Barcelona boss Hansi Flick has taken a thinly-veiled swipe at the people advising wantaway starlet Dro Fernandez after the midfielder edged closer to leaving Camp Nou, with Paris Saint-Germain his most likely destination. Fernandez has reportedly paid off his own release clause in a desperate bid to force through the move, which has incensed Flick.

James McClean is reportedly set to leave Wrexham and return to his homeland by joining Northern Irish side Derry City. The Red Dragons captain, who has played a key role in the club’s remarkable rise from non-league football to the Championship under Hollywood owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, recently served a three-game ban for violent conduct following an incident against Swansea City in the Welsh derby.

Antonio Conte has slammed sacked Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim’s “arrogant” handling of Rasmus Hojlund, accusing the Portuguese of failing to “adapt” his rigid methods to the striker’s qualities. The Denmark international has been in fine form since swapping Old Trafford for Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, scoring nine goals in all competitions for the Serie A side.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was left fuming after seeing his team denied a penalty for handball in Saturday's 0-0 draw against Nottingham Forest. Arteta felt his side should have been awarded a spot-kick after Ola Aina appeared to control the ball with his arm and has criticised the explanation from PGMOL regarding why the decision was not given.

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has shared his thoughts after seeing his team booed off on Saturday after a disappointing 1-1 draw with Burnley in the Premier League. Dominik Szoboszlai wasted the chance to give the Reds the lead when he missed a penalty before Florian Wirtz opened the scoring. However, Burnley hit back through Marcus Edwards to earn Scott Parker's strugglers a point at Anfield.

Tottenham Hotspur fans turned on Thomas Frank during Saturday's 2-1 loss at home to rivals West Ham United, breaking into chants of "you're getting sacked in the morning" against the head coach. Callum Wilson scored a stoppage-time winner for the visitors after Cristian Romero had cancelled out Crysencio Summerville's opening goal.

Hertha Berlin fans haven't had much to cheer about in recent years. Their decade-long stay in the Bundesliga ended after the team slumped to an 18th-placed finish in the 2022-23 season, just four years on from Lars Windhorst's €224 million minority takeover that came with the billionaire's promise to build a "true ‘big-city club’, like those in London or Madrid."

With all the data and all the video footage you could ever hope for, there really shouldn't be many secrets left in the world of youth football. Sure, progress isn't linear and some players' attributes translate better to the adult game than others, but for most teams, picking and finding the best young talent still feels like a bit of a lottery, at least from the outside looking in.

Rennes are no strangers to producing some of the best players around, and Mohamed Kader Meite looks primed to become the next elite talent to step off the conveyor belt after the likes of Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Eduardo Camavinga. Still just 18, the towering striker is already said to be turning heads across Europe.

All you need to know about securing seats to see the Toon Army in European action

From traditional powerhouses to new-age behemoths, football clubs all find themselves in competition for the affection of supporters

While effectively ruling himself out of the running to take over at Real Madrid, Jurgen Klopp pointed out that "the coaching market is being reshuffled" right now - because Xabi Alonso isn't the only manager to lose his job at an elite European club since the turn of the year. On January 1, less than six months after lifting the Club World Cup, Enzo Maresca was fired by Chelsea after publicly criticising his employers. Just four days later, Manchester United also got rid of Ruben Amorim for speaking out of turn.

One of the best midfielders of his era, perhaps the greatest crosser of a football ever and a free-kick taker to rival the best the game has ever produced, David Beckham was a special player to say the least. And yet due to his off-field impact, one of the sport's great champions of the past 30 years is generally forgotten when it comes to referencing the true legends of the game.

Romario moved around the penalty area with the stealthy gait and sly gaze of a panther, ready to suddenly accelerate as soon as the ball came his way, to disorient the opposing defenders with a couple of feints, to pounce on the ball, which inevitably ended up at his feet, as if magnetised, and finish with an unstoppable shot of pure technique or power, or alternatively serve up a perfect assist for one of his team-mates. He was a Hall of Fame striker if ever there was one.

Describing Roberto Baggio to those who did not experience him is a sort of generational challenge, an arduous attempt at conveying something that is too difficult to explain in words. But we will try - because Roberto Baggio was, especially for Italians, a symbol, a standard-bearer, an icon and an emotion.

In 1969, at the age of 23, George Best wanted to focus solely on the essentials. Just football, just his job. So he turned his back on his two other great passions, alcohol and women. His sobering conclusion: "It was the worst 20 minutes of my life." A Manchester United legend, that quote sums up Bet's rebellious attitude towards football, and life in general.

Rebel United introduces players who prefer to swim against the tide, such as Barcelona and Spain legend Gerard Pique, who has achieved great significance beyond the pitch thanks to his Catalan pride and innovative spirit...

"La France, c'est vous." Translated as 'France, is you', that was what French president Charles de Gaulle told footballer Rachid Mekhloufi in 1968. Mekhloufi had just led his Saint-Etienne side to the double, and the reward was an audience with the most powerful man in the country. For Mekhloufi, this sentence brought things full circle. Now he was both Algerian and French; 10 years earlier, he had - in a sense - been neither.

On September 15, 2018, N'Golo Kante walked off the Stamford Bridge pitch, satisfied. As was often the case, the Frenchman had just covered every blade of grass over the course of the 90 minutes. And, as was so often the case, he was not one of the major speaking points at full-time. Not right away, at least.

Anyone that manages to carve out a career for themselves in professional football is ridiculously talented. The standard at the highest level is just so high that it is simply impossible to 'fake it 'til you make it'. However, not everyone is as prodigiously gifted as Lionel Messi or Lamine Yamal. Your average player will require some time to get to grips with the rigours of the elite game.

Player development in football follows many different paths. Some exceptional talents, such as Lamine Yamal and Estevao, make an impact at the highest level at a very young age. At the same time, countless players need more time before their qualities fully emerge.