😍 International break over

GM football fans. Route One here, we’re like a Michelin star chef –  mixing the perfect blend of football analysis, insight, and laughs to satisfy your appetite for the game.

All feedback will be read at [email protected].

Head Start

Abdo’s boyfriend responds to Carragher 

There are three things you shouldn’t ask a woman on live TV:

• Her age.

• Her weight.

• And whether she’s cheating on her boyfriend with her co-host. 

Well, that’s what Jamie Carragher did with Kate Abdo on CBS a couple of weeks ago. 

And while Abdo eloquently brushed it under the carpet, her boyfriend Malik Scott has responded to the “awkward” comments made by the Liverpool legend. 

Scott’s rant to Lord Ping was long, with a few punchy comments about Carragher…

“He’s not that good at reading the room… it comes across as digging, especially if you’re dealing with a woman.”

“Now if he makes Kate upset then I have a serious problem and he'll get a call from me, and if he doesn't pick up my call I'll show up in a physical manner for him.”

Look, we all know Carragher can hold his own. But Scott is the trainer of ex-WBC champion Deontay Wilder… so we think we know who we’re backing. 

Let’s hope it doesn’t cause havoc amongst the CBS crew, ey?

The game’s biggest scam… off the pitch

About four years ago, my barber told me about the football “stock market”.

It was called Football Index and fans could purchase “shares” in footballers. The price would go up or down depending on their real-life performance.

In theory, it sounds great. In practice, it was a roulette table disguised as a fun football game.

And when my barber told me that he had just “invested” £300 in Raheem Sterling, I knew something was up. I mean, he was great at tapering my hair but he wasn’t exactly the beacon of financial knowledge.

Then, on the London Underground, I saw an advertisement for Football Index.

Hmmm. I thought. Maybe it’s worth putting a bit of cash into say, Harry Kane? I’ve played FPL, I’ve followed football my whole life, so maybe this could be my new side hustle.

Well, luckily it wasn’t. Here’s why…

• Football Index began selling new “shares” which artificially changed the price of players. Users saw their portfolio drop 50-90% overnight. 

• Turns out, it was an elaborate pyramid scheme which, if user growth declined, meant the company couldn’t pay its liabilities to users.

• It had zero oversight from the UK’s financial regular, the FCA.

It doesn’t take a genius to guess what happened next…

… in March 2021, the company liquidated and didn’t honour the customer’s bet on their imaginary ‘stock market’. £124 million of customers’ money in open bets - poof! - disappeared. 

Three years on, a small group who refused to let the case go will be heard in parliament next month. 

My barber is still waiting for Sterling to come good…

Plus…

Manchester United have received assurances from UEFA that they will be allowed to take part in the Europa League next season if Nice also qualify despite the European governing body’s restrictions on multi-club ownership (More)

Flamengo striker Gabriel Barbosa has been suspended for two years for attempted anti-doping fraud (More)

About Last Night

Phew… you’ll be pleased to know that yesterday was the last of the international friendlies. Business as usual this weekend.

Here are the scores from the games you might care about and then we promise not to mention the “I” word again until the Euros…

England 2 - 2 Belgium 

Germany 2 - 1 Netherlands 

Spain 3 - 3 Brazil 

Scotland 0 - 1 Northern Ireland

The full result list can be found here.

Off The Pitch

😕 Six people are still missing after a major bridge in Baltimore collapsed after being struck by a cargo ship (Read or Watch)

😬 Man becomes ‘obsessed with catching his wife in the act’… and ends up in a Screwfix car park as a result (More)

😲 Dana White confirms the UFC is coming to the UK in 2024 (More)

🥊 Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren unveil weight classes for new 5 vs 5 boxing tournament (More)

🤌 Italians use twice as many gestures as Swedes when telling stories, producing one gesticulation for every five words (More)

😂 An ostrich is captured after escaping a Korean zoo and dodging traffic for an hour (More)

🇸🇳 Bassirou Diomaye Faye is set to become president of Senegal, the youngest elected president in Africa’s history (More)

🏦 A bank teller is caught laughing on camera as a man tries to rob her bank with a knife… (More)

R1 Verdict

Opinions were floating around about Didier Drogba on social media yesterday. 

People pointed out that some players have scored more goals than the Chelsea icon… suggesting that he might not be as good as we thought.

So we thought we’d take a look.

Drogba’s Premier League record: 254 appearances, 104 goals.

The comparisons? 

• Darren Bent - 106 goals in 276 games

• Peter Crouch - 108 goals in 468 games

• Dion Dublin - 111 goals in 312 games

But let’s look at some of Drogba’s achievements at Chelsea… 

• 9 goals in finals

• 7 goals in semi-finals

• 4 Premier League titles, 4 FA Cups, 3 EFL Cups, 1 Champions League

Case closed…

Extra Time

A romance we didn’t know we needed. Paul Brunson from Married at First Sight UK is now a Sutton United fan and they haven’t lost a game since. 

Harvey Elliot channelled his inner Ronaldinho for England’s Under-21s. His rabona volley is making the rounds on social media. 

Les Ferdinand appears on The Overlap podcast. He speaks about his helicopter license, loving the saxophone, England’s strikers and the role of sporting directors.

It has been 10 years since Jose Mourinho delivered his iconic line. The Blues lost 1-0 to Aston Villa and Jose didn’t want to comment… 

Few words do Thierry Henry justice. And his 03/04 season was simply one of the best. 

Premier League goals have been on the rise. Opta Analyst explores the stats behind the goal explosion in the English top flight. 

Guti was known for his passing. But his assists aren’t spoken about enough.

Game Face On

Question: Which nation won UEFA Euro 1992 despite not initially qualifying?

Hint: Great pastries!

Scroll below for the answer.

On Today

FOOTBALL

Women’s Champions League: Lyon Womens v Benfica Womens (17:45 GMT, TNT Sports 2)

Women’s Champions League: Chelsea Womens v Ajax (20:00 GMT, TNT Sports 1)

TENNIS

ATP: Miami Open (16:30 GMT, Sky Sports Main Tennis)

BASKETBALL

NBA: Philadelphia 76ers v L.A. Clippers (23:30 GMT, TNT Sports 1)

HOCKEY

NHL: Multiple Matches (23:00 GMT, Viaplay)

*EST -5. PST -8. CET +1. CST +8. JST +9.

Answer: Denmark

“My parents have been there for me ever since I was about seven.”

-David Beckham