Dribble Diaries

Legendary defender Mats Hummels announces his retirement. Mats Hummels, a six-time Bundesliga champion, 2014 FIFA World Cup winner, and one of German football's best defenders, has announced his retirement at the end of the 2024/25 season. Hummels, who departed the Bundesliga for Italian club Roma in the summer of 2024 and turned 36 in December, revealed his decision in a poignant message on his X channel. Hummels, one of the contemporary game's most successful central defenders and renowned for his passing range, began his career with Bayern Munich before winning back-to-back Bundesliga titles with Borussia Dortmund under Jürgen Klopp. When he returned to Bayern, he won four more league titles and played a key role in Germany's 2014 World Cup victory in Brazil. Hummels returned to Dortmund in 2019 after three years in Munich, assisting the Black-Yellows to the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League final in his final season with the club. Throughout his career in Germany, th...

Kevin De Bruyne has announced that he will leave Manchester City at the conclusion of the season, following a decade with the club. De Bruyne, 33, had a magnificent 10-season career under Pep Guardiola, becoming the focal point of a club that ushered in a period of Premier League domination. Since coming from Wolfsburg in 2015, the Belgian has won 16 trophies, including six league titles and the prestigious club-first Champions League in 2023. He has made 413 appearances for the Citizens over an illustrious career, scoring 106 goals and providing 174 assists, cementing his place as one of the best midfielders in Premier League history. However, the Belgian's minutes have been limited this season due to injuries from previous campaigns, and he has now declared in an emotional statement that he will quit the Etihad when his contract expires in the summer. De Bruyne took to Instagram and commented, "Seeing this, you probably know where this is leading. So I'll get right t...

Chelsea returned to the Premier League's top four after beating Tottenham 1-0 at Stamford Bridge thanks to Enzo Fernandez's header early in the second half. Enzo Maresca's team was under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had lost its appeal to home fans, but they mainly outperformed a dismal Spurs team that failed to capitalise on the rising anger surrounding the home side. As when these clubs met in north London last season, VAR played an important part, ruling out goals from Moises Caicedo and Pape Sarr after halftime, but Chelsea deserved the points as their Champions League campaign resumed. They had started with significantly more zest than in previous lackluster performances. Nicolas Jackson's return to the team was denied one-on-one by goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario in the first minute, followed by Micky van de Ven's errant clearance ricocheting off him and against the post, before Malo Gusto rifled Marc Cucurella...

Sarina Wiegman, England's manager, reveals she is using the Nations League double-header against Belgium to prepare her players for the 2017 European Women's Championship. The Lionesses drew with Portugal before defeating Spain during the previous international break in February, but now face the uncommon prospect of meeting the same team twice in a matter of days. England will host Belgium in Bristol on Friday night before traveling to Leuven on April 8, and Wiegman has revealed that she will also be watching the Euros in Switzerland in July. She stated, "I think it's crucial that we establish a positive image of our team. "Of course, we're going to play Belgium twice and hope to win both games, but we're also getting the team ready for the Euros by knowing who's available and who's in good shape. "So you're constantly thinking in that direction. These two camps have been extremely fierce and entertaining to watch, but the level h...

Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham has stated that he sees himself playing for the Spanish club for "the next ten or fifteen years." Most of Europe's best coveted Bellingham in the summer of 2023, and he eventually chose to leave Borussia Dortmund and join Real Madrid in a deal worth an initial €103 million. He has delivered on that price tag, lately scoring a crucial goal to assist his team defeat Real Sociedad and advance to the Copa del Rey final. There have been rumors that Manchester City is considering an aggressive bid for Bellingham, and while the rumors looked farfetched in the first place, the England international has now flatly denied the possibility of leaving Madrid. "I'm happy in Madrid, and I think I'll be playing in white for the next ten or 15 years," Bellingham told the media. Bellingham, still only 21, has virtually promised fans that he intends to spend the rest of his career with Madrid. He will be 32 years old in the sum...

Mikel Arteta and Arsenal will face Real Madrid in the Champions League quarter-finals with their backs against the wall. And they'll have to do so without Gabriel, arguably their finest defender. After picking up an injury in their 2-1 Premier League win over Fulham last time out, Gunners fans have received the news they feared. According to the club's official report, the Brazilian international has sustained a hamstring injury that will necessitate surgery. "Gabi will undergo a surgical repair procedure to his hamstring in the coming days, and immediately begin his recovery and rehabilitation programme, with the aim to be ready for the start of next season," the news release stated. "Everyone at the club will be fully focused on supporting Gabi to ensure he is back to full fitness as soon as possible." The club has already experienced numerous injuries this season, including Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli, Martin Ødegaard, Ricardo Calaf...