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United States international Chris Richards may be about to change position for club and country, with the natural defender being moved up the field.

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American forged reputation at centre-halfSlotted into midfield against West HamHappy to play wherever he is requiredWHAT HAPPENED?

The 23-year-old has forged his reputation as a centre-half, allowing him to spend time with FC Dallas, Bayern Munich and Crystal Palace. He has earned 14 caps for the USMNT in a defensive berth, but is being nudged into midfield by Eagles boss Roy Hodgson and put in a Man of the Match performance during a 1-1 Premier League draw with West Ham.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT RICHARDS SAID

Richards has told Palace’s of filling an expected role – in what was just his sixth start in the English top-flight: “I wasn’t expecting it, but I just want to be on the pitch – so whatever it takes! It was something! It was a bit more defensive than anything, so I enjoyed that aspect, but I just liked being on the pitch and getting a point. There’s a bit of similarity [to centre-back]. I’m just not used to the ball going over my head like that, so that was something that took a bit of getting used to, but I enjoyed it. I was kind of surprised to play it, but I feel like I did pretty well.”

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Richards was deployed in midfield after seeing Jeffrey Schlupp withdrawn from the Palace squad due to personal reasons. He completed the second-most tackles (five), interceptions (two) and clearances (four) of any player on the pitch and said on social media of being recognised as the Eagles’ star performer: “Proud to be voted yalls man of the match yesterday. Let’s get the 3 points on Wednesday.”

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR RICHARDS?

Hodgson said of seeing Richards thrive in an unfamiliar position: “He must be very pleased with his performance as a central midfield player, albeit that he is, by trade, more of a centre-half.” The Alabama native will be hoping to retain his starting berth for back-to-back home dates against Bournemouth and Liverpool.

To cap off a week headlined by an incoming superstar, this weekend's matches showed just how far his new club has left to go

In some ways, it feels almost trivial to talk about games after a week like this. Lionel Messi, perhaps the best player the sport has ever seen, is coming to Inter Miami. The easy thing to do would be to take this column, put 'MLS' as one giant winner and call it a day.

But it isn't that simple, is it? There were some massive games this week. One of the most notable featured Inter Miami, who showed just how much ground the club will have to make up even with the Argentinian genius on his way.

It was another loss for Miami, as they couldn't ride the Messi wave to a win in New England. While the club is thriving on social media, the on-field results remain horrendous. Messi's arrival can't come soon enough.

Meanwhile, another Argentina-born maestro stole the show with a Goal of the Year, and perhaps Puskas Award, contender. It was a reminder of the talent that is already in this league, even if the focus is all on the one man that will undoubtedly lift MLS into a new stratosphere in the months and years to come.

With that said, here's a look at the winners and losers from this weekend's games:

WINNER: Lucas Zelarayan

While one Argentina-born maestro stole the headlines this week, another scored a legitimate Goal of the Year contender as dazzling as any goal the World Cup winner has ever scored.

Level with the Chicago Fire in stoppage-time, Lucas Zelarayan scored an absolutely unimaginable winner. Receiving the ball in his own half, the Armenia international looked up, saw the goalkeeper and went for the chip, scoring from a mile away to seal all three points.

The goal was officially measured at 60.98 yards and was Zelarayan's second 50+-yard goal of his MLS career. It's a reminder of the type of magic he can create.

His celebration was Messi-esque, as he took off his shirt and displayed his name to the crowd. "I didn't know what to do," Zelarayan said. "I was so, so excited and I took my shirt off. I saw that celebration before and, yes, I was so excited. I did that because I was out of my mind."

The league may be eagerly awaiting Messi's arrival, and for good reason, but there are some pretty damn good No.10s running around MLS, and Zelarayan continues to show why he may be the most spectacular of the bunch as he provided another highlight-reel goal.

AdvertisementInter MiamiLOSER: Inter Miami

It's hard to put them in this category given their absolutely league-altering signing midweek. But this is an on-field column, and there's a lot to say about what's going on on the field with Inter Miami.

Once Messi's decision became public, his long-time friend and former team-mate Sergio Aguero revealed a funny story. He'd texted Messi once the news became public, letting him know that his new club wasn't exactly in a good place.

“I spoke to Messi yesterday," he told . "I sent him a message with a screenshot of the Eastern Conference standings and I said: ‘Your team is behind! You have to move up to eighth or ninth!’”

Another week, another loss for Inter Miami, though. Messi's going to have a lot of work to do. The latest defeat was a 3-1 battering at the hands of the New England Revolution, one which kept Miami at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. As things stand, Miami are seven points out of a playoff spot. Even in MLS, that's a lot of ground to make up.

Adding injury to insult, the club also picked up another injury, as Corentin Jean went down in the loss. You can add him to the club's extensive injury list, another starter that looks set to miss time.

The question isn't whether or not Messi can lift Miami to an MLS Cup, but rather if Messi can even lift Inter Miami to the playoffs. On-field success wasn't the only thing that brought Messi to South Beach, but it appears this club will need even more than the Argentine if he wants to lift some trophies in the near future.

Getty ImagesWINNER: Alan Pulido

Pulido deserves this moment. After missing nearly all of 2022 due to injury and watching his side struggle mightily out of the gate to start 2023, Pulido is well and truly back.

He struggled to find his form initially but, after this weekend, Pulido is back to his old self, scoring twice and assisting another in a 4-1 win over Austin FC. That's now back-to-back games with a goal for Pulido, and 10 points from four games for a Sporting KC team that has emerged from their early-season mess.

Pulido burst onto the scene with 11 goal contributions in his first 12 matches, but has never quite looked the same. He had eight goals and three assists in 2021 before an injury derailed his 2022 campaign. Sporting KC has missed him, dearly, as the club has lacked his presence up top.

The Mexican star is back, though, and so is Sporting KC. With just one loss in eight games after zero wins in their first 10, the vibes have completely turned around at Children's Mercy Park and, if Pulido can perform like this, everything will be just fine for Sporting KC.

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Getty ImagesLOSER: LAFC

A bad, bad week for LAFC. A loss to Leon in the CONCACAF Champions League final, a midweek draw with Atlanta and then a 4-0 drubbing at the hands of the Houston Dynamo. It's safe to say the CCL hangover is in full effect.

Head coach Steve Cherundolo put it bluntly: "Didn't show up to play tonight and just got beat." He's certainly right. The Dynamo beat the breaks off the defending MLS Cup champions, who put in the flattest performance we've seen from them in some time. The Dynamo have played some decent soccer this season, but they shouldn't be doing to LAFC. No team in MLS should.

We'll chalk it up to a CCL hangover. We'll say heads dipped after their continental loss, and we'll say that this loss will be the perfect wake-up call. LAFC will probably be just fine – they're too good not to be.

Still, though, they wouldn't be the first team to see their gas tanks emptied in CCL play. They wouldn't be the first team to never quite refuel, underachieving on tired legs after a deep run in continental play. Toronto FC (2018) and the Seattle Sounders (2022) were both victims of it; it's fair to ask if LAFC may be next.

It's certainly something to keep an eye on. Is this a one-off or a sign of slowing down for a team that has played a lot of soccer over the last year or so?

GOAL breaks down what the USWNT must do to finish atop Group E and what it will mean going forward on their road to the final

The United States women's national team's expectation is always to win its World Cup group. There's no ifs, buts or maybes with this. They're the most dominant force this competition has ever seen. Finishing atop the group is a minimum for a team that is among the favorites to win the World Cup every four years.

But, heading into their final group game of this tournament, there is a very real chance that the U.S. does not finish on top of Group E. And there's even a tiny, minuscule chance of a doomsday scenario that sees the two-time defending champions crash out altogether. It feels unfathomable, for sure, but stranger things have happened, right?

If they don't win the group, the USWNT will make some unfortunate history. They've finished top in seven of their eight World Cup appearances, with Sweden in 2011 the only team to finish ahead of the U.S. in a group stage. The U.S. famously went on to lose the World Cup final that summer, falling to Japan on penalty kicks.

Still, the U.S. is still in a position where they very well can win this group, which also features Vietnam, the Netherlands and Portugal. They beat Vietnam 3-0 and then drew with the Netherlands in a scrappy 1-1 clash. That draw ensured it would all come down to the final day. Nothing will be decided until the final whistle blows in that match against Portugal.

So what's at stake for the USWNT? How will their road to the World Cup final be impacted by finishing first or second? And what if, somehow, Portugal pull off the unthinkable and hand the USWNT a historic defeat? GOAL takes a look at all of the scenarios and what they mean for the USWNT…

Getty ImagesUSWNT win

This one is somewhat easy at the start: if the USWNT win, they're getting out of the group. Phase one would be complete. Bring on the knockouts. However, their place in the group would be very much determined by what goes on elsewhere.

Heading into the last game, the USWNT is level with the Netherlands on points, but maintain a two-goal lead in goal difference. Therefore, if the USWNT win, the Netherlands would need to beat Vietnam by at least two more goals than the USWNT top Portugal by.

Should the Netherlands draw, the U.S. would go through as winners with a win of their own. And should Vietnam stun the Netherlands and win, the Dutch would still go through second thanks to the USWNT's help.

AdvertisementGettyUSWNT draw

This one is also straightforward, as a draw would be enough to get them through to the knockouts as well. However, it would almost certainly not be enough for them to win the group.

The U.S. would need Vietnam to get a result against the Netherlands to have any hope of finishing top. A draw in the other game would see the U.S. finish atop the group while a Vietnam win would open the door for Portugal to finish second despite their opening-game defeat.

Overall, a draw would be enough, but it certainly wouldn't be the result the USWNT would want as they look to build momentum towards the knockouts.

GettyUSWNT loss

And here it is: The doomsday scenario. A loss to Portugal would leave the U.S. solely relying on the other game. Portugal will advance, for sure, bu that second spot would go down to the U.S. or Netherlands.

The Dutch would claim that spot with just a draw, while a Netherlands loss would open up a goal-difference battle that would be in the USWNT's favor.

Either way, this would be nothing less than a catastrophe for the USWNT.

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GettyThe road ahead

Advancing is the end goal, sure, but there will be a big difference depending on where the USWNT finish.

Should the U.S. win the group, they'd open up the knockouts, almost certainly, with a somewhat favorable matchup against Italy, South Africa or Argentina. After that would be Switzerland or Spain, with La Roja the favorites to be the USWNT's quarter-final opponent despite their chastening 4-0 loss to Japan on Monday.

If the USWNT finishes second, though, they'd almost certainly face Sweden in the last 16, who has been dominant in their two games so far, while the potential quarter-final opponents would be the impressive Japan or a resurgent Norway.

There's almost certainly no avoiding Spain or Japan, but finishing atop the group would give the U.S. a more favorable last-16 clash as they look to march to the final. But that's not the only reason folks back in the U.S. should care about where the U.S. finishes…

Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes joked he wasn't impressed by Alejandro Garnacho's wondergoal against Everton, which earned him Man of the Match.

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Garnacho scores screamer vs EvertonBut Fernandes unimpressedJoked Argentine didn't deserve MOTMWHAT HAPPENED?

The Argentina starlet scored a Puskas winner-worthy bicycle kick in the opening stages of Sunday's Premier League fixture. Garnacho rose acrobatically to scissor home Diogo Dalot's overhit cross, before a Marcus Rashford penalty and a customary Anthony Martial strike sealed a comfortable 3-0 victory over the Toffees. The goal earned the young forward MOTM courtesy of – although captain Fernandes didn't quite see it that way.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT FERNANDES SAID

Asked about his thoughts on Garnacho's wonderstrike, the Portugal midfielder joked: "Ah, so-so! I'll give him a good note just for the goal. But that's because he knows I have big expectations for him. He's not a great player yet, but he has a big future ahead. We expect a lot from him. He knows that, even more from me – I'll always be behind him asking for more. Amazing goal though."

Fernandes also offered a sly dig when asked to present the Argentine with the MOTM award, adding: "I don't think he deserves but okay…"

GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Garnacho's strike is only his first Premier League goal of the season after an inconsistent start, as both manager Erik ten Hag and United supporters will hope this can kickstart a solid run of form in the first team. It certainly set the tone for what turned out to be a comfortable victory at Goodison Park, though, as Ten Hag's side proved they could stand firm against a virulent atmosphere and win despite multiple injury setbacks.

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GettyWHAT NEXT FOR UNITED?

Both Fernandes and Garnacho will hope to feature when the Red Devils travel to Galatasary on Wednesday in what is a crunch match for their Champions League aspirations. Both teams sit outside the automatic qualification spots in Group A – United in rock bottom – meaning Ten Hag's side need nothing less than three points if they are to stay in the hunt for a place in the knock-outs.

The salaries of star men within the U.S. game was released on Wednesday, with a number of household names among the top earners

The Major League Soccer Players Association (MLSPA) has released its salary guide for 2019. 

As expected, Zlatan Ibrahimovic's new deal with the LA Galaxy has seen him vastly improve his wages from a year ago, and while his move up the list is not a shock, there were a few surprises along the way. 

See for youself below, as Goal runs through the 10 highest-earners in MLS from top to bottom. 

Katharine Lotze10Zlatan Ibrahimovic | LA Galaxy | $7.2 million

After working through the 2018 season on the measly listed wages of $1.5m, Ibrahimovic made the decision to stick around in MLS, and it paid off in a big way.  

The LA Galaxy designated player is on the highest salary in the history of MLS, his $7.2 million just a shade over the $7.1m listed wage for Sebastian Giovinco with Toronto last season.

But with 33 goals in 39 outings, the Galaxy likely feel they're getting strong value out of the former Manchester United forward, who continues to shine both on and off the field and is the biggest star in the league at this point. 

AdvertisementGetty Images9Giovani dos Santos | No Club | $6.5m

To keep Ibrahimovic, the Galaxy had to make a sacrifice elsewhere, and Dos Santos was the man to take the hit. 

The Mexico international was one of four designated players on the Galaxy roster heading into the 2019 season, but MLS rules allow for only three. The club made the call to cut loose the older of the Dos Santos brothers in March, but his compensation package still sees him listed as one of the highest-paid players on the MLS payroll, even if he is not currently in the league. 

Getty Images8Michael Bradley | Toronto FC | $6.5m

Bradley has been among the league's best paid players for several years and was part of a high-earning Toronto side which won the 2017 MLS Cup title in record-setting fashion. 

His total compensation package still sees him listed as one of the top-three earners in the league, and TFC will be hoping he can help them reach championship form again in 2019. 

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Vaughn Ridley7Jozy Altidore | Toronto FC | $6.3m

Another player who picked up a big payday from Toronto FC, Altidore remains in the top-five highest paid players in the league. 

The USMNT forward has netted five times in nine appearances so far this season for TFC as he has battled injury, but remains a threat when fit and on the pitch. 

He will be hoping for a return to his 2017 form, when he netted 15 times for the club in helping lead them to the top of MLS. 

This disappointment means the European champions will not qualify for the Olympics, though a free year does give the coach a chance to fix some issues

Margins don't get much finer than those that denied England a place in the Women's Nations League finals, and thus killed their Olympic dream, on Tuesday night. There were three minutes between the Lucy Bronze header that seemed to have given the Lionesses top spot in Group A and the late Netherlands goal, some 700 miles away, that ensured the Dutch progressed to the next stage of the competition instead.

It was a dramatic finale to a group stage that has been very up and down for Sarina Wiegman's side. After the game in Scotland, which saw England thrash their neighbours 6-0, Beth Mead admitted that the team had "let ourselves down maybe earlier on in the competition", with defeats to the Netherlands and Belgium ultimately costing them, rather than the inability to get a seventh goal in Glasgow.

It means that the Lionesses won't compete in the Nations League finals in February and, as a result, cannot secure a place for Great Britain in the Olympic women's football tournament next year, either. In a sport with far too many ACL injuries and a severely imbalanced calendar, a summer off has some benefits, but the reigning European champions, a team that reached the World Cup final earlier this year, will see it as a missed opportunity to win a major title.

There is plenty for Wiegman to ponder, then, with the extra breathing space she will get before England's next big tournament comes around, at the European Championship in 2025. What, though, did she learn from her side's final international camp of 2023? GOAL picks out the winners and losers from the Lionesses' final games of the year…

GettyLOSER: Sarina Wiegman

For a long time, it felt like Wiegman had the Midas touch. Everything she touched seemed to turn to gold. After leading the Netherlands to victory at a home Euros and then to a World Cup final two years later, she repeated the trick on both counts with England. It took her 31 games, even, to taste defeat as head coach of the Lionesses.

However, the last few months have seen questions raised of the Dutchwoman and her work. She temporarily fixed issues during the World Cup in the summer with a change of formation, but in this Nations League campaign, many of those problems reared their ugly heads and contributed to what is ultimately a failure, to not qualify for the finals or get Team GB into the Olympics.

At the end of the day, everything falls on the coach and that means, in this case, it falls on Wiegman. This is the biggest disappointment that she has tasted on this stage – but she is still one of the best coaches on the planet. It is a setback, but it will be fascinating to see how she goes about bouncing back from it across 2024, a year where there will be so much more room to tinker and try things given the lack of a major tournament.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesWINNER: Beth Mead

The ultimate outcome of this international window for England was a hugely devastating one, but there were also a lot of positives in a week that saw them overturn a 2-0 half-time deficit to beat the Netherlands before they then thrashed Scotland 6-0. One of the biggest ones was the return of Beth Mead from a cruel ACL injury.

Back in the squad for the first time since last November, the Arsenal star came off the bench at the break in that first fixture at Wembley on Friday night and helped change the game, so much so that the Lionesses emerged 3-2 winners against all the odds to keep their Nations League finals hopes alive. Then, in Glasgow, she made her first England start in over a year and marked it with her first goal for her country in 15 months.

Mead's world-class talent gave the Lionesses a real boost during this window, and Wiegman will be delighted to have her back in the long-term, as she looks to get this team firing on all cylinders again.

Getty ImagesLOSER: Alessia Russo

England needed to score a lot of goals in this camp. Ideally, against the Netherlands, they wanted to win by a two-goal margin to give themselves a better chance of progressing when they met Scotland on Tuesday. After going 2-0 down in the game, they were happy enough to come away still alive, having scored three second-half goals to comeback from the brink. Four days later, they knew they needed to have their shooting boots on again to thrash their neighbours in Glasgow to top the group. For both challenges, Alessia Russo was benched.

This is a player who has been almost immovable as England's No.9 since Ellen White retired after the Euros in 2022. Despite Rachel Daly's Golden Boot-winning Women's Super League season last term, Wiegman kept faith in Russo, and it certainly paid off during the World Cup, at which the 24-year-old scored so many important goals en route to the final.

However, when the Lionesses were in need of goals in this window, Wiegman changed things up, playing Manchester City winger Lauren Hemp as a centre-forward for both games.

Russo has long kept her place in the team because of how much her all-round play contributes to the team performance – but she is not the most clinical forward at Wiegman's disposal. She is a very talented player, but there are members of this squad that are more ruthless than her in front of goal. Perhaps trying to figure out what her best role is in this team while still having a clinical feel to the attack is one of the things for Wiegman to ponder.

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GettyLOSER: Rachel Daly

Daly, meanwhile, saw just four minutes of action in this international window, brought on for the very final stages of the 3-2 win over the Netherlands. If you had said that Russo would be benched for these games, most would have assumed that Daly – who has netted on nine occasions already this season despite Aston Villa's struggles – would have taken her place. However, her involvement was extremely limited, which was a surprise given the goals England needed to score.

Once again, it raises questions of how the Lionesses get the best out of the 32-year-old. Throughout her international career, under different coaches, Daly has been played out of position and rarely given the chance to shine as the prolific No.9 she is. Wiegman started to give her more opportunities in her preferred position last season, which was a no-brainer given her form, but she still ended the World Cup playing as a wing-back.

In Daly, England have a ruthless forward, someone who presses with incredible energy and has fantastic poaching instincts in the box – but she isn't used in the way she should be. Again, figuring out what to do with her should be on Wiegman's agenda for the New Year.

A video shot by a supporter at the LA Galaxy vs Inter Miami game has shown how Lionel Messi contributed to Riqui Puig's early missed penalty.

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Galaxy awarded early spot-kickEffort saved by CallenderArgentine predicted direction of shotWHAT HAPPENED?

There were just 10 minutes on the clock in California when the hosts were given a golden opportunity to get off to a dream start. Former Barcelona star Puig stepped up to the spot, but saw his effort from 12 yards beaten away by Drake Callender.

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Another ex-Blaugrana star played a small part in the scores remaining level – with it revealed that Messi, who was stood some 30 yards away, waved Callender in the direction that Puig would strike the ball. The Argentine was proved correct as his one-time team-mate at Camp Nou went to his right.

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DID YOU KNOW?

Messi would go on to make another important contribution for Inter Miami, as he salvaged a point for them in a 1-1 draw by snatching a dramatic 92nd-minute equaliser. He may have felt a little sorry for Puig afterwards, with the Galaxy playmaker revealing that he is now the proud owner of signed Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba jerseys.

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Exactly how much money have Roma spent on new players in this millennium?

Roma are arguably one of the biggest teams in Serie A, even if their honours list doesn't quite match that of clubs such as Juventus, Milan and Inter.

They have had some absolute superstars wearing their iconic red jersey throughout their history, many of those players coming through the club's youth academy.

Francesco Totti is undoubtedly the most recognisable name, with Daniele De Rossi another true homegrown hero.

They have also brought in plenty of legends from elsewhere, though.

Who doesn't remember the iconic Gabriel Batistuta for example?!

And although Roma have not made a habit out of spending big, they have also not hesitated to splash the cash if they felt the opportunity was right.

But how much have they spent on transfers exactly since the turn of the millennium and which players cost them the most?

Roma most expensive transfers by season

SEASON

MOST EXPENSIVE SIGNING

FEE

TOTAL SPENDING

2022/23

Zeki Celik

€7M

€8.50M

2021/22

Tammy Abraham

€40M

€126.55M

2020/21

Gianluca Mancini

€21M

€72.10M

2019/20

Leonardo Spinazzola

€29.50M

€117.40M

2018/19

Patrik Schick

€42M

€164.10M

2017/18

Rick Karsdorp

€16M

€91.30M

2016/17

Gerson

€18.60M

€102.60M

2015/16

Andrea Bertolacci

€8.50M

€60.85M

2014/15

Juan Iturbe

€24.50M

€100.41M

2013/14

Kevin Strootman

€17.50M

€75.39M

2012/13

Mattia Destro

€11.50M

€44.17M

2011/12

Erik Lamela

€17M

€91.25M

2010/11

Nicolas Burdisso

€8M

€11.20M

2009/10

Marco Motta

€3.50M

€3.50M

2008/09

Jeremy Menez

€12M

€32.55M

2007/08

Mirko Vucinic

€15.75M

€50.85M

2006/07

David Pizarro

€12.25M

€21.22M

2005/06

Massimo Bonanni

€500,000

€518,000

2004/05

Matteo Brighi

€16M

€43.21M

2003/04

Cristian Chivu

€18M

€26.20M

2002/03

Christian Panucci

€9.81M

€10.06M

2001/02

Antonio Cassano

€31M

€50.93M

2000/01

Gabriel Batistuta

€36.15M

€97.40M

Total

€1.40B

Roma top 10 most expensive player signingsGetty Images10Juan Iturbe | €24.50m | Hellas Verona | 2014

Iturbe signed for Roma after an impressive 2013-14 season on loan with Hellas Verona in which he scored eight goals and provided four assists for the newly promoted club, helping them to a 10th-place finish in Serie A.

The winger signed a five-year deal with Roma for €24.50 million, just weeks after permanently signing for Verona.

Iturbe's first goal for Roma came against CSKA Moscow in the 2014-15 Champions League and he also went on to score against Juventus and in the Derby della Capitale against Lazio, helping Roma finish in second place in the Serie A.

He never quite reached the heights expected of him, though, and the Argentine winger was eventually loaned to Bournemouth in 2016, Torino and Tijuana in 2017 before joining UNAM in 2018.

In 2020, he was loaned to Pachuca before signing with Greek club Aris on a permanent deal in 2021.

AdvertisementGetty9Javier Pastore | €24.70m | PSG | 2018

After coming through the ranks at Argentine club Talleres, Pastore arrived in Italy with Palermo in 2009 after being linked with top European clubs including Manchester United, Porto, Milan and Chelsea

Pastore played almost 70 games for Palermo, scoring 14 goals in a two year spell before Paris Saint-Germain came calling in 2011, signing him for a premium €40 million fee.

The elegant attacking midfielder spent seven years at PSG, making 186 appearances and scoring 29 goals, before joining Roma in 2018 for €24.70m.

Pastore spent three years at Roma, making just 30 appearances before joining Elche in La Liga in 2021.

Getty Images8Vincenzo Montella | €25.82m | Sampdoria | 1999

One of the few players who also went on to manage the team they played for, Montella joined Roma in 1999 for €25.82 million from Sampdoria.

Then manager Fabio Capello was said to have less confidence in strikers who were short in height, but despite this, Montella was the top scorer for Roma as he scored 18 goals in the 1999-2000 season.

The following year, Capello went ahead and fulfilled his "tall-striker wish" by bringing in Gabriel Batistuta, which meant Montella ended up warming the bench.

Even then, he was one of the main reasons why Roma won their third Scudetto in 2000-01, scoring in their title-deciding win over Parma in June 2001.

He went on to play 215 matches for Roma over eight years, scoring 94 goals.

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Getty7Marash Kumbulla | €26.50m | Hellas Verona | 2021

After having him on a two-season loan between 2020 and 2022, Roma went big on Kumbulla in the summer of 2022, spending €26.50 million on the Albania international.

The centre-back has been a key figure for Roma, but he spent the beginning of the 2022-23 season nursing an injury that limited his game-time in Serie A as well as Europa League.

United States international Folarin Balogun is contributing to Monaco defenders leaving training with “headaches”, Wilfried Singo has revealed.

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Striker signed from ArsenalHas been among the goalsImpressing new team-matesWHAT HAPPENED?

The USMNT star secured a transfer back to French football during the summer transfer window. Having impressed on loan at Reims last season, the 22-year-old striker arrived at Stade Louis II in a €30 million (£26m/$32m) deal with Premier League giants Arsenal.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Balogun, who is now a key man for club and country, has settled quickly in new surroundings and is among a group of attackers that leave Singo and his fellow defenders with sore heads after trying to contain the threat that they pose in training. Singo has told Monaco’s : “They are very good players and when we come home from training, we have headaches. They do us a lot of good in attack. Competition is positive in all positions and this helps to push the group to the top.”

WHAT THEY SAID

Balogun is one of nine players to have registered a goal for Monaco in the 2023-24 campaign, with Singo adding on how the Ligue 1 outfit have become a “formidable” threat in the final third of the field: “We work a lot in training to have many offensive weapons. It pays off because nine players have already scored, including me against Lens, so danger comes from everywhere. Plenty of players are also showing formidable efficiency in front of goal, like Wissam Ben Yedder and Folarin Balogun. We are difficult to get a handle on.”

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Balogun has found the target on two occasions for Monaco, with his first effort on home soil seeing him break out Thierry Henry’s iconic corner flag celebration, but he has also missed two penalties and will be hoping to see his conversion rate improve before, during and after the next international break.

Jorginho has thanked Arsenal supporters for sticking with him on the back of his “painful mistake” in the latest north London derby.

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Gunners took the lead on two occasionsSpurs hit back to take a pointItaly international made costly errorWHAT HAPPENED?

The Gunners took the lead against arch-rivals Tottenham on two occasions at Emirates Stadium, with Bukayo Saka forcing an own goal from Cristian Romero before then converting from the penalty spot. They were, however, forced to settle for a share of the points in a thrilling 2-2 draw.

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Son Heung-min netted a double of his own for Spurs, with the second of those efforts gifted to him by Jorginho. The Italy international – within seconds of Saka scoring from 12 yards – dwelt on the ball in the middle of the park, allowing James Maddison to pick his pocket and tee up Son for another leveller.

WHAT THEY SAID

Jorginho has posted on Instagram of potentially costing Arsenal two precious points – with fans having taken to chanting his name, rather than getting on his back: “A painful mistake today, but seeing how everyone reacted after my mistake to support and lift me up, my team-mates, coaches, staff and you Arsenal fans. It gives me even more motivation to work harder and harder, because all of you deserve the best version of myself. Thank you so much for the support Arsenal family.”

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WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Arsenal remain unbeaten through six games in the Premier League this season, with 14 points collected from a possible 18, and they will be back in action on Wednesday when facing Brentford in the third round of the Carabao Cup.