Inter Milan are in the driver's seat of the Serie A title race again, but after how they collapsed last year and watch Napoli win at the death, they know not to take anything for granted against either the Partenopei or eternal rivals AC Milan. Both of those Italian powerhouse clubs are hot on their heels, and Inter know they need to make a big move in the January transfer window just to keep up being first place.

Inter Milan are fighting hard to stay ahead of rivals AC Milan and last season's Scudetto winners Napoli for the 2025/26 Serie A title, as they have the best squad in the league. But even as they try to sign Joao Cancelo from Al Hilal after losing their own superstar right wing back Denzel Dumfries to injury, the Nerazzurri are at risk of losing another star player in Davide Frattesi.

Inter Milan are in a very tough battle for the Scudetto in Serie A, barely ahead of rivals AC Milan and last season's Italian champions Napoli in what is looking to be yet another heated Calcio race. The Nerazzurri want to beef up their team after an injury to Denzel Dumfries, as Joao Cancelo is available at right back from Saudi Pro League giants Al Hilal and is of high interest to Inter, Barcelona, and other elite clubs in Europe.

Real Madrid are locked in another tough fight for the La Liga title, and with a lot of dysfunction bubbling in the background, they have fallen behind Barcelona again. Los Blancos have a lot of attacking talent and did vastly upgrade their defense last summer with the signings of Dean Huijsen and Alvaro Carreras, but the midfield is in disarray without Toni Kroos and Luka Modric and there are too many egos who are not held in check by Xabi Alonso, who has his own ego.

Real Madrid have a level of cachet that literally no other club on this planet does, and in case anyone had ever doubted this fact of life, one of the best young footballers in the world just proved it. Bayern Munich attacking midfielder Lennart Karl has been a revelation this season and one of the best players in the Bundesliga as a teenage breakout superstar for Die Roten, following in the footsteps of another Bayern phenom German international in Jamal Musiala, whose injury has opened the door for Karl to take the Bundesliga by storm.

Inter Milan are locked in another tough Scudetto battle after just falling short last season, but they could lose an impact player who helped the team reach last season's Champions League Final. According to a new report from top Italian transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, Turkish Super Lig giants Galatasaray have just made a fresh approach for Nerazzurri center midfielder Davide Frattesi.

Real Madrid made a much needed statement win over a top La Liga club in Real Betis, taking down the Verdiblancos 5-1 in their first game of the New Year after the holiday break. Young striker Gonzalo Garcia, who is a favorite of manager Xabi Alonso, stole the show with a hat trick, but he was far from the only key performer for Madrid in a game without Ballon d'Or hopeful Kylian Mbappe due to injury.

Manchester United fans will want their club to be one of the big buyers in the January market, given their intense needs in the middle of the park and the upside of legitimately competing for the top four if they can somehow land a big fish in that position. The Red Devils are hoping for Carlos Baleba, Adam Wharton, or Elliot Anderson as a midfield signing - and ideally two of those players - but none of them are expected to move in January due to their importance to their current Premier League clubs.

It seems like with all the focus on the big name superstars like Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe, the mainstream crowd forgets how much of a haven Real Madrid is for the best young talent in the world. Guys like Vinicius were elite prospects before blossoming into elite players, and even in the 2025/26 Real Madrid team that remains second best to rivals Barcelona, there are still amazing young stars who are already well on their way to being superstars.

Manchester United are the most active team in the transfer market for a new midfielder, as a young star of the future to immediately upgrade on the horribly flopping Manuel Ugarte would be a transformative signing. The Red Devils are close to set everywhere else. They overhauled their attack in the summer successfully, the defensive is passable, Senne Lammens is the upgrade they were looking for over Andre Onana in goal, and Bruno Fernandes is one heck of a playmaker.

Real Madrid are coming off the holiday break and have some huge matchups on the horizon, including their second El Derbi of the season against Atletico Madrid, who embarrassed them the first time around. Los Blancos will face Atleti on Thursday, January 8 in the Spanish Supercup semifinals, and they may have to play without superstar striker Kylian Mbappe, who has been the team's brightest spot this season.

The year 2026 will soon be upon us, and with the Premier League being the only top league in action this weekend while AFCON is fully under way, now is a great time as ever to take stock of the Ballon d'Or power rankings for the 2025/26 season before the calendar officially flips. Lamine Yamal, Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, and Kylian Mbappe are widely seen as the front runners, but how exactly do they stack up with reigning winner Ousmane Dembele totally out of the picture due to injury?

The European Golden Shoe, the European Golden Boot...whatever you want to call it, this award is one of the most prestigious in world football, and unlike the Ballon d'Or, it is entirely objective. All it is about is scoring goals. That's it. That's the name of the game. You score the most goals, regardless of what happens to your team, you win this award.

As Manchester United get ready to face one of the European contenders in the Premier League on Boxing Day in a marquee battle against Newcastle United, Man United fans are taking serious stock of the squad with the January transfer window looming ahead. After a major summer transfer window of changes to the attack, Manchester United are looking forward to upgrading a midfield that remains woefully behind the top teams in the Premier League.

Manchester City are in another tough Premier League title race with Pep Guardiola's protege Mikel Arteta and his strongest Arsenal side yet, though, technically speaking, that is familiar territory for the Citizens who have overcome a deficit to the Gunners before. Injuries have been holding back Man City more than usual over the past couple of seasons, and entering this weekend's Premier League fixture against Nottingham Forest, City have a couple of more key ones to worry about.

Arsenal star forward Kai Havertz has been out since mid August with a knee injury that required surgery, and while the Gunners are first in the Premier League and pretty clear title favorites at this point, historically, this club has learned to never take an early lead over the likes of Manchester City for granted. A weakened Liverpool - and even a Man City that is not as strong as they used to be - gives Arsenal more breathing space than usual in the Premier League, but an all hands on deck approach is preferred, especially for an attack that is the weak link of this deep and talented young squad.

Real Madrid seem to look like a completely different outfit from year to year, and as part of their continued evolution into the future, they are expected to let a few more veteran players who are not making an impact go in the summer 2026 transfer window. At the top of the list is center back David Alaba, who makes around 20 million euros per season but is scarcely healthy enough to play and is pretty underwhelming when on the pitch at this stage of his career.

Manchester United were one of the most active teams in the summer 2025 transfer window, and their attacking aggressiveness paid off with the signings of Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha, and Bryan Mbeumo. Maybe more importantly, Man United also made a huge addition in goal, replacing the entirely unreliable Andre Onana with the competent Senne Lammens. After a rough adjustment period to start the season, Ruben Amorim now quietly has Man United in seventh and back in European contention.

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim saved his job this season by turning a tide of embarrassing results around, but with the Red Devils still in seventh place, there is still a lot of work for the Portuguese manager to do before he can say he has turned things around at Old Trafford. After major summer transfer investment and an overhaul of the attack with Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha, and Bryan Mbeumo coming in, Man United expect to be among the top four contenders for Champions League football in the near future.

Manchester United have shown improvement throughout the course of the 2025/26 season under Ruben Amorim, who has done enough to save his job status from being an impending firing to a man who will likely get another season at a club that has otherwise been mired by dysfunction. This past summer, Man United completely overhauled their attack with Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha, and Benjamin Sesko, and while they have all had a good effect, United are still interested in other forward options like Yan Diomande and Antoine Semenyo in 2026.

Real Marid superstar forward Kylian Mbappe has been the team's brightest spot from a goal scoring perspective, but as Real continue to disappoint in the table while Mbappe racks up the goals, Madridistas can't help but wonder if, like at PSG, Mbappe is holding the team back for his own personal gain. That was a common theme throughout the 2024/25 season when Mbappe won the European Golden Boot yet Real came up trophyless after winning La Liga and the Champions League without him, while Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo Goes, and Jude Bellingham all looked worse with him.

Michael Olise was always a wonderful player, and he was honestly already a world class winger for Crystal Palace. It's just that, obviously, a young French winger playing for Crystal Palace isn't going to get the hype they deserve, especially with the national team crowded wtih talents like Kylian Mbappe and Rayan Cherki. Well, Olise has now become as good as any French player not named Mbappe, and I am sure you will find some people who will debate that Olise's impact on his team is even more positive than Mbappe's.

Barcelona have been in the market for an additional center back with many of their current top options proving to be either unreliable or overly prone to injury. More depth is needed at this critical position, and, for the most part, Barca appear to be aiming high. Their favorite option in central defense is the player every top club in Europe has been dreaming about for years, Alessandro Bastoni of Inter Milan.

Atletico Madrid are third in La Liga, and while few are taking them seriously as title contenders, they are in the conversation and are a key injury to Barcelona or an impending implosion from Real Madrid away from being in the thick of it. For the most part since their Luis Suarez fueled 2020/21 triumph, Atleti have been just on the outside looking in from the main title contenders in Spain, but, lately, they have been ramping up their investment in the transfer market.

Chelsea are coming off a hard fought 2-2 draw with Newcastle United last Premier League weekend, and this weekend, they will go up against an even more difficult opponent in Aston Villa, who just beat Manchester United last weekend and are suddenly title contenders. Overall, it's been a difficult season for the Blues, but they are still in the top four of the Premier League.