When 18-year-old Brazilian sensation Endrick, who is currently playing for Real Madrid, was asked about his preference between Jude Bellingham, his fellow player at the club, and Neymar, his national team compatriot, his response met with considerable controversy in Brazil. Ex-international Brazilian player José Ferreira Neto was affronted and said, “Why would Endrick prefer Bellingham to Neymar?! He doesn’t know football! Neymar is leagues ahead of Bellingham!”
Neto was also surprised and displeased by Endrick’s selection of his two most-liked players of all time, given that Cristiano Ronaldo was one of them, and the other, who played during the 1950s to 1970s, was slightly unexpected. Had it been Pele, it would have made sense, but surprisingly, it was Bobby Charlton. Neto commented, “He thinks it’s funny to mention Bobby Charlton! He probably doesn’t even recognise the name, maybe he assumes it’s a cigarette brand!”
In other news, Paul Gascoigne confessed his longing for the game. Whenever he sees an average player earning £300k a week, he shakes his head in disbelief. Former Manchester United player Dwight Yorke expressed his preference for Darwin Nunez over Rasmus Hojlund, despite Nunez’s shortcomings in finishing, claiming that Nunez could be the league’s best striker if he improved that skill. Meanwhile, Liverpool alumnus Gary Gillespie queried whether Mohamed Salah truly falls under the label “world-class”, given his exceptional stats, thereby sparking controversy.
According to Paul Scholes, Matthijs de Ligt is not an impressive addition to Manchester United’s team. Not only did Juventus let him go, but he didn’t meet expectations at Bayern Munich either. Eric Dier was even chosen to play ahead of him, leaving Scholes unexcited about de Ligt’s arrival at Manchester United.
Even though Chelsea’s main team now comprises a staggering 53 players per the Athletic’s calculations, manager Enzo Maresca is still considering hiring more. Victor Osimhen, the Napoli striker, is high on Chelsea’s wishlist. However, the head of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church in Nigeria, Primate Elijah Ayodele, has advised Osimhen against moving to Chelsea, expressing concern that it would devastate his career.
In other news, an Ipswich Town supporter turned heads this week. He, having a prosthetic left leg, attended their match against Liverpool – their first in 22 years in the premier league. On his fandom shirt, he had whimsically put “Juan Leg.”
William Gallas, a former Arsenal and Chelsea member, expressed his concern over Manchester City potentially winning five titles in a row, suggesting it would make them unbeatable.
Additionally, there were only 3Republic of Ireland players who started for their teams last weekend. This consisted of Will Smallbone at Southampton, Matt Doherty with Wolves, and Nathan Collins at Brentford. The substitutes were Sammie Szmodics, Jack Taylor, and Marcus Harness, all for Ipswich.