Mikel Merino is the spiritual successor to Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshire, Santi Cazorla, etc. Just an absolutely fantastic overall footballer with a clutch gene

I can confirm the mountain and sun are out in Seattle on a gorgeous summer day after a week of cloudy weather. The stage is set for one of the best (or most painful) matches in U.S. Soccer history tonight

Balogun's red card then suspension being postponed is the perfect microcosm of the USA: A man is wrongfully judged and given a harsh/punitive punishment. Then, through powerful connections, rules suddenly don't apply anymore.

Mexico vs England at Azteca has the potential to be one of the best matches of the World Cup. Azteca is the hardest match in North America and 🇲🇽 have looked stronger each match. The result will be the greatest 🇲🇽 squad in 40 years or 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 will cement themselves as serious contenders

The World Cup is going to be insane today: Norway and Brazil should be an incredible match. I think Norway has a shot at the upset, they've been great on the counter and Brazil will dominate possession. Brazil have also seemed pretty vulnerable this tournament and Norway have been clinical.

If you're having a rough day, at least you're not a Canadian Blue Jays fan in Seattle today. They saw their soccer team get knocked out of the World Cup 0-3, then watched their baseball team get 1 hit and lose 0-11 😬

I don't care if they lost, Cabo Verde is the heart and soul of the 2026 World Cup. They united the world

In the 1st ever Round of 32: - Portugal score a 90 +4 winner, Croatia 90 +12 equalizer chalked off - Canada score a 90th minute winner for their 1st ever KO victory - Brazil score a 90th minute winner vs Japan - Norway score an 86th minute winner vs Ivory Coast for their 1st ever KO victory

Croatia play the most beautiful direct football. It's like Joga Bonito inspired by Stoke City. They love looking for a line breaking pass in behind, but they're so smart about looking to cut it back to a better shot if they need to.

Thoughts on Belgium after watching them in Seattle today and how the USA can match up: - If Belgium continue to start KDB and sit Lukaku, then I am significantly less afraid as a USMNT fan - Belgium looked slow until Lukebakio and others subbed on. They struggled with Senegal's intensity before.

"Ref how can you call that, this guy flops every day in training!" Gooner on Gooner violence

Morroco put Hakimi's mom's name on the penalty shootout card, so technically he didn't miss

The Dutch-Morocco match has been electric. Can't believe it's a first round matchup with the quality of play. For college basketball fans, it feels like 2013 Gonzaga when they got that insanely stacked Wichita State team as a 9 in the 2nd round

BRAZIL RUNS ON THE BACKS OF GABRIELS THAT PLAY FOR ARSENAL

Trossard is an incredible player to watch. When all else fails he can produce magic in deadlocks. A difference maker in important matches that has a knack for clutch contributions. To me, he's a lot more important than any money Arsenal could reasonably get for him.

A nation with a population of ~500k people have qualified for the knockouts in 2nd place. They went undefeated in a group with #1 Spain, #22 Uruguay, and #65 Saudi Arabia. I'll be rooting for them like my own nation the rest of the way, what a story.

Cape Verde are the stars of the 2026 World Cup. They're such a fun team and story to root for

Leading goalscorers for the United States: Former Arsenal players - 3 Own Goal - 2 Reyna, Freeman - 1 United States of Arsenal 💥

Ecuadorian scenes at FT were unbelievably wholesome. What a historic win and moment for this country, absolutely love seeing it

It's frankly unbelievable to have seen Ecuador (#19) look painfully average vs Curacao (#89) To now leading Germany (#9) with less than 5 minutes left in a win or go home situation

The left wing (#20, Nilson Angulo) on Ecuador has been electric. Had no idea he played for Sunderland, but watching him for the first time has been a treat

One more time playing after Mbappe's 2nd goal is *chefs kiss* 🤌🏽

Watching how hapless Saudia Arabia was vs Spain today makes this result even more bewildering 4 years later. Truly magical that they beat the 2022 World Cup champions in the group stage

Gyokeres just needed to tell them you need to push one defender towards goal on set pieces 😩

Ref said you gotta say your trash talk publicly or you get a red card, what a fantastic concept

Paraguay was played off the pitch in the 4-1 loss to the USA (#24 in world football elo rankings). They then eliminated the highest ranked team in Group D in Turkiye (#22) 1-0 while being down a man for an entire half. Football is completely bonkers and the World Cup is the best

I am manifesting the USMNT 1st place in Group D + a R32 win so the R16 match I have tickets to in Seattle will recreate this heavenly atmosphere of summer football in the PNW. Take me home country roads

Turkiye apparently have no clue on how to break down a low block. The horseshoe of passing sadness and endless 20+ yard long shots is crazy to see vs 10 men

Epic day so far in Seattle: - USMNT is up 2-0 at half in our home stadium - Currently leading their group, with a chance to play in the R16 in Seattle - Sun is shining on a beautiful PNW summer day Heaven is a place in Seattle for football fans right now

How Mexico and South Korea are looking at each other today battling for 1st in Group A after being best friends the last few World Cups

Beautiful football out of this England-Croatia tie. England have been in control most of the match, but the few chances created from Croatia have been incredible. Two teams that know their strengths and Croatia has scored some cracking goals

Congo's result vs Portugal should not be viewed as a "miracle" in the same way as Cape Verde. This was a talented squad that took the game to the Portuguese, were incredibly dangerous on the counter, and had more shots on target.

Portugal had 75% possession vs Congo DR and 1 shot on target 😳

Shoutout to Chelsea for selling Arsenal a Premier League winner and English World Cup starter, Noni Madueke. Imagine being told either of those descriptors would be true last summer

Portugal have class players throughout their starting XI, then you see they're starting 41 year old Ronaldo up top and they're considerably less scary

Some absolutely prime smash and grab football out of Australia tonight. Evoking the same feelings of prime Leicester City, absolutely terrifying every time they're on the counter

Through ~1.5 World Cup matches, European nations are using set pieces and physicality while the North American and Asian teams play expansive, attacking football. Go figure 🤷🏾‍♂️

I'm rooting for Canada, but no Alphonso Davies is a massive blow. Gonna need some World Cup host magic to get their 1st win (ever!) in the tournament without him

Fantastic to see ethical football win out with Korea. Watching the Czech Republic play like prime Stoke City for 70+ minutes was a stark contrast with Korea's passing and runs in behind. Absolutely wild back and forth end to that match as well. More of this please!

James Milner retiring as a legend. Records held: Most Premier League appearances ever, 24(!) consecutive seasons in the league. Apart of historic teams: 2x PL Champ at pre-Pep City, 1x PL and UCL Champ with Liverpool Always admired his game - a hallmark of consistency, fitness, and versatility

2026 Arsenal 🤝 2005 Seattle Seahawks Losing a historic championship to a few tough refereeing mistakes. Darrell Jackson didn't push off. Saka didn't deserve a yellow. Roethlisberger clearly wasn't over the line. Madueke was denied a clear penalty.

I need a wellness check done on Spike Lee. I gotta know how well that man is living today. Arsenal winning the Premier League and the New York Knicks winning Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals might be his peak sports day.

I need a wellness check done on Spike Lee. I gotta know how well that man is living today. Arsenal winning the Premier League and the New York Knicks winning Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals might be his peak sports day.

I need a wellness check done on Spike Lee. I gotta know how well that man is living today. Arsenal winning the Premier League and the New York Knicks winning Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals might be his peak sports day.

It took almost all season, but Mikel Arteta is truly showing he is not afraid of the moment with big lineup decisions. Eze - Ode Rice The most offensively orietned midfield he could pick in a match we need goals. Arsenal are gunning for goals this match and looking to run up the GD.

My conspiracy side thinks VAR quickly knew this was a huge moment and knew it was a foul, but made things dramatic as possible for PR purposes: 1. They showed the refs in the booth during a review, exceedingly rare. 2. The ref blew his whistle and didn't signal the call before he announced it.

Possibly the best sub and lineup management Mikel Arteta has ever done today vs West Ham. Unbelievable from him today, what an evolution from him this season.

Bukayo Saka in just ~103 minutes of 2 must-win matches for Arsenal: 2 Goals 1 Assist Arsenal grown, Arsenal's own.

Relishing this pre-match UCL 2nd leg Semi-Final vibe. Arsenal are 1 home win away from a UCL final and 3 wins away from a Premier League title. Not taking this moment for granted at all. This could be the greatest ever season for Arsenal.

Arsenal fans (and myself) have been screaming about rotating midfield all year, then Mikel goes and hands MLS his first prem start in midfield with 4 games to go in the Premier League. Absolute madman. I've seen what you can do against Madrid MLS, please stunt on Fulham 🤞🏽