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When it comes to a country's player pool, Sarina Wiegman is certainly one of the more blessed international managers in the women's game right now. The England boss can call upon world-class players across various positions and has incredible depth in her squad, with the names on her bench making for enviable reading for most of her peers. However, that is not to say that the Lionesses do not have gaps in their squad, and even their starting line-up, that they need fresh faces to step up and fill as attention turns towards the 2027 Women's World Cup.

The USWNT, having never conceded in 11 previous all-time matches against Portugal, were stunned by a pair of set pieces in 2-1 loss

The U.S. opened a three-match international break with a frustrating defeat with few positives after the game's first 33 seconds

With Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba retiring and Luis Suarez' slowing, its time for Messi and Miami to deliver

With 2025 marking the 21st edition of the FIFPRO Men's World 11, GOAL ranks the five best versions ever assembled

Messi extended his deal with Miami, which will surely be a boost for the club and league - but what does it mean for him?

The 38-year-old's three-year extension is invaluable for the club and league, but also the sport at large - especially in the U.S.

For the first time since clinching a second successive European Championship title back in July, England's Lionesses return to action this week, beginning their 'homecoming series' which will take the team around the country as they celebrate the summer's incredible triumph with as many fans as possible. It starts in Manchester on Saturday against Brazil, the South American champions, and moves onto Derby three days later, where Australia will be the visitors, before resuming in November with two more friendlies.

Scottish football has been dominated by two clubs since forever. The country's first season of top-flight action in 1890-91 saw Rangers share the crown with Dumbarton as joint-winners, while Celtic finished third in the 11-team division. Since its inception, the title has only gone to a team outside the Old Firm 19 times, with the Glasgow duo taking home the remaining 110.

Featuring stamps from El Salvador, Costa Rica, Mexico and more, Jess Carter’s passport looks more like one belonging to a gap-year student than an England international as of late. Throw in all the flying that comes with playing your club football in the United States, for Gotham FC, and the two-time European champion must have more air miles than she knows what to do with. “I feel like you get used to it and then all of a sudden you don't,” Carter tells GOAL of all the travelling, just days before boarding her umpteenth flight of the year to report for Lionesses duty. “Everything you've then learned about how to manage yourself kind of goes out the window when you end up being on the west coast for 12 days.”

Guglielmo Vicario was the Tottenham hero as the Italian goalkeeper produced a heroic individual display to earn his side a 0-0 draw in Monaco on Wednesday. Spurs remain unbeaten in the Champions League and that is largely down to Vicario, who saved four times from Folarin Balogun and produced his best stop of the night to keep out a close-range Jordan Teze header.

Chelsea’s kids ran riot against a woeful Ajax side on Wednesday, running out 5-1 winners at Stamford Bridge. There were three penalties, a red card and untold drama on a sodden night in west London as the Blues continued their excellent form and became the first team to have three teenagers score in the same match in Champions League history.

Liverpool bounced back from their four successive defeats in style as they came from behind to beat Eintracht Frankfurt 5-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday. Hugo Ekitike, Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai all got on the scoresheet for the Reds in Germany while Florian Wirtz finally registered his first assists since his big-money arrival from Bayer Leverkusen.

Jude Bellingham scored the only goal and Vinicius Jr was a menace all night long as Real Madrid saw off Juventus, 1-0, in a dramatic Champions League contest. Los Blancos really should have scored two or three, but did enough on the night to seal a comfortable win.

A pair of October friendlies showed that Pochettino's side have a reliable system - and World Cup success could follow

Hayes is narrowing down the USWNT player pool, and will have matches against Portugal and New Zealand to further hone in

The FIFPRO World 11 is the only global football award decided exclusively by professional footballers

Arne Slot's Liverpool tenure had been plain sailing until late September rolled around, with the Dutchman the picture of cool as he guided the Reds to the Premier League title in his first season at the helm, making the job look easy after stepping into the very large shoes vacated by Jurgen Klopp in 2024. The new campaign had started well enough, albeit while a number of late goals might have papered over the cracks, but things feel different now.

Given she has been an unused substitute for 12 of England's 13 games in 2025, it wouldn't be a huge shock if Maya Le Tissier didn't feature for the Lionesses during their October international window - and yet, the Manchester United captain has come into camp as one of the most talked about names of the 24 Sarina Wiegman has selected for games against Brazil and Australia. Why? Because the England boss' perspective on the 23-year-old is very different to that of the majority.

Now that the dust has settled on Manchester United's first victory at Anfield in almost a decade, attention turns to what the Red Devils have found the hardest thing to do in the last two years: build some momentum. As satisfying as Sunday's 2-1 win on Merseyside was, it was far from the only time United have overcome low expectations and pulled off a big result against a top team in recent times.

Who's hot, who's not? GOAL ranks all 14 teams across the National Women's Soccer League

Tifos are woven into the fan experience for MLS, allowing authentic expression and breathing new life into old rivalries

Newcastle made it successive Champions League wins on Tuesday with what was ultimately a routine 3-0 win over Jose Mourinho's Benfica at St James' Park. Anthony Gordon scored in Europe for the fourth time this season, before Harvey Barnes came off the bench to wrap up maximum points with a brace for Eddie Howe's side. There was even a remarkable assist for Toon goalkeeper Nick Pope.

Erling Haaland scored for the 12th game running for club and country as Manchester City cruised to a 2-0 victory over Villarreal in the Champions League on Tuesday. Bernardo Silva also netted to rubber-stamp City's first away win in Europe's top competition for more than a year, taking Pep Guardiola's side on to seven points from their three games in the league phase.

Arsenal thumped Atletico Madrid 4-0 in a hugely impressive Champions League outing on Tuesday, as Gabriel Magalhaes scored and assisted while Viktor Gyokeres netted a confidence-boosting brace. Three of the Gunners' four goals came directly from set-pieces, as Mikel Arteta's side became the second English side to beat Atletico in Europe this season, after Liverpool.

EXCLUSIVE: GOAL sat down with the Coventry City striker to talk about his journey to the national team and World Cup ambitions

Marcus Rashford scored twice and Fermin Lopez netted a brilliant hat-trick as Barcelona thumped Olympiacos 6-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday. Hansi Flick's side blitzed their opposition with four goals in 11 second-half minutes, as they took advantage of a remarkably harsh sending off that reduced the visitors to 10 men.

Established by FIFPRO in 2005, the World 11 is the only global football award decided exclusively by professional footballers

MLS playoffs should be dramatic, with superstars such as Messi, Son and Thomas Muller headlining, but other contenders to watch