GM football fans. It’s Wednesday, August. 13 - Alexander Isak is adamant he will not play for Newcastle again, La Liga projections have been released, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY FIXTURE
UEFA Super Cup: Paris Saint-Germain vs. Tottenham Hotspur, 20:00 BST / 15:00 ET. This will be the first time these sides have met in a competitive match. Tottenham are the eighth different English side to feature in the Super Cup, and six of the previous seven won their first-ever appearance in the final. However, 11 of the last 12 editions of the Super Cup have been won by the previous season’s Champions League winners, with the exception being Atletico Madrid’s 4-2 win over Real Madrid in 2018. Read more about the history of the Super Cup here.
TV Channels: TNT Sports (UK) | Paramount+ & fuboTV (US) | DAZN (Canada)
Results…
UEFA Champions League, 3rd Qualifying Round (See Results)
English League Cup, 1st Round (See Results)
Liga MX: Leon 1-3 Monterrey | Juarez 0-2 Toluca | Atletico San Luis 1-2 Cruz Azul (Table)
TOP TALKING POINTS
Newcastle’s Isak Saga
Alexander Isak is reportedly adamant that he will not play for Newcastle again and has no desire to reintegrate with the team. The 25-year-old striker is determined to leave the club and join Liverpool—who have not made another offer since their £110m bid at the start of August—before the transfer deadline closes on September 1. Isak is expected to miss Newcastle's Premier League opener at Aston Villa on Saturday.
Reports suggest that Isak made it clear (paywall) that this would be his last campaign with Newcastle after being informed he would not be offered an updated, more lucrative contract, as the club needs to comply with financial rules. Some at Newcastle deny this was expressed by the striker. His current contract runs till 2028.
Isak’s home was put on the rental market the day after he was not allowed to attend Newcastle’s players and families day last week. The property, advertised for £6,950 ($9,380) a month, was initially put on the market in July when Isak didn’t join the club’s pre-season trip to Asia, but was then taken down. It is now back on the market with a local rental company.
La Liga Projections
The 2025-26 La Liga season begins on Friday, with Girona and Rayo Vallecano kicking off the new campaign. See every La Liga fixture here.
Reigning champions Barcelona are 46.5% favourites to repeat last season’s success, according to Opta’s prediction model. Despite only finishing four points clear of second-place Real Madrid, Barcelona scored 102 goals in La Liga, making them the only team across Europe’s top five divisions to score a century of league goals in 2024-25. Real Madrid, meanwhile, have a 32.1% chance of regaining the crown, while Atletico Madrid are given an 11.7% chance.
Barcelona (92.8%), Real Madrid (87.1%), and Atletico (66.3%) are given the best chance of securing a Champions League placement from their league position. The fourth spot is projected to be contested by Villareal (37.7%), Athletic Club (34.1%), and Real Betis (17.6%).
At the other end of the table, Real Oviedo, who have been promoted to the Spanish top flight for the first time in 25 years, have been projected to have a 32.6% chance of relegation. This is followed by Elche (32.6%), Levante (29.5%), Getafe (28.7%), and Espanyol (24.8%).
Ending 3 PM Blackout Coming
UK broadcaster Sky Sports says that a conversation about abolishing the 3 pm blackout “is coming.” The Saturday 3 pm blackout—once common across Europe but now unique to the UK—will remain in force for the Premier League’s next four-year TV deal. The rule has been in place since 1960 and prohibits live football from being shown in the UK between 2:45 pm and 5:15 pm on Saturdays.
While the measure was introduced to protect matchday attendances and participation in amateur football, it could come to an end when the 2029–30 season kicks off, as there’s a growing belief that the only way to make more money will be to show more matches. Sky Sports managing director Jonathan Licht also believes that lifting the Saturday 3 pm TV blackout would reduce piracy of Premier League matches in the UK.
In related news, Sky will now offer a ‘Multiview’ programme which allows viewers to watch four Premier League games at once, taking inspiration from the NFL’s RedZone. The format will include one main match and three smaller screens lined up alongside, and will be used when Sky has the rights to show as many as five games at a time.
POLL
Do you think it's best for clubs to let players go if they want to leave?
ON THE BALL
Europe
Breaking: PSG’s Gianluigi Donnarumma has reportedly reached an agreement with Manchester City over a contract and has already spoken with Pep Guardiola, according to French outlet L’Equipe (Original Source/requires translation or here)
> Jose Mourinho's Fenerbahce advance into the Champions League qualifying playoffs after overturning a two-goal deficit against Robin van Persie’s Feyenoord (More); see all Champions League qualifying results (More)
> Former Premier League referee David Coote has been given an eight-week suspension by the FA for comments made about ex-Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp on social media (More) | A Manchester United supporters' group has postponed protests planned for the day of their opening game of the Premier League season over split opinion (More)
> Villarreal president says that all season-ticket holders will get free travel to watch them play Barcelona in Miami with a free match ticket, while those that don’t want to travel will get 20% off the price of their current season ticket (More) | Real Madrid have asked for the fixture abroad to be postponed saying it would "give an undue sporting advantage" and "sets an unacceptable precedent” (More)
> PSG have signed Bournemouth defender Illia Zabaryni in a five-year deal worth £57m (More)
Americas
> Conmebol Libertadores last 16 fixtures, Flamengo vs. Internacional and Botafogo take place on Wednesday (Aug 13) (See Schedule)
> Detroit City FC will have a new permanent football-specific stadium, set to open in Southwest Detroit for the 2027 USL Championship season; see images (More)
> Liga MX side Club America have signed Allan Saint-Maximin on a permanent deal from Al Ahli (More)
Rest of the World
> Aymeric Laporte’s demand for a contract termination has reportedly angered Al Nassr officials, and the defender is expected to miss most matches next season, hindering his chance of being included in Spain’s World Cup squad (More)
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ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Do you think the transfer window should close before the season starts?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👍 Yes (81%)
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (17%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (2%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 K.M.C: “It would be much cleaner for all involved to have the cut-off date for the window to be before the season starts. There is ample time for the clubs to get deals done. The ability to focus on business while the leagues are not playing is key. Better for clubs, players and fans this way. Gives everyone a bit of time to adjust to their new teams and get up to speed.”
👍 K.P: “It should be open from the last game of the season and a couple of weeks before the new season. Clears up the uncertainty of who is coming in or going out, and must be good for the players who should be more settled in with their new squad on preseason tours and training.”
🙅♂️ J.L: “Keeping the window open until the end of August makes sense in that once the season actually starts, competitive matches can show strengths and weaknesses, making further transfer activity necessary, even vital. Plus, an early injury to a key player can be addressed, and with the window still open for the first few weeks of play, any club can address problems that arise early with tactics and injury. It's fair.”
✍️ A.M.L: “We tried it before, and it didn’t work because each league is responsible for its own window timings. It needs to be a window where everyone shuts at the same time, otherwise it will never work.”
EXTRA TIME
Every transfer in Europe’s top five leagues. (live tracker)
The history of football–part three. (video)
Man Utd remake 'Cantona kung fu kit' as third shirt.
What’s new in FPL this new season?
… and sign up for R1’s FPL mini-league here. (or use this code: k016q6)
Updated MLS power rankings released.
Estimating how rested each Premier League team is.
Ranking the best managers in Europe in order.
GAME FACE ON
Fill in the blanks from the following sequence:
Real Madrid (6), _______ (5), AC Milan (5), ______ (4), Atletico Madrid (3), Ajax (3).
Scroll below for the answer.
ON TODAY
UEFA Super Cup
PSG vs. Tottenham Hotspur (20:00)
English League Cup, 1st Round
Barnsley vs. Fleetwood Town (19:45)
Bolton vs. Sheffield Wednesday (19:45)
Cheltenham vs. Exeter (19:45)
Huddersfield Town vs. Leicester (19:45)
Birmingham City vs. Sheffield United (20:00)
*All times in UK. ET -5. CDT -6. PDT -8. MDT -7. CET +1.
Answer
Barcelona & Liverpool. The sequence: teams that have won the most Uefa Super Cup titles, in order.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
Someone has decided that I can no longer be part of the group and contribute to the team’s success. I am disappointed and disheartened.
