June 2 – In the latest move in the post-season managerial merry-go-round, Carlo Ancelotti has unexpectedly quit Everton after just 18 months to become head coach of Real Madrid for a second time.
By Samindra Kunti
May 30 – In a dramatic Champions League final, one of the best European Cup finals for a number of seasons, Chelsea, N’Golo Kante and Kai Havertz out-manoeuvred and outperformed Manchester City and Pep Guardiola’s experimental tactics to win 1-0 and clinch the continent’s premier club competition for a second time.
May 28 – In the age of super clubs, Chelsea and Manchester City will decide who reigns supreme over Europe on Saturday in an all-English Champions League final that will be played in front of 16,500 fans in Porto, Portugal.
May 28 – With only one international match played since FIFA last published its rankings, the calendar is about move from famine to feast with an explosion of activity including Gold Cup and Euro 2020 and Copa America, as well as World Cup qualifiers.
May 28 – Two more high-profile managers are back in the market for new jobs after Antonio Conte left Inter Milan after winning Serie A and Zinedine Zidane resigned from Real Madrid after two and half years.
May 26 – Just two days after steering Lille to their first top-flight title since 2011, Christophe Galtier has stepped down as head coach saying four years at one club is “long enough and I just feel I have done my time here.”
May 26 – England boss Gareth Southgate has named an extended 33-man provisional squad for Euro 2020, with the Three Lions boss sweating over injury concerns and the all-English Champions League final on Saturday in a selection process he has called “more complicated than any other country”.
May 26 – The German FA has officially named Bayern Munich’s departing manager Hansi Flick as the country’s new head coach when Joachim Low steps down following this summer’s European Championship.
May 26 – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can win his first trophy as Manchester United boss in Wednesday’s Europe League final in Poland’s Gdansk, but his side will have to overcome the competition’s ultimate expert Unai Emery and his Villareal, and lingering injury concerns over Harry Maguire.
May 25 – With Europe’s five big league season complete the CIES Football Observatory have released Best XIs for each of them. The selections show players from the winning clubs in all leagues dominating, but not all football’s biggest names.
May 24 – Three years after staving off relegation, Lille won their first French title in a decade at the weekend and prevented Paris St Germain sealing a record-equaling 10thstraight domestic crown.
May 24 – A second-half winner from Luis Suarez secured Atletico Madrid’s first La Liga title in seven years as Diego Simeone’s team finished two points above cross-town rivals Real Madrid.
May 21 – “A good problem to have” is one of those football clichés often trodden out by pundits to highlight a selection issue for a manager. But it is a cliché based on some truth, as having players fighting for a place can be a boon for a coach, even if it can be tricky to keep players happy in rotation.
May 21 – Club Brugge have retained their Belgian league crown with a 3-3 draw against Anderlecht, enough to cement their domestic dominance after a superb regular season but disappointing season finale in the playoffs.
May 19 – Karim Benzema’s exile from the French national team over a sex-tape scandal is at an end. In a surprise move Didier Deschamps has recalled the Madrid striker for Les Bleus’ Euro 2020 squad.