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Kylian Mbappe has officially joined Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in one of world football’s rarest elite clubs after hitting 60 goals in the 2025 calendar year during Real Madrid’s draw with Girona. His penalty at Montilivi not only marked an extraordinary milestone but also cemented his place in French football history as the first since Just Fontaine to reach such a total.

Mbappe hits 60-goal mark for 2025

Mbappe reached the 60-goal mark for the 2025 calendar year when he converted a penalty during Real Madrid’s 1-1 draw against Girona on Sunday night. The Frenchman was frustrated throughout the scrappy contest, repeatedly crowded out by defenders and denied a second goal after an inadvertent handball moments before Girona struck the opener. Despite Madrid controlling phases of the match, they were forced to settle for another draw away from home, allowing Barcelona to grab La Liga's top spot.

The equaliser carried historic significance even as Real Madrid’s performance raised concerns, extending their run without an away win to a third league match. The result also increased pressure on Xabi Alonso, whose side have struggled to maintain consistency in recent weeks despite Mbappé’s extraordinary scoring output. Girona, who have historically troubled Madrid at Montilivi, again proved difficult to break down and came close to taking all three points before late Madrid pressure fizzled out.

Mbappe’s goal ensured he remained at the heart of the title race narrative, but the shared points exposed deeper vulnerabilities in Madrid’s current form. With Barcelona surging, Madrid’s margin for error grows thinner, and the reliance on their superstar has become increasingly obvious. Even on a historic night for him personally, the broader implications of the draw left Madrid with more questions than answers.

AdvertisementGettyJoins Messi, Ronaldo and Lewandowski in special club

Mbappe’s 60th goal of the year places him alongside Messi, Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski as the only players in the 21st century to hit such a tally in a single calendar year. His achievement is particularly significant in French football history, as he becomes the first French player since Fontaine in 1958 to score 60 goals for club and country within the same year. 

It also underscores the unique pressure he carries at Madrid, where he has instantly become the focal point of the team’s tactical structure. His prolific output has masked wider issues within the squad, with Madrid lacking the stability needed to keep pace with Barcelona despite possessing one of world football’s most lethal forwards. The club’s form in late 2025 has made Mbappe’s reliability even more important, especially in tight matches where he is often required to produce decisive moments alone.

Still, the broader context of his performance reveals a player thriving even amid turbulence. Between league matches, Champions League fixtures, and international duty with France, Mbappe has maintained an elite level of efficiency in both scoring and chance creation. His ability to sustain such production across competitions highlights why he is now mentioned in the same breath as Ronaldo and Messi when it comes to calendar-year scoring feats.

Mbappe's spectacular 2025 calendar year

The 2025 calendar year has been a definitive turning point for Mbappe, marking his transition from global superstar to Real Madrid’s undisputed centrepiece and leader. His first full year at the Bernabeu failed to bear fruit as Los Blancos went trophyless. However, across the first six months of 2025, he delivered crucial goals in the Champions League knockout rounds and formed threatening partnerships across Madrid’s front line.

As the 2025–26 season began, Mbappe immediately picked up where he left off, scoring at a remarkable rate and reinforcing his status as the league’s most dangerous forward. He combined his individual brilliance with increased leadership responsibility, while also taking on a central tactical role in Alonso’s evolving system. His contributions for France during this period were equally significant, as he captained Les Bleus through qualifiers and continued to deliver decisive goals.

By late November, his statistical profile reflected one of the most complete individual years in modern football, with 60 goals across club and country and a growing list of match-winning displays. This figure included goals in league action, European competition, domestic tournaments, and international matches.

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Getty ImagesMbappe looking to help Real Madrid catch up with Barcelona

Real Madrid will now look to stabilise their league form as they enter a crucial stretch of winter fixtures, with Mbappe expected to continue carrying much of the attacking responsibility. Upcoming matches, particularly their trip to San Mames to face Athletic Club, will test whether the team can convert individual brilliance into sustained collective momentum. With his goals keeping Madrid firmly in the title hunt, the club will hope their superstar’s historic year becomes the catalyst for a stronger run heading into 2026. 

Baseball has been offering a vexing question to small-market clubs for decades.

In a sport with the wealth gap widening by the year due to local TV deals among other franchise-specific financial streams, how do teams on a tight budget consistently compete?

This is something the Milwaukee Brewers attempt to answer every year.  

It turns out the best answer might prove to be almost 2,000 miles away in the Dominican Republic.

Two of Manchester United’s biggest summer signings, Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, are starting to get into full flow for the Red Devils.

Mbeumo, in particular, has started life at Old Trafford quickly, with eight goals and assists in 16 games across all competitions.

As for his Brazilian teammate, things haven’t been quite as smooth sailing. He’s struggled with a few minor injuries and hasn’t been at his best.

The United number ten only has one goal and one assist in 12 Premier League games, but has shown flashes of his best form.

United are not done there when it comes to strengthening in attack, and could dip back into the market this winter.

United’s latest attacking target

It is not just in attack that the Red Devils might be looking to strengthen their side, with midfield a focus area too.

Transfer Focus

Mega money deals, controversial moves and big-name flops. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across Football FanCast.

They are reportedly plotting to sign Elliot Anderson and are even linked with a sensational, if expensive, move for Jude Bellingham.

Looking further up the pitch, the Mancunian giants are linked with a move to sign Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo.

According to a report from TEAMtalk, United are able to meet the Ghanaian’s release clause and could make a move for him.

This, of course, will not be a cheap deal. Semenyo’s release clause is worth a reported £65m, a fee Ruben Amorim’s side ‘would be able to match’ this winter.

However, they would face tough competition for his signature, with Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City all interested in signing him, too.

Why Semenyo would be a good signing

There is no doubt about 25-year-old Semenyo’s quality. The versatile forward, who can operate on either flank, has been described this season as a “world-class” operator by Cherries teammate Justin Kluivert.

Indeed, the numbers he has put up are reflective of someone deemed an elite winger. This season in the Premier League, Bournemouth’s number 24 has played 14 games, scoring six goals and assisting a further three.

There have been some real standout moments for the 25-year-old, too. He’s scored twice and assisted the other in a 3-1 win at home to Fulham, and scored a sublime solo goal against Liverpool at Anfield on the opening day of the season.

United would love for the winger to have the same sort of impact as Mbeumo if he were to join. The Cameroonian attacker has been one of their most consistent players this season, even winning November’s Premier League player of the month award.

His most recent goal came on Monday against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Mbeumo and his new teammate Cunha can have a “big impact” on the club if they are able to “find a way to click,” according to United great Gary Neville.

If the Red Devils were to acquire Semenyo in the winter window, they would love for him to add to that threat with their two summer recruits.

You could certainly make a case that the Ghanaian is a hybrid of both players. At least, according to FBref, he has similar underlying numbers to Mbeumo over the last year and to Cunha in the top flight this term – noted as statistically similar both men in those respective fields.

Well, to factor in both, let’s look at numbers from the last two Premier League seasons. A standout number is their combined goals and assists per 90 minutes, with Semenyo averaging 0.5, Cunha 0.6 and Mbeumo 0.65.

0.5 goals & assists

0.6 goals & assists

0.65 goals & assists

1.29 key passes

1.78 key passes

1.79 key passes

1.85 take-ons complete

2.09 take-ons complete

1.22 take-ons complete

3.85 progressive carries

3.63 progressive carries

3.26 progressive carries

4.6 ball recoveries

4.36 ball recoveries

3.98 ball recoveries

It is easy to see how the three players are similar, based on those numbers.

If Semenyo – who, like the United pair, is Premier League proven – can offer the goal and assist numbers of Mbeumo, and the threat carrying the ball which Cunha brings, he would be a dangerous addition to Amorim’s side.

£65m is not the most unreasonable fee for a player of his class, and United fans will be hoping he can have a quick impact at Old Trafford.

The new Ji-Sung Park: Man Utd star is fast becoming as important as Bruno

Manchester United have another star who is becoming as important as Bruno Fernandes.

ByEthan Lamb 6 days ago

Mitch Marsh made nine om Sheffield Shield return amid speculation he’s an outside contender for an Ashes spot, as Sam Elliott’s 5 for 33 put Victoria in control

AAP04-Dec-2025Mitchell Marsh’s return to red-ball cricket has not gone to plan with the Ashes outsider failing for Western Australia against Victoria in the Sheffield Shield.Marsh had been touted as a potential shock factor at the top of Australia’s order in the series against England. But his return to Shield ranks yielded only nine runs, batting at No.3 for WA on Thursday’s opening day at the MCG.WA struggled to 194 all out, with Sam Elliott taking 5 for 33, before ladder-leading Victoria reached 51 without loss at stumps.Marsh’s most recent Shield match was in October last year. And he hadn’t played a first-class game since being axed from the Test side after the Boxing Day win against India last year, when he scored four and a duck.Marsh’s surprise return to red-ball cricket came amid speculation Test selectors are toying with deploying the hard-hitting batter as an opener against England.But after Travis Head’s first Test heroics at the top of the order, Marsh’s prospects of adding to his 46 Tests appear slimmer.On Thursday, the 34-year-old struck two fours, including a trademark pull shot. But he was also troubled by the movement of Victorian quick Mitchell Perry, who had a couple of lbw shouts turned down against Marsh.Australia’s T20 captain lasted only 16 balls, launching at a full, wide delivery from Perry and edging to wicketkeeper Sam Harper.Allrounder Aaron Hardie top-scored with 53 from 73 balls and Cameron Bancroft was next best with 39, while Jayden Goodwin and Cameron Gannon chipped in.But the West Australians collectively folded late as Elliott crashed through the lower order after Perry captured the initial three wickets.Elliott, who also took a five-for against NSW last month, took five of the last six wickets to fall as WA lost 5 for 42.Victoria’s opening batters Blake Macdonald and Harry Dixon posted a half-century stand inside 13 overs.Eight points clear atop the table, Victoria are chasing a fifth win from six games against WA who have one win from five games.

Benjamin Sesko's continued injury layoff is a significant blow for Manchester United and boss Ruben Amorim. Sesko has been sidelined since early November with a knee injury sustained against Tottenham Hotspur and while there were initial reports suggesting a swift recovery, the United boss announced a disappointing reason for his striker's latest setback.

Bitter blow for United boss

Amorim has revealed the Slovenian striker, a £74 million ($98.8m) summer signing from RB Leipzig has suffered a recent bout of food poisoning which will delay his comeback beyond the originally anticipated date. Sesko's absence has been keenly felt, particularly as United are set to lose key forwards Bryan Mbeumo and Amad Diallo to the Africa Cup of Nations, leaving the squad short on attacking options. The ongoing uncertainty surrounding Sesko's fitness puts immense pressure on other available forwards like Joshua Zirkzee and Matheus Cunha. And his agent, Elvis Basanovic, has noted Sesko is "impatient" to return. 

AdvertisementGetty Images SportAmorim: 'We have to see'

Speaking to the press ahead of the clash with Bournemouth on Monday evening, Amorim said: "(Harry) Maguire is out, (Matthijs) De Ligt is out, Ben (Sesko) we have to see. We have to see if he's available, he has some food poisoning but let's wait, we have two training sessions still."

Sesko agent: 'We will see him on the pitch very soon'

Speaking earlier this week, Sesko’s representative Basanovic told Slovenian broadcaster Arena Sport: "Benjamin feels very good, his rehabilitation is going according to plan. He can’t wait to get back on the pitch. He’s missing matches, he’s a little impatient and we hope that he will return soon, to be where he feels best again. It’s hard to say exactly (when he will return), it will ultimately be decided by the medical service and the coach. I think we will see him on the pitch very soon. Maybe sooner than it seems at the moment."

And on Sesko’s relationship with boss Amorim, Basanovic added: “I must say he (Amorim) received Benjamin excellently. I think Ruben is first of all, an excellent person with fantastic charisma, extremely intelligent, emotionally intelligent and I think he knows what he’s doing. I believe he’s in a difficult situation. It’s not easy to build such a project that requires enormous knowledge and amount of time. United is one of the biggest clubs in the world, if not the biggest and people don’t understand you need time. But I think every team being built needs time. Just look at [Matheus] Cunha, Mbeumo and Sesko: they have played very few matches together.

"And I think that they especially need games and they need to develop certain automatisms because then it’s much easier. When you have these automatisms, you don’t need to think where a player is or runs but that you start automatically. Then the results come and everything looks much better."

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Getty Images SportBournemouth up next for United

United face a demanding festive schedule with four Premier League matches leading up to the New Year and begin their run with a home match against Bournemouth on. The Cherries have become a banana skin for United in recent meetings and are winless in their last four Premier League games against them. But Amorim's side are in a good vein of form after a rocky start to the season, having lost just one of their last nine league games, with the defeat being the recent 1-0 at home to Everton. They then travel to Villa Park to face Aston Villa on December 21st and their Boxing Day fixture (which is the only top-flight game that day) sees them host Newcastle United at Old Trafford. And they round off 2025 with another home game against Wolves on December 30th.

The unexpected biggest winner of the Rafael Devers trade might be Baltimore Orioles designated hitter Ryan O'Hearn.

Thanks to the Boston Red Sox trading Devers to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday, Devers now switches from the American League to the National League, allowing O'Hearn to move up to first in the AL All-Star voting for designated hitters after the first update. Before the trade, Devers led all designated hitters in the AL with 796,382 votes, which are now transferring to the NL, where they rank second behind Shohei Ohtani's 1,398,771 votes. O'Hearn will jump into first place with 353,029 votes.

After the trade, O'Hearn shouted out Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow for trading Devers and thus putting him in position to be named an All-Star.

"I just wanna shoutout Craig Breslow real quick," O'Hearn said on . “Appreciate you, man, for helping me get in the standings. What a wild deal."

O'Hearn has yet to make the MLB All-Star team over his eight years in the majors, but he is now on the verge of achieving that special career feat. It's been a career-year so far for O'Hearn, who is slashing .306/.386/.495 with 10 home runs and 27 RBIs. With Devers in the NL, O'Hearn now has a much better chance at seeing his career season rewarded with his first ever All-Star appearance.

Matt Olson put on a show for the fans at Truist Park, as the Atlanta Braves slugger belted 15 home runs, including a 460-foot blast, to bring the crowd to its feet during the Home Run Derby on Monday. But Olson fell just short from advancing as he was eliminated after the first round of the Derby.

And no one took Olson's elimination harder than Blooper, the Braves mascot.

After Olson headed for the showers far sooner than any Braves fan would have hoped, Blooper could be seen drowning his sorrows in the waterfall beyond the center field wall at Truist Park, with a sad, sad expression on his face.

At least Blooper and Braves fans can take solace in the fact that Olson gave them some moments to cheer for during his second Home Run Derby appearance.

A weekend of baseball gets started on Friday night and we are eyeing the home run prop bet market to line our wallets as we hit July. 

While there are some tricky pitching matchups for certain lineups, the likes of Ozzie Albies, Michael Busch and Lourdes Gurriel are primed to go deep on Friday given not only their respective form at the dish, but also the pitching staff on the other side. 

Here’s why I’m backing these three sluggers to hit one over the fence on Friday night. 

Best MLB Home Run Prop Bets for Friday, June 28thOzzie Albies (+470)Michael Busch (+470)Lourdes Gurriel (+480)Ozzie Albies

Martin Perez of the Pirates has struggled all season, allowing a hard-hit percentage in the sixth percentile and an xERA that sits at 5.70, far higher than his actual ERA of 4.71. 

Perez will face a Braves lineup that has plenty of capable hitters, but Albies is the most dangerous on Friday. 

While not known for his power, the switch hitting second baseman has as many homers against lefties relative to righties but in about a third of the at bats and has a slugging percentage of .512. 

Michael Busch 

Busch started his rookie season on a heater, but cooled off. Now, it appears he got over the rookie wall, hitting .308 in June, but with only one home run. 

He still has an above average xSLG (60th percentile) and has hit all of his home runs against right handed pitchers, which he is facing in Colin Rea on Friday night. 

Rea has been pitching way above expectations this season, posting a 5.34 xERA against his 3.62 ERA. Further, left handed hitters have crushed him, he’s allowed three times as many homers against lefties relative to righties. 

Busch, a lefty, is a great bet to go yard. 

Lourdes Gurriel 

There’s few more dangerous than Gurriel against lefty pitchers. The left fielder is enjoying a strong year with 10 home runs while hitting .264, but he really thrives against lefties. 

Gurriel is hitting .345 against southpaws with four home runs and a slugging percentage of .540. 

Facing off against JP Sears and a bottom five Athletics bullpen, this is a perfect opportunity to play Gurriel to hit a home run. 

Pete Alonso became the Mets' all-time leader in home runs earlier this week as part of an offensive explosion so big the team ran out of fireworks. When Alonso passed Daryl Strawberry it was a nice moment for a team in the middle of a very rough patch and SNY's play-by-play voice, Gary Cohen, responded with an enthusiastic call to mark the occasion.

One person who didn't appreciate the call was Chris "Mad Dog" Russo, who went on the next morning to rant about the Mets celebrating the accomplishment. Near the end of his rant he also called out Cohen for his nickname-centric call saying, "I love Gary, I hate to do that. ‘Polar Bear on an iceberg?’ I mean, really now? This is not Henry Aaron against Al Downing!”

Unsurprisingly, there was at least one person who then took issue with Russo's rant. That would be ESPN New York's Don La Greca who went on his show later in the day to explain that the call wasn't for Mad Dog.

"Dude, this is a Met moment," said La Greca. "If you're a Yankee fan or Chris Russo, a Giant fan, a Red Sox fan, don't care about baseball. What do you care to have an opinion? It was for the Mets fans. It's a Met broadcast by a Met announcer who grew up a Met fan talking about a Met record. He's playing it to the room."

"You're not involved! You weren't invited," La Greca continued. "I don't understand why you should even care. I don't need to hear a San Francisco Giant fan peeing all over it. It's disrespectful to Gary. It's disrespectful to Met fans. Chris, I love ya. I don't care what you think. I don't! Your opinion doesn't count because you're not part of the club that that call was for. That call was for Mets fans. Watching the game. Living and dying with the team. Not a guy that's a San Francisco Giant fan that doesn't get it. Of course you don't get it because you don't know because you're not a Met fan."

As far as media feuds go, this one features a lot of players. You've got ESPN, ESPN Radio, SiriusXM, SNY, First Take, Peter Schraeger giggling. Pretty much everybody and everything.

The rich just keep on getting richer.

The Dodgers fortified their bullpen on Tuesday, agreeing to a three-year contract with standout closer Edwin Díaz. The contract is worth $69 million, and Díaz will make an average of $23 million per season.

After winning back-to-back championships in 2024 and ‘25, Los Angeles went and successfully plugged the only hole on its roster by signing, once again, the best player available. The team’s spending habits defy anything previously seen in MLB, as the Dodgers are totally unafraid to make a financial commitment to a player if it means improving their roster. As the super-team continues to improve throughout the offseason, fans are growing increasingly frustrated.

The team ended the 2025 season with a payroll exceeding $330 million, the highest in MLB, and they’ll field an even more expensive team in 2026 after signing Díaz. The frightening reality is that they’re probably not even done making offseason additions yet, either.

Baseball fans have been frustrated by the Dodgers’ endless spending, and the addition of MLB’s best relief pitcher didn’t help in that regard. MLB fans had plenty to say about the Dodgers’ deal with Díaz on Tuesday.

Can anyone stop the Dodgers at this point?