Touchlinetalks | T

🚨Toni Kroos on Harry Kane winning the Ballon d’Or “I’m over the moon for Harry Kane finally winning the Ballon d’Or. Scoring 73 goals across club and country is an absurd number that only the absolute greats have touched And he backed it up by driving Bayern to a domestic double while also delivering for England at the World Cup. For me the race was always between Kane and Lamine Yamal from the start Mbappé doesn’t even deserve to be mentioned in the top two. Watching Kane lift the trophy feels like justice after years of coming close; overlooking him again would have been a robbery. I was also quietly rooting for Lamine. He had a genuinely special season, helping Spain win the World Cup and continuing his ridiculous rise at Barcelona even if his personal tournament numbers weren’t the headline. It’s hard not to admire that blend of youth, talent and major silverware, which is why he was the only other player who legitimately belonged in the conversation. Mbappé may have scored goals and looked sharp at times, but without any major trophies and without the kind of decisive impact that defines a Ballon d’Or contender, he simply falls short. The award has always rewarded players who combine elite production with collective success, and between the two who actually deserved it. Kane’s package of finishing, league and cup titles, plus a solid World Cup run made him the clear winner.”

Hey @KMbappe Ballon d’or is now available in mumbai India.

🚨Gerard Piqué on Barcelona’s First-Half Performance “Honestly, it’s a shame what I saw from Barcelona in that first half. They couldn’t even complete a simple pass, and they looked completely lost on the pitch. I’ve never seen a team of ours wander around like that literally no idea what they were supposed to be doing. The shape was gone, the ideas were gone, and every time they tried to play out, it just fell apart. When Flick made those changes against PSG, I actually thought he was being smart. I told myself he was saving the real plan for El Clásico, even though we still lost 4-2 that night. I gave him the benefit of the doubt because you expect a coach to hold something back for the biggest game of the season. But watching us tonight, it felt exactly the same as what I saw against PSG. Nothing had improved. We were dominated from the first minute. Madrid held more of the ball than we did, and that’s not something you ever expect to say about Barcelona. They controlled the tempo, they controlled the spaces, and we just chased. I kept waiting for a reaction, for some intensity or an idea that would change the game, but it never came. We looked like a side that had already accepted being second-best. We’re lucky it was only 1-0 at half-time. Real Madrid missed a few clear chances, and if they’d taken them, this should have been 3-0. That’s the truth. I’m quite disappointed with Flick and with the team right now. This is not the level, and this is not how you win titles. You can’t show up like this in El Clásico and expect anything good to happen.”

🚨Roy Keane on Bruno being dropped “To be honest, I expected Carrick to bench Bruno today. He offers little or nothing to the team right now. United lost 3-0 and he stayed on the bench, but even if he had started he would not have turned it around. He was in the side when Tottenham took a point at Old Trafford recently and did next to nothing of real influence. That has been the pattern for stretches this season. A captain is supposed to raise standards, not drift through games while the side looks soft. Carrick has made the call after the public comments following Como. Whether the result improved or not, no one should be untouchable when the performances are this poor. There is a longer pattern with Bruno that people inside the club have noticed for years. He pushed himself into the main-man role while others were still there. McTominay’s path out of the club was influenced by the competition for attacking midfield minutes and the second-striker type role; Bruno was never going to give that ground up. With Ronaldo there were clear tensions over who took the penalties and who set the tone. Bruno stayed on them even when Ronaldo was chasing the Golden Boot, and after Ronaldo left he went into interviews talking about how the team was now playing properly and the previous issues had been cleared. He was happy to be seen as the steady presence while others were portrayed as the problem. That is not leadership by example; it is looking after your own position. He enjoyed the spotlight and the narrative when it suited him and when others were being moved on or criticised. Now the same standard is being applied to him. Carrick has left the captain out after a poor run and public criticism of the staff. United still got hammered, which shows the problems go deeper than one player, but the message is clear. No one is protected forever. If the attitude and output do not improve, this will not be a one-off.”

🚨 Gary Neville on Manchester United’s 3-0 loss to Bournemouth at Old Trafford “Honestly, I feel no sympathy for Manchester United right now. Tell me why a coach like Michael Carrick is in charge of a club of this size. Yes, he did reasonably well when he stepped up as assistant coach last season, and his interim spell showed some promise But you simply cannot hand one of the biggest jobs in world football to a man who has never properly managed a senior team before. Manchester United is not a place for experiments or loyalty projects it is a club that demands proven leadership under the highest pressure. Carrick’s background is almost entirely as a player and a coach within the same system. While that insider knowledge can help with dressing-room culture and understanding the club’s history, it does not replace real managerial experience. Managing a mid-table Championship side or even a lower Premier League club is a completely different challenge from trying to rebuild Manchester United after years of instability. Trusting him with the permanent role feels like a gamble the club could not afford to take. Carrick mentioned we’d see a different Manchester United today. But what did we see? We only saw a disaster. Losing 3-0 at home against Bournemouth is something I didn’t see coming. For me, Erik ten Hag was the better option. The man actually won two trophies for them the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup yet he was never truly given the time or consistent backing to implement his ideas. Results dipped, and he was sacked almost immediately after a difficult start to the season, despite the silverware he had already delivered. That kind of short-term thinking only creates more chaos, not long-term progress. The way United treated Ten Hag highlights the deeper problem at the club. They kept a manager who had delivered tangible success and then discarded him the moment the results stopped looking impressive. Meanwhile, they turned to someone with far less of a track record. It is hard to see how constantly resetting the project with unproven coaches is supposed to restore the club to its former level. No offense to Carrick as a person or a former player, but he is not yet at the level required for Manchester United. Coaches in his position should be developing their skills in the Championship or at a smaller Premier League club first, not learning on the job at Old Trafford. Until the club starts appointing managers with genuine experience and gives them proper support, this cycle of underperformance is likely to continue.”

🚨Nico Paz on beating Manchester United: “I actually spoke to Messi for a few minutes before the game. He gave me a couple of simple ideas on how to hurt a team like Manchester United mainly about receiving between the lines and not rushing the decision when the space is there. That helped, because from the first whistle it felt clear we weren’t going to be under the pressure everyone expected. United are a big name, but they never really controlled the midfield. Every time I dropped in or turned, I had time to look up and pick a pass or shot. That’s rare at this level. Cesc had told us beforehand to stay patient and trust the spaces would appear, and he was right. Their midfield kept leaving gaps, and their defenders weren’t sure whether to step out or hold their line. We just kept playing our game and took what they gave us. My first goal was a good example. I received the ball and realised nobody was closing me down quickly enough. At that point you don’t think too much you just finish. After the second goal you could feel their belief drop. They started looking a bit unsure every time we broke, and that only made it easier for us. Scoring twice and getting an assist against Manchester United is something I’ll remember for a long time, but what I liked most was how comfortable we were. We didn’t have to force anything or change the way we play. We just did the basics well and they never really found a way to stop us.

🚨Thierry Henry on Antony Gordon performance “Honestly, watching that Antony Gordon performance left me in awe. He absolutely did nothing tonight against PSG. No real runs, no quality on the ball, no end product nothing that caused them any problems. I didn’t get why Flick allowed him to play the full 90 minutes without substituting him when it was obvious he wasn’t contributing. Hansi Flick needs to understand that this is not a mediocre team you’re playing against. You’re playing against PSG, a team that has won the Champions League twice in a row. You don’t come at them playing like a novice team that’s clueless. The lack of intensity, the passive approach, the way Gordon was left isolated it all looked like a side that didn’t know how to hurt a team of that level. For me, Hansi is doing a great job domestically. The organisation, the results in the league, you can’t take that away from him. But when it comes to these big European nights, he has nothing to offer so far. The decision to leave a player who is having zero impact on the pitch for the entire match says a lot about the in-game management. You can be excellent week to week at home, but the Champions League is a different test. Against sides like PSG you need clarity and the courage to make changes when things aren’t working. Until Flick shows he can do that, nights like this will keep exposing the gap.”

🚨 Gerard Piqué on Barcelona’s loss today against PSG “I expected nothing from Barcelona tonight, and the result against PSG didn’t shock me at all. They walked into Parc des Princes looking completely clueless, with no clear plan for how to handle a side that has already shown it can dominate Europe. You simply cannot dominate La Liga the way they have and then turn up with this level of mediocrity on the biggest stage, when the entire football world is watching. The gap in intensity, structure and decision-making was obvious from the first whistle. The blame has to sit squarely with Hansi Flick. There was zero tactical identity on display no consistent press, no control of the midfield spaces, and no answer when Luis Enrique’s PSG started rotating and punishing the open gaps. Luis Enrique once again showed him the difference in class between a coach who has already won consecutive Champions Leagues and one still finding his way in these nights. Even with injuries to key defenders, the performance lacked the clarity and bravery that top European nights demand. The substitutions only made it worse. Pedri was having one of the better games in the side and was still the player most capable of giving Barcelona some control, yet he was taken off. In his place, Anthony Gordon was left up front looking lost, offering almost nothing in terms of movement or threat against a high-quality PSG back line. Meanwhile Gabriel Jesus, a proven proper number nine who could have given them a focal point and held the ball up, stayed on the bench. Those choices felt like they summed up a night of muddled thinking rather than any clear game plan. Barcelona’s league form has papered over cracks, but Europe does not forgive the same level of inconsistency. If Hansi Flick cannot take this team deep into the Champions League and ultimately win it this season, he should be sacked. Nights like this make it clear he is still not ready for the full demands of the job at a club that expects to compete for everything. PSG were sharper, more mature and better coached Barcelona have to respond or the questions will only get louder.”

Antony Gordon still has time to buy himself an e-bike and go phone snatching in central London