Robert Lewandowski is reluctant to leave Barcelona as a free agent and has reportedly set a goal target that will help him to earn a contract extension. The prolific Polish striker, who is now 37 years of age, is said to have a “very good” offer on the table from MLS side the Chicago Fire. He is ready to delay any move to the United States and remain in Catalunya.

Former Barcelona president Joan Laporta has confirmed that the club turned down a staggering world-record transfer offer for teenage sensation Lamine Yamal. Speaking at the launch of his new book, titled 'This Is How We Saved Barca), Laporta revealed that Paris Saint-Germain were prepared to pay €250 million to lure the youngster to the Parc des Princes.

Barcelona are reportedly preparing to shake the foundations of the European transfer market as they ready themselves for a monumental swoop. The Catalan giants, who have spent several seasons navigating a complex financial labyrinth, are now being linked with audacious moves for Manchester City’s goal-machine Erling Haaland and Atletico Madrid star Julian Alvarez.

Mohamed Salah has been accused of behaving “like a big baby” during his Premier League goal drought at Liverpool by ex-England boss Sam Allardyce. The Egyptian superstar was benched by Arne Slot earlier in the season amid struggles for form. He has returned to favour since aiming an explosive blast at the Reds, but continues to find end product in the final third hard to come by.

USMNT star Ricardo Pepi continues to see a move to Fulham speculated on, having missed out on a switch to Craven Cottage during the winter transfer window of 2026. The United States international could see a deal pushed through in the summer, with former Cottagers striker Bobby Zamora telling GOAL what a “fantastic” debut season in English football for the 23-year-old frontman would look like.

The fallout from Leeds United’s painful slide out of the Premier League continues to simmer, as Jesse Marsch has launched a scathing rebuttal to claims made by his successor, Sam Allardyce. The American coach, who was tasked with the unenviable job of following the iconic Marcelo Bielsa at Elland Road, has found himself at the centre of a war of words regarding the physical state of the squad during the club's ill-fated 2022-23 campaign. While the Whites eventually succumbed to the drop, the debate over who is to blame for the erosion of Bielsa’s high-intensity blueprint has now reached a boiling point on social media.

Honest Ahanor is just 17 years old - and yet on Sunday he started his fifth successive game for Atalanta, against Como. Unfortunately, Ahanor's afternoon came to an abrupt end - and quite literally by his own hand. Just eight minutes into the game at Sinigaglia, the defender was involved in an innocuous, off-the-ball clash with Maxi Perrone, who shamelessly collapsed to the ground as if Ahanor had struck him in the face.

Another transfer window and another highly-rated prospect is on their way to Chelsea. The club's youth policy has struck again, with the west Londoners landing 17-year-old full-back Yisa Alao from financially troubled Sheffield Wednesday. Despite his very limited experience at senior level, the teenager provoked a transfer tug-of-war between three Premier League giants, but it is the Blues who have emerged victorious.

Kazakhstan isn't a nation known for its love of football. That doesn't mean it's non-existent, however, and with a new teenage sensation emerging as one of the country's best players already, the nation sandwiched between Europe and Asia could be on the verge of a golden generation.

Juventus are moving swiftly to secure its long-term future under Luciano Spalletti. Despite a period of mixed results on the pitch, the hierarchy in Turin has seen enough to double down on the former Italy national team head coach. The message coming out of the Allianz Stadium is clear: Spalletti is the man to lead the Bianconeri restoration, and he is about to be rewarded with more than just a piece of paper. The tactician is currently locked into a deal that runs until the end of June, but the club are eager to rub out any uncertainty regarding his position before the current campaign reaches its climax.

Real Madrid head coach Alvaro Arbeloa has thrown down the gauntlet to UEFA, demanding that European football’s governing body takes decisive action following the alleged racial abuse of Vinicius Junior. The Brazilian superstar was reportedly targeted by Benfica midfielder Gianluca Prestianni during last week’s Champions League play-off first leg, a match that was halted for ten minutes after the incident. Ahead of the return leg at the Bernabeu, Arbeloa insisted that the time for empty gestures has passed and called for a meaningful investigation into the clash.

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has called for a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of discrimination, insisting that homophobia should be treated with the same severity as racism. The Belgian shot-stopper made the comments in the wake of a controversial Champions League clash against Benfica, where Gianluca Prestianni was hit with a provisional suspension for allegedly directing a discriminatory slur at Vinicius Jr. during Madrid's 1-0 win in Lisbon. While the initial accusations centered on a racial slur, reports have suggested the abuse may have been homophobic in nature, prompting Courtois to state that both are equally "deplorable" and have no place in the modern game.

Michel Platini is undoubtedly one of the greatest footballers of all time. Playmaker, assister, goal-scorer: Platini was a complete player, capable of leaving an indelible mark on world football between the late 1970s and mid-1980s. He was the perfect No.10, embodying the true essence of the shirt number both then and now.

Modernising the role of a full-back 30 years ago, Roberto Carlos undoubtedly set the benchmark. A tactical genius and a physical specimen, the Real Madrid and Brazil legend won countless trophies at club and international level, contributing bucket loads of goals and assists. No one in the past, present or future can ever claim to be his equal - he was that good.

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.

Teddy Sheringham. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. "Football, bloody hell!" The 1999 Champions League final is one of the greatest dramas in the history of Bayern Munich. The German giants led for a long time in Barcelona before Manchester United snatched the trophy they thought was theirs in stoppage time. But according to one member of the Bayern team, he actually won that final. "Actually, I'm a Champions League winner," claims the latest member of GOAL's Rebel United, Mario Basler.

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...

Robin Roefs' story reads like a fairy tale. The 22-year-old goalkeeper is only in his second season as a first-choice shot-stopper, and yet he is already considered one of the better No.1s in the Premier League. A place in the Netherlands' starting line-up at the World Cup is now not out of the question for the latest of GOAL's Hidden Gems.

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.