Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2023 i World Soccer

Sir Bobby Charlton spanned multiple football generations. This may help account for the outpouring of sorrow, appreciation and gratitude on his death. His passing, at 86, was not unexpected but no less painful, above all for family and friends, but also for a game too often lacking in the qualities he epitomised. Three years ago, his family had announced his dementia diagnosis, the fifth member of England’s 1966 World Cup winning XI to fall victim to “the long goodbye.” His elder brother and England team-mate Jack died from a similar condition in 2020. Sir Geoff Hurst is now the last survivor from that Wembley side of July 30, 1966. Charlton’s death provoked an immense sense of shock and loss. Not only in England – for many years, the name “Bobby…

ENGLAND: PREMIER LEAGUE Premier League update How far can “Ange-ball” take Spurs? A long way. Spirit is vastly underestimated as a factor in fashioning a successful football team, and this is where the human intelligence of new Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou is so impressive – alongside his tactical acumen and unwillingness to compromise on his principles. His approach is to create a Tottenham team that is worth significantly more than the sum of its parts. Many Spurs supporters were sceptical when he arrived, a low-key appointment following some superstar managers. The reaction was remarkably similar to that of Leicester City fans when Claudio Ranieri turned up there. Winning a league title in his first season is probably beyond Postecoglou, but he has already achieved a significant triumph in restoring the…

FRANCE: LIGUE1 What’s changed at Paris Saint-Germain? Since QSI’s 2011 buyout, PSG’s performances have remained broadly consistent, regardless of coach or personnel – but this year feels different. Young talents like 17-year-old midfielder Warren Zaire-Emery are being blooded, the arrival of France internationals – defender Lucas Hernandez, striker Randal Kolo-Muani and winger Ousmane Dembele – add to the homegrown feel, while the garish glamour has been dialled down since Neymar’s summer departure. It’s also clear this team needs time to grow. The 4-1 Champions League humbling at Newcastle underlined PSG’s Kylian Mbappe-dependency, a woefully understrength midfield, and a lack of technicality needed to progress the ball from deep at the elite level. Ligue1 draws with Clermont, Lorient and Toulouse exposed a lack of creativity without the individuality of Neymar and…

Since breaking out as part of the country’s successful Under-17 World Cup-winning side in 2015, Victor Osimhen has been earmarked for superstardom in much the same way as Wilson Oruma, Chrisantus Macauley, Kelechi Iheanacho and Sani Emmanuel – all Nigerians who won the same competition as well as the Golden Boot – were before him. The results have been mixed down the years: Oruma and Iheanacho have built successful careers, while Emmanuel and Macauley faltered. However, Osimhen has lived up to the expectation and then some, in September becoming the first Nigerian to be nominated for the Ballon d’Or since Nwankwo Kanu in1999. “I played football growing up with the dream of becoming one of the best players in the world,” he tells World Soccer. “I watched some of the…

1 Oumar DIAKITE IVORY COAST After years of searching for a successor to national team record scorer Didier Drogba, the Ivorians might finally have found their man. The teenager from ASEC Abidjan moved to Red Bull Salzburg in 2022 and spent last season at their satellite club FC Liefering in the Austrian second division, where he consistently rattled in the goals – enough to convince Reims to sign him for a reported €2.5 million at the start of the season and for the Ivory Coast to hand him a first cap – against Lesotho in September – while still only19. Diakite’s lightning speed is his primary weapon but he is also technically astute. He took only four games before he found the net in Ligue1 and looks to be a shrewd…

1 Marselino FERDINAN INDONESIA The19-year-old midfielder is the wonderkid of Indonesian football and one of the few players from the entire Southeast Asian region at a European club, namely KMSK Deinze in the Belgian second tier. Fans back home are proud that he has gone, but miss seeing his mazy dribbling and spectacular shots on a regular basis. It’s not easy being something of a prodigy in Indonesia: the country loves football perhaps more than any other in Asia, but its population of almost 300 million are desperate for any glint of success. Expectations and pressure are high, but the early signs are that the teenager can handle it. Playing against Japan, a nation that produces talented youngsters by the bucketload, should give him an idea of how far he has…

World Soccer’s January 2024 edition is our annual awards special, focusing on the players, teams and managers who have helped shape the game over the past 12 months. As well as looking back over the past year, we also look forward with previews of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and 2023 Asian Cup, including comprehensive group guides and detailed team profiles. Plus, don’t miss reviews of the Euro 2024 qualifiers, CONCACAF Nations League, J. League, K-League, MLS Cup, African Football League, European summer leagues and NWSL, along with an update on the 2026 World Cup qualifiers from South America, Asia and Africa. Print £5.99 Digital £4.99 ORDER NOW shop.kelsey.co.uk/WSC23 Or Call: 01959 543 747 You may have missed… August 2023 September 2023 October 2023 November 2023 SAVE 10% when you…

Five years after FC Cincinnati won a regular season championship in the United Soccer League, the second tier of US Soccer, the club is celebrating the equivalent title in MLS. This year, Cincinnati claimed MLS’s Supporters’ Shield — the silverware awarded to the team that finishes top of the overall regular standings across the Eastern and Western Conferences combined. This success marks a complete turnaround for the club since they joined the league in 2019. They were not promoted to MLS because of that USL success in 2018, as there is no system of promotion and relegation between leagues in the Untied States. Like any other new MLS club, Cincinnati joined as an expansion franchise via a successful bid and, in their case, an entry fee of $150 million. Clubs…

“It is important that measures are put in place to ensure our national game is fit for the future, which is exactly what an Independent Regulator will do”MP Tracey Crouch reacts to confirmation that the UK government will introduce an independent regular to monitor English football There are some figures in football that you simply take for granted as ever-present pillars of the national game, and Bobby Charlton is one of them. A star of Manchester United almost as soon as he made his debut in 1956, there are few fans that can recall English football before Charlton. He left an indelible mark on the game as a player, is rightly considered the finest English footballer of all time, and remained a huge presence in his role as an ambassador…

EL MÁS GRANDE By Mark Orton  (Pitch Publishing, £25) From their humble origins in the southern districts of Buenos Aires, River Plate grew into one of the largest clubs in South America, earning the nickname “The Millionaires”. Along the way, we discover the great players who have worn the distinctive white shirt with the red sash - from the likes of Bernabe Ferreyra, Alfredo Di Stefano and Enzo Francescoli to Manchester City’s recent signing Julian Alvarez – whilst enchanting generations of fans with their stylish play. FLAMENGO By Stephen Brandt  (Pitch Publishing, £18.99) This is the fascinating story of how Brazilian club Flamengo became the best football team in the world, winning cups at every level before beating the mighty Liverpool in 1981 to capture the Intercontinental Cup. We also…

“The loss of my livelihood is nothing when compared to the hell being unleashed on the innocent and vulnerable in Gaza #stopthekilling”Anwar El Ghazi releases a statement on social media after having his contract with Mainz terminated EUROPE FILIPPO INZAGHI The ex-Milan manager replaced Paulo Sousa as head coach of Serie A side Salernitana. GABRIELE CIOFFI Udinese hired Cioffi after firing Andrea Sottil. PHILIPPE CLEMENT The ex-Club Brugge and Monaco coach took charge of Rangers, replacing Michael Beale. CRAIG LEVEIN With St Johnstone bottom of the Scottish Premiership table, they hired the former Scotland and Hearts boss as their manager. JOE EDWARDS A former youth coach at Chelsea, Edwards took charge of Millwall after Gary Rowett’s departure. LIAM MANNING Championship side Bristol City poached Oxford’s manager after firing Nigel Pearson. MARTI…

Ajax are turning back the clock 30 years after hitting an historic rock bottom. In an attempt to solve the enormous crisis at the club, Louis van Gaal and Michael van Praag have been asked to play their part in reviving the Amsterdam giants. Van Gaal as head coach and Van Praag as chairman were highly successful during the1990s, leading the Amsterdammers to the top of the club game, clinching the1992 UEFA Cup and, of course, the1995 Champions League. Those were the good old days that Ajax and their supporters can now only dream of. The 72-year-old Van Gaal, who retired after leaving the Netherlands national team following the World Cup last year, will be an advisor to the supervisory board. Many hoped he would accept a more leading role,…

SPAIN: LA LIGA Can Girona continue their impressive start to the season? Girona won 31 points from their first12 matches, making this their best-ever start to a La Liga season. At the beginning of November they sat top of the table, two points above Real Madrid – the only team to have beaten the Catalans – despite the summer departures of Oriol Romeu (Barcelona) and last season’s top scorer Taty Castellanos (Lazio). Their impressive recruitment, assisted by the scouting resources of the City Football Group, has provided manager Michel with an even stronger squad than the one that saw them just miss out on European qualification in 2022-23. Free transfer Daley Blind (Bayern Munich) and loan signing Eric Garcia (Barcelona) are ball-playing defenders who are well suited to the side’s…

ITALY: SERIE A With no European distractions, can Juventus reclaim the title? Banned from European competition in the wake of their points sanction by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) for questionable off-the-books accounting practises in recent seasons, Juventus obviously have a lighter fixture schedule than their rivals. Furthermore, despite a traumatic start to the season off the field – iconic captain Leonardo Bonucci joined Union Berlin and has since threatened to sue the club, Paul Pogba is facing a possible ban if found guilty of doping offences, and Nicolo Fagioli, last season’s Serie A Young Player of the Year, has been suspended by the FIGC for the rest of the season for breaching betting rules – Juve are very much in the frame to win their first title since 2020.…

Can you tell us about the potential of your DR Congo side? The potential for Congo is very good. We have quite a lot of players who are competing with clubs in the major leagues in Europe. This is as a result of a project we started more than a year ago now, to strengthen the side with players from tougher and more competitive leagues and, on the back of that, we were able to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations finals. It’s a first step and now we wait to see what the future holds. As I had been saying for quite some time, we are building a project. We know that in any case, in today’s football, positive results can allow us to go faster in what…

In your final match action of last season you almost equalised in the Champions League final, now you’re at Brighton. What motivated you to make this move? I think [Brighton] is a really good project to be involved in and I was looking for a new challenge. I had a good time at Wolfsburg. I was always playing for clubs that went for titles; here we have something to build. It is a good challenge for me to come into an environment and build something and be seen as a leader on the pitch, with a new team and an ambitious club. It is good to share my experience on the pitch as well as off the pitch – I am really enjoying that process so far. It is fun…

The global audience that accompanied South American club football’s showpiece occasion appeared divided by what it had seen. Fluminense of Brazil beat Argentina’s Boca Juniors 2-1 in Rio’s Maracana stadium to win the Copa Libertadores. Those who expected a game of quality seemed disappointed. But those who had tuned in for drama were gripped by a dramatic, sometimes chaotic encounter that ebbed and flowed over120 minutes. And the tears that flowed on the pitch and in the stands before, during and after the match gave the occasion a level of intensity that some compared favourably with the corporate sterility of Europe’s Champions League decider. And the destiny of the Libertadores was decided by two fine goals, both of which bore the stamp of Fernando Diniz, Fluminense’s fascinating coach. The first…

The Canadian Premier League’s landmark fifth season saw more history being made, starting with Vancouver FC, who replaced FC Edmonton as the league’s eighth team. While Afshin Ghotbi’s side finished in seventh place, there were moments to remember during their maiden campaign. Their first-ever CPL match was a defeat in the British Columbia derby against Pacific FC, decided by a sweet strike from Manny Aparicio, but they collected their first win a week later at York United. Certainly it was a debut campaign with one eye on the future: in total, Ghotbi gave 5,203 minutes to Canadian players under 21, 813 more than any other team in the league. Among them was TJ Tahid, who became the league’s youngest-ever goalscorer after notching with a smart turn and finish during another…

The 2023 Island Games proved a tough tournament for the Falkland Islands, but the game continues to solider on in the small South Atlantic outpost despite a tiny playing pool and lack of any official recognition. Eight sides contested this year’s four-a-side indoor league in Stanley with Workboat Services winning the title. Four teams are expected to contest the 11-a-side outdoor season starting in mid-November 2023. A new 4G AstroTurf pitch that opened in February 2023 in Stanley, where most of the Falklands’ 3,000 population live, has helped stoke enthusiasm but games for the Islands’ representative team remain scarce. Matches against teams from the British military presence on the islands had been a regular fixture but have proved hard to arrange in recent years. “I am hopeful that the Falklands…

SEASON RANKINGS Cumulative votes through the season GOALKEEPERS Lukas Hradecky (Bayer Leverkusen) 5 Yann Sommer (Internazionale) 4 Alisson (Liverpool) 2 Marcin Bulka (Nice) 2 Wojciech Szczesny (Juventus) 2 Kepa Arrizabalaga (Real Madrid) 1 Ederson (Manchester City) 1 Andre Onana (Manchester United) 1 Ivan Provedel (Lazio) 1 Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona) 1 DEFENDERS Alex Grimaldo (Bayer Leverkusen) 7 Jonathan Tah (Bayer Leverkusen) 6 Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid) 4 Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur) 4 Jean-Clair Todibo (Nice) 4 Micky van de Ven (Tottenham Hotspur) 4 Kyle Walker (Manchester City) 4 Joao Cancelo (Barcelona) 3 Jeremie Frimpong (Bayer Leverkusen) 3 Gabriel (Arsenal) 3 Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool) 3 Alessandro Bastoni (Internazionale) 2 Bremer (Juventus) 2 Dante (Nice) 2 Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) 2 Ruben Dias (Manchester City) 2 Denzel Dumfries (Internazionale) 2 Josko…

10 Months that Newcastle United and Italy midfielder Sandro Tonali will miss for breaching betting rules. The verdict came after Juventus’ Nicolo Fagioli received a seven-month ban. 1 In England’s friendly with Australia, Stephanie Frappart became the first female referee to take charge of a men’s international at Wembley. 2 Years that San Marino had to wait to score a competitive goal before Alessandro Golinucci found the back of the net against Denmark in a Euro 2024 qualifier in October. 40 Age of Porto defender Pepe – 40 years and 254 days to be exact – as he became the oldest goalscorer in UEFA Champions League history following his effort against Antwerp. 14 Consecutive Europa League matches that Romelu Lukaku scored in – a run stretching over nine years and…

Four of Bobby Charlton’s uncles were professional footballers and, when he was in his early teens, he would follow them to the club and stand at the door while they had a pint inside, imagining the conversations they must be having about football. Yet by the early 1960s, he seemed almost bored by discussions of football. “If you talked about the match,” his former team-mate Harry Gregg remembered, “Bobby would pick up his pint and say, ‘I’m off if you’re going to talk about football.’” Perhaps that’s just what happens as you get older; youthful passions fade. Yet Charlton clearly never lost his love for football. He regretted retiring in1973 and, after a year as manager of Preston, came back as player-manager. Well into the1990s he would turn out for…

“Devastated to hear the sad news about Bill Kenwright. Known Bill since I was young and he’s had a huge impact on me as a person and my career. Great man and a big inspiration”Former Everton star Wayne Rooney pays his respects to Bill Kenwright Bill KENWRIGHT (1945-2023) Kenwright was Everton’s chairman and largest shareholder between 2004 and 2016, but his involvement on the club’s board lasted over 34 years. He made his name in the theatre business, starting out as an actor in the1960s – notably appearing in the police series Z-Cars, the theme tune of which plays at Goodison Park as the players run out onto the pitch, and British soap Coronation Street. His great success, though, came as a producer. His company, Bill Kenwright Ltd, is now…

January 2024 marks the 20th anniversary of the major change to eligibility rules for international players that offered the possibility for those previously capped by one country at youth level to play for another at senior level. It was a change that set off many tugs of the heart over the head – or vice versa – in the intervening years, and the latest player to make a decision on his national team future is the 23-year-old Amine Gouiri. There had been months of speculation over whether he would stick with France, where a future spot with Les Bleus looked a real possibility given his rapid development through the junior ranks, or switch to Algeria, who had been courting him for some while. France have lost many players to Algeria,…

The Mostar derby is like no other. Despite an enforced hiatus between 1939 and 2000, this is a rivalry that means a lot more than mere bragging rights. The oldest derby in Bosnia and Herzegovina encapsulates a century of political, ethnic and religious division, set against a staggering backdrop of soaring mountains and lush greenery. There was an added spice to the latest edition, after hosts HSK Zrinjski became the nation’s first club to reach a European group stage. However, not everyone in Mostar was pleased by this pioneering feat, not least city rivals FK Velez. One of their major grievances relates to the venue for their October encounter. The Bijeli Brijeg stadium was Velez’s home during the club’s glory years until they were evicted at the outbreak of the…

BUNDESLIGA: GERMANY Should Thomas Tuchel feel secure as Bayern Munich boss? On the basis that he is one of the world’s most accomplished coaches and has only been in the post since late March, Tuchel should be aprotected species at the Allianz Arena. The reality, though, is somewhat different. In previous jobs – at Mainz, Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea – this most prickly of characters has always ended up at odds with those around him, and similar fault lines seem to be appearing at Bayern. Tuchel never has been one for the diplomatic corps and has expressed dissatisfaction on more than one occasion with what he sees as Bayern’s lack of squad depth. He was especially miffed with the failure to sign a specialist defensive midfielder in the summer…

Bryan ZARAGOZA Granada In a sentence Dazzling street player who was recently rewarded for a memorable brace against Barcelona with a call-up to the full Spain squad. What they say “He didn’t surprise me. We’d analysed him and knew he was a bullet on the right flank [and] that they would be relying on him in transitions and counter-attacks. He’s very difficult to stop.” Barcelona coach Xavi after Bryan’s goals against the Catalans “He has so much natural talent, but the most important thing is to convince him that he has to stay focused. He has to be demanding of himself, to look after himself. Too much praise can cause problems.” Granada boss Paco Lopez The story so far This season, his inaugural term in La Liga, the diminutive 22-year-old…

PREMIER LEAGUE ARSENAL: Mohamed Elneny (Egypt), Thomas Partey (Ghana) ASTON VILLA: Bertrand Traore (Burkina Faso) BOURNEMOUTH: Dango Ouattara (Burkina Faso), Antoine Semenyo (Ghana), Hamed Traore (Ivory Coast) BRENTFORD: Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon), Yoane Wissa (DR Congo), Frank Onyeka (Nigeria) BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION: Carlos Baleba (Cameroon), Tariq Lamptey (Ghana), Simon Adingra (Ivory Coast) BURNLEY: Anass Zaroury (Morocco), Lyle Foster (South Africa) CHELSEA: Nicolas Jackson (Senegal) CRYSTAL PALACE: Jordan Ayew, Jeffrey Schlupp (both Ghana), Cheick Doucoure (Mali) EVERTON: Abdoulaye Doucoure (Mali), Idrissa Gana Gueye (Senegal) FULHAM: Calvin Bassey, Alex Iwobi (both Nigeria), Fodo Ballo-Toure (Senegal) LIVERPOOL: Mohamed Salah (Egypt) LUTON TOWN: Issa Kabore (Burkina Faso), Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu (DR Congo) MANCHESTER UNITED: Andre Onana (Cameroon), Sofyan Amrabat (Morocco), Hannibal Mejbri (Tunisia) NOTTINGHAM FOREST: Serge Aurier, Willy Boly, Ibrahim Sangare (all Ivory Coast),…

Tournament hosts Qatar aim to eradicate memories of World Cup catastrophe The 2022 World Cup was a disaster on the pitch for the host nation with three defeats out of three. Now there is a chance to put a smile back on the faces of fans. Given what happened on home soil last time there is not much confidence that the Maroons can successfully defend the title they won so impressively back in 2019, but with home advantage, more experience and Carlos Queiroz at the helm, Qatar could go deep into the tournament. The arrival of Queiroz in February showed that Qatar were looking for a more pragmatic approach, which is as much about securing a first World Cup qualification (via the traditional route) in 2026 as it is about…

Imagine the groans in the boardrooms of broadcaster DAZN, sponsors and UEFA itself when four of the biggest names in the Women’s Champions League were knocked out before the competition even began. Arsenal, Manchester United, Juventus and last season’s finalists Wolfsburg all failed to negotiate the treacherous qualifiers of the league pathway, leading to a group stage line-up that will have frustrated many – but also posed some existential questions for the sport. Growth is the aim, but whose growth, and how? Does Europe want breadth, a steady pan-continental rise in standards, or depth within silos of excellence? That might lift the whole sport – but could also lead to an ersatz super league, detached from the wider game except to suck in its brightest and best. “We want the…

Football in Mauritania has made significant strides over the last few years, first with the national team qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations in 2019 and since securing a berth for a third successive finals in January. A natural extension of that progress is FC Nouadhibou reaching the group stage of this season’s African Champions League, one of three newcomers in the 16-team field for the league phase. It is the first time a club from Mauritania has got this far in the competition. Nouadhibou, coached by Spaniard Aritz Lopez Garai, convincingly overcame Mali’s Real Bamako 4-1 on aggregate to book their spot and are joined in Group A by the other newcomers Pyramids of Egypt, one of the richest clubs on the continent. They were set up and…

After12 months of the Chinese Super League being held up as a cautionary tale for Saudi Arabia not to follow, the 2023 season ended with much to be positive about. The first season free of COVID-19, lockdown and bubbles since 2019 saw supporters return to stadiums in numbers with an average attendance of close to 20,000, despite the fact that almost all the stars that headed east in the previous decade have long since departed. Two were left and went head-to-head in the title race. Brazilian midfielder Oscar ended up winning the championship with Shanghai Port, while former Belgium international Marouane Fellaini settled for second with Shandong Taishan. There was quite an exciting climax as Shanghai, who looked to have the trophy in the bag with weeks to go, ended…