Opinion

At the last European Championships, Wales were shock semi-finalists, only for a 2-0 defeat against Portugal in the last four to end their valiant run. One of the stars of that tournament for Wales was Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale.

One of the talking points over the international break has been the future of Everton boss Marco Silva. Many Evertonian’s believed that the Portuguese boss’ time had run out on Merseyside after four straight defeats saw the team slip into the relegation zone.

At the beginning of the Bundesliga season, Dortmund looked like they were ready to once again challenge Bayern Munich for the title German top-flight title.

In the last decade, the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have dominated the European game, racking up unbelievable goalscoring numbers every season.

Manchester United is, without doubt, one of the biggest football clubs in the world game. The club recently posted record financial returns off the pitch. However, on the pitch, things are a mess.

Roberto Firmino has been Liverpool’s best player this season, hands down. That is a big claim with the ways in which Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah are playing.

It seems that everything is coming up Timo Werner at the moment. The Germany international has started the season in sensational form.

Wolverhampton Wanderers enjoyed a tremendous return to the Premier League last season.  Many pundits were tipping them to finish in the top half of the table but not many thought they would qualify for European football.

On Saturday evening, the Premier League saw one of the most improbable results of the season, as injury-stricken Norwich pulled off a 3-2 home win over reigning champions Manchester City.

Tottenham have become a regular in the Premier League top-four in recent years. Mauricio Pochettino’s team also made it to the Champions League final last season, where they, of course, lost to English top-flight rivals, Liverpool.

RB Leipzig entered a new era in the offseason. New manager Julian Nagelsmann took over at the Red Bull Arena after three seasons at Hoffenheim. At 32, Nagelsmann’s appointment as head coach of RB Leipzig was a major step up thanks to the finances and expectations at the club.

We are in the midst of qualification for the 2020 European Championship.

Raheem Sterling has become one of the most potent attacking players in world football under the guidance of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

We are already 10% of the way through the new Premier League season, and while the usual suspects are going about their business, there are also some fresh faces making an impact.

It has not been the start to the season Manchester United were hoping for.  The 4-0 win over Chelsea on the opening weekend was full of promise but the team have failed to push on since then and deliver in the Premier League.

For what seems like forever, Everton have looked a team capable of breaking into the Premier League top-six. The Toffees have a fantastic history and now have decent financial backing from Billionaire owner Farhad Moshiri.

The race for the Spanish top-flight title is usually pretty straightforward. Big two Barcelona and Real Madrid fight it out for the title, with more often than not the Catalan giants coming out on top in the last decade. Atletico Madrid have also punched above their financial weight at the top of La Liga too.

One of the more surprising moves of the Premier League transfer deadline day was Nigerian international Alex Iwobi’s big-money switch to Everton. The deal could cost the Toffees around £35million with add-ons.

Following an eye-catching start to life at Arsenal, fans have been drawing comparisons between new signing Dani Ceballos and ex-Gunners favorite and fellow Spaniard Santi Cazorla.

Everton were seen as one of the realistic contenders for a top-six spot in the Premier League this season. However, after Friday’s terrible display in a 2-0 defeat at Aston Villa, the Toffees look anything but top-six contenders.