Thomas Muller is one of the marquee names who followed Lionel Messi to the MLS and the veteran German forward has made quite the impression.

The 36-year-old joined the Vancouver Whitecaps in August last year after bringing an end to a trophy-laden 25-year spell at Bayern Munich. While European fans knew all about his world-class ability and bubbly personality, the American fanbase have seen just how special a talent he is.

Muller’s debut season with the Caps saw him live up to expectations with 14 goals and seven assists in 32 games. If that wasn’t enough, he has now set a record at one of the MLS‘ biggest showpieces.

Thomas Muller Makes MLS History

Muller took part in the MLS All-Star Shooting Challenge, which is the main event for the MLS All-Star Skills Challenge. Players are given 30 seconds per shooting round with 11 fixed targets in place valued at two, five, and 10 points, while another moving target worth 20 points is activated in the final 20 seconds.

The 2014 World Cup winner broke the record with an astounding 79 points after hitting 10 of 11 targets. This included the 20-point moving target.

You can watch Muller’s record-breaking achievement below:

The commentators were blown away and one told him:

Football fans were also in awe, and many pointed out how the German looked to have enjoyed himself, with one writing on Reddit: “Muller is the perfect star for these games. You just know he’s having a blast.”

Another added: “Son and Muller talked about how fun they are having doing the challenges, but yet some people in Europe s*** on having fun lol.”

One wrote: “I love watching absolutely class athletes do stuff like this and remind us they’re on another level.”

Last year’s record holder, Evander of FC Cincinnati, was later given the chance to defend the previous 72-point record, and he matched Muller’s tally of 79 points. The yearly contest is heating up and is growing in popularity with fans not just in the US but around the globe.

Other top footballing names to have taken part in the past include Arsenal duo Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz. Former Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-min also took the challenge on after joining Los Angeles FC last summer.

Muller Missed Out on MLS Cup Glory to Messi

While Muller may have picked up an individual honour by breaking the record in the MLS All-Star Shooting Challenge, he failed to win a trophy in his first season with the Caps. After helping Jesper Sorensen’s side reach the MLS Cup final, they came up against Messi’s Inter Miami.

Muller captained his new team in a 3-1 defeat to David Beckham’s co-owned Herons in December, with Messi grabbing two assists on the day. It was bittersweet for the most decorated German footballer in history, but he certainly wowed supporters during his debut campaign.

The former Bayern star has already started his sophomore season as his side drew 0-0 against Minnesota United on Sunday. The Caps next face LAFC at home on August 2nd.

Former UFC fighter, Anthony Smith, has added his name to the list of recent UFC legal troubles as he was arrested in Nebraska on Monday night.

Smith had an up-and-down UFC career. Debuting in 2013, he lost his first fight to Antonio Braga Neto by submission and was subsequently let go by the company.

In 2016, Smith re-signed with the UFC, winning his first fight back against Leonardo Augusto Leleco by unanimous decision. Since then, he picked up wins over the likes of Rashad Evans and Maurício Rua.

Despite not winning a title in the company, his main event bout against Jon Jones at UFC 235 in 2019 for the championship was a standout of his career, even if he did fall short in his dreams of becoming light heavyweight champion.

Smith retired from the UFC in April of last year at UFC Kansas City. His bout against Mingyang Zhang ended in the first round by TKO due to the top of the former’s head being cut open. Not only did this mark his retirement, but also three consecutive losses in the sport.

The news of Smith’s recent arrest comes just weeks after ex-fighter Dustin Poirier‘s viral Atlanta airport arrest for public intoxication, in which the former lightweight has since publicly apologised for his actions and committed to a sobriety journey.

Why Anthony Smith Was Arrested

It was reported on Monday night by TMZ that Smith had been arrested by Sarpy County authorities in Nebraska on three alleged charges of domestic violence causing serious bodily harm, terroristic threats, and first-degree false imprisonment.

The charge of domestic violence alone carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment if convicted under Nebraskan law. Further comments on the incident have not yet been made by Smith or his team.

As legal proceedings begin, with Smith set to have a bond hearing today, his career outside the Octagon now remains uncertain, with the outcome of this case likely to shape the next chapter of the former light heavyweight challenger’s future.

Tottenham fans have been left worried by growing rumours of a serious injury to one of their star new signings over the last day or so. Excitement among Spurs fans is at a real high after a £237million spending bill that has seen the North London club sign the likes of Sandro Tonali, Mateus Fernandes and Jan Paul van Hecke among others.

Roberto De Zerbi is being backed like no Spurs boss before him, with the club commissioning a club-record spend so far this summer, and it’s expected the spending will continue, leading to an attacking signing or two between now and the end of the window in early September.

In the meantime, Tottenham are currently working on their fitness with pre-season preparations in Australia, specifically in Sydney, and De Zerbi is putting the players through their paces, which will come as no surprise given the fitness demands of the way his teams play the game.

Tottenham’s Mateus Fernandes injury fears eased

via Reuters

After footage emerged of Fernandes sitting out a training session in Australia, fans began to speculate that he might have an injury, and those rumours quickly graduated to talk of a serious injury like an ACL rupture. But according to Alasdair Gold of Football.London, the rumours are unfounded, and there is no concern over a serious injury.

Fernandes is expected to sit out Tottenham’s next pre-season friendly, according to the report, but it part of De Zerbi requiring a high workload of the players who were part of the initial pre-season group, which excluded the World Cup participants.

The hard work required of those players early on has meant the club has had to monitor their fitness levels closely, and those in danger of being overworked, or indeed those with some early summer niggles, will sit out sessions, or even games, to avoid any true risk of a significant injury. Clearly, De Zerbi values the hard work in training more than the pre-season games, and it will be interesting to see what results are yielded, given the injury troubles Tottenham have had over the last couple of years.

But De Zerbi wants fitter and faster, and that’s not an easy process for players during a hard, and usually hot, pre-season. The good news for Spurs fans is that Fernandes appears to be fine.

Reality check for Spurs players

via Reuters

Many Tottenham players have spoken about the ambition shown by De Zerbi about this Spurs project, and even Fernandes himself said when signing: “I spoke with the manager. I think he was the main key for me to join Tottenham and the project. The way he spoke with me, with my family, it was very special… it made the decision easy.”

But they are now realising the hard work required to reach the standards of the Italian boss, and that playing within some styles of play require an elite level of fitness that simply does not come without a relentless training block.