Photo by Alessandro Schiavone By Alessandro Schiavone While Spain reached the final of the FIFA World Cup courtesy of a convincing 2-0 win over France in Dallas yesterday, one particular detail may have been lost on Tottenham Hotspur fans: Pedro Porro's strike pulled their club level with Chelsea on three goals in World Cup semifinals. Up until yesterday’s clash between the neighbouring countries, the Blues were 3-2 ahead in these London charts thanks to Oscar (1) and Schurrl

wikimedia commons By Alessandro Schiavone Rafa Leao showed Premier League clubs that he’s far from being a fading force after setting up Gonçalo Ramos’ winning goal against Croatia in Toronto yesterday. In extra-time, the mercurial Portuguese maverick star looked up and picked out his new AC Milan teammate Ramos with an inch-perfect delivery into a crowded box. During the game he was a real handful for Croatia’s defence, who just couldn’t live with his darting runs and bursts

Exclusive by Alessandro Schiavone Toby Alderweireld has played more games with Jan Vertonghen than with any other player in his career. And the same goes for Super Jan. The duo shared the pitch on a staggering 366 occasions for Belgium, Ajax and Tottenham Hotspur. That amounts to 30,681 minutes, with the pair only 34 shy of the legendary Italy and AC Milan duo Paolo Maldini and Franco Baresi on 400. Doesn’t that sound flabbergasting? Far and away Tottenham Hotspur’s golden er

Exclusive by Alessandro Schiavone in Brussels Toby Alderweireld has called on former side Tottenham Hotspur to make significant changes ahead of the 2026/2027 Premier League campaign after narrowly avoiding an apocalyptic relegation last month. And rather than pouring water into a cracked cup, Alderweireld, who was part of the club’s finest hours in recent history, wants to see open-heart surgery at the club. In other words, he wants to see some fresh faces through the door

Wikimedia Commons By Alessandro Schiavone in Leuven World Cup 2027 Qualifiers Belgium 6-0 Luxembourg The manager of the Belgium women's national football team has aimed a dig at England superstar Harry Kane. The striking similarities between Belgium’s all-time record goalscorer Tessa Wullaert and the former Tottenham hitman are well documented on both sides of the Channel. Both belong to the class of 1993. Both score for fun. Both are ageing like fine wine. Both are showing n

By Alessandro Schiavone at Besiktas Stadium, Istanbul Less than 24 hours after Mikel Arteta's Arsenal clinched their first Premier League title in 22 years, his Emirates predecessor Unai Emery got his hands on his FIFTH Europa League. The Basque was already the record winner of the competition with four medals to his name, one more than Giovanni Trapattoni who last lifted it back in 1993 in the Juventus dugout. With the nerves jangling, ex-Gunners target Youri Tielemans broug

Exclusive by Alessandro Schiavone in Hoffenheim Vladimir Coufal has lifted the lid on West Ham’s interminable demise, citing the club’s delusion as a key factor. There was a time, not so long ago, when West Ham were regularly playing in Europe. Alongside winning the Conference League in 2024, the Hammers also reached the semi-final and the quarter-final of the Europa League in 2022 and 2024 respectively. Yet a ninth-place finish in 2024 was no longer deemed as good enough f

Exclusive by Alessandro Schiavone at PreZero Arena, Hoffenheim Capital Football London travelled to Germany to speak with ex-West Ham United and new Hoffenheim right-back Vladimir Coufal. The Czech Republic international, who spent five years at the London Stadium, is lighting up the Bundesliga and playing a key role in Hoffenheim’s push for Champions League qualification. Following his side’s 1–0 win over SV Werder Bremen on Saturday afternoon, we preview West Ham’s must-win

By Alessandro Schiavone There’s a time and a place to score a hat-trick. And Patrik Schick yet again picked his game wisely as Bayer Leverkusen thumped RB Leipzig 4-1 in a high-stakes game to sneak back into the top-four after direct contenders Hoffenheim and Stuttgart shared the spoils in a 3-3 thriller earlier on Saturday afternoon. Chelsea's 3-1 demolition by Nottingham Forest, covered by our London specialist Yann Tear earlier today, once again exposed the west Londoner

Exclusive by Alessandro Schiavone Kim Ji-soo has won a legion of admirers in Germany during his season-long loan spell with 2. Bundesliga club 1. FC Kaiserslautern. After making three cameo appearances for Brentford in the Premier League against Arsenal, Brighton & Hove Albion, and Aston Villa last season, the South Korean centre-back and the club decided it would be in his best interest to drop down a level or two to gain experience and playing time. And he feels he hasn’t j