School and football: Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka’s straight As in GCSE underline EPL’s holistic approach to developing youth players
Saka got four A*s (the highest grade) and three As in his GCSE examinations (for 15- or 16-year-olds in the UK) in 2018, and King, Miley and Hinshelwood all completed their A-Levels aged 18 while competing in the Premier League for their clubs.
Pundits agree Arsenal are ready to be EPL kings, but must score more goals from open play
Factor in that Arsenal have already visited Old Trafford, Anfield and St James’ Park and their start to the season becomes all the more impressive. This was yet another fixture in which Arsenal improved on their points tally last season. In 2024-25, Arsenal were twice pegged back in a game which ended as a 2-2 draw.
Ballon d’Or: Dembele was a scatter-brained boy wonder who did not even know which was his stronger foot
Inevitably, Dembele’s rapid rate of goal-scoring could not last forever, but what his goals lost in frequency, they more than made up for in importance. Against Liverpool in the Champions League last 16 and Arsenal in the semi-finals, he scored strikingly similar goals that showcased both his tactical intelligence and his newfound poacher’s instincts.
How new role, learning to love tap-ins and not ‘cheating’ propelled Ousmane Dembele to Ballon d’Or
Following Mbappe’s exit, Dembele had been assured by the PSG hierarchy that he would be “the leader of the attack”, according to a source close to the player. He was subsequently disappointed to discover that central midfielder Vitinha, and not he.
Ballon d’Or: Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Ousmane Dembele picked for prestigious award
Premier League champions Liverpool boast several names on the men’s shortlist. Virgil van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister, and Mohammed Salah are all in contention for the award, alongside new Liverpool signing Florian Wirtz (formerly Bayer Leverkusen)
Barcelona’s dazzling Lamine Yamal: Real Madrid’s players didn’t know that I have a right foot too
Lamine Yamal is able to improvise and use his left foot in so many different ways, including the ‘trivela’ – an outside-of-the-boot shot or pass that he executes brilliantly over a range of distances. Yamal uses that part of his foot with such precision that his technique doesn’t just negate the need to use his right,
