The Tournoi Maurice Revello, formerly known as the Toulon Tournament, kicks off this weekend in southern France. It’s a tournament known for producing football’s next stars, with names such as David Ginola, Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry, and Javier Mascherano gracing past editions. More recently, England youngsters Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Lewis Baker and Harvey Barnes have taken part in the tournament,...

Goalscoring midfielders used to be all the rage. Liverpool had Steven Gerrard, Chelsea had Frank Lampard, Bayern Munich had Michael Ballack and Bolton Wanderers had Kevin Nolan. Then they went out of fashion. Replaced by playmakers in the final third, the wide forwards were now tasked with finding the back of the net. The shift coincided with more managers adopting more of a 4-3-3 shape as opposed...

Still only 22 years old, Julian Brandt has been regarded as one of the brightest talents in the Bundesliga since his Bayer Leverkusen debut back in 2014. Capable of playing on either flank, the young Germany international’s speed, creativity and dribbling skill made him one of the most sought-after wingers in Europe, reportedly a transfer target for Liverpool and Bayern Munch among others. B...

When we at Football Whispers drew up our list of the 20 young players to watch in 2019, one of the main criteria for inclusion was they couldn’t already be a bonafide star. They needed to have something to prove; a league to conquer. But special players require special circumstance and 19-year-old Kai Havertz is a very, very special player. And don’t just take our word for it. “I...

While it doesn’t possess the glitz of the Champions League, the Europa League can often contain more excitement and drama than its glamorous cousin. It can also be a breeding ground for young talent, as managers opt to give high potential players an opportunity to shine while resting established stars. Harry Kane, for instance, got his big break at Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League, and once...

Arsenal were always expected to be one of the busiest clubs in the transfer window following the arrival of new boss Unai Emery, and now another player has been linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium. It seems a new goalkeeper is on the agenda for the Gunners boss, throwing the futures of Petr Cech and David Ospina up in the air. Cech has been one of the Premier League’s best goalkeepers...

The 2017/18 Serie A season saw Juventus and Napoli go head-to-head for the title, the duo setting an incredible pace at the top of the table and matching each other point for point most of the way. Maurizio Sarri repeatedly complained that the Bianconeri played before his side all too often, yet it was on a rare weekend when their fixture was later that the Turin giants would be handed a major boo...

Over the past few seasons Europe has lost a number of its most famous playmakers. Xabi Alonso and Andrea Pirlo hung up their boots while Xavi and Michael Carrick called it a day at the end of the 2017/18 campaign. Andrés Iniesta is also winding down now and will leave Barcelona this summer. With so many creative forces calling it a day there’s an opportunity for others to step up and make a...

The 2017/18 season saw a number of players step out from the shadows and steal the limelight away from the usual suspects. Mohamed Salah, dubbed a flop due to his time at Chelsea, has stunned the world with his performances for Liverpool both domestically as well as on the continent. The Egyptian, who netted on the final day of the season to ensure the Reds would be playing Champions League footba...

Despite a 6-2 victory over Hertha Berlin on the final match-day, Bayer Leverkusen’s dismal 2016/17 campaign saw the club finish an unthinkable 12th. For a team that had placed outside the top seven just once since 2003 it was a disastrous season. Roger Schmidt’s 125-match tenure had already ended after a 6-2 loss to Borussia Dortmund in March 2017 with current Stuttgart manager Tayfun Korkut...

By October 1, after seven rounds of games in the 2017/18 Bundesliga season, Borussia Dortmund were top of the table, unbeaten and five points clear of reigning champions Bayern Munich. Fast-forward mid February, with 22 games played, Bayern are back on top of the league, a whopping 18 points clear of second-placed RB Leipzig. Dortmund are third, closer to Mainz in the relegation playoff place than...

“Chelsea, Liverpool, Juventus, were all clubs that my name had then been linked with, contacted by. Everyone wanted me, but not everyone could get the paperwork in order. I did it (joining Genk) for my development, not the biggest club. I have to play at my age and progress.” It’s not often you hear about a youngster rejecting the advances of Europe’s elite in order to play football in...

As chronicled by German journalist Raphael Honigstein’s excellent book Das Reboot, the German football federation (DFB) instituted an overhaul of their youth development system more than a decade ago, and the changes led to the production of talents like Mesut Özil, Toni Kroos and Thomas Müller, to name but a few who drove the Mannschaft to World Cup glory in 2014. They may have been relativ...

Another weekend of European football action is in the books and, once again, several intriguing narratives have been thrown up. In Spain, Valencia‘s remarkable start to the season continued as they thrashed Sevilla at the Mestalla; the Bundesliga title race took a new twist as points were unexpectedly dropped; and in Italy, champions Juventus were in rampant form to close the gap to Napoli....

The release of FIFA 18 means only one thing: professional footballers tweeting their disappointment at their new rating to game creators EA Sports. Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi was one of the first and was promptly told by EA Sports to ‘keep scoring goals and we’ll talk’. The striker responded with a hat-trick in the Blues’ Carabao Cup demolition of Nottingham Forest. Wh...

The positive reverberations of Javier Hernández’s return to the Premier League were heard from West Ham’s London Stadium all the way back up to Old Trafford. Even Manchester United fans will admit Hernández deserves another crack in England and he is determined to reveal a new identity, which has so far gone amiss in the Premier League. Since 2010, the Mexico international has scored m...

Liverpool have been linked to a number of players since the end of the Premier League season which saw them secure a place in qualifying rounds of the Champions League. With Jürgen Klopp at the helm and a place in Europe’s elite competition just two positive results away, Fenway Sports Group have their best opportunity since buying the club to really flex their financial muscles. The America...