James Westwood

Cristiano Ronaldo has finally ended his five-year trophy drought, with Al-Nassr claiming the 2025-26 Saudi Pro League title after a 4-1 win over Damac on Thursday night. Goals from ex-Liverpool winger Sadio Mane and Bayern Munich legend Kingsley Coman put Al-Nassr in control before a stunning Ronaldo brace sealed the win for Jorge Jesus' side, who finished top of the table by two points ahead of arch-rivals Al-Hilal.

This is Legacy, GOAL’s feature and podcast series counting down to the 2026 World Cup. Each week, we explore the stories and the spirit behind the nations that define the world’s game. This week, we explore what England must learn from their failure to claim glory in 2002, and why Thomas Tuchel’s task ahead is not about tactics, but about belief, identity, and courage on the biggest stage.

Jesse Lingard has expressed his belief that ex-Manchester United team-mate Bruno Fernandes should be in the running for the 2026 Ballon d'Or after an "extraordinary" season. The Englishman, who is now playing for Corinthians in Brazil, has also delivered his honest verdict on Michael Carrick's tenure as interim manager at Old Trafford, with a final decision on the permanent role now looming.

Claudio Ranieri has revealed the "unbelievable" reason that Leicester City sacked him in February 2017, just nine months after a miraculous Premier League title run. The Foxes shocked the world by becoming 2015-16 champions of England, having started the season as 1000-1 underdogs, but they suffered a dramatic decline in the following campaign that ultimately cost Ranieri his job.

Cristiano Ronaldo has been told he's "finished" by furious Al-Nassr supporters after a shocking miss from barely three yards out in his latest outing for the Saudi Pro League giants. The 41-year-old scored in Sunday's 4-0 AFC Champions League Two quarter-final win over Al-Wasl, but was left kicking himself after a moment of uncharacteristically poor finishing.

Bayern Munich have retained the Bundesliga title after beating Stuttgart 4-2 at the Allianz Arena on Sunday, giving Harry Kane the third trophy of his career with the German giants. The result saw Vincent Kompany's side move 15 points clear of second-placed Borussia Dortmund with only four games remaining, and wild scenes of celebration ensued after the final whistle.

From an individual perspective, Kylian Mbappe's free transfer to Real Madrid in 2024 has been a roaring success. The insatiable French forward has hit a staggering 83 goals across his first 97 appearances for Los Blancos, including 39 across all competitions in the current campaign - a total bettered only by Bayern Munich's Harry Kane among all the players in Europe's top five leagues.

Former Manchester United and Juventus full-back Patrice Evra has claimed that Barcelona are "not capable" of overturning a 2-0 aggregate deficit in their Champions League quarter-final tie against Atletico Madrid. The Blaugrana faithful have been talking up the prospect of a sensational 'Remontada' (Spanish for 'comeback') in the second leg at the Metropolitano, but Evra feels they are no longer the same European powerhouse he played against during his career.

Real Madrid are reportedly planning to sell a promising first-team star so that Endrick can be reintegrated into the squad after his loan spell at Lyon ends. The Brazil international has enjoyed a resurgence since joining the Ligue 1 club in January and will be given a second chance at the Santiago Bernabeu next season.

Three-and-a-half years ago, Lionel Messi 'completed football' by leading Argentina to glory at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. It was a joy for every neutral to see the Barcelona legend finally lift the one trophy that had eluded him for so long, capping an amazing career that will almost certainly never be emulated.

"[There’s] a young player who plays for [Borussia] Dortmund called Youssoufa Moukoko," Samuel Eto’o told GOAL when asked who he’d love to see as Barcelona’s next big signing back in October 2020. "[He’s] 15 years of age, and he’s the next top player, for me, after [Lionel] Messi. As Messi gets older, we could prepare the future of Barcelona very well."

Neymar found himself back in headlines across Europe last week after he was brought up as a topic of debate on The Overlap. Gary Neville introduced a new 'Unpopular Opinions' segment, and kicked it off with the following statement: "No Premier League player in history is better than a prime Neymar."

When Newcastle beat Bayern Munich to the signing of towering Stuttgart frontman Nick Woltemade in August, it was seen as major coup on the back of their qualification for the 2025-26 Champions League. Indeed, Eddie Howe was delighted to see the club-record, £65 million ($88m) deal pushed through late in the summer transfer window, with the German snapped up as a replacement for Liverpool-bound Alexander Isak.

Although the 2026 Winter Olympics are now concluded, watching Bruno Fernandes pull the strings for Manchester United brings to mind the most iconic film ever made about the event, and more specifically, a stirring motivational speech from the late John Candy.

Paris Saint-Germain were by far the best team in Europe last season. Luis Enrique's side stormed to a Ligue 1 and Coupe de France double in France, and swept aside the likes of Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal before thrashing Inter in the Champions League final to finally claim the club's first continental crown.

GOAL runs the rule over the British players earning a living away from their homeland, with plenty more stars deciding to leave their comfort zones in search of a better footballing life elsewhere. The Premier League is still obviously one of the world's most entertaining divisions and the Championship can prove fantastic for development, but there are more options out there.

Manchester United moved up to third in the Premier League standings after securing their sixth win in seven games under Michael Carrick on Sunday, seeing off Crystal Palace 2-1 at Old Trafford. Although Benjamin Sesko and Bruno Fernandes deservedly dominated the headlines after respective goal-scoring turns, Casemiro's stellar work in the middle of the park was also essential to the victory, which has become a theme for the resurgent Red Devils since the turn of the year.

Viktor Gyokeres' first season at Arsenal has been mixed, to put it kindly. Indeed, he only scored seven goals in his first 22 appearances across all competitions for the Gunners, which represented a poor return on the club's £63.5 million ($85m) investment in his services. Some felt the Swede was an awkward fit for Mikel Arteta's side, while others went as far as to label Gyokeres one of the worst signings in Premier League history.