Editors' Picks: International football takes centre stage as Pogacar targets further glory
Saturday, October 12th
Il Lombardia - 10:40 CET
If 2024 in the cycling world belongs to any cyclist, that person is certainly Tadej Pogacar.
The Slovenian made history this year, taking the first ‘Triple Crown’ in the sport - the Giro D’Italia, Tour de France and World Championship title - since Stephen Roche in 1987, doing so with daring breakaways and panache that is his trademark.
He lines up for his final race of the season in Bergamo this Saturday, looking to cap off a year unlike any other in the sport. Il Lombardia - the race of the falling leaves - is the final of five cycling monuments and a race the rider has won for the past three years. It is a dominant run, something that has only been outdone by the legendary Fausto Coppi in the 1940s.
Looking to defeat the goliath are the likes of Remco Evenepoel, Tom Pidcock and perhaps a wildcard pick of Toms Skuijins, who was strong at the Worlds and has had a stellar year.
Winning with the rainbow jersey on your back, a target for everyone to aim for, is always seen as a challenge, but expect the Slovenian to give us another incredible showing this weekend.
Josh Donaldson
Sunday, October 13th
All eyes will be on the Q2 Stadium in Texas as Mauricio Pochettino prepares to take charge of the USMNT for the first time in an international friendly against Panama.
Following a disappointing group-stage exit at this summer’s Copa America, the USA will be desperate to rediscover their best form under the experienced Argentine ahead of co-hosting the 2026 World Cup alongside Mexico and Canada.
Pochettino inherits a team that is devoid of confidence, with the Yanks winless in their last four matches across all competitions while picking up just one victory from their previous seven outings on American soil.
It was Thomas Christiansen’s Panama side who beat the USA to a place in the Copa America knockouts, so they’ll be confident of building on that win and securing successive head-to-head victories for the first time in their history.
Furthermore, the 37th-ranked Canaleros have emerged victorious from their last three matches against CONCACAF opponents, so it promises to be a fascinating match-up!
Danny Clark
The penultimate Masters 1000 event of the year is nearing its conclusion in Shanghai, with the final set to take place on Sunday.
Jannik Sinner is the favourite to take the crown in what has been a stellar year for the world No.1, and his chances increased after Carlos Alcaraz was stunned by Tomas Machac in the quarter-finals.
Sinner will now face the Czech in the semi-finals, but lurking on the other side of the draw is Novak Djokovic.
Remarkably, Djokovic hasn’t won a title on the ATP Tour this season, which left him in a precarious position regarding a spot at the ATP Finals in a few weeks' time - which sees the top eight players of 2024 slug it out.
However, with Alex de Minaur injured, Djokovic now looks well-set to appear in Turin, and a title triumph in China will surely confirm that. He faces American Taylor Fritz in his semi-final.
A final between Sinner and Djokovic is what all the neutrals want, and hopefully this Sunday we will get the chance to see the two of tennis’ biggest stars go head to head.
Tolga Akdeniz
Monday, October 14th
Germany vs Netherlands - 20:45 CET
On Monday night, the 48th chapter of one of international football’s fiercest rivalries will unfold with Germany hosting their noisy neighbours the Netherlands.
Some say that Nations League clashes are just glorified friendlies, but even if this was an actual friendly, the two sides wouldn’t treat it as such; for both, the chance to get one over on their arch-rivals is always one that they’ll give their all to take.
That was very much evident when they faced off last month in what turned out to be a thrilling and fiery 2-2 draw, with neither quality nor passion in short supply as the pendulum swung back and forth between two sides playing attacking and expansive football.
If the rivalry alone isn’t enough to tempt you to tune in, they’re also two of the more interesting and entertaining national teams right now. Both are looking to usher in new generations with the likes of Toni Kroos, Thomas Muller, Georginio Wijnaldum and Memphis Depay out of the picture, and both squads are thus full of new faces vying to become their nations’ next stars.
That’s especially the case up front. Mainz’ Jonathan Burkardt has been called up by Germany for the first time after getting 14 goals in 23 games this calendar year, while Joshua Zirkzee and Brian Brobbey are battling it out to replace Memphis as the Netherlands’ first-choice striker - they played one match each in the last break and both impressed.
With the clash also likely to decide who tops their Nations League group, this could well be the highlight of this international break.
Finley Crebolder