The inaugural Nations League finally kicked off in September, but even now the complicated format has left many confused. WGM breaks down this intriguing new competition. England defender Harry Maguire was as baffled as the rest of the squad with...
Author - Leanne Lu
Safe hands, high cost
Quality goalkeepers and defenders are becoming increasingly important in the battle for football supremacy, as evidenced by the world record transfer fee for a goalkeeper being broken three times this summer. Weeks after Alisson Becker...
Better safe than sorry
Just as red and yellow cards have become commonplace since being introduced to the World Cup in 1970, the use of the new Video Assistant Referee (VAR) is set to grow in the future after a highly successful debut at the recent World Cup in...
Zidane: He came, he saw, he conquered
Legendary players like Ryan Giggs, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard have all stepped into managerial roles in recent seasons, but it is unlikely they will ever match the feats of Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid with the Frenchman’s Champions League...
WGM’s World Cup Guide – Group H
Group H Poland When we talk about Poland, one name instantly jumps to mind: Robert Lewandowski. As one of the best strikers the football world has ever seen, Lewandowski sometimes carries the whole country’s hopes. He scored 16 goals in World Cup...
WGM’s World Cup Guide – Group G
Group G Panama Román Torres’s name will forever be ingrained in Panama’s football history. During the final qualifying match, the national hero scored their most important ever goal to claim victory against Costa Rica with three minutes left...
WGM’s World Cup Guide – Group F
Group F South Korea South Korea doesn’t have a convincing qualification campaign behind them to raise people’s expectations. In the decisive third round, South Korea drew three and lost three of its 10 matches including a shock loss to...
WGM’s World Cup Guide – Group E
Group E Serbia After eight years of failing to make it to a major championship, Serbia qualified for Russia 2018 by topping their group at the expense of teams like Wales. This is just their second World Cup appearance since becoming an independent...
Players to watch
WGM takes a look at the 10 players ready to light up the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Mohamed Salah (Egypt) Nobody envisaged the truly phenomenal season former Roma and Chelsea striker Mohamed Salah would enjoy after joining Liverpool last...
Who will fly highest for Asia in Russia?
The 2002 World Cup, co-hosted by Korea and Japan, still represents the best results by Asian teams in the prestigious tournament, with Korea having reached the semi-finals before being knocked out by Germany. In Brazil in 2014, all four Asian teams...
Mo Salah: record breaker
Mohamed Salah has quickly established himself as an all-time fan favorite at Anfield, carrying the baton passed on by players like Kenny Dalglish, Robbie Fowler, Fernando Torres and Luis Suarez. Orthodox wingers aren’t usually associated with...
On borrowed time
Arsène Wenger started with a bang at Arsenal, but after more than a decade of mediocre results it looks like his time in charge of the famous London club is coming to an end. The 2017/2018 Premier League season runs until May and in the remaining...
Decline of the “Roman Empire”
Antonio Conte predicted this season would be “the most difficult season in my career” before a ball was even kicked. Now, with Chelsea struggling on all frontiers and in real danger of missing next season’s Champions League, the Italian seems...
Chasing the dream
In the end, Liverpool had no other choice but to let star midfielder Philippe Countinho complete his dream move to Barcelona – but in the process they achieved the third highest transfer fee of all time. Standing in the middle of Camp Nou...
Ronaldo’s raging inferno
In December, Cristiano Ronaldo – the greatest Portuguese player of all time – collected his fifth Ballon d’Or in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, equaling the record set by his long-time rival Lionel Messi. Aged 32, the story of Cristiano...
England’s young guns on the rise
Four youth championship wins is unprecedented for English football but is exactly the return the nation’s long-suffering fans have enjoyed in 2017. After years of disappointment, is there finally some light at the end of the tunnel for the Three...
The miracle of Iceland
When Lars Lagerbäck, the legendary Nordic coach, took over the national team of Iceland in 2011, he declared his intention to take the tiny nation to the European Cup, a promise he duly fulfilled last summer in France. He was also confident enough...
Transfer window woes
The final days of the summer transfer window proved to be somewhat of an anti-climax with the most anticipated big money deals falling through in the end. Although Premier league clubs spent £1.4 billion on players during the transfer window –...
Football’s big bang
As recently as July this year, Brazilian superstar Neymarʼs mooted transfer from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain looked impossible. Aside from his allegiance with the Catalan club and that lethal partnership with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez...
Ibrahimovic: I came, I said, I conquered
Twelve months in England’s Premier League was all Zlatan Ibrahimović needed to make a lasting impression. And although a knee injury cut his time there short, it’s unlikely European football has seen the last of this remarkable player. I came...
Premier League welcomes summer transfer frenzy
This article first appeared in the July 2017 issue of WGM. This summer’s Premier League transfer window is shaping up as the craziest ever seen for the world’s most popular football competition. When Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich took...
Conte winning the war
This article first appeared in the May 2017 issue of WGM. Having been touted as the battle of the super managers before the start of the current Premier League season, it is Chelsea’s Antonio Conte that has shone brightest with his Blues side...
Seamus Coleman the latest victim of violence
Seamus Coleman, the Republic of Ireland captain and one of Everton’s best defenders for a decade, became the latest victims of a vicious tackle when he suffered fractures to his tibia and fibula in the weekend’s World Cup qualifier between...
Arsene Wenger’s growing dilemma
Arsenal’s manager Arsene Wenger has likely never before experienced the level of criticism he has in recent weeks. Although his long relationship with the Gunners has had its ups and downs, it is now at crisis point following Arsenal’s...
Mourinho: Judas is number one
Jose Mourinho’s second trip back to Stamford Bridge since being sacked in December 2015 ended in another painful loss following Manchester United’s earlier 4-0 loss to Chelsea in October, going down 1-0 in the FA Cup semi-final against...
Wenger’s complex nears breaking point
There have been very few coaches in recent memory who have divided opinion quite like Arsene Wenger. Many of the Arsenal faithful admire him for the persistence he has demonstrated in managing his club in such a fiscally responsible manner given the...
Red Devils looking to re-sign Ibra
In the modern age of football where professional players must maintain extremely high levels of fitness, most have well and truly begun to slow down by the time they reach 35. Even the truly elite – such as Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard –...
FA Cup magic
The English FA Cup fifth round produced some jaw-dropping moments over the weekend, showing why the nation’s premier Cup competition still waves a magic wand despite the growing commercialization of the world’s top leagues. Lincoln City...
Chelsea march towards title unchallenged
Chelsea marksman Diego Costa’s transfer saga has seemingly come to an end, for the time being at least, as the Blues continue their charge towards another Premier League title. Amid rumors of being punished by manager Antonio Conte due to the...
Ronaldo crowned football’s best
Cristiano Ronaldo has been crowned the world’s best player at the inaugural FIFA “The Best” Awards in Zurich – adding another glitzy title to his rapidly growing resume. It was a magnificent year for the Portugal and Real Madrid superstar...