Rico Verhoeven continues to attract praise for the competitive performance he produced during his challenge for the heavyweight boxing world titles against the defending champion, Oleksandr Usyk, atop a Riyadh Season card that took place on Saturday, the 23rd of May, in front of the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.The kickboxing icon sat down for an exclusive chat with GIVEMESPORT during a week when the entire combat sport community rallied around him, telling him his showing had been “amazing.”The 37-year-old was seemingly presenting Usyk with more problems than he had to find a solution for when he took on more established boxers, Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Daniel Dubois in recent years.

While reflecting on the event, Verhoeven revealed what Usyk said to him, away from the microphones, immediately after the Ukrainian secured a somewhat fortuitous and cruel 11th round stoppage at the Dutchman’s expense.

‘I Truly Believe a Mistake Was Made’ – Rico Verhoeven on His Loss to Usyk

One of the many ways in which Verhoeven became so beloved in kickboxing wasn’t just because of his extraordinary wins, including two over Badr Hari, or his physical and technical prowess, but, also, because of his mental fortitude. There were numerous examples of Verhoeven looking beaten, only to rally and win moments in later rounds.

We asked Verhoeven whether he felt robbed of the chance to prove that mettle once more during the Usyk fight. Referee Mark Lyson bizarrely withdrew Rico from the event after the bell had already sounded for the end of the 11th round.The challenger would have had a full minute to recover before the 12th and final round, if he were allowed to continue. Excuses, though, weren’t something that Verhoeven wanted to entertain. “Yeah, this might have happened. But I don’t like that,” he admitted.

What Oleksandr Usyk Told Rico Verhoeven After Their Fight

Following the heartbreak of being denied the opportunity to continue, and with Usyk advancing his unblemished record to 25 wins (16 KOs), there was a moment that both fighters shared in the ring.

The pair explained the typical post-fight pleasantries, before Usyk shared his honest five-word assessment of Verhoeven’s performance, telling him:

“You’re such a good fighter.”

Usyk’s comment contradicts his statement on social media in the hours following the fight, where he joked that he had deliberately taken it easy on Rico to make the fight last longer.

Because of the way the fight finished, and the way in which Verhoeven managed to leave a lasting impression on boxing fans, a second fight between them is not out of the equation.It’s a rematch that the sport’s financier, Turki Alalshikh, also wants to make happen, providing Usyk doesn’t honor a mandatory challenge from the deserving fighter, Agit Kabayel.Other fighters Verhoeven is open to competing against include Francis Ngannou, Anthony Joshua (pending availability), and Deontay Wilder. He ruled out fighting Tyson Fury, though, whom he’s sparred with and trained with, through his coach, Peter Fury.

The 2026 World Cup is almost upon us, and to the surprise of nobody, that means big debates are being sparked about the greatest players to have performed on the grandest stage of them all.

Lionel Messi cemented himself as the greatest of all-time in 2022 to many people when he lifted the trophy for the first time in his career for Argentina, while Cristiano Ronaldo would likely put himself right back in that conversation if he were to lead Portugal to the crown this summer.

But back in 2022, before Messi had been crowned as a world champion, Alan Shearer and Micah Richards were asked to name their top ten greatest ever World Cup players, and their lists were incredibly similar, having the same players, just in a different order for the most part.

Alan Shearer’s 10 Greatest World Cup Players

Shearer kicked off his list with one of the best of all-time, Johan Cruyff, in the number ten spot, and said he would be likely be higher if he had played in more than one World Cup tournament. Many consider him to be the best player to never win it, and he makes Shearer’s list as a result.

Surprisingly, the former England captain put his good friend Gary Lineker in at ninth, citing his excellent record in the tournament as his reason.

“He made 12 World Cup appearances and scored 10 goals,” he said. “He won the Golden Boot and made the quarter-finals and semi-finals. In no way am I saying Lineker is a better player than Cruyff, it’s just his World Cup record puts him ninth.”

Two-time finalist and one-time winner Zinedine Zidane came in at eighth, while Germany legend Gerd Muller, and former England captain Bobby Moore narrowly missed out on a top five spot.

“Fourteen goals in 13 World Cup appearances, 10 in one World Cup. Wow,” he said about Muller, before explaining his reasoning for Moore.

“He captained England at 22. I have seen footage of him, but to be made captain after his 12th cap aged 22, that says how good he must have been. He also won the World Cup, amazing.”

Franz Beckenbauer, the first man to win the World Cup as a player and manager rounds off the top five, before Lotthar Matthaus got the nod in fourth, having featured in a record five World Cup tournaments.

In third, Shearer had controversial Argentina legend Diego Maradona, having won it in 1986 as the undisputed best player, but he missed out on a top two spot to two Brazilian icons.

“He was unbelievable, we have talked about Ronaldo so many times. Braziliance. Another reason I had him second was 19 appearances, 15 goals and five assists,” he said about Ronaldo Nazario, who was the runner-up behind the obvious top choice, Pele, who remains the only man to have ever won three World Cups.

“You can’t imagine coming from Brazil at that age, that pressure. They are expected to win every tournament, every match they play in, he has super stardom wherever he goes. Amazing player.”

Micah Richards’ 10 Greatest World Cup Players

While Richards’ list also included his broadcast colleague Lineker, he had him at tenth, citing his excellent scoring record as a reason. Ahead of him in ninth was England legend Bobby Moore, although he admitted that he had only seen videos of the iconic defender, who skippered the Three Lions to glory in 1966..

Beckenbauer then comes in at eighth for the former Man City star, while his German colleague Muller also came in at seventh on his list, just like Shearer’s. In sixth, Netherlands legend Cruyff got the nod, with Richards describing him as ‘special’.

Opening Richards’ top five was Real Madrid icon Zidane, who was described as “technically, one of the best ever” in his reasoning for the placement.

In fourth, the former right-back went with Matthaus, after he claimed victory in one of his five World Cup appearances, before naming Brazil phenom Ronaldo in third.

Maradona was the man to get the nod in second place, but Richards agreed with Shearer when it came to top spot, handing it to Pele, admitting that he “had to be the winner”.

Sir Alex Ferguson has never been one to stop short of speaking his mind, and in the aftermath of PSG’s Champions League triumph in Budapest, the most acomplished manager in British football history made his feelings perfectly clear. both in congratulating the victors and in delivering a pointed verdict on the team they beat.

PSG retained the Champions League title in dramatic fashion. Kai Havertz had given the Gunners an early lead, only for Ousmane Dembélé to draw the Ligue 1 champions level from the penalty spot.

The match was decided from the very same place.

Eberechi Eze and Gabriel both missed penalties after the 1-1 draw to hand PSG the trophy. It was the French capital’s second consecutive European crown, following their 5-0 dismantling of Inter Milan in Munich twelve months earlier.

The victory means PSG have now won as many Champions League titles as Ferguson himself did during his legendary tenure at Manchester United.

Alex Ferguson’s Personal Message to Nasser Al-Khelaifi

According to L’Equipe, Ferguson reached out directly to PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi in the wake of the final, sending a personal message that was warm in its praise of the Parisian club but considerably less generous towards their opponents:

It’s vintage Ferguson. Even in a message of congratulation, the former United boss couldn’t resist a dig at the side standing in the way, and his characterisation of Arsenal as a “boring team that did nothing but defend” won’t have gone down well at the Emirates.

Arteta’s side had set up to frustrate and contain, as they usually do, and while that approach almost worked, Ferguson was in no mood to offer any credit for it.

Alex Ferguson’s View Shared By PSG’s Joao Neves

Ferguson is far from alone in his assessment. PSG midfielder Joao Neves, speaking in the immediate aftermath of the final, aimed a dig of his own at Arsenal, stating that PSG were the only team “willing to play.” With him still basking in the euphoria of victory, Neves felt the time was right to mention Arsenal’s approach to the match.

The debate around Arsenal’s approach and overall playstyle will rumble on, as it has done for the last few years. Arteta will no doubt feel that winning the Premier League, reaching a Champions League final and taking the tie to penalties is no small achievement, regardless of how they set up. But with Ferguson’s words, and PSG’s players piling in, the Gunners face a somewhat uncomfortable aftermath to what should have been a historic occasion.

The summer begins for PSG in the best possible mood. Back-to-back Champions League titles, a Ligue 1 crown, and the personal congratulations of the most decorated manager the game has ever seen. Al-Khelaifi and his players will indeed enjoy their holidays.