Kylian Mbappe was voted Ligue 1 best player of the season for the fourth successive time on Sunday, May 28, after helping Paris Saint-Germain win a record 11th French title. The French footballer scored 28 goals in the league this season and is on course to finish as the division’s top scorer for the fifth season running. 
Mbappe giving a speech after winning the Ligue 1 best player award. Source: Getty Mbappe is now the only player to have won the Best Ligue 1 Player award four times, beating the record he shared with Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Accepting the award, he said; “I want to thank the players, the staff, all the people working in the shadows. It’s a pleasure, I always wanted to win, to write my name into the league’s history. But even with all the ambition I have, I didn’t expect to win so quickly.” Franck Haise of Lens was named coach of the season after leading the club to second place and giving them a place in Champions League football for the first time in two decades.
Mbappe wins Ligue 1’s best player award. Source: Getty Lens goalkeeper Brice Samba was given the best goalkeeper award, while Paris Saint-Germain left-back Nuno Mendes earned the best young player award. Mendes was one of four PSG players in the team of the season alongside Mbappe, Lionel Messi, and Achraf Hakimi. Lens also had four players in the team of the season; Brice Samba, defender Kevin Danso, midfielder Seko Fofana and striker Lois Openda.
Andre Wisdom, a former Liverpool defender has brutally tackled Chelsea’s interim manager Frank Lampard whom he played under at Derby County. Speaking during an interview with The Beautiful Game Podcast, Andre who recalled a personal experience with Lampard claimed that he has a “poor management style”. He said; “I’ve had one manager scream at me and it was Lampard. We got smashed by, 4-0 I think, and I said some comments after the game and then he just went in. But it was nothing to do really with football, it was more about me as a person which was very strange to me. “He said some things that were just very strange. For instance, when someone says “I’m not scared of you. He said I walked slow, he said I bully people. “Anybody you could ask, I know it might sound a bit egotistical, but they’ll say no Andre is cool. I’ve never once even raised my voice at anyone. Don’t play with me. Do not. Don’t. But bully is different. 
“I’ll talk to you by yourself over there. That’s my type. But in front of people, why do that? You’re going to react then we have a problem. I’m not all the things he said, so it was weird. “My experience it was weird, it was very, very weird. It didn’t feel like I was at football, and I think what kind of threw me was the fact that it was Frank Lampard. “I don’t want you to misinterpret it like I was in awe… far from. Far from. I think I expected something that I wasn’t getting. I expected more from him as a man.” Lampard returned to Stamford Bridge as the interim manager last month after the club sacked Graham Potter. However, the Chelsea legend has had a torrid start to his second stint as manager after losing all six matches in charge. 
Lamine Yamal has become the youngest player ever to feature for Barcelona in a La Liga match. The 15-year-old made his long-awaited league debut for Barcelona’s senior team during a match against Real Betis on Saturday, April 29, which ended 4-0. 
Yamal had an impressive 10-minute appearance as he touched the ball 12 times and had a shot on goal in the lively showing. The Spain youth international is already playing ahead of his age category for the Juvenil A, Barca’s Under-19 side. He’s been on the cusp of the first team, with Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez said to be in “love” with the winger. Yamal has trained with the first-teamers and was named in the matchday squad for the game against Atletico Madrid. 
He has been at the Catalan club since he was seven and had been represented by former Barca and Espanyol midfielder Ivan de la Pena. Still so young, Yamal is yet to sign a professional contract with Barca but will be able to do so as soon as he turns 16 in July. Superagent Jorge Mendes is now handling Yamal as he looks to make the grade at Barca. 
Saka was among a six-man shortlist for the award alongside Alexander Isak, Alexis Mac Allister, Tyrone Mings, Mohamed Salah, and Arsenal teammate Leandro Trossard. This is the first time Saka will be winning the award. He moved into double figures for both goals and assists in March, netting his tenth goal of the campaign in a 4-0 win over Everton to kick off the month, a game in which he also bagged an assist. 
It is the second time this season the prize has been handed to an Arsenal player, with captain Martin Odegaard receiving the November/December award. 
Ronaldo started in Portugal’s European qualifier against Liechtenstein to make his 197th appearance with the national team, breaking a tie with Kuwait’s Bader Al-Mutawa. He led Portugal to a 4-0 triumph against Liechtenstein, scoring a brace. The veteran’s first strike was a penalty, while his second was a ferocious free kick. 38-year-old Ronaldo became Europe’s most-capped player in 2021 after surpassing Sergio Ramos’ mark of 180 appearances with Spain. 
With his 197th international appearance for Portugal Ronaldo leapfrogged Kuwait legend Bader Al-Mutawa (196 caps). Malaysian icon Soh Chin Ann is third on the list with 195 caps, Egyptian Ahmed Hassan (184) on fourth, and Oman great Ahmed Mubarak (183) is fifth. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner is also the fifth oldest ever to play for the national team at 38. Only Pepe, Damas, Silvino, and Fonte played for Portugal being older. Ronaldo made his international debut in 2003 and became the first man to score in five World Cups last year before Portugal lost to Morocco in the quarterfinals. 
Following the unveiling of Mykhailo Mudryk by Chelsea on Sunday, January 15, the club will now have to remove a player from their Champions League squad to register some of their new players. 
Recall that Mudryk arrived yesterday as Chelsea’s 5th signing in the January transfer window. David Datro Fofana, Andrey Santos, Benoit Badiashile and Joao Felix had all agreed to a deal with the club this month. Chelsea now has more non-homegrown players than are permitted for a Champions League squad. Only 17 non-homegrown players can be registered, while Chelsea now has 18 on their books according to Daily Mail. 
Should the club’s coach, Graham Potter wish to include his new signings for their round of 16 first-leg showdown with Borussia Dortmund on February 15, he’ll have to remove a player who helped Chelsea top Group E late last year. Some of the players that can easily be omitted are Christian Pulisic, N’Golo Kante, and Denis Zakaria who are all nursing injuries. 
