2024/2025 International Club Football Thread

[Locke]

Was that thing still going on?

[Locke]

Nico Williams signs a 10 year contract.

Nico Williams said he wants to continue making history at Athletic Club having turned down offers to leave the Basque outfit this summer.

Barcelona, who tried to sign the player a year ago, were prepared to pay Nico's €58 million ($67m) release clause.

Spain international Nico, having recently signed a contract with Athletic until June 2035, said: "I think we have a very long season ahead of us.

Nico Williams said he wants to continue making history at Athletic Club having turned down offers to leave the Basque outfit this summer.

Barcelona, who tried to sign the player a year ago, were prepared to pay Nico's €58 million ($67m) release clause.

Spain international Nico, having recently signed a contract with Athletic until June 2035, said: "I think we have a very long season ahead of us.

[White Out 403]

World cup tickets on sale Sep 10th.

I doubt I'll have the chance but seeing a Croatian world cup match would be the biggest sports bucket list item I can think of for my life

[GirlySports]

England in black, Italy in green!

Purists complaining

[Locke]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

England in black, Italy in green!

Purists complaining

You'd think they'd be too busy complaining that women are playing at all.

[lazypucker]

Originally Posted by White Out 403

World cup tickets on sale Sep 10th.

I doubt I'll have the chance but seeing a Croatian world cup match would be the biggest sports bucket list item I can think of for my life

I initially wanted to see if I have a chance to go to the Final in NY, but I know I will be priced out if there is a chance to get tickets at all.

Also, I don't want to see Trump hogging the trophy. Messi got an Arab cloak for winning the cup in Qatar, what will the winning captain get this time? A MAGA hat from Trump?

[Cecil Terwilliger]

lol. What a ####ing joke of a tournament. Is this ref on the take or just insanely incompetent?

[SuperMatt18]

That was a soft penalty at the end too. VAR should have overturned IMO.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by SuperMatt18

That was a soft penalty at the end too. VAR should have overturned IMO.

Apparently VAR reviewed and upheld but I have no idea how.

[GirlySports]

I've never seen VAR reverse a penalty. Only give them.

[Senator Clay Davis]

You must not watch many games, there has certainly been penalties overturned. Might not see it often, but it does happen.

[browna]

Thomas Muller to Whitecaps doesn’t make a lot of sense. Whitecaps play a lot of high energy transition football. Considering they are near the top of the league, not sure it makes sense to change your team style to match your new designated import player.

[M*A*S*H 4077]

Originally Posted by browna

Thomas Muller to Whitecaps doesn’t make a lot of sense. Whitecaps play a lot of high energy transition football. Considering they are near the top of the league, not sure it makes sense to change your team style to match your new designated import player.

While this is true, they also just lost Vite to PUMAS and are in need of creativity and goals. While very different players, Muller will be able to float in similar areas to where Vite did. Muller should also add some goals which is something that the Caps have been leaving on the table. I imagine Berhalter will sit a little deeper but on the whole it won't be too big a change to what they were doing before, Muller has always been able to run big miles so he should help White with the press.

It is entirely possible that this possible structure change was going to happen anyway once Gauld gets back. I wonder if Gauld may play as the 10 and Muller off a wing (probably the right) as more of a second striker and less of a winger and just let Ocampo bomb that side

Either way, one of my favourite players of all time heading to Vancouver to play is incredibly exciting. One of the biggest worldwide sporting names to ever play for a Canadian club

[CroFlames]

Yeah I like Mueller a lot. It's a shame I'll have to boo the hell out of him in the Cup next season when they come to Atco.

[Locke]

- Midfielder Dele Alli has been told he has no future at Como despite having another season on his contract. (The Times)

https://www.thetimes.com/sport/footb...lans-lgc9jxfbb

Ugh...getting kicked out of Como...thats gotta suck.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by Locke

https://www.thetimes.com/sport/footb...lans-lgc9jxfbb

Ugh...getting kicked out of Como...thats gotta suck.

I feel for the guy. He was so good and had such a bright future at one point, and just lost it completely.

[Locke]

Are Barcelona the only club in the world where you could explain to a neutral observer the level of chaotic, acrimonious threat from which they suffer and still predict that they're favorites to win two or three domestic trophies this season?

Probably ... yes.

Remember the Nico Williams fiasco?

Barcelona's midsummer was marked by the Spain winger pulling out of a transfer, which the club thought was done and dusted, because his agent, not unreasonably, demanded a guarantee that the 24-year-old would be registered as a Barça player by a specific date.

At the time of writing, with ten days until the season kicks off, none of Hansi Flick's new players (or Wojciech Szczęsny or Gerard Martín, who've been given new contracts) are yet eligible to feature for the champions. The new additions have been signed (or taken on loan, in Rashford's case) by Barcelona, but they don't have the certification from LaLiga that they will be allowed to play.

If that confirmation isn't earned by the time the transfer market closes, then those players would be ineligible until January. Unlikely, but a factual reality.

Next, the club has been announcing, and then embarrassingly postponing, their return to the Camp Nou for more a year now. (That's no exaggeration. Eighteen months ago they were confidently predicting celebrating their 125th anniversary, which came and went last November, in their renewed and re-constructed home.)

The UEFA Champions League begins in mid September, precisely when Barcelona are scheduled to play their first home league match, hosting Valencia. Good luck to them finishing all the final details on time while also meeting the criteria set by the city's authorities, LaLiga and UEFA for a safe, modern, well-functioning stadium.

Again, I'd emphasize, the club is giving off confident noises about having their homework properly done. But, here's the doomsday threat.

If, for any unforeseen reason, some of the criteria aren't met and Barcelona can't play their first Champions League league-phase home match at Camp Nou, then wherever else they choose, UEFA rules would mean the Blaugrana must play all their Champions League home matches at that same ground until January.

It's only a potential setback, but, were it to materialize, embarrassment, recrimination and financial losses would ensue.

https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/...-self-sabotage