Hail GFOP!

Rog writes: What a weekend. Liverpool, “How the turntables…” Late goals are the new trend in football, and everyone is doing them now. Chelsea fans, I hope you savored every second in the same way a relieved Enzo Maresca did, running down that sideline like a bald, Italian Forest Gump. Arsenal fans are screaming “Stop the count!” after a much-needed routine win that felt sensational in its own right. Also, no one thunders up to 10th place louder than Manchester United, and Tottenham become the first away team to win a league game at Elland Road for 385 days and are third place. Everton… I will get to you in one moment.

ii. Chelsea’s victory was courageous and stunning, and achieved with one center-back after another leaving the field, and Cole Palmer never leaving his puffa-jacket, which appears to swell bigger every time he is in the camera shot. The Stamford Bridge faithful have a new hero, 18-year-old Estêvão. The much-coveted teen, already nicknamed “Steve,” changed the game with his electric fearlessness once he subbed on in the 75th minute. The Blues had planned to ease him in slowly, but he has adapted to the Premier League with a buccaneering ease. This angle of his goal is a human delight. 💙

iii. Shell-shock for Liverpool who looked discombobulated all over the park — from a midfield who suddenly lack control, to Salah who seems lost without Trent swarming behind him and shorn of his accuracy. Virgil van Dijk shared something harrowing postgame, “I’ve said repeatedly that this season will be tough,” he said. “It was always going to be ups and downs for multiple reasons that we shouldn’t forget, and all we have to do is stick together.” We often forget these footballers are human, playing amidst grief and sorrow. Grief can at times focus you, but grief can also very much at times tear you apart.  

So much now depends on Slot to work out the complex tactical and psychological solutions. I did not understand why he did not shut the game down late and take the point. The risk of defeat, an agony that came true. @Goldfinch from our Discord, one of many voices starting to revise last season’s achievement: “Unpopular opinion, but Arne Slot inherited a team that was 95% there, and the fresh face and the Man City collapse got them the 5% over the line. Now that Slot actually has to bed in new players and Premier League teams will be analyzing Liverpool's games frame by frame, we will get a lot better view of what Slot is really made of as a manager.” I don’t agree with this, but look forward to hearing Rory talk about it on the pod today. ♥️

More: On Liverpool’s woes.

iv. Manchester United had a routine win they ached for. I liked Ruben Amorim’s postgame comments, “We know what happens when we win one game,” he sighed. “The frustration is not to see the same team at home and away.” Man will not get fooled again. 📈

v. Antoine Semenyo is magic. Remember when you watch him run through the entire Fulham backline and deliver victory for the Golden War Cherries, who are fourth, this is a player whom Bristol City found in the South Gloucestershire and Stroud College academy at the age of 17. He had been rejected by Arsenal, Spurs and Millwall as a kid. Bristol City loaned him to Bath, Newport and Sunderland before he broke through in 2020. This is a man who fought his way out of the lost-and-found, that is the true inspiration. I am talking to Tyler Adams today and can’t wait to hear his experience of the Semenyo-naissance. 🍒

vi. This Harry Kane goal is erotic. 🥵

vii. EVERTON JOY? I know it’s a trap. But to beat Crystal Palace, who are a formidable football team on Europe’s longest unbeaten streak, was humanly so nourishing. We were booed off at halftime. We came back with Beto and Alcaraz-inspired fight and a Jack Grealish 93rd-minute winner. Moyes out-tacticing Glasner, and the Hill Dickinson remaining undefeated – these are the small pleasures in life I cling onto now. That, and Grealish clearly being an angel sent from heaven to save us. The only rational explanation possible. 😇

viii. As we head into another international break, follow along all week on VAMOS – our brand new Hispanic-American vertical focused on CONCACAF – where we have daily content coming from those incredibly passionate souls at the Give N Go. I'll also be joined by the one-of-a-kind Herc Gomez where we'll preview the USMNT's upcoming fixtures, which will be released on Thursday. And on Friday, we'll have a new episode of The Captain with our friend Tyler Adams, as well as The Deuce LIVE with Clint Dempsey immediately after the U.S. and Ecuador game. It's a big week. Come be with us as we break it all down. 🍻

ix. I finally went to see “One Battle After Another.” It was stunning, like an entire Premier League season lived out inside three hours. When Benicio del Toro’s magical Sergio St. Carlos bellowed “Courage,” I almost shouted out loud right there in the theater.

Courage,
ROG

MiB HQ Bulletin Board 📣

Chelsea Make It Three Straight Ls for Liverpool 💙 

By Tommy Stewart

Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool 🔵🔴

Moisés Caicedo caused an eruption in the 14th minute at Stamford Bridge when he unleashed a goal-of-the-season contender from outside the penalty area against Liverpool’s No. 2 goalkeeper, Giorgi Mamardashvili, who can be commended for simply managing to get a fingernail to the ball. Chelsea’s squad depth thrived, and their makeshift side exploited the champions’ identity crisis at fullback as Neto and Garnacho regularly bested Bradley and Kerkez down both flanks. Alexander Isak’s deft touch to assist Cody Gakpo after a flurry of Liverpool chances midway through the second half was enough to give Arne Slot’s men an avenue back into the game, but momentum was with the Blues. As is the way in the Premier League this season, 18-year-old Estêvão finished later than late at the back post in the 95th, delivering his first Chelsea goal and Liverpool their third consecutive loss in the process.

Moisés Caicedo: The Premier League’s Best Midfielder? 🤔

It’s not just Caicedo’s thunder-bastard finish that will live on in highlight reels and Premier League promo packages for the foreseeable that’s earned the Ecuadorian his flowers. His dominance of midfield in this game and almost every one he’s played in this season can be best interpreted by the fact he’s had three Player of the Match awards so far, which is more than anyone else in the league. Caicedo's a true box-to-box, all-action midfielder, not just scoring clutch goals, but making more tackles and more interceptions than any other player in the Premier League so far in 2025/26. Depending on who you support, a case can be made for Declan Rice, Rodri (when fit) or Ryan Gravenberch as the league’s best central midfielder, but based on the stats and aesthetics, right now it’s tough to argue against Caicedo’s status at the top.

Liverpool’s Losing Streak 📉

After three losses in eight days, it’s becoming more apparent with each game how pivotal the prioritization of signing Isak over Marc Guéhi at the transfer window’s twilight hour could be. Both Isak and Florian Wirtz, who’s only 22, are sure to come good for Slot’s side, but along with missing out on the Crystal Palace captain, is the issue of sheer confusion along the backline. The safety and regularity of Trent Alexander-Arnold is clearly missed, while Andy Robertson ages and Kerkez looks a shade of the player we saw at Bournemouth. Slot won’t panic with his side only a point behind Arsenal, but he may regret not digging deeper to invest more into the basis of any great team, the defense.

Arsenal Go Top Heading Into the Intl. Break 📈

Arsenal 2-0 West Ham

Arsenal captain, Martin Ødegaard, feels cursed currently, and it was hard not to be heartbroken by the visceral dismay he displayed before being substituted off after another injury in the first half against West Ham on Saturday. It’s lucky his midfield partner, Declan Rice, is able to shoulder the load, including scoring goals when the moment requires as he did 10 minutes after the Norwegian came off. He just about resisted the urge to celebrate the relative tap-in against his former club, which was the result of a parried shot from Eberechi Eze, the rare player who may actually be able to replace Ødegaard’s unquantifiable class. Bukayo Saka later converted a penalty and, at 24, became the seventh-youngest player in Premier League history to hit 100 goal contributions. Thanks to him, Arteta can rest his lego-haired head over the international break with his side checks notes at the top of the Premier League. 

Leeds 1-2 Tottenham

The solid familial foundations Thomas Frank has quickly built in this Spurs squad were clear when Mathys Tel came into the team and knocked home a powerful deflected shot in the 23rd minute at Elland Road on Saturday. He was disappointed, but “respected” his manager’s decision to omit him from Spurs’ Champions League squad, and rather than sulking, the 20-year-old scored a statement goal in his return to the team. That was soon nullified when Brenden Aaronson’s shot was kindly popped back into Noah Okafor’s path by Vicario, who almost could have been forgiven for confusing the match ball with the inflatable beach ball that simultaneously threatened his net. New signings Xavi Simons and the relentless Mohammed Kudus were like janitors trying to open a door with a keychain, coming close but not finding the right one until the latter was rewarded in the rainy second half with his first goal for Spurs. Under Frank, Tottenham have the league’s joint-second best defensive record and are grinding out results in all competitions, making “Spursy” feel like a thing of the past.

Manchester United 2-0 Sunderland

The fall of Mason Mount has been a cocktail of misfortune, with both the decline of Manchester United and his hapless injury record combining to lose him his once guaranteed place in the England squad, so the vision of him celebrating a well-worked early goal in front of the Stretford End on Saturday was joyous. Between Amad and Mbeumo, United were a force down Sunderland’s left-hand side, cutting in regularly to take more pops at Robin Roefs’ goal than Taylor Swift’s had at Charli XCX on her new album. Sunderland’s goalkeeper performed miracles for his side on Saturday, but he could do little to prevent Benjamin Šeško’s striker's goal™️ in the six-yard box that came as a result of a very fashionable Diogo Dalot long throw. The second half was quiet, which Ruben Amorim will be absolutely fine with, but what will have pleased him most is the undramatic performance of debutant goalkeeper, Senne Lammens, who delighted United fans by simply... catching crosses. Since losing to Arsenal on the opening day, United have slowly started constructing a fortress at Old Trafford again, winning all three league games there in the process.

Elsewhere in the Premier League: Everton 2-1 Crystal Palace, Brentford 0-1 Manchester City, Bournemouth - Fulham, Aston Villa 2-1 Burnley, Wolves 1-1 Brighton, Newcastle 2-0 Nottingham Forest

Score Tickets to FIFA World Cup 26™ with Verizon

FIFA World Cup 26™ starts in just 249 days and this is your chance to experience it in all its North American glory, thanks to our friends at Verizon. They’ve teamed up with David Beckham and an all-star roster of talent to launch Verizon Ultimate Access for FIFA World Cup 26™. Verizon customers will have access to thousands of free FIFA World Cup 26™ tickets, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to win “Golden Tickets” for access on the field during game play, meet and greets and more on the road to the tournament. Come make football memories that will last a lifetime.

👉 Switch to Verizon for your chance to score tickets!

Some Absolute Weekend Worldies, Presented by New Balance 🚀 🥅

There were a lot of great goals this weekend, but these three get top marks:

On the Continent 🇪🇺

🇮🇹 Serie A: Rasmus Højlund is living his best life at Napoli, free from the shackles of Old Trafford, scoring his third goal in two games in a 2-1 win against Genoa yesterday to put Antonio Conte’s side back at the top of Serie A with resurgent Roma tied on points in second. Meanwhile, AC Milan fell to third after Christian Pulisic missed a penalty in his side’s 0-0 draw with fifth-placed Juventus.

🇪🇸 La Liga: Barcelona didn’t just blink before the international break, they slept, losing 4-1 away to Sevilla, their first loss to the sixth-placed side since 2021, with Marcus Rashford’s sweet left-footed volley their only consolation yesterday. Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid sunk the Yellow Submarine, Villarreal, 3-1 at home putting them back at the top of La Liga, while their surging neighbors, Atlético Madrid, could only manage a 1-1 draw at Celta Vigo to go fifth.

🇩🇪 Bundesliga: Luis Díaz enjoyed a much better weekend than his former club Liverpool, scoring a brace in Bayern Munich’s 3-0 away win at Eintracht Frankfurt, extending their Bundesliga lead to four points over closest challengers, Borussia Dortmund. It won’t surprise anyone that the world’s most in-form striker, Harry Kane, was responsible for Bayern’s other goal, becoming the first Bundesliga player to ever score 11 times in the first six games of a season.

A Mid-Week Match Worth Faking a Meeting for 📺

England vs. Wales (Thursday, 2:45 p.m. ET, FOX Sports/FS1) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Thomas Tuchel’s England finally clicked in their last match, a 5-0 away thumping of Serbia in a World Cup qualifier, which pretty much secured their ticket to the USA next year. His goal is not to future-proof, it’s simply to win the World Cup, so this friendly against neighbors Wales serves as an opportunity for the mad professor to experiment with his squad, which in its omissions has raised more eyebrows than a Carlo Ancelotti lookalike contest. Jack Grealish, Phil Foden, Luke Shaw, Adam Wharton, and most surprisingly Jude Bellingham have missed out, while Jordan Henderson and Ruben Loftus-Cheek remain, with Tuchel’s disregard for ego at the forefront of his selection policy.

Some Non-Football to Start the Week Off 📖

• Have an extra $2,000? The Dinosaur Sale Is Not a Joke.

• The human stain remover: what Britain’s greatest extreme cleaner learned from 25 years on the job. Body fluids? No prob. A severed arm? Piece of cake. A 20-ton whale carcass? Why not!

• Much more than just a listicle: The 25 Most Influential Magazine Covers of All Time.

• Adding "volcano-induced cord collapse" to my list of anxieties: Extremely offline: what happened when a Pacific island was cut off from the internet.

• Our Favorite Home Offices. Need these people to set up a WeWork-type rental situation for their workspaces.

It’s MiB Trivia Time 🤔

This week’s question: Who scored for Manchester United when they beat Sunderland 1-0 on May 13, 2012 before Sergio Agüero’s iconic finish in the final seconds of Manchester City’s game against QPR snatched the title from them?

Email us with your answer for a chance to win a much-coveted MiB patch!

Last week’s winner: Congratulations to Ben Gladding, who was the first to correctly identify that Koke just joined Sergio Ramos with the joint most appearances in the Madrid derby with 43. The patch is in the post, Ben. 🚚

Seeking impartial news? Meet 1440.

Every day, 3.5 million readers turn to 1440 for their factual news. We sift through 100+ sources to bring you a complete summary of politics, global events, business, and culture, all in a brief 5-minute email. Enjoy an impartial news experience.

Join for free today!