundit.

“It was during that season that I was on television a lot more, for interviews, punditry and all the rest of it,” he continues. “It was something I loved doing.”

This failed stint at Stoke would then act as a catalyst for his future media career.

“I later went to manage Stoke and I regret that,” he admits. “I’d been popular there as a player, but it didn’t work out as a manager.”

Kamara’s ease in front of the TV cameras and his infectious personality had seen him make a considerable impact on television, with next move coming after a conversation at home.

“Once I left in 1998, I had lots of offers to return to the game,” he continues.

“But my wife Anne said, ‘You’re loving the TV work and you’re good at it, why don’t you keep going?’”

This would prove to be sage advice, changing the course of Kamara’s career and handing the viewing public one of their most beloved characters.

Watch Germany vs Greece in the Nations League as Jürgen Klopp goes in search of his first win as national team boss.

FourFourTwo brings you all the details regarding FREE streams, so you can tune in and watch the game from wherever you are in the world.

After a 1-1 draw in the Netherlands, Die Mannschaft have the chance to hit back against Greece and pick up all three points.

That won't be easy against Ivan Jovanovic's side though, who started their Nations League campaign with a 2-1 win against Serbia.

Read on for all the details on how to watch Germany vs Greece in the Nations League on TV and from anywhere.

How to watch Germany vs Greece from anywhere

Out of the country? That doesn't mean you have to miss the game. A VPN - or Virtual Private Network - means you can set your IP address to make your device appear to be in any country in the world, bypassing streaming geo-restrictions.

FourFourTwo’s colleagues at TechRadar are experts in this field, and they reckon NordVPN is the best VPN provider on the market.

How to watch Germany vs Greece in the UK

Germany vs Greece is available on Prime Video in the UK.

It is a pay-per-view game meaning you will have to pay £2.49 for the privilege of watching the game.

How to watch Germany vs Greece in the US

Fans in the USA will be able to watch the Germany vs Greece on Fox Sports 2.

FS2 is available on the in-house streaming service Fox One (3-day free trial) or via a cord-cutting service such as YouTube TV, Fubo, DirecTV Stream or Sling.

How to watch Germany vs Greece in Australia

Australian viewers can watch Germany vs Greece on beIN Sports.

Subscriptions start at $16.99/month or $169.99/year with a 7-day free trial also available to new users.

Germany vs Greece: Match preview

It perhaps wasn't the performance Jürgen Klopp was looking for in his first game in charge of Germany, but a 1-1 draw away to the Netherlands can't be sniffed at.

His side were largely dominated by the Dutch and would have lost comfortably had it not been for some poor finishing from Xavi Simons' side. However, they came away with a draw and, back on home soil, will be keen to put some of those wrongs right on Sunday evening.

Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala won't feature after picking up injuries in the game and warm-up respectively on Thursday. That will make room for a first Germany start for Younes Ebnoutalib, who already has four Bundesliga goals to his name for Eintracht Frankfurt this season.

Karim Adeyemi will likely start on the right-hand side again, while Serge Gnabry and Kevin Schade are fighting for the left-wing position. Florian Wirtz has also been moved into the squad following Musiala's injury.

For Greece, a repeat of Thursday's away victory over Serbia would be more than welcome. Christos Tzolis and Anastasios Douvikas netted two late goals to complete a turnaround and pick up three crucial points.

This will, of course, be a much tougher contest, but they look like a country on the up in footballing terms, with Arsenal's Tzolis their main man to keep an eye on.

Prediction

Germany 1-0 Greece

Germany will edge to their first win under Klopp.

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Watch Norway vs Portugal as Erling Haaland and Cristiano Ronaldo face off in the Nations League. FourFourTwo brings you a comprehensive guide to free live streams and TV coverage wherever you are in the world.

Both sides kicked off their Nations League campaigns with a win, but there is already plenty of pressure on this game, with top spot in the group at stake.

The main narrative surrounding this one, though, will be Erling Haaland vs Cristiano Ronaldo. Haaland netted twice in Norway’s win over Denmark, while Ronaldo missed a sitter and had a goal ruled out for offside on Thursday.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information on how to watch Norway vs Portugal online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Watch Norway vs Portugal for free

You can watch Norway vs Portugal for free in Ireland on Virgin Media Three and Virgin Media Play, while in France you can stream it free on L'Equipe Live Foot.

Abroad? Unlock your free stream with NordVPN — more on that below.

Watch Norway vs Portugal from anywhere

Out of the country for Norway vs Portugal? That doesn't mean you have to miss the game. A VPN - or Virtual Private Network - means you can set your IP address to make your device appear to be in any country in the world, bypassing streaming geo-restrictions.

FourFourTwo’s colleagues at TechRadar are experts in this field, and they reckon NordVPN is the best VPN provider on the market.

How to watch Norway vs Portugal on TV in the UK

Prime Video will show Norway vs Portugal in the UK on a pay-per-view basis.

It will set you back £2.49 for access with no Amazon account required.

Visiting the UK from Ireland? Use NordVPN and unblock your free Virgin Media Play coverage of Norway vs Portugal.

How to watch Norway vs Portugal in the US

Norway vs Portugal will be broadcast on Fubo in the US.

You'll need the Pro Plan to watch this Nations League fixture, which costs $88.99 per month and comes with a 5-day free trial.

How to watch Norway vs Portugal in Australia

Norway vs Portugal is available to watch in Australia if you're a beIN Sports subscriber.

Monthly subscriptions are currently priced at AU$16.99/month and you'll be looking for the beIN Sports 3 channel.

See also ► Erling Haaland adds four Guinness World Records to trophy collection

Norway vs Portugal: Preview

Norway have become the dark horses of world football in recent times. After a superb World Cup campaign in which they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by England, they now sit top of their Nations League table after Matchday 1.

An entertaining 3-2 victory over Denmark took them there, with Erling Haaland netting his 63rd and 64th goals in just his 56th appearance for his country. That goals-per-game record far exceeds what Cristiano Ronaldo has even managed, but the 41-year-old will be looking to set things straight today.

His performance against Wales on Thursday was once again underwhelming, and it feels like he is now becoming more of a hindrance to the team rather than helping them.

Gonçalo Ramos, in particular, will be feeling that way and will be desperate for a chance to lead the line for his country. Will he get his chance today?

FourFourTwo's prediction

Norway 4-2 Portugal

Portugal looked shaky against Wales and Erling Haaland and Co. will fancy running riot against their backline.

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Former Brentford and Brighton striker Neal Maupay has never been the type to shy away from a bit of football banter.

Among the Marseille forward’s greatest hits is his 2024 barb aimed at James Maddison, when the then-Brentford man mimicked the Tottenham playmaker’s darts celebration following his first-half goal at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The pair had no previous history, but the incident sparked a mini war of words between the pair following Spurs’ eventual 3-2 victory, and while Maupay insists there was no malice in it, he wouldn’t hesitate to do it again.

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Maupay on his Maddison darts wind-up

Maupay insists that even his most memorable celebrations are not pre-meditated, with the player instead preferring to let the emotion of the game guide him.

“I don't usually plan celebrations because I like to react to my emotions,” he tells FourFourTwo. “I just go with the flow of the game and how I feel at the time.”

On this occasion in January 2024, it was Maddison who was caught in his crosshairs.

“That’s what happened during that game, because I have no problem with James Maddison,” he continues. The pair had faced off nine times before that fateful match, and there was no bad blood between them.

“When I faced him while he was at Leicester, we were always friendly with each other,” Maupay adds.

“But in this game, with the atmosphere and seeing the fans in the front row, I just wanted to do his celebration.”

Both players had their say immediately following the game, with Maddison telling TNT Sports that: “He probably hasn't scored enough goals in the last couple of years for his own celebration, so he probably had to copy mine!”, while Maupay used Instagram to remind the masses that he had ‘more goals and less relegations’ in his career.

But despite this, Maupay appears to carry no beef, even going as far as to say he would do it again.

“I actually haven't spoken to him about it since,” he says. “From what I heard, he wasn't too happy about it.

“From my point of view, I think it was a good celebration and if I had to do it again, I would.”

The interview with Neal was arranged by YRDS

Watch the controversial match between Israel and Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League today, with FourFourTwo bringing you a comprehensive guide to free TV coverage, from wherever you are in the world.

Heimir Hallgrímsson’s first competitive match in charge of the Republic of Ireland couldn’t have gone much worse, as they were thoroughly outplayed in a 1-0 loss to Kosovo.

Now they will look to bounce back against Israel, although all the talk heading into this one has been about matters off the pitch.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information on how to watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland for FREE

Israel vs Republic of Ireland is free to watch in Ireland thanks to RTÉ Player.

❗Coverage is geo-restricted, but you can use a VPN to get your usual access if you're away from Ireland right now – more on that below.

Watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland from anywhere

Away for the game? Use a VPN to access your usual streaming service abroad, subject to your broadcasters terms and conditions.

FourFourTwo’s colleagues at TechRadar have tested hundreds of VPNs, and they say NordVPN is the best VPN you can get.

How to watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland in the UK

Prime Video will show Israel vs Republic of Ireland in the UK on a pay-per-view basis.

It will set you back £2.49 for access with no Amazon account required.

Irish resident visiting the UK? Unlock your free stream of this Nations League opener with NordVPN.

How to watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland in the US

US-based football fans can watch Israel vs the Republic of Ireland on Fox Soccer Plus.

How to watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland in Australia

Fans in Australia can watch Israel vs Republic of Ireland on beIN Sports 1.

See also ► 442GOALS: Can you build a team that has scored 442 times in the Premier League?

Israel vs Republic of Ireland: Preview

Israel vs Republic of Ireland has become more controversial for what is happening off the pitch than what will happen on it.

The game will take place at a neutral stadium with no away fans, and at one point it looked like the fixture might not even go ahead, with a vote having to take place over its validity.

This is, of course, all connected to Israel’s military action in Gaza, and while the two fixtures are now confirmed to be taking place, it feels like football will have very little to do with these games.

In particular, RTÉ, who are showing coverage of the match, are airing a stripped-back version of the game. There will be no commentators, pundits or analysis, while no advertising or sponsorship income will be generated from the match.

▶︎ Read More: Ireland shouldn't be playing Israel: opinion

On the pitch, the Republic of Ireland really need to bounce back from their opening Nations League game. They were woeful against Kosovo, and Israel will likely pose a similar threat on Sunday evening.

West Ham United’s Manor Solomon is their biggest danger, with James Abankwah and Jake O’Brien likely to be tasked with keeping him quiet.

For Ireland, Troy Parrott and Finn Azaz’s involvement will be most important, with the pair likely to have the biggest influence against an Israel side who struggled to stop conceding goals in last year’s World Cup qualifiers.

Team News

Israel XI: Da.Peretz; Mizrahi, Stoinov, Shlomo, Revivo; Peretz, Kanichowsky; Khalaili, Gloukh, Solomon; Turgeman

Ireland XI: Kelleher; O'Brien, Abankwah, Moylan, O'Shea, Manning; Molumby, Kitching, Coventry, Idah; Parrott.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Israel 0-0 Republic of Ireland

Matters of the pitch will overshadow this one.

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Watch Denmark vs Wales for FREE today as the Nations League continues.

FourFourTwo has all the details on how you can watch Denmark vs Wales online from anywhere in the world.

Denmark gave Norway a good game in Oslo but ultimately fell just short, losing 3-2. This match against Wales though could be the perfect tonic with no defeat to the Dragons since 2008.

For Wales, another difficult away trip is on the cards. If they are to avoid relegation from the top tier of the Nations League though they might need to get something in Copenhagen.

Here are all the details you need on live streams to watch Denmark vs Wales online, on TV, and from anywhere.

How to watch Denmark vs Wales for FREE in the UK

Denmark vs Wales will be broadcast for free on BBC One in the UK. Meanwhile, S4C has Welsh-language coverage.

It will also be available to stream at no cost on BBC iPlayer.

‼️ Away from home right now? A good VPN such as NordVPN will unblock your usual streaming services even while you're abroad – more on that below.

Watch Denmark vs Wales from anywhere

If you’re outside your home country for Denmark vs Wales, you'll probably find your streaming services are geo-restricted and therefore don't work, but fortunately assistance is on hand. A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is a handy piece of software that can change your IP address to make your device appear as if it's back home.

Our expert colleagues at TechRadar test hundreds of VPNs, and they rate NordVPN as the best VPN on the market right now.

How to watch Denmark vs Wales in the US for FREE

Denmark vs Wales will be broadcast on Fubo in the US with free coverage available on Fubo Sports Network which is carried by Tubi.

How to watch Denmark vs Wales in Australia

Australian viewers can watch Denmark vs Wales on beIN Sports 1 in Australia, which is available via the beIN Sports Connect streaming service.

Denmark vs Wales: Preview

Denmark's Nations League campaign may not have got off to the perfect start, but there were plenty of promising signs in a 3-2 defeat to World Cup quarter-finalists Norway.

Mikkel Damsgaard and Rasmus Hojlund both got on the scoresheet for the Danes, but a late Erling Haaland goal meant they wouldn't pick up any points from their trip to Oslo.

Back at home, they will be keen to make the most of a "supposedly" easier fixture against the Welsh. The last three meetings between these sides have seen Denmark run out 4-0, 2-1 and 2-0 winners, and a repeat today wouldn't be a surprise.

Expect Hojlund to lead the line, while young Thomas Jorgensen of Toulouse may get a chance in the starting XI after making his debut from the bench on Thursday evening.

MORE 442Goals: Play FourFourTwo's viral quiz

For Wales, their defeat in Portugal could have been so much more had Lewis Koumas taken their big chance in the second half. Nevertheless, it was a promising display from Craig Bellamy's side and one that they can take encouragement from heading into today's game.

Admittedly, Bellamy will still be without plenty of his usual first-choice XI, with Harry Wilson, Joe Rodon, Dylan Lawlor and Karl Darlow all still out injured. In their absence, Danny Ward will continue in goal while Ben Davies and Ben Cabango will likely fill in at centre-half again. Expect David Brooks to be Wilson's replacement.

But the former Liverpool winger would surely have been eyeing up this trip to Denmark as the potential chance to pick up points from their opening two games, so expect the Welsh to be more on the front foot.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Denmark 3-1 Wales

FourFourTwo thinks Denmark will have too much for a Welsh side who haven't beaten them since 2008.

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Watch Serbia vs Netherlands for free in today's Nations League clash, with all the information on TV and streaming wherever you are in the world right here in this guide.

Serbia and the Netherlands both got their UEFA Nations League campaigns underway on Thursday, with the hosts losing narrowly to Greece.

Xavi's side drew 1-1 with Germany in Amsterdam, with Cody Gakpo rescuing a point with a 92nd-minute equaliser.

Read on for all the details on how to watch Serbia vs Netherlands online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Can I watch Serbia vs Netherlands for free?

You can watch Serbia vs Netherlands for free in Holland on NPO.

Abroad? Use NordVPN to access your free stream — find out more below.

How to watch Serbia vs Netherlands from anywhere

If you’re outside your home country, you'll probably find your streaming services are geo-restricted and therefore don't work, but fortunately assistance is on hand.A VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is a handy piece of software that can change your IP address to make your device appear as if it's back home.

Our expert colleagues at TechRadar test hundreds of VPNs, and they rate NordVPN as the best VPN on the market right now.

How to watch Serbia vs Netherlands in the UK

Prime Video will show Serbia vs Netherlands in the UK on a pay-per-view basis.

It will set you back £2.49 for access, with no Amazon account required.

Unlock your Prime Video stream of this Nations League opener with NordVPN if you're outside the UK today.

How to watch Serbia vs Netherlands in the US

Fans in the USA will need Fox Sports 2 to watch Serbia vs Netherlands in the USA.

The best way to access the stream is through Fox One (3-day free trial) or a cord-cutting solution like Sling TV or YouTube TV.

How to watch Serbia vs Netherlands in Australia

Fans in Australia can watch Serbia vs Netherlands on beIN Sport Connect and beIN Sports 3.

All Nations League football is shown on beIN Sports Connect in Australia.

Prices start at AU$16.99/month after a 7-day free trial for new users.

Serbia vs Netherlands: Preview

Serbia and the Netherlands meet in Belgrade on Sunday, with both sides looking for a first victory in League A Group 2, after failing to take three points in their opening fixture.

Serbia began their campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Greece on Thursday, leaving Veljko Paunović’s side needing a response at the Rajko Mitić Stadium.

The hosts have also been hit by several notable absences. Dusan Vlahovic, Aleksandar Mitrović, Nikola Milenković and goalkeeper Predrag Rajković are all unavailable because of injury, while Paunović has brought Dušan Tadić back into the squad after a two-year international absence.

The Netherlands, meanwhile, arrive having opened their campaign with an encouraging 1-1 draw against Germany. Xavi's first competitive match in charge looked set to end in defeat after Felix Nmecha put Germany ahead, but Gakpo struck in stoppage time to rescue a deserved point.

The new Dutch boss is attempting to introduce a more proactive style, with Xavi stressing before the tournament that he wants his team to play with intensity, take the initiative and maintain a high tempo. Virgil van Dijk remains captain after deciding to continue his international career following discussions with Xavi.

However, the Netherlands are also without some significant names. Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt missed the squad through injury, while Memphis Depay and Wout Weghorst were not selected. There are opportunities for several younger players, including first-time call-ups Ruben van Bommel and Gjivai Zechiël.

Historically, the Netherlands have the edge in this fixture, winning six of the ten previous meetings, although Serbia have won three. With both teams already having points to make up after Thursday's results, Sunday's encounter promises another important early test in Group 2.

Squads

Serbia

Goalkeepers: Vanja Milinkovic-Savic (Napoli), Djordje Petrovic (Bournemouth), Filip Stankovic (Venezia)

Defenders: Strahinja Pavlovic (AC Milan), Strahinja Erakovic (Samsunspor), Srdjan Babic (Spartak Moscow), Nikola Simic (Partizan), Kosta Nedeljkovic (Rangers), Aleksa Terzic (Frosinone), Petar Sukacev (Vojvodina), Lazar Nikolic (Vojvodina)

Midfielders: Aleksandar Stankovic (Inter Milan), Nemanja Maksimovic (Shabab Al-Ahli), Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Al-Hilal), Sasa Lukic (Ipswich Town), Nemanja Gudelj (Getafe), Vanja Dragojevic (Rangers), Lazar Samardzic (Atalanta), Andrija Zivkovic (PAOK), Filip Kostic (PSV Eindhoven), Stefan Dzodic (Almeria), Vasilije Kostov (Red Star Belgrade), Dusan Tadic (NEC Nijmegen)

Forwards: Dusan Vlahovic (Besiktas), Luka Jovic (AEK Athens), Dejan Joveljic (Seattle Sounders), Mihajlo Cvetkovic (Anderlecht), Jovan Milosevic (Braga)

Netherlands

Goalkeepers: Bart Verbruggen (Brighton & Hove Albion), Robin Roefs (Sunderland), Mark Flekken (Bayer Leverkusen)

Defenders: Denzel Dumfries (Real Madrid), Jeremie Frimpong (Liverpool), Lutsharel Geertruida (PSV), Jurriën Timber (Arsenal), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Jan Paul van Hecke (Tottenham Hotspur), Nathan Aké (Fenerbahçe), Micky van de Ven (Tottenham Hotspur), Jorrel Hato (Chelsea)

Midfielders: Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool), Tijjani Reijnders (Al-Qadsiah), Joey Veerman (Borussia Dortmund), Quinten Timber (Crystal Palace), Teun Koopmeiners (Juventus), Kenneth Taylor (Lazio), Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth), Gjivai Zechiël (Feyenoord)

Forwards: Crysencio Summerville (Al-Hilal), Donyell Malen (AS Roma), Brian Brobbey (Sunderland), Cody Gakpo (Liverpool), Noa Lang (Napoli), Ruben van Bommel (PSV)

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Pep Guardiola’s arrival at Manchester City in the summer of 2016 heralded the beginning of the club’s most successful period in their history.

While the Catalan was instrumental in evolving City into the all-conquering behemoth they would become in the first half of the 2020s, he was able to inherit a star-packed squad, including one of the Premier League’s most prolific-ever strikers.

By 2016, Sergio Aguero had been in Manchester for five years and was instrumental in the club’s Premier League title victories in 2012 and 2014. And while this combination of an era-defining manager and world-class striker was a tantalising proposition, it did not come without challenges.

Pick the ultimate 4-4-2 line-up from players in FourFourTwo's definitive Top 100 List

Aguero on adapting to Guardiola

While Aguero would ultimately flourish under Guardiola, he initially faced a transitional period owing to what Guardiola demanded from his front-man when City were without the ball.

“Pep Guardiola arrived as manager in 2016, and at first that was a little complicated for me,” Aguero admits to FourFourTwo.

Guardiola’s interpretation of the forward’s role differed from what Aguero was used to at City under Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini, with the former Barcelona boss introducing his trademark pressing game to the club.

“I wasn’t used to having to maintain the press he was looking for from a striker. But actually, it worked out very well,” he adds.

City would finish third in the table at the end of Guardiola’s first season in charge, but the title was duly delivered 12 months later, with Aguero as prolific as ever.

“Over time, we adapted and ended up helping each other,” he continues. “He demanded so much of me that, well, I scored a lot of goals with him, and won titles.

Aguero would spend five years at City under Guardiola, during which time the forward added three Premier League title, an FA Cup and four League Cups to his medal collection, scoring 124 goals in the process.

It’s a period of his career which Aguero, who left the club in 2021, looks back at fondly.

“The truth is, we ended up having a very nice history at the club together, so I only have words to thank him for everything he did to help me continue scoring goals and making history.

“For me, Pep is the best coach I ever had – he’s the best coach in the world.”

Watch Chelsea vs Arsenal in the WSL, with all the broadcast details right here in this guide.

After rescuing a point against Manchester United last weeked, Arsenal head to Stamford Bridge desperate for a victory after back-to-back draws.

Chelsea dropped points on the opening day, but have since bounced back with two wins on the spin.

This London derby between two WSL heavyweights is always a treat, and there is plenty at stake as these sides meet again this weekend.

FourFourTwo has all the information on live streams and TV channels so you can watch Chelsea vs Arsenal in the WSL online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Watch Chelsea vs Arsenal for free

US viewers can watch Chelsea vs Arsenal in the WSL at no cost on CBS Sports Golazo Network, which will show selected WSL fixtures throughout the campaign.

Outside the UK or US? Use a VPN to access your free stream from anywhere in the world.

Watch Chelsea vs Arsenal from anywhere

Away from home right now? You don't have to miss Chelsea vs Arsenal

The solution to your geo-restriction nightmares is a Virtual Private Network (VPN), a piece of software that can set your devices to appear to be in any country in the world.

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How to watch Chelsea vs Arsenal in the UK

Chelsea vs Arsenal is live on Sky Sports in the UK, with kick-off at 4:30pm BST.

Outside the UK? Watch Chelsea vs Arsenal via NordVPN.

How to watch Chelsea vs Arsenal in the US

As mentioned above, US viewers can watch Chelsea vs Arsenal for free on CBS Sports Golazo Network. Kick-off is at 11:30am ET.

Paramount+ also has live coverage of the WSL clash.

How to watch Chelsea vs Arsenal in Australia

Fans in Australia can stream Chelsea vs Arsenal on Stan Sport.

Travelling outside Australia? NordVPN is your ticket to watch the game.

Chelsea vs Arsenal: Women's Super League preview

Arsenal head to Stamford Bridge on Sunday for one of the most eagerly anticipated match-ups of the WSL season.

The Gunners finished second last season, one place above Chelsea, and also got the better of their London rivals in the Champions League, knocking them out at the quarter-final stage.

Following a draw with Aston Villa on the opening day, Chelsea responded by thrashing Manchester United 5-0 before beating newly promoted Birmingham City 2-0.

Arsenal, meanwhile, come into this tie on the back of two draws. A stoppage-time equaliser from Smilla Holmberg rescued a point against Manchester United last weekend, while they were held to a goalless draw by Crystal Palace the week before. They opened their campaign with a 1-0 win over Brighton.

They also needed a late intervention in midweek to secure victory in the Champions League, with a stoppage-time penalty earning them a 1-0 win.

Both sides were back in European action this week, with Chelsea beating Austria Wien and Arsenal overcoming HB Køge by the same 1-0 scoreline. Neither performance was particularly convincing, and both sets of fans will be hoping for more at Stamford Bridge.

Both Sonia Bompastor and Renée Slegers have faced early scrutiny at times this season, and Sunday's fixture will be both teams' biggest test of the season so far.

With Chelsea and Arsenal so closely matched in recent seasons, there is more than just three points at stake as the London rivals battle for local bragging rights.

FourFourTwo's prediction

Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal

Arsenal have struggled in front of goal this season, whereas Chelsea proved against Manchester United that they can be ruthless when needed

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

The Champions League has produced some extraordinary club sides since the competition was rebranded in 1992.

From all-conquering dynasties to one-season wonders, a real mix of teams have lifted the famous trophy over the past three-and-a-half decades.

But which team stands alone as the greatest? FourFourTwo have taken on the task of ranking the best sides of the modern era...

20. Porto 2004

During the past 30 seasons, no club from outside the current top five leagues has won the Champions League… except Porto in 2004.

The Portuguese side’s journey to glory remains the Champions League era’s greatest underdog story, bar none. Led by a suave, impudent former translator named Jose Mourinho (you may well have heard of him), the Primeira Liga minnows stunned the European elite by winning the Champions League, merely a year after defeating Celtic in the 2003 UEFA Cup Final in Seville.

The soon-to-be Special One arrived at the club halfway through the 2001-02 season, at the age of just 38, signing a two-and-a-half-year deal. By the time that contract expired, he had claimed every trophy available to him.

He did it by demanding complete and utter conformity to his vision and his values. Off the ball, his team would sit deep and soak pressure; in possession, they would counter-attack in ruthless fashion. But it was about so much more than just the tactics. Mourinho gave his players an unshakeable belief that they could triumph if they stuck together, as well as a complete lack of respect for the traditional big guns.

His side was perfectly balanced. In the centre of defence, Ricardo Carvalho formed a rock-solid partnership with captain Jorge Costa, who passed away tragically this August, at the age of just 53. The pair were shielded in midfield by the tireless Costinha, while Deco was the creative heartbeat, linking with the likes of Maniche and Pedro Mendes. In front of goal, South African ace Benni McCarthy provided the cutting edge.

Surprisingly, Porto’s pathway to glory actually appeared to get increasingly less taxing as the tournament went on. In the group stage, they took only one point from their first two games, losing at home to Real Madrid, but responded with wins over a handy Marseille side starring Didier Drogba to finish second.

Moving from their old Estadio das Antas home to the newly built Estadio do Dragao amid-season, they won 2-1 at home to Manchester United in their first European game at the venue, before a late Costinha goal decided the tie in the second leg at Old Trafford – cue the rain-soaked Mourinho’s iconic run down the touchline to celebrate. Lyon and Deportivo La Coruna were defeated to book a place in the final against Monaco in Gelsenkirchen, which they dominated 3-0 thanks to goals from Carlos Alberto, Deco and Dmitri Alenichev.

It launched Mourinho into the stratosphere and ensured Porto’s status as one of the finest cult teams in European history.

19. Inter 2010

Six years after triumphing with Porto, Jose Mourinho was at it again. Using Samuel Eto’o as an auxiliary right-back at times, Inter let opponents have the ball: Bayern Munich had 68 per cent possession in the final, but were still soundly beaten 2-0 thanks to a Diego Milito brace. Inter didn’t have a single Italian in their starting XI that night.

HIGHLIGHT The remarkable rearguard action in the semi-final second leg at Barcelona, having lost Thiago Motta to a red card during the first half.

18. Manchester United 2008

The Red Devils were less exciting than their 1999 vintage, scoring seven goals in as many knockout matches, although they did have Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez going forward, while Edwin van der Sar, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic helped to keep eight clean sheets. Then came John Terry’s slip in the shootout in Moscow…

HIGHLIGHT Paul Scholes’ stunning goal against Barcelona at Old Trafford – the only goal across two legs of that tense semi-final.

17. Juventus 1996

During the mid-90s, Marcello Lippi’s Juventus overtook Fabio Capello’s Milan as Italy’s most dominant team, and the ultimate proof was their Champions League triumph – even if victory in the final was on penalties over Ajax. It was a typically well-oiled Serie A machine with Didier Deschamps, Paulo Sousa and Antonio Conte in midfield.

STAR MAN Alessandro Del Piero was the key to a quarter-final win over Real Madrid, overturning a first-leg deficit.

16. Milan 2007

Some feared that Carlo Ancelotti’s side could run out of steam after Andriy Shevchenko was sold to Chelsea, but they became more efficient. After a 2-0 victory at Bayern Munich, they thrashed Manchester United 3-0 at San Siro in the semi-final, before Pippo Inzaghi (left) bagged a brace that secured revenge over Liverpool in the final in Athens.

STAR MAN Kaka took Manchester United apart in the semis, then bagged the Ballon d’Or that year.

15. Liverpool 2019

Were it not for some last-gasp heroics from Alisson Becker in the final minute of Liverpool’s last group game against Napoli, the kings of 2019 would not have made it through, but they grew stronger from there. Bayern Munich, Porto and Spurs were dispatched on the way to the trophy, after one distinctly more dramatic evening at Anfield…

HIGHLIGHT Defeated 3-0 in the first leg of the semi at Barcelona, Jurgen Klopp’s side won the second leg 4-0 – one of the most remarkable matches ever.

14. Barcelona 2006

Frank Rijkaard built his side around the genius of Ronaldinho, and the Brazilian led Barça to their first European success since 1992. Ronnie scored seven goals in the Champions League that term, while Lionel Messi started to emerge, too – Chelsea’s Asier del Horno was sent off for fouling him in the last 16.

HIGHLIGHT Arsenal led the final 1-0 despite Jens Lehmann’s red card, then sub Henrik Larsson provided late assists for Samuel Eto’o and unlikely scorer Juliano Belletti.

13. Bayern Munich 2001

Bayern were traumatised by defeat to Manchester United in 1999, but boss Ottmar Hitzfeld made his team even stronger. Bayern beat both previous winners home and away, overcoming the Red Devils in the last eight, then Real Madrid in the semis, aided by goals from Giovane Elber, before the most German thing possible – a victory on penalties in the final against Valencia.

STAR MAN World’s angriest man Oliver Kahn saved three times in the shootout.

12. Real Madrid 2022

Karim Benzema turned 34, Luka Modric was 36, but the old guard were able to navigate maybe the toughest ever run to the final – coming from two goals down to defeat PSG in the last 16, narrowly edging a quarter-final with Chelsea, rescuing the semi against Manchester City with two late goals, then beating Liverpool in Paris thanks to Thibaut Courtois.

STAR MAN Benzema won the Ballon d’Or after two hat-tricks, against PSG and Chelsea.

11. Milan 1994

The 1994 final at Athens’ Olympic Stadium was billed by some as a clash between an irresistible force and an immovable object.

Fabio Capello’s Milan were known for their defensive prowess, conceding just twice in 11 games leading up to the final, in the only season that featured Champions League semi-finals played over just one leg. After winning their group, they earned home advantage to beat Arsene Wenger’s Monaco 3-0.

Milan’s opponents – Johan Cruyff’s Barcelona, dubbed the ‘Dream Team’ thanks to their free-scoring flair – had been the best attacking team in the competition, hitting 26 goals.

The Catalan giants boasted Romario, Hristo Stoichkov, Ronald Koeman and Pep Guardiola among their ranks, thus were considered favourites, having also been kings of Europe in 1992, in the last campaign before the Champions League rebrand. “Milan are nothing out of this world,” declared a rather confident Cruyff prior to the final. “They base their game on defence, we base ours on attack.”

Milan had lost the previous year’s final to Marseille, increasing the pressure on them, while several key players would be missing this time. Marco van Basten was injured, with both Franco Baresi and Alessandro Costacurta suspended.

Their best chance of triumphing, it had seemed, would be to shut up shop and try to take a tight showpiece all the way to a decisive penalty shootout.

Capello reshuffled his pack, moving Paolo Maldini to centre-back – with Marcel Desailly and Demetrio Albertini both sat in front of the defence, he felt his side could frustrate Barcelona.

What he may not have expected was an attacking masterclass, as his side hunted in packs, forcing Barcelona into errors before pouncing. Daniele Massaro found the net twice before the interval, with a Dejan Savicevic wonder goal and a fourth from Desailly leaving Cruyff’s previously confident side winded.

The victory would go down as one of the all-time great European displays – until this year, it was the biggest margin of victory in a Champions League final.

Maldini’s individual performance was particularly lauded, and even Cruyff had to admit that his entertainers had been well and truly beaten. “It was not that we played badly,” he sighed. “It was that we did not play at all.”

10. Ajax 1995

Like a television show that launched the careers of a number of A-list actors, Ajax’s all-conquering 1995 team almost doesn’t feel plausible, when you look at it with hindsight.

Featuring the homegrown talents of Edwin van der Sar, De Boer twins Frank and Ronald, Clarence Seedorf, Edgar Davids and 18-year-old Patrick Kluivert – plus Marc Overmars, Nwankwo Kanu, Jari Litmanen and Frank Rijkaard, back at the club after five years with Milan – Louis van Gaal’s side blew away the competition to secure the Champions League with an average age of just 23.

What’s more, they did it without losing a single game throughout the entire campaign. This was the first season in which the top clubs started in the group stage, rather than needing to play any knockout fixtures beforehand. In their opening group game, Ajax set their stall out by beating reigning champs Milan 2-0 in front of a crowd of 35,000 at their old Olympisch Stadium in Amsterdam.

A couple of months later, they beat the Rossoneri 2-0 once more, this time in Trieste, in a game that was moved following crowd trouble in Milan’s prior home game against Casino Salzburg.

Further home and away wins over AEK Athens ensured that Ajax topped the group, giving them a somewhat gentler last-eight tie against Croatians Hajduk Split, which they cruised through 3-0.

Bayern Munich looked a tougher test in the semis – drawing 0-0 in Germany though, Ajax triumphed 5-2 at home to reach their first final since 1973.

Again facing Milan in the final, many fancied the Rossoneri to hit back and defend their crown, but again they were flummoxed by Ajax’s fluid movement, high press and patient possession, with the Dutch outfit’s players weaned on Johan Cruyff’s Total Football philosophy.

Van Gaal set up with a 3-4-3, asking his midfield to recycle possession to tease openings in Fabio Capello’s rigid 4-4-2. Seedorf and Litmanen looked to receive in the half spaces, while Rijkaard – the wise old general at the base of midfield – pulled the strings.

They had to be patient – a 1-0 victory in Vienna came courtesy of a late swivel and finish from Kluivert, who remains the youngest scorer in a Champions League final at 18 years, 327 days.

Ajax reached the final again a year later, but many of the team soon got big transfers elsewhere. A stunning run to the semi-finals in 2019 aside, they’ve never come close to winning it since.

9. Bayern Munich 2013

Jupp Heynckes wasn’t the luckiest of coaches throughout his career – fired after winning the Champions League with Real Madrid in 1998, he departed after Bayern’s 2013 triumph too, with Pep Guardiola lined up to replace him. Heynckes’ Bayern side were terrific, with Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery causing mayhem on both wings – the former scored the winner in the final against compatriots Borussia Dortmund.

HIGHLIGHT Dismantling Barcelona 7-0 on aggregate in the semi-final.

8. Real Madrid 2002

At the start of the 2001-02 campaign, Zinedine Zidane arrived to join Raul, Roberto Carlos and Luis Figo – it was little wonder that Los Blancos then scored 27 goals in two group stages. Vicente del Bosque’s side possessed character too: coming from behind to beat Bayern Munich in the last eight, then winning at Barcelona in the semis.

HIGHLIGHT That Zizou volley against Bayer Leverkusen at Hampden Park – the greatest goal ever scored in a Champions League final.

7. Barcelona 2015

When Luis Suarez left Liverpool for Barça in 2014, MSN was born, and good luck to any defences attempting to stop them. Lionel Messi, Suarez and Neymar formed one of the best strike trios ever, netting 27 Champions League goals between them that season – Barcelona beat Juventus 3-1 in the final in Berlin, as boss Luis Enrique claimed the Treble.

HIGHLIGHT Messi scoring after putting Jerome Boateng on his backside, when Barcelona beat Bayern 3-0 in the semis.

6. Manchester United 1999

Football, bloody hell. Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United were thrilling, not only for the way that they played, but for the dramatic way they secured the trophy. The Red Devils were two goals down in the semi against Juventus, before a superb comeback in Turin – the final wasn’t boring, either...

HIGHLIGHT The injury-time goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, both from David Beckham corners, which defeated Bayern in the final. Legendary.

5. Manchester City 2023

The second team from Manchester to complete a Treble, the club’s very first Champions League triumph came in a season when they demolished the opposition. Erling Haaland scored 12 goals – a joint record for a player at an English club, tying Ruud van Nistelrooy’s tally 20 years earlier – with John Stones inverting into midfield in Pep Guardiola’s latest innovation. Manchester City obliterated sides at home in the knockout stage – beating RB Leipzig 7-0, Bayern Munich 3-0 and Real Madrid 4-0.

STAR MAN Scorer of the winner against Inter in the final, Rodri quietly made his side completely unbeatable.

4. Bayern Munich 2020

COVID ensured that there was no crowd present to see their triumph over PSG in the final in Lisbon, but Hansi Flick’s side were formidable – Manuel Neuer was as good as he had ever been, David Alaba and Jerome Boateng were rock solid in central defence, while Alphonso Davies was electric at full-back. Add in Kingsley Coman, Serge Gnabry, Thomas Muller, Thiago Alcantara, Leon Goretzka and Joshua Kimmich – oh, as well as 15-goal Robert Lewandowski – and you can see why they won the trophy. A 7-2 win at Spurs in the group stage preceded an even better victory in the quarters…

HIGHLIGHT The 8-2 thumping of Barça had real Germany vs Brazil 2014 ‘stop, they’re already dead’ vibes. Just brutal.

3. Paris Saint-Germain 2025

In the end, it needed the Parisians to drop their policy of signing ready-made superstars for massive fees for them to become the best side in world football. Boss Luis Enrique (right) eschewed the previous largesses with a hard-pressing and tactically disciplined line-up that stormed to a historic Treble, ending their long wait for European supremacy. Ousmane Dembele’s sniper instincts were key, but plenty more played their part too, from the invention of Vitinha to the princely panache of a teenage Desire Doue.

HIGHLIGHT The 5-0 demolition of Inter in Munich, breaking the record for the biggest victory in a Champions League final, which had stood for 31 years.

2. Real Madrid 2014-18

During the first 24 editions of the Champions League, no club were ever able to defend their crown. Then Real Madrid won three in succession between 2016 and 2018 – their earlier 2014 triumph making it four victories across an astonishing five-year spell.

Italian Carlo Ancelotti oversaw the first of those glory days, before Zinedine Zidane masterminded the latter run – becoming the first and only gaffer to date to win three consecutive titles, even including the 37 years when the competition was the European Cup.

It would be all too easy to point to Cristiano Ronaldo’s gun-slinging genius as the reason for those successes – the Portuguese icon scored a ludicrous 70 Champions League goals across that five-year span, including 17 in 2013-14 (a single-season record) – but, in truth, it was a team effort by superstars more than willing to roll up their sleeves and play dirty.

Key to that was defender and leader Sergio Ramos, who scored in two finals, both against city rivals Atletico Madrid, including the 93rd-minute equaliser in 2014 that kept their 10th European crown, La Decima, alive. The Spaniard left his mark in other ways as well, such as the unpunished wrestling move that ended Mo Salah’s participation in the 2018 triumph over Liverpool in Kyiv.

There was some evolution within the squad between Ancelotti and Zidane’s reigns, but many players remained the same – Ramos, Pepe and Marcelo at the back, with Luka Modric making the UEFA squad of the season for each of the four years during that run when Real Madrid were European champions.

Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo combined up top – or ‘BBC’, as the trio were dubbed by fans. OK, technically it should have been BBR, which works less well, but we’ll allow it.

Ronaldo was always the big dog – he netted in the 2014 and 2017 finals, and also struck the winning penalty in the 2016 shootout – but each forward had his moment in the limelight. Benzema netted key goals in semi-finals, including a brace against Bayern Munich in 2018, while Bale’s bicycle kick in Kyiv is maybe only second to Zidane’s volley in 2002 for Champions League final goals. Some might argue it was even better.

During that era, Real Madrid weren’t always easy on the eye, but they were a team who never knew when they were beaten. Indeed, they rarely were.

1. Barcelona 2009-11

Unplayable. That was the word Alex Ferguson used to describe the Barcelona team that defeated his Manchester United side 3-1 in the 2011 Champions League Final.

It was impossible to disagree with the usually bullish Scot, given how utterly his team were dominated at Wembley by a brilliant Barça side busy securing their second Champions League in three years under boss Pep Guardiola.

Guardiola’s tiki-taka disciples enjoyed 69 per cent possession and racked up 777 passes in that 2011 final – more than twice the number the Red Devils managed – as Pedro, Lionel Messi and David Villa took their combined goal tally for the season to 98 across all competitions (Messi alone scored 53). Rio Ferdinand said that he “felt like a Conference player” as Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets & Co toyed with them in a mesmeric display of passing. Manchester United had been Barça’s victims in the 2009 final, too, when the Catalans started with six of the same players – Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets, Victor Valdes and Gerard Pique. Only 21 years old for the first final, Messi scored a rare header en route to the first of his seven Ballon d’Or awards.

Not only did Barcelona win a Treble in 2009, they then added the Supercopa, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup to make it an incredible six trophies in the same calendar year. Eight more trinkets were won during the reign of Guardiola, who built what’s widely regarded as the greatest club side in history.

His now-familiar tactical blueprint – creating space in possession, while also suffocating the field when the ball is lost – was key in making Barcelona such a force. Early on, so too were the likes of Samuel Eto’o and Thierry Henry, who were part of the 2009 side.

Yet Messi’s genius was crucial to it all. The playmaker started from the right at first, but was often used as a false nine as time went on, allowing him to scurry deep into midfield to orchestrate play. Highlights included a brilliant solo effort against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in the 2011 semi-final, as part of a brace that defeated Jose Mourinho’s men and sent Barça to Wembley. In between the club’s two Champions League triumphs, Messi also scored four in one match in a 2010 quarter-final against Arsenal. With Messi on the field, opposition teams knew their painstaking tactical gameplan could be thrown out of the window at any moment; any mistake pounced upon and punished in ice-cold fashion. Without Messi, Barça would have been a fantastic team anyway. With him, they became the best ever. Ferguson always took great pride in the fact that his own 1999 Champions League Final-winning team included four players who came from the youth team – David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Nicky Butt, with Paul Scholes absent through suspension. Guardiola’s 2009 and 2011 winners each had seven: the six players who started both finals, plus Carles Puyol in Rome and Pedro at Wembley.

Inter’s dramatic rearguard at the Camp Nou prevented Barcelona from triumphing in 2010, and Guardiola’s last season would culminate in a shock semi loss to Chelsea in 2012, but the ruthless beauty seen in both 2009 and 2011 will forever remain in football history. Forget unplayable. It was perfect.

Can you tell us the answer to this quiz question?

What have Ademola Lookman, Alphonso Davies, Eusebio and (if we’re being picky) Sam Kerr all achieved that no South American player ever has?

We'll reveal the answer this time next week when we reach the next edition of The Pre-Match Poser – for now, here's the answer to last week's poser…

Q. Erling Haaland, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Diego Forlan, Romelu Lukaku, Neymar, Wayne Rooney. How are these players ordered?

A. They’re placed according to how long their country’s international goalscoring record had stood before they broke it. Erling Haaland’s 34th goal for Norway in 2024 broke an 87-year record, previously set by Jorgen Juve; Sven Rydell set Sweden's record in 1932, which survived until Zlatan Ibrahimovic broke it with his 50th goal in September 2014, 82 years later. Set during Uruguay's golden era of 1920s Olympic gold medals and the inaugural 1930 World Cup, Hector Scarone’s 31-goal tally stood for 81 years, until Diego Forlan surpassed it in October 2011. Bernard Voorhoof set Belgium's record in 1940 (later equalled by Paul Van Himst in 1974), with the 30-goal benchmark standing for 77 years, before Romelu Lukaku smashed it in November 2017. In 2023, Neymar took Brazil’s record, beating Pele’s long-standing 77 goals after 52 years. Rooney broke Sir Bobby Charlton’s 49-goal record after 45 years in 2015.

More football quizzes we know you'll love

While you're racking your brains over that one, we have loads more to enjoy so why not take on these quizzes, courtesy of Kwizly?

If the Premier League is your specialist subject, you'll breeze through this one. Can you arrange these groups of four players in order of how many Premier League appearances they made, from most to least?

There are also some legendary career paths for you to complete and we want you to list every title sponsor of the League Cup throughout its entire 66-year history.

Everyone knows the footballers the streets won't forget. That's child's play. How much do you know about the streets football won't forget? Let's find out in this snappy, quickfire quiz.

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This year’s Ballon d’Or promises to be the most fiercely contested in almost 50 years.

Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane, Ousmane Dembele and Lamine Yamal are all vying to be crowned the world’s best player next month with the contest set to make history no matter what happens. The award last saw such a close run-off in 1977, when Allan Simonsen, Kevin Keegan and Michel Platini fought it out for the accolade where just four points separated the final podium. Campaigning has rarely played any part in the process. Even at the height of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s seesaw battle that lasted a full decade, on-field form continued to dictate which of the pair finished in the top and runner-up spots.

But Mbappe has changed all that in the build-up to the ceremony taking place outside Paris for the first time since its 2016 return with a relentless PR drive in a desperate attempt to convince those tasked with voting for the winner that he rightfully deserves the Ballon d'Or more than Kane, Yamal or reigning holder Dembele.

Kylian Mbappe’s PR offensive threatens to reshape Ballon d’Or

According to the Real Madrid forward, no one enjoyed a better 2025/26 than him despite finishing empty-handed for club and country. He wouldn’t be the first Ballon d’Or winner in recent history, let alone of all time, to win it from that position. Ronaldo himself claimed the 2013 honour after enduring his own trophyless season at the Bernabeu. But Mbappe’s insistence on pushing the envelope by filling every possible space in the news cycle with various justifications has veered into bizarre territories.

The fact he would vote for himself if he could, in a contest chosen entirely by journalists, is apparently considered a ringing endorsement. So, too, was a latest bout of electioneering that cited an upbringing ‘steeped in African culture’ and a recent visit to Cameroon as further reasons why the continent's eligible correspondents should be backing him. Such is the shambolic nature of Mbappe's press tour that AI-generated screenshots depicting him being interviewed in a bathtub by a French YouTuber recently went viral despite nothing of the sort actually taking place.

Mbappe’s supreme self-confidence in his powers of persuasion is understandable if somewhat misguided.

He finished as the World Cup's Golden Boot winner as well as the tournament’s all-time top scorer, pipping Messi despite reaching a third final in the past four editions, but missed out on a bronze medal to Kane and England in a chaotic third place play-off. His combined goal involvements for France and Madrid clocked in at 57 from 52 appearances – but it still paled in comparison to Kane’s haul of 75 goals and assists in 58 matches for Bayern Munich and the Three Lions. The fastest-ever player to rack up 100 Bundesliga strikes also won a German league and cup double while eliminating Mbappe's Real Madrid from the Champions League knockout stage.

Despite injury issues limiting his impact at the World Cup this summer, Yamal also has taken aim at Kane. The teenager managed to produced 44 goal involvements in 53 games and play a key part in two trophy-winning teams with Barcelona and Spain. He believes the Ballon d'Or should not simply go to trophy winners or 'a player who has scored 80 goals'.

But Mbappe has already made clear that he is not pushing to win for personal gain, rather out of a sense of duty as ‘the award belongs back at the Bernabeu’. Los Blancos and Barca players have won the award 12 times apiece in their own right - more than any other club - but that has not stopped the former from proudly displaying 17 iterations of the trophy, including those won by players prior to their moves, including Kaka and Michael Owen, also showcased in reflected glory.

Already reigning supreme with the most Champions League titles, Madrid now want to become the outright leaders in Ballon d'Or successes. A sense of unfinished business also hangs over Mbappe's never-ending propaganda push. Scars from the 2024 award, when Rodri gazumped Vinicius Jr after driving Spain's European Championship triumph, remain raw over two years on. The Brazil international and his teammates boycotted the ceremony in disgust at the perceived theft despite the final vote confirming he had finished 41 points behind the then Manchester City playmaker.

Vinicius responded to the disappointment by defiantly claiming he would win it “10 times if I have to”, hinting that it represented a greater personal achievement than his man-of-the-match display at the pinnacle of European club football and potentially anything he would achieve on the international stage. It's an obsession which has become so all-consuming that it has become detrimental to his on-field exploits, which has a knock-on effect of dissuading those who previously voted for him.

Kane's reluctance to talk up the prospect of a hometown coronation at the London Palladium, hosting the award's 70th anniversary away from its spiritual home, only strengthens his case alongside the tangible evidence left out on the pitch. Now 33 and still at the peak of his powers, it is difficult to root against the Bayern marksman.

United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino has even gone against his creed by tipping his ex-Tottenham lieutenant over Messi, who retains support from his Argentina teammates and Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham to claim the award for a record-extending ninth time.

The 33-year-old knows how cheap talk can be, having extinguished laughable talk of him being a 'one-season wonder' to become the Premier League's all-time leading scorer prior to his move to Germany, and is not defined by whether or not he wins the Ballon d'Or this year or in any other of his remaining career. Kane is merely another pawn in the latest instalment of what has become football's annual popularity contest.

Whoever is crowned as the game's new crème de la crème in the English capital will still be fiercely disputed by various factions. It has been the case ever since the Messi-Ronaldo duopoly shifted the dynamic of what the award is supposed to represent.

Mbappe prevailing would not confirm anything other than the best way to win a Ballon d'Or moving forward is to just do all your talking away from the pitch.

Sixty-nine days after they lifted the World Cup trophy in New Jersey, Spain faced England last night. It was only one of several mouthwatering fixtures in this fortnight-long international break, which also brings us the Netherlands vs Germany, Belgium vs France and Norway vs Portugal.

The UEFA Nations League is back for a fifth edition, and while there have been the usual grumblings about an untimely disruption to the Premier League season (although not from Tottenham fans, who are glad of the break), you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who would prefer to see meaningless friendlies over the next two weeks.

Anyone in Europe, that is. For while the Nations League has been a success for the old continent, it is not viewed quite so favourably outside it. Brazil and Argentina, for instance, must curse the day it was introduced to the calendar.

"There is a danger that international football is going the way of the club game"

For who are those two giants, with eight World Cups between them, facing in this extended international break?

Such is the paucity of available opponents, Brazil are taking on Australia not once but twice, before a trip to Kolkata to face India, the side ranked 138th in the world, sandwiched between Latvia and the Central African Republic. Argentina have fixed up friendlies with Bolivia, Burkina Faso and Benin, a trio of challengers which might please alliteration aficionados but will do little to set pulses racing in Buenos Aires (aside from Lionel Messi playing his final international fixture for the Albiceleste).

None of this is ideal for the wider international game. By the time the Nations League and tournament qualifiers are taken care of, there are very few opportunities for non-European powers to pit their wits against the nations that have dominated the World Cup over the last two decades.

And dominate they have. Five of the last six world champions have been European. This summer, Argentina and Morocco were the only quarter-finalists from other continents. Since their last triumph in 2002, Brazil have been eliminated from the World Cup by the first European team they have met in the knockout stage. First, that was France, the Netherlands and Germany. Then it was Belgium, Croatia and Norway. There is a danger that international football is going the way of the club game, with Europe pulling further ahead of the rest of the world.

That might seem overblown when you consider the quality of players that Brazil and Argentina continue to produce. Besides, Argentina have not exactly done badly in recent years, reaching three of the last four World Cup finals.

Other nations have benefited from Europe’s development programmes. Morocco’s World Cup squad contained 19 players born overseas, mostly in France, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands. Japanese players, now a common sight in the Premier League, the Bundesliga and LaLiga, are leaving home at an increasingly young age.

Yet all those countries would welcome the chance to butt heads with the likes of Spain, France, Germany and England more often. Unfortunately, few roads lead to Rome. Since the launch of the Nations League in 2018, Brazil have played just five games against European sides outside of tournaments. In the eight years before that, they played 25.

It is a similar situation for Argentina. In the last seven years, the only European sides they have faced in a non-competitive environment are Estonia and Iceland. Some of their friendly slots last season were filled by such gruelling assignments as Puerto Rico, Angola and Mauritania. It is a far cry from 2014, when they played Germany, Croatia and Portugal in the space of a few months.

European nations take for granted the sort of regular, competitive, well-matched games the Nations League affords them. Familiarity breeds not contempt but raised standards.

The problem is, there is no easy solution. Amid the latest FIFA debacle, there was tentative talk of Brazil and Argentina joining the Nations League. A UEFA official claimed back in 2021 that their admission was imminent. Yet FIFA and CONMEBOL would be bitterly opposed to such interconfederation crossover, and Colombia, Ecuador and Uruguay - not to mention Japan, Morocco, Senegal et al. - would surely demand tickets to the party.

In fact, things could get worse before they get better. The ludicrously structured 2030 World Cup will begin in Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay before continuing in Spain, Portugal and Morocco, with all six hosts qualifying automatically. The expansion to a 48-team tournament had already made CONMEBOL qualification a doddle for the major powers. With three out of 10 teams already through, the upcoming edition will be even less exacting.

You could argue that none of this is Europe’s problem - and you would have a point. Every confederation is out to look after its own. But for fans of the global game, the Nations League is a double-edged sword.

When Jonjo Shelvey was coming up through the ranks at Charlton Athletic, he was touted as a potential England regular.

A move to Liverpool as an 18-year-old would follow in 2010, with a full England debut arriving two years later, but he would fail to establish himself as a regular in the Three Lions midfield at that time.

Shelvey was knocking on the door again during his time at Newcastle United, going on to play some of the best football of his career during the 2017/18 season, but a call-up for that summer’s World Cup never came.

Pick the ultimate 4-4-2 line-up from players in FourFourTwo's definitive Top 100 List

Shelvey on his England career

Shelvey would end up winning just six Three Lions caps, with his 2018 World Cup omission particularly galling for him as he looks back at his international career.

“Yes, 100 per cent I should have won more caps,” he told FourFourTwo. “Sometimes I didn’t deserve them, but other times I did and was overlooked.”

After helping guide Newcastle to promotion from the Championship in 2016/17, he enjoyed a fruitful first season back in the top flight, but believes his absence from the Three Lions squad that went to Russia that summer stemmed from an incident during his time in the under-21s.

“I should have been taken to the 2018 World Cup, because that season I had the most assists of any English midfielder when I was at Newcastle,” he continues.

“I was playing the best football of my career but didn’t get a call-up. I think it all stemmed from something that happened with Gareth Southgate a few years earlier. When he got the under 21 job, I’d already played for the seniors, but I was still eligible for them.

“I’d just joined Swansea when Southgate gave me a call and said: 'I’m not going to bring you because you’ve just moved clubs and you’ve got the Europa League qualifiers, so I’m going to look at some other players, and I also expect you to be with the senior team.'

“I was fine with that, but told him if anything changed I’d be there for him, because I loved playing for England.”

Shelvey believes the mixed messages that followed impacted his international future.

“Then I think he said I’d refused to play,” he continues. “When Roy Hodgson called me up to the senior squad, I remember Stuart Pearce saying on Sky Sports News that I shouldn’t have been selected as I’d refused to play for the under 21s.

“When I was at St George’s Park, I went to find Southgate and asked him why he’d said that, because I’d said I would come. He just said: 'No, no, I didn’t say that.' I knew from that moment I wasn’t going to play for him.”

Watch Czechia vs Croatia as both team's face-off in this UEFA Nations League contest.

Want to watch the game for FREE? FourFourTwo has all the details on how to do so below...

Croatia and the Czech Republic meet in Prague after contrasting World Cup campaigns.

Croatia reached the knockout stages before losing to Portugal, whilst Czechia exited in the group stages.

Their two most recent meetings saw a 5-1 Croatia win and a 0-0 draw in 2025, adding intrigue to Saturday’s Nations League tie.

Want to watch the Czechia vs Croatia game for FREE? Read on to learn how...

Can I watch Czechia vs Croatia for FREE?

Czechia vs Croatia will be shown live and for free on CT Sport in the Czech Republic and on Nova TV in Croatia.

You can also watch the game for free in the US on Fubo Sports Network which is available on the free Tubi streaming platform.

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Watch Czechia vs Croatia from anywhere

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Can I watch Czechia vs Croatia in the UK?

Croatia vs Belgium will be televised live in the UK on Prime Video Sport via PPV.

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Czechia vs Croatia is available in the US for free on Fubo Sports Network as well as with a standard Fubo plan.

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In Australia, you will need beIN Sports to stream Czechia vs Croatia.

READ 'It doesn't look good' for Benjamin Sesko injury, with Manchester United star sidelined with 'chronic' problem: report

Czechia vs Croatia: Preview

Czechia begin their 2026/27 UEFA Nations League campaign at home to Croatia on Saturday, with both sides bidding for success in the highly competitive Group A3. The group also contains England and Spain, meaning points will be particularly valuable from the opening round of fixtures.

The hosts will be looking to put their recent meetings with Croatia behind them. The two nations met in World Cup qualifying in 2025, with Croatia running out 5-1 winners in Osijek in June. Czechia had taken the lead through Tomáš Souček, but Croatia responded with five unanswered goals, including two from Andrej Kramarić.

That result followed a goalless draw between the sides in Prague earlier in the qualifying campaign, meaning the recent head-to-head record has produced contrasting encounters.

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Croatia know a thing or two about the Nations League, having previously reached the 2023 final, losing to Spain on penalties, while their place in League A once again puts them among Europe's leading sides.

For Czechia, the challenge is particularly demanding. They face England just three days after Croatia before travelling to Spain, giving them three tricky opponents in the opening stages of the competition. Croatia's schedule is similarly relentless, with Spain following on Tuesday before England's visit in October.

Squads

Czechia

Goalkeepers: Lukas Hornicek (Newcastle United), Antonin Kinsky (Tottenham Hotspur), Matej Kovar (PSV Eindhoven)

Defenders: Vladimir Coufal, Robin Hranac (both Hoffenheim), Stepan Chaloupek, David Jurasek, Tomas Vlcek, David Zima (all Slavia Praha), Ladislav Krejci (Wolverhampton), Matej Rynes (Sparta Praha), Michal Sacak (Gornik Zabrze).

Midfielders: Lukas Ambros (Anderlecht), Pavel Bucha (FC Cincinnati), Denis Visinsky, Lukas Cerv (both Plzen), Adam Karabec, Roman Macek (both Sparta Praha), Alex Kral (FC Copenhagen), Ondrej Lingr (Korona Kielce), Lukas Provod, Michal Sadíilek (both Slavia Praha), Matej Radosta (Teplice)

Forwards: Adam Hlozek (Hoffenheim), Tomas Chory (Slavia Praha), Pavel Sulc (Lyon).

Croatia

Goalkeepers: Dominik Livaković (Barcelona), Dominik Kotarski (Dinamo), Ivor Pandur (Rangers)

Defenders: Joško Gvardiol (Manchester City), Josip Juranović (Union Berlin), Josip Šutalo (Lazio), Josip Stanišić (Bayern), Martin Erlić (Midtjylland), Luka Vušković (Brighton & Hove Albion), Ivan Smolčić (Como)

Midfielders: Luka Modrić (Milan), Mateo Kovačić (Manchester City), Mario Pašalić (Atalanta), Nikola Vlašić (Torino), Martin Baturina (Como), Luka Sučić (Real Sociedad), Petar Sučić (Inter), Josip Mišić (Dinamo)

Forwards: Ivan Perišić (PSV), Andrej Kramarić (Hoffenheim), Ante Budimir (Osasuna), Marco Pašalić (Orlando City), Petar Musa (Dallas), Igor Matanović (Freiburg), Franjo Ivanović (Lens), Dion Drena Beljo (Dinamo)

Prediction

Czechia 1-3 Croatia

FourFourTwo predicts a win for Slaven Bilic's men in Prague.

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England face 2026 World Cup winners Spain in their next Nations League match this evening, kicking off at 7:45pm BST.

The match will be broadcast by ITV, with a selection of pundits, commentators and presenters set to lead the Group C coverage.

The two sides last faced off in the 2024 European Championship final, which Spain won by a 2-1 scoreline in added time. Now, can Thomas Tuchel’s men get their revenge?

Who are the pundits, commentators and presenters for England vs Spain?

England will host the event, which is to be played at Wembley Stadium. The match-up’s return fixture will be played on November 15 in Madrid.

Presenting the ITV coverage is Mark Pougatch, who was a mainstay during the 2026 World Cup and boasts a multi-decade broadcasting career.

Joining him as pundits are Roy Keane and Ian Wright, who often featured alongside Pougatch during ITV’s broadcasts in North America.

Representing Spain is former Chelsea and Manchester United man Juan Mata, who will also offer his services as pundit on the ITV panel.

Collectively, the three have won 141 caps for England, Republic of Ireland and Spain, having all represented their nations on the World Cup stage.

Gabriel Clarke is ITV’s roving reporter, while Sam Matterface is to serve as main commentator for the England vs Spain broadcast.

Joining him is Lee Dixon, who won 21 caps for England and has enjoyed a prolonged post-playing career as both pundit and commentator.

Watch England vs Spain for FREE as the Three Lions take on newly crowned world champions Spain in the first of four upcoming Nations League games.

Thomas Tuchel's side are still reeling following defeat to Argentina in the World Cup semi-finals, but have a chance to quickly prove themselves against the World champions Spain.

Thomas Tuchel has opted for James Trafford in goal instead of Jordan Pickford, while Jarell Quansah starts at full-back for England ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold.

As for Spain, it is a familiar tale, with Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams on the wings, while Ferran Torres leads the line after netting off the bench in the World Cup final.

Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information on how to watch England vs Spain online, on TV, and from anywhere.

Watch England vs Spain for FREE in the UK

England vs Spain will be shown live in the UK on ITV1 and ITVX.