Make-up exam for many cracks in the United States

Football is a continuous assessment, and grades are handed out at the end of May, when the leagues and European titles are decided. It's time to reap the rewards or engage in self-criticism. June is therefore historically the month to make up subjects so as not to fail the year with any outstanding subjects, to give those who haven't done their homework properly on time a second chance to get their work done. With the new Club World Cup kicking off in the United States, several football stars face the possibility of not finishing the season with a clean slate, the sporting equivalent of bordering on failure.

Vinícius, Mbappé, Bellingham, Håland, Lautaro Martínez, Julián Álvarez, and even Griezmann are all potential Ballon d'Or contenders in a season marked by titles and great performances, but they're unlikely to be on the podium in 2025 because they've come up empty or had to settle for the crumbs. The disinherited and the fallen of the season are looking for solace.

To save the course Without noble titles, some great forwards are now clinging to a newly created trophy.

They were feeling happy when they could win all the major trophies, and now, after the debacle, they're clinging to a new tournament like a lifeboat.

Real Madrid hardly expected to find themselves in this predicament when they finalized the long-awaited signing of Kylian Mbappé last summer. However, the emergence of Flick's Barça side knocked the Whites off their domestic titles, and Arsenal eliminated them in the quarterfinals of their favorite tournament, the Champions League . Vinicius, after his October rout of traveling to Paris for the gala when he knew he wouldn't win, has run out of arguments. Madrid has only won single-legged titles: the finals of the European Super Cup (against Atalanta) and the Intercontinental Cup (against Pachuca). Bellingham, however, was already coming off a loss to Spain in the Euro Cup final.

In August to Atalanta and in December to Pachuca Madrid under Ancelotti has only won titles in one match: the Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup.

Third in the Nations League , Mbappé also had to watch from afar as PSG, his former team, brilliantly won the European Championship just a few months after his departure. The French striker can still boast the Golden Boot and the Pichichi awards, and his 43 goals so far, which he has scored in his first year at the Bernabéu.

“With the team I've had, in Spain they would have kicked me out,” Pep Guardiola admitted in an interview with DAZN. This gives an idea of ​​how turbulent the year has been for Manchester City, who have felt Rodri's long-term injury and the end of De Bruyne's career particularly hard. Without the Spanish midfielder and with the Belgian playmaker in a slump, Erling Håland's numbers have dwindled. The Norwegian striker has been limited to 22 goals in the Premier League , won by Liverpool, and 8 in the Champions League , where City didn't even reach the last 16 under the new format. The unexpected FA Cup defeat to Crystal Palace was the final straw. Surely such a voracious striker will want to make amends.

Guardiola's sincerity "With the team I've had, they would have sacked me in Spain," admits the City manager after a poor season.

Lautaro Martínez and Inter went from aiming for the treble at the end of April to missing out on the Coppa Italia, Serie A (Naples), and Champions League ( thrashed by PSG ). The Argentine, Nerazzurri captain, failed to win any silverware and has seen his coach, Simone Inzaghi, pack his bags. Romanian Chivu, who played for Inter between 2007 and 2013, is the new coach.

Atlético Madrid and Simeone were also under more pressure than usual due to their heavy transfer investment. Julián Álvarez was the most expensive signing of the summer, and with him came Sorloth, Gallagher, Le Normand, Lenglet, and Musso, but that 185 million euro has had no impact on the club's trophy cabinet. Julián's good performance contrasts with the loss of Griezmann, a club legend, in the Atlético Madrid game. Other historic teams like Juventus also have a clean sheet, while Benfica and Porto have been clearly outclassed by Sporting in Portugal. Chelsea, meanwhile, have already saved face by winning the Conference League and will return to the Champions League.

185 million without reward Atlético and Simeone were under more pressure due to the heavy investment in the market, including Julián Álvarez.

All of them, shining stars and big clubs, need a little joy to heal their wounds. Becoming the first Club World Cup champion would be one of them. But beware, because the danger is that this month-long overexertion between June 14 and July 13 could end up jeopardizing the next season due to the impossibility of performing good core physical and tactical training in the summer.