Don Robbie

Player Profile: Giovanni Reyna By Jonny Bray Giovanni Reyna is widely regarded as one of European football's most exciting young talents. The Borussia Dortmund and USA star was born in Sunderland and is the son of former Premier League player Claudio Reyna, who represented the Black Cats and Manchester City during his time in England back in the early to mid 2000s. But now, his son is lighting up German football, quickly rising from an unknown to one of Dortmund's most exciting prospects. With such a history of bringing through elite players, fans could be forgiven for getting extremely excited about the midfielder. But what do you need to know about the USA international? What has he done so far? Reyna has achieved a lot despite being just 19 years old. He made his Dortmund debut at the very start of 2020, becoming the youngest American, aged 17 years and 66 days, ever to appear in the Bundesliga, breaking a record previously set by Christian Pulisic. We've all seen the im...

Football stars set to shine in 2022  By Jonny Bray  One of the most exciting aspects of following the fantastic football played across Europe in 2021 was seeing the sport’s next big things begin to emerge. Now the calendars have been flipped, 2022 will provide a fresh opportunity for a host of young players to make an impact in European football. Several players had breakout years last time out and if you can be sure of one thing in 2022, it’s that once again there is an abundance of young talent ready to burst onto the scene. But which stars will shine brightest this year? Armando Broja Few players have made as surprising an impact in the Premier League this season as Southampton’s on-loan Chelsea striker Armando Broja. Little was known about the Albanian at the start of 2021 but he’s been making a lot of noise on the south coast since September. The youngster is deceptively quick, has superb dribbling skills and, most importantly, can score a wide array of goals from dif...

By Oli Dickson Jefford After a 2021 which saw the return of fans to stadiums, a Premier League side triumphing in the Champions League and a thrilling men’s Euros, all eyes are now on 2022. The Premier League and Champions League are in full swing and there will be back-to-back years with major tournaments with the World Cup in Qatar coming just months after a home Women's European Championships. It promises to be another thrilling year with twists and turns and a decent helping of drama, but just who will be lifting trophies? Here are our predictions for who will win the Premier League, men's Champions League and men’s World Cup this year. Premier League Until a few weeks ago it looked as if there would be a thrilling title race between Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea, However, with the latter two sides faltering in recent weeks, Man City have surged ahead and it is hard to see anyone catching them. Liverpool and Chelsea are still in touching distance, but with their sq...

  Is it time for Liverpool to sell Joe Gomez? By Jack Lacey-Hatton For so long last season the heart of defence was a major issue for Liverpool. This time 12 months ago, following a horrible injury to Virgil Van Djik, centre-half had become a weak spot for the Reds, who suffered a disappointing loss of form in January. But now Jurgen Klopp’s team once again has one of the strongest backlines in Europe, with a range of options in the middle of defence. The summer arrival of Ibrahima Konaté, has added depth to a squad that already boasted Joel Matip, and arguably the best-in-the-world, Van Djik. But the signing of Konaté, has also put Joe Gomez in a sticky position. The English defender has suffered numerous injury problems in recent seasons, and while he does look a force to be reckoned with when on the pitch, is it now time to review whether his services should be retained.  Both Real Madrid and Aston Villa are being linked with a move for him when the January window opens in ...

Who were the breakout footballers of 2021 By Jonny Bray A new group of young players have made a massive impact in every major league over the last 12 months. But who have been the breakout footballers of 2021? Whoever it is, they would have had to have made a significant impact considering the tough competition. The next generation certainly aren’t waiting their turn, and players born after 2000 are now stepping into the limelight as the world’s best. Emile Smith Rowe Emile Smith Rowe would have been very low on people’s lists of the most exciting young English talents at the start of this season. That couldn’t be further from the case now, with the Arsenal midfielder quickly becoming one of the most highly-rated players in the Premier League. He’s already tripled his goals tally for the previous campaign in four fewer appearances and has built a reputation as one of the most skilful dribblers in Europe. He may have broken into the team last season, but he was very much in Bukayo Saka...

Mid-week European preview of the Premier League clubs in action By Jack Lacey-Hatton  December is a busy time in the English football calendar for leagues up and down the country.    However, European action will take a winter break following this week, when the UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League group stages reach the final matchday.   The final qualifiers for the UCL round of 16 will be decided, while the Europa and Conference League groups will also wrap up.   Let’s look at the Premier League clubs flying the flag across the continent over the next few days and see which teams still need a result.     UEFA Champions League    As is increasingly becoming the norm in the Champions League, all four English clubs have safely navigated the group stage, even with one matchday still to play.   Manchester City , the first PL side in European action this week, travel to Germany on Tuesday to face RB Leipzig (5.45...