Former United States international Landon Donovan caused quite the stir after taking part in a football-related game, appearing to place 141-cap USMNT legend Clint Dempsey above several huge names.

Donovan was with Tim Howard on their podcast “Unfiltered Soccer,” and were doing the “stay silent until you hear a better player” game, centred around the former Fulham and Tottenham forward, with the rules requiring them to remain silent until a player they considered superior was mentioned.

Early names included Joe Cole and Theo Walcott, with neither Donovan nor Howard reacting. While some supporters would question that immediately, there’s at least a reasonable argument for Dempsey being held in similar regard given his longevity in the Premier League and iconic status within football across the Atlantic.

Later in the clip, a former World Cup winner left Donovan silent. Moments later, an ex-Premier League Player of the Season, widely regarded as one of world football’s greatest-ever dribblers also appeared, yet remarkably, both former US internationals stayed silent.

Landon Donovan Believes Clint Dempsey is Better Than two of the Premier League’s Best

Mesut Ozil is one of the most gifted playmakers of his generation. He won the World Cup with Germany, held down a starting place at Real Madrid for three seasons, and became one of Arsenal’s standout creators during a seven-and-a-half-year stint in North London. But Donovan didn’t flinch.

Nor did he when Eden Hazard appeared. A player who at his Chelsea peak was among the best in the world, winning two Premier League titles and averaging a goal or an assist in over 50% of his 245 Premier League matches. Hazard would eventually be snapped up by Spanish giants Real Madrid in a £100 million move in 2019, but broke his ankle soon after the move, and the Belgian was never the same, retiring from professional football four years after the move.

Donovan’s silence suggested he rated Clint Dempsey on a higher level than both players, with him only breaking it for Heung Min Son. There may be some MLS bias here. With the exception of Nani, the only player he rated better was, coincidentally, the only player in the whole video to play in the same league where Donovan himself played for 15 years. With fans quick to point out how wrong they felt he was in the comment sections of the various platforms the clip was posted to.

See the full clip here:

Tim Howard Agreed on Eden Hazard, but Broke Silence for Mesut Ozil

Tim Howard broke his silence when Ozil appeared, but stopped short of speaking when Hazard showed up moments later. This could be seen as even more controversial, given how doubtful it’d be for any football fan to have a ranking of Ozil, then Dempsey, followed by Hazard.

Hazard won five league titles in Spain, France and England, as well as two Europa League titles with Chelsea, and a Champions League crown as part of the Real Madrid squad. Ozil, meanwhile, never actually lifted a league title but did collect four FA Cup winners’ medals with Arsenal, alongside the ultimate honour of the 2014 World Cup with Germany.

Dempsey’s trophy cabinet ultimately lacks the major honours enjoyed by both Ozil and Hazard, in part due to spending the bulk of his European career at Fulham and Tottenham in the Premier League. However, the three-time USA Footballer of the Year still picked up five trophies, including three CONCACAF Gold Cups with his national team, as well as an MLS Cup and a US Open Cup during his time with Seattle Sounders.

While Dempsey’s honours don’t match, his influence on football stateside ensures his legacy remains significant, so much so that it prompted his former USMNT colleagues to rate him higher than most would expect.

Roberto De Zerbi could be about to benefit from a transfer windfall by selling a player he has not met yet.

Tottenham maintained their Premier League status on the final day of the 2025/26 season thanks to a 1-0 win over Everton at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. An almost disastrous campaign was avoided by staying in the top flight, with De Zerbi coming in at the end of March and achieving the one thing he was tasked with when he was appointed.

Now De Zerbi will have a summer transfer window to get to work on strengthening his squad, so that such a season does not happen again.

Spurs players set to leave the club

Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge

There are likely to be numerous comings and goings in N17 this summer, with De Zerbi openly admitting that he had “10, 11, 12 players good enough to stay” at the club, suggesting there is going to be major upheaval.

Guglielmo Vicario and club captain Cristian Romero look set to leave for pastures new, with there deemed to be an acceptance that the pair could move on this summer should the right offers come in.

Ben Davies and Yves Bissouma are both out of contract and will depart, while loanees Joao Palhinha and Randal Kolo Muani will return to parent clubs Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain respectively, with no news as yet as to whether either could return permanently.

De Zerbi will have a number of players returning to Hotspur Way from their own loan spells away from the club that he has not met or seen play yet.

And one of those could be shipped out before the Italian even has a chance to assess whether he could become part of the first team squad.

Alfie Devine has had a great season in the Championship

Alfie Devine has spent the 2025/26 season with Championship side Preston North End, only missing one of the club’s 46 league games, starting 36 of them.

He notched eight goals and produced a further eight assists, claiming the club’s young player of the year award. It was a great season for the 21-year-old for whom big things were expected at Spurs.

But upon signing the season-long loan deal, Preston had an option to buy written into the deal, understood to be around £6million.

According to football.london, the Championship club have triggered that option to buy clause, hoping to pay it to Tottenham in installments, but there is further interest in the young midfielder.

football.london also report that Devine has as many as eight clubs interested in his signature this summer, with Celtic and other Championship clubs among them and could therefore get a bigger fee from any transfer tug-of-war.

De Zerbi may well still want to take a look at the player before making any decision and a final decision will ultimately rest with Devine.

Manchester United are focusing on strengthening their midfield this summer, but AC Milan forward Rafael Leao is keen to join the club following a bombshell update, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.

It is still May, but Man United chiefs are already getting to work to ensure Michael Carrick has a stronger squad to work with next season, with the club facing the challenge of the rigours of the Champions League alongside the Premier League next term.

According to Fabrizio Romano, the Red Devils will complete the signing of Atalanta midfielder Ederson ‘unless something crazy happens’, in a deal worth under £40m, with the player already agreeing personal terms to join.

The club could also add two more midfielders if Manuel Ugarte joins Casemiro through the exit door, with Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali, Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, West Ham United’s Mateus Fernandes and Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni mentioned as other names high on their shortlist.

United’s summer business is unlikely to be restricted just to midfield however, with talk of strengthening in the full-back positions and up top and in goal should players like Marcus Rashford, Altay Bayindir and Andre Onana depart.

GIVEMESPORT sources have also suggested that the club could look to bring in a left-sided attacker.

Rafael Leao Announces AC Milan Exit Desire

Once viewed as one of the most dangerous wingers in European football, Rafael Leao’s form has suffered in recent seasons and he has fallen out of favour at the San Siro.

The Portugal international has confirmed ahead of the World Cup that he believes now is the right time to leave the Serie A giants, after seven years in a red and black shirt.

Leao has wasted no time in making his availability clear ahead of the summer transfer window, which opens on June 15.

According to Gazzetta dello Sport, his intention was to attract as many suitors and offers as possible this summer.

Leao, described as being ‘world-class’ by former Red Devils star Nani, has 80 goals and 65 assists in 291 appearances for Milan following a 2019 move from Lille.

Rafael Leao Particularly Looking at Man United

The report adds that Leao wants to compete at the highest level of European football, which immediately rules out a potential lucrative switch to Saudi Arabia.

The 26-year-old is already attracting interest from Turkey too, with Galatasaray and Fenerbahce both keen to bring him, with the former already enticing Victor Osimhen to leave Napoli for them previously.

While attractive salary offers are on the table for Leao, who is rated at £60m by Milan according to a separate report, he has made his priority a move to the Premier League and Manchester United in particular.

Leao recently said: “I often watch the Premier League. I like Manchester United especially because of Cristiano Ronaldo, who is my idol, but also Arsenal is a team I follow on TV.”

According to the Daily Mail, United have held discussions over a deal to bring Leao to Old Trafford, with Romano recently confirming that club chiefs have been in Italy discussing many potential deals, on top of the Ederson talks.