The Weekly Take, Issue 382: Strength in Numbers

Coming off the first-ever Champions League title in the club's history, Paris Saint-Germain entered the 2025-26 edition of the tournament as the favourites to go all the way and become the first French club to ever win back-to-back Champions League titles. The second matchday of the league phase, however, presented the Parisian club with probably their toughest match of this stage of the tournament: an away match against Barcelona.

Barça were first to score; they took an early lead via a Ferran Torres goal. After PSG midfielder Vitinha turned the ball over, Barça put together a move that culminated in Marcus Rashford sending a ball across the penalty area to Torres who had no trouble putting the ball into the bottom corner. PSG would score the equalizer seven minutes before half-time after Nuno Mendes beat three defenders before setting up Senny Mayulu who went on to find the back of the net.

Although PSG had the majority of the possession and goalscoring chances for most of the second half, neither side was able to make a breakthrough until the very last minute of regulation time. PSG's Gonçalo Ramos, who had been substituted into the match just 18 minutes prior, took advantage of the suboptimal placement of Barça's high line to make it two wins out of two matches for PSG. This victory also meant that PSG have now won three consecutive away Champions League matches at Barça with a combined scoreline of 10-3.

One of the main storylines heading into this match was the fact that it would arguably lay down an early marker with regard to the question of who the team to beat in this season's Champions League was. This sentiment was further strengthened by several underlying narratives. First and foremost, this was billed as a match between the two players who recently finished first and second in the Ballon d'Or voting for the 2024-25 season: award winner Ousmane Dembélé of PSG and runner-up Lamine Yamal of Barça. In addition, prior to the match, Barça midfielder Pedri claimed that his Blaugrana team was the world's best.

Adding another layer to the match was the fact that PSG would be without all of their usual starting front three due to injuries: Dembélé, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Désiré Doué. Notably, the latter two even had realistic chances to have won the Ballon d'Or instead of Démbélé. As such, this was a major opportunity for the Catalan club to make a clear statement that they were indeed the biggest threat to win it all.

Instead, the exact opposite sequence of events took place. If anything, the only thing that Pedri managed to do was to "poke the bear"; it was evident that PSG were even more fired up by the Canarian's remarks and were intent on proving him wrong. Ramos confirmed that such was the case after the match, making remarks that were clearly intended as a clapback towards Pedri's.

On top of that, what should come as even more of a concern to every team with hopes of toppling the reigning European champions is the fact that an under-strength PSG just beat what's likely one of the top five teams in the world right now. PSG won last season's Champions League not on the back of the pure star power which they'd depended on in past years only to come up short every single time, but by way of "strength in numbers" - an idea which Luis Enrique has clearly made the foundation of this team. It was anything but the "let the superstars cook" approach that they'd tried before, and it seems to once again be highly effective.

It's of course way too early to say that PSG will win the Champions League again. However, all of the other main contenders with the exception of Bayern Munich have shown evidence of vulnerabilities at some point this season. In fact, there's a case to be made that PSG are even better this season than last - a remarkable turnaround for a club which was once a mere punchline in continental play for their repeated failures when the pressure was at its highest.

There's no question that any club intent on denying Paris Saint-Germain consecutive Champions League titles will have quite the task. It has to be reiterated: PSG just beat Barcelona without any of their starting front three.

The Weekly Take, Issue 381: It's Not Real's City Anymore

It's exceptionally rare that a team is able to get the psychological edge over Real Madrid - a team which has on countless occasions delivered the goods under the highest stakes. However, this is exactly what has turned out to be the case over the past several years with none other than their cross-town rivals Atlético Madrid who, in the latest Madrid derby, once again highlighted the fact that Atlético have now unquestionably gotten into Los Merengues' heads.

Atlético shook off their slow start to the current La Liga season with a 5-2 thrashing of Real on the back of a dominant second half. Atlético opened the scoring in the 14th minute by way of a Robin Le Normand header that finished off a cross sent in by Giovanni Simeone. Later in the first half, Real would fire back with two goals within an 11-minute span - the first from Kylian Mbappé, the second from Arda Güler who had earlier set up Mbappé's goal.

Shortly before the half-time interval, Atlético centre-back Clement Lenglet had a goal waved off by VAR after a check revealed that the Frenchman had handled the ball on its way into the net. Nevertheless, Atlético entered the break on level terms after Alexander Sørloth scored his side's second headed goal of the match in first-half stoppage time.

It was one-way traffic after the break as Atlético completely took over. Following an Atlético corner kick early in the second half, Güler fouled Nicolás González in the penalty area; the ensuing penalty was duly converted by Julián Alvarez. The Argentinian striker scored his second and Atlético's fourth in the 63rd minute with a spectacular free kick. Fittingly, rounding off the victory was a stoppage-time goal scored by none other than the greatest player to ever put on an Atlético jersey: Antoine Griezmann.

At this point, it's remarkable to think that from 1999 to 2013, Atlético did not beat Real even once. Yet at this point, if there's any team that seems to have the blueprint to stopping the 15-time European champions, it would have to be Atlético. Not even Real's greatest rivals Barcelona have had Real's number like this as Real have beaten Barça in five of the last 11 editions of El Clásico.

Despite conceding two goals, Atlético kept Real's attack stymied throughout the match; the two goals which Real scored were their only two shots on target. Real were simply unable to cope with the level of intensity that Atlético brought. Atlético were not only able to have their way with Real's attack for the vast majority of the match; they turned this defensive edge into goalscoring chances of their own on offense.

Real couldn't find any way to counter Atlético's pressing and rotations and on multiple occasions ended up overcommitting because of this. As soon as Sørloth scored the equalizing goal, it almost seemed inevitable that Atlético would run away with the match in the second half. It never really felt as though Real played like they themselves genuinely believed they could beat Atlético - a stunning contrast when compared to what Madrid derbies before 2010 were usually like.

Although Atlético remain six points behind Real who remain in first place in the league despite the loss, a result like this clearly highlights that they can't be counted out in their pursuit of a first league title in five years. There's still more than enough time to make up the ground they've lost in the early going - and if recent history is anything to go by, Atlético will likely take three more points off Real in the upcoming reverse fixture in March as well.

While it may be true that on the surface this was "just one early-season match", the trend has nonetheless been incredibly obvious to anyone paying attention. This wasn't even necessarily entirely an instance of Atlético outstrategizing Real; this most recent victory was all the evidence that anyone could've needed as proof that Diego Simeone's team has entirely reversed the Madrid clubs' respective statuses as far as their history in derby matches is concerned.

The Madrid derby has never held the prestige of its counterparts in London, Milan, or Manchester, among others, largely due to Atlético Madrid's ineptitude for long stretches of time. However, we have clearly entered a new era - one in which Atlético are not only competitive, but the outright favourites to win derby matches.

The Weekly Take, Issue 380: Back on Track at Last?

Last season was by far Manchester City's worst of the Pep Guardiola era. Not only did City not even come close to retaining their Premier League title, they were even knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the round of 24 - though in their defense, the Citizens had been drawn against Real Madrid for a spot in the last 16. City's elimination at that stage was their earliest since being knocked out of the tournament in the group stage in the 2012-13 season.

As such, City entered the new Champions League season intent on showcasing how they'd bounced back from last season's failure; their opening match would be at home against Napoli. Notably, this match would also mark the return of Kevin De Bruyne - the greatest player in the Manchester club's history - to the Etihad Stadium but this time in the opposing jersey.

De Bruyne's return to the Etihad didn't last long, though - this was because in the 21st minute, Napoli full-back Giovanni Di Lorenzo received a red card after a last-man foul on Erling Haaland just outside the penalty area. This prompted Napoli manager Antonio Conte to make his first substitution of the match; he chose to swap out De Bruyne for Mathías Olivera soon after Di Lorenzo was ejected.

Even having a player fewer, Napoli were able to prevent the Citizens from getting onto the scoresheet before the break. However, the match only remained scoreless a short time into the second half as in the 56th minute, Erling Haaland found the net with a header after having been set up by Phil Foden. It was the 50th Champions League goal of the Norwegian's career; having scored that number of goals in just 49 matches, Haaland thus broke the record for the fewest matches required for a player to score his first 50 Champions League goals.

Not long after, City made the victory safe after Jérémy Doku carved up the Napoli defense before slotting the ball into the bottom corner of the net. Napoli never really stood a chance as soon as Di Lorenzo received his marching orders - they were thoroughly dominated in every facet of play.

Having lost two of their first four Premier League matches this season, City are off to a slow start domestically. As such, this victory over the reigning Serie A champions could have been crucial in order to prevent City's early season from spiralling out of hand.

As they have so often done, City spent heavily during the off-season - however, unlike many of the past few seasons, they only really managed to land one truly big name: goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma who was signed from Paris Saint-Germain for €30 million to replace club legend Ederson. This doesn't quite stack up well against the transfer windows that some other clubs had - most notably Premier League title rivals Liverpool who put together a transfer window for the ages, bringing to Anfield two bona fide superstars in Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak while also adding multiple important supporting pieces.

That said, City's victory over Napoli was an obvious display of the level they can be at when everything is clicking. The current squad makes use of a tactical setup which has somewhat deviated from Guardiola's early days in the blue half of Manchester; although they still place much emphasis on possession, City are now more likely to create chances via medium-length to long through-balls. While neither of City's two goals was scored in this way, the threat of one coming in that way kept the Napoli defense on their toes throughout the match, adding another dimension to City's attack.

Prior to last season, City had won six of the previous seven league titles including one as part of a Treble in the 2022-23 season, so they are to be written off at one's peril. Despite not landing the level of big-name players which they have in the past, City nonetheless have a squad capable of going all the way and winning the Champions League for the second time in four seasons. The issue, however, is the possibility of inconsistency once again rearing its head and derailing City - and if last season is anything to go by, that possibility can't be dismissed.

The Weekly Take, Issue 379: A New Era in Full Swing

Close to the end of the 2024-25 season, Juventus fired then-head coach Thiago Motta in a final push for the last Champions League qualification spot. He was replaced by Igor Tudor, the Croatian who had spent just over seven seasons as a Juve player. At the time, Juve had just lost back-to-back Serie A matches by a combined 7-0 scoreline and had slipped out of the top four.

Tudor was able to turn things around; with him in the Juventus Stadium dugout, the Bianconeri lost just one of their final nine league matches and clinched a spot in this season's Champions League. Subsequently, Tudor signed a contract extension which would keep him in the position until the end of the 2027-28 season.

Though it's still very early in the 2025-26 season, the signs are clear that Tudor has had an obviously positive impact on this team as evidenced by Juve's hot start to the new season - including their recent victory over Inter Milan in a pulsating Derby d'Italia. Lloyd Kelly scored his first goal as a Juventus player after having been set up by fellow centre-back Gleison Bremer. This early lead would, however, only last until the 30th minute when Hakan Çalhanoğlu equalized for the Nerazzurri. Juve would nonetheless enter the half-time interval a goal ahead as not too long after, Kenan Yıldız drilled a shot from well outside the box into the bottom corner of the net.

Çalhanoğlu scored his and Inter's second goal about halfway through the second half - a spectacular volley from just outside the penalty area. Marcus Thuram then netted his third league goal of the season to put Inter 3-2 ahead in the 76th minute only for, of all people, his own brother Khéphren to level the match six minutes later. Finally, in the first minute of stoppage time, substitute Vasilije Adžić scored Juve's winning goal; the Montenegrin midfielder emulated Kelly in scoring his first goal for the club following Jonathan David's assist - and it could hardly have come in more climactic circumstances.

Since taking over at Juve, Tudor has taken Juve to eight wins in 12 league matches and with three in a row to start the new season, they seem to be well-positioned for a real run at a first Scudetto since the 2019-20 season. The club's five full seasons since then have been marked by inconsistency, instability, and even off-field scandals - but the signs that Tudor might be the guy who turns it around are starting to become more evident.

The phrase "club DNA" is something of a cliché by now - but even so, it's perhaps the biggest factor as to why Tudor is succeeding where Motta didn't. As mentioned, Tudor spent a big chunk of his playing career at Juve. Motta, on the other hand, never did and even played for Juve's direct rivals Inter. As such, Tudor has been able to connect with his players in a way that Motta never could - and having earned the trust of the locker room as soon as he has, the team is now in a far more conducive position to push for the league title.

From a tactical standpoint, Tudor has switched Juve's main formation to three at the back, utilizing either a 3-4-2-1 or 3-5-1-1 setup. This has in turn enhanced Juve's ability to create chances and cover space. He's also transitioned Juve away from a possession-heavy, low-tempo playstyle in favour of a more direct approach which emphasizes playing through the centre of the field. This has enabled Juve to force opponent's errors and create additional openings - and these tactical shifts were major reasons why Juve took the W against Inter.

It might actually have helped Tudor that up to now he'd never had any major achievements in any of his prior roles, thus reducing the pressure on him. However, as his and his team's stock continues to rise, that's likely to change. That will likely be the biggest test as to whether he is, in fact, the real deal - can he put it all together for an entire league campaign and not only win it all, but also perhaps even make a deep Champions League run? It's difficult to say, but their chances look better than they have in quite some time.

The Weekly Take, Issue 378: 2026 World Title - Now Loading?

Due to the asymmetrical nature of each group in Europe's World Cup qualifying stage, not all 12 groups commenced play at the same time. Some of them started way back in March while others, including Group D, just began their path towards next year's global showpiece tournament in North America. One of those groups was Group D - a group highlighted by France, in pursuit of a second world title in three World Cups.

As might have been expected, France kicked off their World Cup qualifying campaign with a 2-0 victory over Ukraine in a match that wasn't as close as the scoreline might imply. Bayern Munich striker Michael Olise opened the scoring in the 10th minute after having been set up by Bradley Barcola. Somewhat surprisingly, despite being in total control of proceedings, Les Bleus weren't able to extend their lead before the half-time break.

Midway through the second half, Ukraine had two major chances in quick succession and almost made France pay for their inability to score any further goals. Both were headers; the first was from Artem Dovbyk whose header was cleared off the line by Ibrahima Konaté. Shortly after, Illia Zabarnyi's header came back off the post.

The score remained at 1-0 until the 82nd minute. Midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni sent a long ball forwards in the direction of Real Madrid teammate Kylian Mbappé who beat Zabarnyi in a one-on-one scenario before finding the bottom corner of the net - his 51st for France, tying him for second all-time with legendary striker Thierry Henry. However, it wasn't all good news for France as prior to that goal, both Désiré Doué and his replacement Ousmane Dembélé left the match injured.

For almost a decade now, France have been the most consistent threat to win major international football tournaments; this match revealed nothing new in that regard. France didn't even need to come close to their peak level in order to easily dispatch Ukraine. Everything about this performance indicates that they will once again be among the favorites, if not the outright favorite, to win the 2026 World Cup.

To say that this team is outrageously stacked would somehow be an understatement. Against Ukraine, players like Dembélé and Hugo Ekitike (the latter of whom was actually playing his first-ever match for his national team) came off the bench while even Marcus Thuram and Theo Hernández, among others, stayed on the bench for the entire match. It's this remarkable depth which has been the backbone of their consistent tournament success dating back to Euro 2016 when they reached the final.

In addition, the fact that France almost always go deep at major tournaments has a "rich get richer" effect on their squad in terms of big-match experience. Many of France's best players aged 25 or younger have a great deal more experience under the highest pressure on the biggest stages than do their peers from different countries. It's entirely possible that this will end up making a major impact at next year's World Cup.

There's also the manner of how France lost in the final of the 2022 World Cup. Having come so agonizingly close to becoming the first team to win back-to-back World Cups in 60 years, France will be especially fired up to win it all in 2026. The memory of their loss in the final in Qatar might just have been the additional fuel they needed to end up being the final team left standing at the end of next year's tournament.

Topping things off, it's often the case that teams which either win or go deep at the World Cup have a core primarily comprised of players from the same club. This is understandable as such cores would have the advantage of pre-existing chemistry. In France's case, they're fortunate enough to have two such cores: one from Real Madrid, another from Paris Saint-Germain. This additional team chemistry was on full display in France's second goal against Ukraine with Real duo Tchouaméni and Mbappé looking as though they had never left the Santiago Bernabéu for the international break at all.

While of course, it's true that it's way too early to make a sweeping statement that France will win the World Cup, there's no question that they're in a really strong position right now. Their decade of dominance is all set to enter a second one with no signs of a end anywhere in sight.

The Weekly Take, Issue 377: Already Behind in the Chase for the Top Four

Following a strong finish to the 2024-25 La Liga season which saw them climb from outside the top 10 into sixth place and thus obtain qualification for this season's Europa League, Real Betis were undoubtedly regarded as a club headed in the right direction at the beginning of this season. Adding to the raised expectations at Estadio de La Cartuja was the fact that Betis brought in several notable signings over the off-season - including, more than likely, turning loan signing Antony into a full-time player after the Brazilian winger had emerged as arguably the club's best player over the second half of last season.

However, so far things haven't gone the way Betis would've hoped for as after losing 2-1 to Athletic Bilbao, the Andalusian club are now eighth in the league with just five points to their name. Following a goalless first half, Betis centre-back Marc Bartra's own goal in the 60th minute put Bilbao a goal ahead. With just over five minutes left in regulation time, Aitor Paredes' header all but sealed Bilbao's victory.

Deep into stoppage time, Betis substitute Cédric Bakambu gave Betis at least a slight chance of avoiding defeat after heading in Junior Firpo's cross. To make things even more interesting, shortly after that Bilbao's substitute goalkeeper Álex Padilla controversially received a red card despite not even entering play after Isidro Díaz de Mera Escuderos took exception to the Mexican's act of tossing the ball back onto the field in a supposedly unsportsmanlike manner. However, no further goals would be scored as the final whistle was blown soon after that.

Of course, it has to be mentioned that two of Betis' best players have been absent from the squad up until now. Midfielder Isco suffered a fibula fracture in a pre-season match against Málaga and is expected to be out of action until November. As for Antony, Betis are reportedly working on his official signing from Manchester United - the club from which he spent an extremely successful half-season on loan as he served as Betis' primary driving force behind their climb up the league table.

That being said, the question has to be asked: is this team one which will genuinely be able to challenge for a top-four spot and thus Champions League qualification? The two clubs that finished ahead of Betis last season were Bilbao and Villarreal. It's possible that Bilbao's victory over Betis could end up being an outlier; this is because the club barely made any moves at all during the transfer window. The Basque club spent just €12.3 million on a total of three players; not only that, €12 million of that was on just one signing: Osasuna defender Jesús Areso.

More than likely, it's Villarreal that Betis will have to be more concerned about. Having sold several players for significant transfer fees, the club have been putting this transfer revenue to work, landing several notable signings including Santiago Mouriño, Renato Veiga, and Tajon Buchanan. Of course, once Isco returns and Antony officially returns to the club, things should start to turn for the better - but even then, Betis will probably need a strong mid-season transfer window to seriously push for a top-four spot.

Betis have been recently linked with players such as Dani Ceballos, Guido Rodríguez, and Facundo Bernal. Unfortunately, none of those players would really do all that much to move the needle. It's more than likely that if Betis are to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in 21 years, they'll need to make at least one major signing once January comes around.

Considering the fact that right now, Betis most struggle with one-on-one defending as well as keeping possession for extended periods, it would likely be advisable for them to invest in a defensive or a central midfielder in the coming transfer window. In addition, Isco will be coming off a fairly severe injury and at his age, there's no certainty that he'll be back the same as he was before. For that reason, Betis should probably bring in an attacking midfielder as well.

There's still a realistic path to Champions League qualification for Real Betis after having been in contention but never actually getting there for several years now. However, unless things change in mid-season, the chances of this aren't all too likely.

The Weekly Take, Issue 376: The Implosion Hits a New Depth

Last season, RB Leipzig finished seventh in the Bundesliga. It was Die Bullen's worst-ever league finish ever since earning promotion to Germany's top flight in 2017. This also meant that the 2025-26 season would be the first time since their Bundesliga debut season in 2017-18 that Leipzig would not be featuring in any continental-level tournament. On top of that, Leipzig finished a lowly 32nd of the 36 teams in last season's Champions League and lost all but one of their league phase matches.

Any thoughts that the Saxony-based club might turn things around this season were rapidly put on hold as the curtain-raiser of this Bundesliga season between Bayern Munich and Leipzig played out. To say that Bayern took Leipzig to the woodshed would be a severe understatement. This wasn't even remotely close as Bayern destroyed Leipzig 6-0 at the Allianz Arena - a result that not only sent out a clear statement to the rest of the Bundesliga that it would be a near-impossible task to unseat the reigning league champions, but also that Leipzig continue to be in freefall and have just hit a new low point.

Bayern had the match in the bag before the half-time break. Michael Olise's two first-half goals were split by another from new signing Luis Díaz who signed for Bayern from Liverpool in the off-season for €70 million. Díaz was set up by Serge Gnabry who also assisted Olise's second goal.

Early in the second half, Leipzig winger Antonio Nusa who had entered the match as a replacement for Yan Diomande during the interval took advantage of an error by Bayern centre-back Dayot Upamecano; however, Nusa's ensuing shot attempt went just wide. Later on, Nusa would have a goal waved off via VAR; these instances would be as close as Leipzig would get.

Then, about midway through the second half, reigning Bundesliga Player of the Season Harry Kane backed up that title with a hat-trick in a frenetic 14-minute span. Leipzig had absolutely no answer whatsoever for the Englishman who could very well be on his way to submitting another season worthy of a Ballon d'Or candidate - especially if England make a deep run at the upcoming 2026 World Cup.

As for Leipzig, it's difficult to say anything other than this result is likely a sign of things to come. During this past off-season, Leipzig spent €92 million on new signings; however, none of them are likely to make any significant impact. Additionally, Leipzig lost striker Benjamin Šeško to Manchester United.

This past off-season should've been one during which Leipzig overhauled their squad. Much of their decline last season was the result of the inadequate replacement of key players' departures as well as several current players now being past their prime. As a result, this current squad is now likely to finish nowhere near the Champions League qualification spots unless a stunning turnaround takes place.

On the surface, it does appear that Leipzig have taken note of the fact that players such as Péter Gulácsi, Willi Orbán, and Kevin Kampl, among others, are now clearly past their prime; all six players signed by Leipzig are aged 23 or younger. While this seems to be a step in the right direction, the reality is that it was "quantity over quality". Not one of the youngsters who just joined Leipzig are elite prospects expected to become a genuinely top-tier player.

Not long ago, Leipzig were viewed by many as the club with the best chance, remote as it may have been, of toppling Bayern. However, when the headliner of a so-called top club's arrivals is Rômulo from Göztepe - a mid-table Turkish Süper Lig club - it's obvious that the club has fallen a long way from where it was.

Leipzig hired Ole Werner as the club's new head coach during the off-season - their sixth in just five years. This instability in the dugout is certainly not helping the situation. Ever since the departure of Julian Nagelsmann in 2021 and the death of former owner Dietrich Mateschitz in 2022, Leipzig have been increasingly directionless - and now it all seems to be coming to a head.

RB Leipzig are now a shell of the team they were even just two years ago, let alone five. Unless something seriously changes soon, their chances of even finishing in the top 10 of the Bundesliga are highly unlikely.