Performance – Inside World Football

Anthony Gordon, the fastest man in football

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 10:00:03 +0000

February 18 – Raw speed has long been one of football’s most prized assets – and, increasingly, one that enhances a player’s market value as much as their output on the pitch. Fresh data from the CIES Football Observatory underlines just how decisive top-end pace can be in the modern game, particularly as we the latter stages of the UEFA Champions League.

The headline figure belongs to Anthony Gordon, who clocked a remarkable 37.9 km/h –

The post Anthony Gordon, the fastest man in football appeared first on Inside World Football.

PSG drubbing hastens De Zerbi’s OM exit

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 10:48:15 +0000

February 11 – Olympique Marseille have parted company with Roberto De Zerbi days after a humiliating 5-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, bringing an abrupt end to a tenure that had begun with promise but unravelled sharply in recent weeks.

The nine-time French champions confirmed this morning that they had ended their collaboration by “mutual agreement”.

The decision follows Sunday’s chastening night at the Parc des Princes, a result that restored PSG’s two-point lead over Lens at the top after 21 rounds and left Marseille down in fourth.

The post PSG drubbing hastens De Zerbi’s OM exit appeared first on Inside World Football.

Sportable receives FIFA approval for AI-driven player and ball tracking system

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 12 Dec 2025 01:50:44 +0000

December 12 – Sportable’s Lightweight Portable System (LPS) is the first AI-driven portable tracking technology to be awarded FIFA certification.

The internationally patented system tracks players and smart balls captures every moment of a game or training session and can be implemented from schools to the elite envronment.

Lightweight wireless anchors create a live 3D map of players and the ball, with AI-driven technology automatically identifying and categorising game events to provide real-time telemetry.

Study finds elite youth players develop better and faster at home clubs

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 04:28:21 +0000

December 3 – A new study from European Football Clubs (EFC) and the CIES Football Observatory has delivered a clear, data-driven warning: for aspiring elite European youth players prospects, early moves away from their training clubs are more likely to stall a career than accelerate it.

The research – titled The Impact of Early Transfers in European Football – tracked 3,375 former youth internationals from the ages of 15 to 24, each among the top minute-getters in their age group.

French clubs top ranking as world’s most valuable football factory

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 04:59:09 +0000

October 29 – French clubs have generated more revenue from the international transfer of homegrown players over the past decade than any other nation in world football, according to the latest CIES Football Observatory data.

Between 2014 and 2024, clubs in France earned a staggering €3.98 billion from selling players trained domestically – an average of nearly €400 million per year – underscoring the country’s dominance in player development and global export.

Only Brazil (€2.60 billion) and Spain (€2.24 billion) also surpassed the €2 billion mark,

Bellingham stars, Mbappé scores, and Vini has a strop

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 27 Oct 2025 06:06:59 +0000

October 27 – Real Madrid defeated FC Barcelona 2-1 in Sunday’s El Clasico, with first-half goals from Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham to go five points clear at the top of La Liga.

In a compelling match at the Bernabeu, French striker Kylian Mbappé handed the hosts the lead after a Jude Bellingham assist. Fermin Lopez cancelled out Madrid’s lead, but Bellingham tapped home to get a winner just before half-time. It was a fine display by the Englishman,

Benfica tops ranking of academy football factories, Barca and River Plate make up top three

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 04:30:55 +0000

October 24 – Benfica have once again been ranked as the world’s most productive football academy. The latest CIES Football Observatory report shows the Lisbon giants lead the 2025 rankings with 93 players developed at their Seixal academy currently playing professionally, ahead of Barcelona (76) and River Plate (97).

The CIES index measures three factors: the number of academy-trained players, the average level of the clubs they now represent, and the total number of minutes played over the last 12 months.

Rangers’ Martin needs police protection after another dismal performance

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 02:32:26 +0000

October 6 – With a win percentage of 31%, Rangers FC boss, Russel Martin, would probably love to be in a witness protection programme as the anger from the Gers faithful is palpable at Ibrox. The mood around the club has turned toxic, and after a 1-1 draw against Falkirk, the dam has broken.

At the end of the game, around 30 Rangers ultras gathered by the team bus, chanting for Martin’s removal and attempting to block the players’ exit.

WSL agrees Kitman Labs deal to support player performance

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 29 Sep 2025 03:03:44 +0000

September 29 – The Women’s Super League is set for a major technological upgrade after striking a deal with Kitman Labs, which will provide every top-flight and second-tier club with access to its performance intelligence platform.

The agreement means that all Barclays WSL and BWSL2 sides will now operate with the same integrated system covering medical care, training, coaching, and player development. Until now, access to such infrastructure has often been determined by the size of a club’s budget.

Mourinho returns to Champions League with Benfica

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 19 Sep 2025 00:07:07 +0000

September 18 – José Mourinho is back in Lisbon, 25 years after his first managerial steps at Benfica, which lasted all of nine matches. His latest move feels as much about legacy and completing the circle as it does about results.

Mourinho, 62, is one of the modern-day greats and arrives with a resume that is second to none, containing a who’s who of European royalty with the likes of Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan,

LAFC and Bayern’s Red&Gold Football adds South Korean partner Jeju SK FC

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 17 Sep 2025 00:54:24 +0000

September 17 – Red&Gold Football, the joint venture between Bundesliga champions FC Bayern München and Los Angeles Football Club (LAFC) that is focused on developing young talent, has announced a new strategic partnership with Jeju SK FC of South Korea’s K League.

The partnership will establish clearly defined player pathways between South Korea (K-League), European football, and Major League Soccer.

The partnership will see an exchange of coaching expertise and the introduction of a scouting system at Jeju SK FC,

Mascherano bemoans loss of Suarez but did MLS let them off lightly?

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 15 Sep 2025 00:47:08 +0000

September 14 – The combustible career of Luis Suárez has never been short of headlines. From his infamous handball against Ghana in the 2010 World Cup, to multiple biting incidents, and the racial abuse suspension of Patrice Evra, the Uruguayan has always had a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde persona.

Now, at 37, he finds himself in familiar territory once more after Major League Soccer (MLS) handed him a three-game suspension for spitting on a Seattle Sounders staff member during the Leagues Cup final.

Life begins at 40: Vardy says there is no sign of slowing down

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 12 Sep 2025 05:48:09 +0000

September 12 – Life begins at 40, just ask Jamie Vardy as he closes in on that milestone, but don’t dare tell him his legs are gone. Presented at new Serie A club Cremonese this week, the former Leicester City striker showed his legendary spiky attitude when a reporter suggested the years were catching up with him.

“You must be one of the doubters, and you’re one that I’ll have to prove wrong,”

Red Star nailed on for league title; PSG, Bayern, Liverpool set to retain titles, finds prediction ranking

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 08:30:49 +0000

September 10 – The CIES Football Observatory have ranked Serbian SuperLiga side Red Star Belgrade as the most likely champions in a prediction analysis of the top 30 leagues this season, giving the Serbians a likelihood of 76.2% to win. This feels like a safe bet considering they have been crowned champions every season for more than a decade.

European and French champions PSG follow with a 73% likelihood of retaining their domestic title –

Mourinho and Solksjaer: Old Trafford cast-offs who sunk in the Bosphorus

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 01 Sep 2025 04:06:59 +0000

September 1 – The Special One and The Baby-Faced Assassin, aka José Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjær, now have two things in common. Firstly, both have been fired from Manchester United, and now they have both been relieved of their jobs in the Turkish capital, Istanbul, by Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş, respectively.

Despite being greeted by thousands of supporters at the airport when he arrived last year, the ‘Special One’ is leaving without any signs of success after barely a season in charge of one of Turkey’s most prestigious clubs.

Barca’s starlets dominate U20 player ranking as Europe’s giant clubs show increased focus on youth

Paul Nicholson — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 08:45:28 +0000

August 28 – Barcelona starlets Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsí are the two highest ranked under 20 players in the world, according to the latest ranking from the CIES Football Observatory.

Yamal and Cubarsí who have both become starters for Barcelona are both ranked significantly ahead of third ranked PSG and French international Warren Zaïre-Emery. Yamal is more than five ranking points ahead of Cubarsí and almost 15 ranking points ahead of Chelsea’s sixth placed Dutch defender Jorrel Hato.

Is Brazilian Rayan Vitor Europe’s next big thing?

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 22 Aug 2025 06:26:11 +0000

August 22 – The CIES Football Observatory has turned the spotlight on Vasco da Gama striker Rayan Vitor in the latest edition of its Prospect Sheet, produced in partnership with data specialists Impect.

Rayan, who has been with Vasco since the age of six, is already in his third senior season despite only turning 19 this year. He has scored nine goals in all competitions in 2025, underlining his rapid progress at professional level and teasing a call up to the Brazil national team should his impressive form continue.

Big job, short lifespan. Report examines the role of Sporting Directors across Big 5 leagues

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 01 Aug 2025 14:20:33 +0000

August 1 – Club Sporting Directors have become central to how clubs operate year-round, increasingly seen as the cornerstone of a club’s football department. An analysis of the sporting director’s role by Football Benchmark finds the jobs are generally held by former players whose careers are often as short as their careers as players with an average of 2.6 year in post.

The Football Benchmark research focuses on the Big Five European leagues as of July 2025.

Liverpool players dominate CIES positional rankings for 2024/25 season

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 30 May 2025 04:56:24 +0000

May 30 – Liverpool’s current stars and incoming talents dominate the latest player performance rankings published by the CIES Football Observatory, underlining the club’s strong footing heading into the next phase of its evolution.

Topping the overall global index – which evaluates performances across six key areas of the game – is Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah who racked up an impressive 47 goals and assists on his way to claiming a second premier league title.

USL Super League brings in Kitman’s medical monitoring system league-wide for inaugural season

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 30 Apr 2025 01:10:14 +0000

April 30 – The United Soccer League’s new women’s top tier, the USL Super League, has signed a league-wide deal with Kitman Labs as it gears up for its inaugural season – opting for the Irish company’s centralised Performance Medicine system to underpin player health, wellness, and performance data.

All eight clubs in the Super League will use Kitman Labs’ iP: Intelligence Platform, specifically its Performance Medicine module, to create a unified operating system across the league.

‘You’re getting sacked in the morning’. 75% of top tier coaches fired within a year

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 10:44:03 +0000

April 23 – New research from the CIES Football Observatory has revealed a striking lack of managerial stability across world football, with exactly 75.3% of current top-flight head coaches having been in their role for less than a year.

The study, which spans 65 leagues worldwide, highlights that only one in four coaches have held their position for a full season or more, with some of the world’s most high-profile competitions mirroring the global trend of short-term managerial tenures.

Rangers’ patience runs out and part company with Philippe Clement

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 24 Feb 2025 00:54:21 +0000

February 24 – Scottish giants Rangers have sacked under-fire coach Philippe Clement in the aftermath of back-to-back home defeats, the latest being Saturday’s 2-0 setback against St Mirren.

Clement, 50, had been facing mounting pressure throughout a dismal campaign and the Scottish Premiership club have now put the Belgian out of his misery after less than two years in charge.

“Rangers Football Club can confirm it has tonight parted company with men’s first-team manager,

Ranking highlights top U23 targets in transfer window

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 15 Jan 2025 06:00:23 +0000

January 15 – The CIES Football Observatory has unveiled the top U23 players outside Europe’s big five leagues who appear most prepared to take the next step in their careers, based on an index that evaluates a variety of data.

Sporting Lisbon’s Belgian defender Zeno Debast (87.5 – pictured) leads the ranking. A relatively unknown entity compared to some of the names on the list, the player is gathering interest from Spain this window,

Scouting report identifies world’s fastest developing talent

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 23 Dec 2024 09:19:46 +0000

December 23 – The stars of tomorrow are already making waves today. A scouting report by the CIES Football Observatory and Wyscout has identified the best-performing footballers born in 2004 or later across 65 leagues worldwide.

Using a performance index calculated across six key areas- ground defence, aerial play, distribution, chance creation, take-ons, and finishing – the rankings offer a detailed look at young players lighting up the global stage. The index, scored on a 100-point basis,

Koundé tops ranking of most used players, Van Dijk is second

Paul Nicholson — Thu, 19 Dec 2024 10:26:10 +0000

December 19 – FC Barcelona defender Jules Koundé has emerged as the most-used outfield player in world football, according to the latest CIES Football Observatory report. The French international clocked an extraordinary 5,872 minutes across 69 matches, showcasing both his durability and importance to club and country.

Hot on his heels are Fluminense’s Colombian John Arias (5,599 minutes) and Real Madrid’s utility midfielder Federico Valverde (5,573).

The next three places are occupied by players over the age of 30: Dutchman Virgil van Dijk (33.4),

Belgium’s Cercle Brugge keep faith with Austrian recruitment policy

Paul Nicholson — Fri, 13 Dec 2024 02:40:05 +0000

December 13 – Belgian club Cercle Brugge have named Ferdinand Feldhofer (pictured) as the successor to Miron Muslic. It’s the third time in a row that the club have put their fate in the hands of an Austrian manager.

Brugge are fighting relegation in the Belgian league and following the exit of Muslic the club have chosen to trust the 45-year-old Feldhofer to rescue them from the drop. After 17 match days, Cercle are lingering in 17th position with 16 points,

French women’s leagues partner with Pixellot for performance analysis

Paul Nicholson — Wed, 11 Dec 2024 03:05:31 +0000

December 11 – The French Women’s Professional Football League (LFFP) has taken a significant step to enhance performance analysis across its Arkema Premier League and Second League clubs by partnering up with Pixellot. The deal will see the introduction of Pixellot’s advanced AI-powered cameras, a cutting-edge technology designed to revolutionise match analysis.

As part of its ongoing efforts to support clubs in optimising performance, the LFFP has equipped every club in the Arkema Premier League and Second League with Pixellot cameras.

Robbie Keane in market for return to US as a coach

Paul Nicholson — Mon, 09 Dec 2024 03:55:46 +0000

December 9 – Robbie Keane’s Irish heart was smiling this weekend as one of his 11 former clubs lifted the biggest title on offer in his former home of America. Keane, who spent five seasons in Los Angeles with the LA Galaxy winning three MLS Cups was on the sidelines as they won their sixth all-time title beating the New York Red Bulls 2-1 at Dignity Health Sports Park.

Keane completed his UEFA Pro coaching license in 2020 and has made no secret of his desire to become a head coach in Major League Soccer (MLS).

Are Argentina’s evergreens at the end of their term?

Paul Nicholson — Thu, 05 Dec 2024 04:45:48 +0000

December 5 – The CIES Football Observatory has unveiled a potential Achilles heel for Lionel Scaloni’s Argentina, which have fielded one of the oldest average line-ups of any team in the world across the past 12 months.

The report shows the World Champions rank 12th out of the 144 teams surveyed, showing a warning signs for the side which regularly featured and relied upon ageing stars such as Leo Messi (37) and Angel Di Maria (36).

Alderweireld’s panic attacks forced him to retire

Paul Nicholson — Tue, 19 Nov 2024 09:21:27 +0000

November 19 – Former Belgium international defender Toby Alderweireld has revealed that he decided to end his international career after thinking he was “going to die”.

The 35-year-old, who still plays for Royal Antwerp in the Belgian league, quit the international scene in March 2023 after winning 127 caps.

The former Tottenham Hotspur was part of the so-called ‘Golden Generation’ of Belgian players who finished third at the 2018 World Cup and also played in the 2014 and 2022 editions.