Analysis

When Antoine Semenyo was asked to describe his style just after signing for Manchester City from Bournemouth, he used four adjectives. "Quick", "powerful" and "strong" are words you would use to describe most Premier League forwards but the last one summed up why City have paid £65 million ($87m) to bring him to the club in the middle of the season: "Clinical".

January is a notoriously bad time for buyers because nobody ever wants to sell top talent midway through the season. There are, however, exceptions to the rule. Some clubs need to raise funds to balance the books, while others can be left with not option but to unload an unhappy player who has made it clear that he wants to join a stronger side.

Arsenal have had their fair share of success stories over the years when it comes to the women's side of the academy. Leah Williamson, England's two-time European Championship-winning captain, and Lotte Wubben-Moy, also part of those triumphs with the Lionesses, are two of the most high-profiles examples of players who have progressed through the youth set-up and become key members of the first team - and they will not be the last.

We have been waiting for some time to see how Nike would react to the juggernaut that is adidas' Predator revival campaign, and the American sportswear behemoth is finally set to deliver a serious on-pitch response following the relaunch of cultural phenomenon Total90 as a streetwear silo in 2025. With the new year upon us, the iconic Nike Tiempo has been revamped for the modern creator-in-chief.

The USMNT Transfer Notebook tracks American player movements, with the latest developments for those in the U.S. national team pool.

Antoine Semenyo bid farewell to Bournemouth in the best possible fashion, netting a 95th-minute winner against Tottenham at the Vitality Stadium to end his side's 11-match run without a Premier League victory. As his team-mate Marcus Tavernier told Sky Sports, "There was no better way for [his last game] to go. That was the type of stuff you write in movies and no man deserves it more than him."

What looks like a joke is actually the plan. One USL owner is using bold branding to build community - and rethink what a soccer club can be.

Perhaps Ole Gunnar Solskjaer should have listened to Kieran McKenna when he learned of the possibility of Cristiano Ronaldo returning to Manchester United in 2021. Many Red Devils’ fans had dreamed about Ronaldo coming back to Old Trafford for more than a decade, and the prospect of him playing under another iconic player from United’s past was the ultimate hit for nostalgia junkies.

Manchester United's season so far has been dominated by criticisms of the preparation, or lack thereof, done before it. After making just three summer signings, while bidding farewell to two first-team players, the Red Devils' squad looked completely ill-equipped for the challenge of competing in the Women's Champions League proper for the first time, if they were to also remain a contender on a domestic front. But having rather admirably kept themselves afloat despite those issues, United are already attacking the January window with the necessary, and overdue, vigour needed.

Arsenal's match with Liverpool will be played in its own dedicated slot within this midweek round of Premier League fixtures. It will receive maximum exposure both domestically and abroad. There will be no hiding place for any player that sets foot on the Emirates Stadium pitch on Thursday, not least the Gunners' marquee summer signing Viktor Gyokeres.

From stadium anthems to sweltering afternoons in packed arenas, the summer of 1994 marked the moment football - or soccer - truly crashed the American party. It was the World Cup that changed everything: where global passion met U.S. showtime, and two sporting cultures began to merge.

Last summer, everyone was convinced that Rodrygo simply had to leave Real Madrid. There was no way of spinning it; the brilliant Brazilian had been frozen out both by Carlo Ancelotti and Xabi Alonso, and there was no future for him at the Bernabeu.

Bryant Lazaro’s playing dream ended at 19. His education in soccer didn’t. Mentored by Bielsa, the American-born coach is now rising at Portugal’s Estoril.

GOAL begins its Meet the USMNT series by examining the rise, pressure, and expectations surrounding Christian Pulisic as the U.S. prepare for a home World Cup.

GOAL takes a look at the U.S. team and where everything stands heading into a monumental 2026 World Cup.

GOAL's writers analyze three big decisions in football, as Enzo Maresca, Ruben Amorim, and Wilfried Nancy all parted ways with major clubs in the last week.

With the 2026 World Cup just months away, GOAL looks at the state of Canada's goalkeeper position.