Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has spoken more about the ways he personally disrupted his team’s pre-season schedule to get a reaction from his players. The Gunners boss has often shown himself to be keen on pushing even those finest of margins to take his team up a level, and it seems that includes stressing them […] The post Mikel Arteta reveals “many” crazy methods to keep Arsenal players on their toes appeared first on CaughtOffside.
Petr Cech believes Lionel Messi still has a real shot at winning a record-extending ninth Ballon d'Or this year. The 2026 Ballon d’Or conversation continues to heat up ahead of October’s ceremony, and one of the game’s most respected former goalkeepers has thrown his support behind Lionel Messi as the sport’s biggest individual honor edges closer. Petr Cech, speaking in an interview with Kalshi Sports, was asked directly who he expects to win the award. “The winner of the Ballon d’Or? That’s a good question, but I think Messi has a good chance,” the former Chelsea goalkeeper said. Messi’s case rests on a remarkable year, at 39 years old, that included leading Inter Miami to the MLS title, registering 45 goals and 30 assists across 49 matches, and driving Argentina back to the World Cup final with eight goals and four assists in the tournament. A win would give him a record-extending ninth Ballon d’Or, well clear of any other player in the award’s history. Still, Messi faces stiff competition from a shortlist led by Harry Kane, who scored 73 goals for club and country during the review period, along with Kylian Mbappe, who topped the scoring charts in LaLiga, the Champions League and the World Cup, and Lamine Yamal, who won a domestic treble with Barcelona and lifted the World Cup with Spain. 🚨 Petr Čech: "Who will win the Ballon d'Or? That's a good question. I think Messi has a good chance of winning it." ✨✨ pic.twitter.com/VD3UwPLEu8— All About Argentina 🛎🇦🇷 (@AlbicelesteTalk) September 9, 2026 Current betting odds still list Messi as an outside contender, but the ceremony, scheduled for October 26 in London, remains wide open with journalists yet to cast their votes. Messi’s Ballon d’Or nomination history Messi’s 2026 nod marks his 17th career Ballon d’Or nomination, second only to Cristiano Ronaldo’s record 18, in a streak that began back in 2007 and has continued nearly every year since. Of those 17 nominations, he has converted eight into wins, first in 2009 and most recently in 2023, giving him more Ballon d’Or trophies than any other footballer ever. No other player has come close to matching Messi’s level of sustained excellence in the eyes of voters, with only Ronaldo’s five Ballon d’Or wins even approaching that mark. A ninth trophy in October would only widen Messi’s lead over Ronaldo and the rest of the award’s history in terms of total victories, even as Ronaldo continues to hold the record for nominations.
English top flight’s forwards are not well represented on the list, reflecting a season of set-piece grapple, but 2026-27 already looks brighterPremier League representation is low when it comes to the 16 attacking players on this year’s Ballon d’Or shortlist. Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland are there but Cole Palmer, one of the nominees in 2025, is out after an injury-hit year and English football’s shift towards physicality and set pieces last season is summed up by none of the forwards from the best team in the country making the cut.The trio giving Arsenal a presence – Gabriel Maghalhães, Declan Rice and William Saliba – are all defensive minded. Arsenal won the league but their forwards are not regarded as elite. Injuries played a part, denying Martin Ødegaard, Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka fluency, but Mikel Arteta’s side were not loved by neutrals. There was respect rather than admiration for their defensive rigour. There was an argument that a lack of ambition after going 1-0 up stopped Arsenal from beating Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final. Continue reading...
Tap a headline to view metadata and excerpt fields in Sportra, then use the article website button to continue on the original publisher page.
