Top games to watch this week
Friday, August 6
Mexico U23 vs Japan U23 (Men's Olympic Football Tournament Bronze Medal Game)
Sweden vs Canada (Women's Olympic Football Tournament Bronze Medal Game)
Monaco vs Nantes (Ligue 1)
Sporting CP vs Vizela (Primeira Liga)
Saturday, August 7
Brazil U23 vs Spain U23 (Men's Olympic Football Tournament Gold Medal Game)
Leicester City vs Manchester City (FA Community Shield)
Moreirense vs Benfica (Primeira Liga)
Wehen Wiesbaden vs Borussia Dortmund (DFB Pokal)
Troyes vs PSG (Ligue 1)
Marítimo vs Sporting Braga (Primeira Liga)
América vs Puebla (Liga MX)
Sunday, August 8
Metz vs Lille (Ligue 1)
Porto vs Belenenses (Primeira Liga)
Barcelona vs Juventus (Joan Gamper Trophy)
Tuesday, August 10
Shakhtar vs Genk (UEFA Champions League third qualifying round)
Benfica vs Spartak Moscow (UEFA Champions League third qualifying round)
Rangers vs Malmo FF (UEFA Champions League third qualifying round)
Monaco vs Sparta Praha (UEFA Champions League third qualifying round)
Sao Paulo vs Palmeiras (Copa Libertadores)
Sporting KC vs León (Leagues Cup)
Seattle Sounders vs Tigres UANL (Leagues Cup)
Wednesday, August 11
Chelsea vs Villarreal (UEFA Super Cup)
Olimpia vs Flamengo (Copa Libertadores)
New York City FC vs Pumas UNAM (Leagues Cup)
River Plate vs Atlético Mineiro (Copa Libertadores)
Monterrey vs Cruz Azul (CONCACAF Champions League)
Thursday, August 12
Orlando City vs Santos Laguna (Leagues Cup)
Club América vs Philadelphia Union (CONCACAF Champions League)
What are the must-watch games this week?
Brazil vs Spain in the Tokyo 2020 Men's Olympic Football Tournament Gold Medal match live on NBCSN this Saturday at 7:30 a.m. ET
The Men's Olympic Football Tournament will come to an end this weekend, with Brazil and Spain set to battle it out on Saturday for the highly-coveted gold medal. Will the South Americans emerge triumphant or will the European heavyweights claim the prize?
NBCSN will provide the answer with its live coverage of the final, with sister channels NBC Olympics and USA Network, Spanish-language broadcaster Telemundo, and American streaming television services fuboTV and Sling also set to air this showdown live for fans in the United States. Brazil, led by the iconic Dani Alves, are the defending champions and will thus be on the hunt for a second consecutive gold medal, but unlike their opponents, the Selecao were forced to play an extra 30 minutes in the semis against Mexico, beating them on penalties after a 0-0 draw. Could Pedri and Co. benefit from this and clinch the top spot on the podium? Make sure to tune in to this epic clash.
ESPN+ airing Leicester vs Man City Community Shield showdown live this Saturday ahead of 2021/22 Premier League kick-off
Ahead of the 2021/22 Premier League kick off, fans of English football will be treated to its annual curtain raiser: the Community Shield. Here, the champions of the English top-flight and the FA Cup holders go head to head in this fixture, meaning Man City and Leicester City will lock horns in the 2021 edition.
All eyes will be on the Citizens and whether Guardiola's side can successfully defend their league title while ending their wait for a UEFA Champions League crown, having lost last season's final 1-0 to Chelsea. This Wembley Stadium showdown with the Foxes will be a great gauge. Unfortunately, City supporters eager to see the newly-signed Jack Grealish make his debut will likely be made to wait. As for Leicester, their objective this term is obvious: getting into the UEFA Champions League. After back-to-back disappointments, they will be hoping that 2021/22 will be their season.
2021/22 Ligue 1 season kicks off this Friday on beIN Sports as PSG gear up for Saturday showdown vs Troyes
The first of Europe's top-five leagues to get underway this season is Ligue 1, with the French top-flight kicking off on Friday at 3 p.m. ET with Monaco vs Nantes. As for the remaining nine fixtures, they will take place over the weekend, with beIN Sports – as well as Fanatiz, fuboTV, and Sling – bringing the League of Talents to the U.S. screens once again. Reigning champions Lille won't be in action until Sunday, embarking on their title defense with an away game versus Metz. PSG, on the other hand, kick things off a day earlier, locking horns with Troyes on Saturday. After their Trophée des Champions defeat to Lille a few days ago, pressure will be on Mauricio Pochettino to deliver this season as he aims to bring both the Ligue 1 title and UEFA Champions League trophy to Paris. Do not miss the action.
European football resumes on Paramount+ as Chelsea prepare for UEFA Super Cup showdown vs Villarreal live on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
While Premier League champions Man City kick off their season with a Community Shield clash with Leicester, UEFA Champions League winners Chelsea get things underway in their 2021/22 curtain raiser: the UEFA Super Cup. The Blues will be gearing up for a clash with Unai Emery's Villarreal, with the Yellow Submarine having won the UEFA Europa League crown over Man United last season. Thomas Tuchel will look to continue the momentum for the London giants, having drastically turned the club's fortunes around after a turbulent second season under Frank Lampard. It will be interesting to see whether Chelsea will lineup on Wednesday with a new no.9 given their pursuit of Inter Milan's Romelu Lukaku. One thing is for sure, however: this will be a juicy encounter. As well as Paramount+, this fixture will be broadcast live on fuboTV, CBS Sports Network, TUDN, and Univision.
Biggest stories of the week
CONFIRMED: Barcelona and Lionel Messi part ways due to financial issues
In what has resulted in a roller-coaster of emotions, Lionel Messi's path with Barcelona has officially come to an end to day.
In a press release issued on Thursday, the club revealed that they will not be able to re-sign their all-time top scorer due to their complicated financial situation.
"Despite FC Barcelona and Lionel Messi having reached an agreement and the clear intention of both parties to sign a new contract today, this cannot happen because of financial and structural obstacles (Spanish Liga regulations).
"As a result of this situation, Messi shall not be staying on at FC Barcelona. Both parties deeply regret that the wishes of the player and the club will ultimately not be fulfilled.
"FC Barcelona wholeheartedly expresses its gratitude to the player for his contribution to the aggrandizement of the club and wishes him all the very best for the future in his personal and professional life," the press release states.
Initially, according to the likes of Marca and Mundo Deportivo, it was believed that Messi's entourage was not able to understand certain clauses included in the new deal, and Barcelona's board realized that there would be no agreement, which caused them to end all dealings.
However, Blaugrana president Joan Laporta spoke in a press conference the following day, revealing that while the player and club reached an agreement on two separate occasions, neither of those deals were accepted by La Liga due to the club's dire financial situation. PSG are currently being linked with the Argentine, with the entire footballing word eagerly awaiting to see where the Argentine will end up after ending his iconic career at the Camp Nou.
Messi will leave Barcelona as an undisputed icon
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Juventus veteran secures new contract ahead of 2021/2022 season
Fresh off winning the Euro 2020 competition with Italy, veteran defender Giorgio Chiellini was facing some uncertainty regarding his future. Despite being a loyal servant to Juventus for nearly two decades, the Italian international found himself at a crossroads after his contract with the Bianconeri expired in June.
Well, flash-forward just under a month later, and Chiellini certainly will be breathing a sigh of relief. Contract negotiations between the soon to be 37-year-old defender and Juventus have gone according to plan, and now he's set to remain in Turin for a bit longer. Specifically, his new deal will expire at the end of the 2023 season, when he will be just shy of his 39th birthday.
Chiellini has been a Juventus player since making the switch from Fiorentina in 2005, and has gone on to make over 500 appearances for the club across all competitions. During that time, he's won nine Scudetti, and is a five-time Coppa Italia winner, among others. One trophy, however, that's eluded him so far is the Champions League, where he was part of the Juventus side who were unfortunately beaten twice by Spanish sides: Barcelona in 2015 and Real Madrid in 2017.
Thomas Tuchel responds to Lukaku to Chelsea transfer rumors
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has responded to claims that his side are on the verge of signing Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku. The Blues played out a 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur in a pre-season friendly on Wednesday and following the conclusion of the encounter, the club's manager was adamant to give anything away amid rumors that the Belgian striker is close to moving to Stamford Bridge. Since moving to Inter Milan in 2019, Lukaku has impressed massively, scoring 65 goals in 94 appearances. With Chelsea pursuit of Haaland failing to materialize, the Belgian has been tipped for a return this summer.
The move to Stamford Bridge is one that the player is also said to be keen on and agreeing personal terms is not expected to be a problem for either parties. Following the conclusion of Chelsea's clash with Spurs on Wednesday, Thomas Tuchel was quizzed on the prospect of Lukaku arriving at Stamford Bridge following the departure of Olivier Giroud to AC Milan. He said: "I will not talk about players who don't play in my squad. He's a fantastic player but he's an Inter player and I will not talk about him in this situation.
"Not everybody but I can imagine a lot of players want to come and join [Chelsea] but we don't comment on that! I think with the exit of Olivier Giroud, we could use a player used to play with their back to goal, whose strength is to keep possession from long balls so we can add this direct style of play to our portfolio."
Tottenham's Harry Kane fails to report for pre-season duty in bid to force Man City move
The Harry Kane situation has taken a turn for the worse as the wantaway English striker failed to report for duty in north London on Monday, as initially scheduled, in an attempt to force a move away from Tottenham.
Sky Sports' Paul Gilmour initially broke this news, revealing that the Three Lions sensation was a no-show for the midweek pre-season training session. Having led the English national team all the way to the Euro 2020 final, the 28-year-old was given an extended break which was due to end on August 2, with his absence raising several eyebrows.
Spurs' talisman forward was set to undergo COVID-19 tests and begin preparations for the upcoming Premier League campaign but failed to show up, putting pressure on Daniel Levy in this transfer fiasco. His absence has nothing to do with a possible coronavirus contraction, as confirmed by Fabrizio Romano on Twitter. Instead, Kane believes he has a year-long "gentleman's agreement" to leave Tottenham this summer, and in an approach similar to Lionel Messi last summer, he looks to have acted upon that agreement.
The Golden Boot holder has made no secret of his desire to leave north London in pursuit of silverware. Having spent his entire professional career with Spurs, Kane has failed to lift a single trophy despite being one of the deadliest strikers in world football. Man City are the favorites to land the Englishman due to their need for a Sergio Aguero replacement. Unfortunately for them, Levy is refusing to entertain any bids below the region of $208.5M (£150M), which is a figure even a club as wealthy as the Citizens can't meet.
Other key headlines from the world of football
Premier League to make key VAR changes ahead of 2021/2022 season
Following massive backlash from fans last season, the English Premier League is set to implement a new directive to improve the use of the Video Assistant Refree in matches. The Professional Game Match Officials Board (PGMOL) are introducing a few changes that would eliminate the penalization of trivial things that ruined games in seasons past.
The need for the new directives is a result of the success of VAR seen at the recently held Euro 2020. According to the Premier League's head of refereeing, Mike Riley, three key changes in relation to handballs, contact for penalties and close offside calls that result in goals being overturned will be looked at. The lines that were displayed for viewers to see how conclusive offside decisions were arrived at will also not be shown anymore.
Liverpool set to offload six players in order to fuel transfer spree
According to a report by The Mirror, Klopp and his bosses have focused their attention on letting players leave the club, with most of them giving them a bit of an edge to comply with Financial Fair Play rules and to boost their chances of hiring some of their transfer targets, which include Manuel Locatelli, Saul Niguez, or Florian Neuhaus.
The players tipped to leave the club as per this report are Divock Origi, Xherdan Shaqiri, Loris Karius, Ben Davies, Nathaniel Phillips, and Sheyi Ojo. As you can see, at least two of these players have not played in quite a while for the Reds, which may also make sense to get rid of their wages.
Out of the players mentioned above, Origi and Shaqiri seem to have the best options to leave, as the striker has been linked to Wolverhampton and Lazio, while the winger has also been tempted by Lazio. Another footballer who has been linked with a loan transfer is Ben Davies, who has been targeted by some Championship clubs.
ESPN lines up six former La Liga stars for their 2021-22 league coverage
ESPN will begin their coverage of the 2021-22 La Liga season on the right foot, as six former footballers will share their experiences in La Liga as analysts when the games are being played, and on all La Liga related shows aired by the network.
The company announced that Hugo Sánchez, Diego Forlán, Mario Kempes, Steve McManaman, Luis García, and Pablo Zabaleta will be the in-house analysts for the Spanish top-flight games aired or streamed by ESPN. Sánchez, Forlán, and Kempes will be part of ESPN's Spanish-language coverage while McManaman, García, and Zabaleta will take care of the English-spoken option.
The resume for all six analysts adds up to seven league titles, four Copa del Rey crowns, and three more UEFA Champions League trophies. If that is not enough, these players combined for 521 league goals, led by Hugo Sánchez's 234, Forlan's 128, and Kempes' 126. These three strikers won nine Pichichi titles, so their advice and expertise come highly recommended.
