December 21 – Paris St Germain manager Thomas Tuchel (pictured) has questioned the absence of Marquinhos from last week’s FIFA XI Team of the Year, claiming that the Brazilian should have been included.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 17 – Thirteen games into the new English Premier League season and we have the first managerial casualty, one that almost beggars belief.
December 17 – With coronavirus case spiking at just the wrong time in the US, Concacaf has nevertheless managed to complete its centralised quarter finals in Orlando with two Mexican, one Honduran and one US team lining up for Saturday’s semi-finals.
December 16 – The head of Manchester United’s academy has warned that Brexit will have an adverse effect of English clubs trying to sign young players from overseas.
December 15 – The CIES Football Observatory has launched its latest top 10 rankings of the best performing players in Europe born in the 2000s and playing for clubs outside Europe’s Big 5 leagues.
December 10 – Belgium have topped the world ranking for a third consecutive year to become the FIFA team of the year, the world governing body said on Thursday.
December 10 – Inter Milan were knocked out of the Champions League at the group stage for the third consecutive season on Wednesday night following a goalless draw with Shakthar Donetsk, who were also eliminated, allowing Real Madrid to squeeze into the knockout phase.
December 12 – Argentinean giants Boca Juniors triumphed on penalties against Internacional of Brazil to set up a Copa Libertadores quarter-final against Racing Club as the competition moves into the business end of the season.
By Andrew Warshaw
December 9 – Manchester United became the first high-profile victims of Champions League elimination on Tuesday as they failed to make the knockout stages, heaping even more pressure under-fire manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
December 8 – Real Madrid head a ranking of big-5 league clubs who recruit the youngest players to their squads, with an average age of 22.2 years.
December 4 – Chinese Super League side Guangzhou R&F have parted company after just one season with head coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
December 1 – Joachim Low will coach Germany at Euro 2020. The longstanding coach had come under severe pressure in recent months, but the German FA (DFB), have kept their faith in him.
November 27 – After a dark summer with almost no international football played, Autumn has brought some light with 160 full internationals played in November that in turn have impacted FIFA’s rankings.
November 27 – Globetrotting Brazilian footballers make up the highest numbers of players from one nation outside their country, playing in 23 different national leagues worldwide. But it is the French expat players who are the most prevalent in Europe’s big five leagues.
November 25 – FIFA has revealed the candidates shortlisted for seven of the individual trophies that will be presented at its Best Football Awards ceremony on December 17. Two expert panels – one for men and one for women’s football, have selected the candidates for each category.