Premier League
Fabrizio Romano’s trademark “Here we go” rarely arrives without weeks of expectation. Yet confirmation that Manchester City have reached an agreement to sign Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest still lands as one of the summer’s biggest statements. Multiple outlets, including Reuters citing BBC reporting, say City have agreed
England
Thomas Tuchel’s decision to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold out of England’s World Cup squad was always going to follow him. It only needed a trigger. Reece James’ hamstring injury has supplied it. James did not travel for England’s final Group L game against Panama, with Tuchel confirming
World Cup
The temptation is to call Cape Verde’s World Cup run a fairytale and leave it there. The smallest nation by population to reach the knockout stages. Three group games, no defeats. A 40-year-old goalkeeper who went from relative anonymity to global celebrity in little more than a
EFL
West Ham’s next step is not simply to build a Championship squad. It is to rebuild a football club that currently feels fractured from almost every angle. Relegation has changed the conversation, but it has not created the problems on its own. The drop has exposed them. Supporters see
The World Cup has not produced a single obvious champion yet. That is usually a good sign. Tournaments that look settled too early often change completely once the knockout stage begins. Group football rewards energy, freshness and style. Knockout football rewards adaptability, emotional control and the ability to survive the
Thomas Tuchel’s England squad is not an accident of form, reputation or public mood. It is a tournament machine built backwards from the games England expect to face last: France, Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Portugal, Germany, the kind of opponents who do not give you 90 minutes to express yourself
Scotland’s World Cup campaign deserves neither a parade nor a public inquest. It sits somewhere more complicated, and more useful, than either extreme.
Premier League
Arsenal are no longer building towards being taken seriously. That part of the project has been completed. Mikel Arteta’s side ended their 22-year wait for a Premier League title in May, finishing the job after three seasons of near-misses and establishing themselves as the standard others now
Premier League
The delay around Enzo Maresca’s move to Manchester City should not be mistaken for uncertainty about the football idea. If City wanted a radical departure from Pep Guardiola, they would not be pushing for Maresca. They would be looking for a disruptor, a personality appointment, or a manager with