Monday cannon fodder: positive contract bubble

Premier League/England

The EFL Championship Is A Bubble Waiting To Pop - Howler Magazine
England’s second division has a financially unstable business model. And it threatens the entire sport.

Jurgen Klopp: Liverpool’s owners want manager to sign new deal after Champions League triumph - BBC Sport
Liverpool’s owners are keen to tie manager Jurgen Klopp down to a new, extended contract after the club’s Champions League triumph.

Neymar brands rape accusation ‘a set-up’ in bold response - Football365
A Brazilian police document says an unidentified woman has accused Neymar of raping her in Paris last month.

Cafu: “It’s true that Milan were celebrating at half-time against Liverpool in Istanbul” | FourFourTwo
Could he have joined Real Madrid? Will anyone ever get more Brazil caps? And what’s it like to hang with Berlusconi?

Europe

Netherlands head into World Cup on a positive by beating Matildas 3-0 | Football | The Guardian
The Netherlands had little trouble in defeating Australia in Eindhoven.

Roma president James Pallotta says season was a ‘complete disaster’ in open letter - BBC Sport
Roma president James Pallotta says the season was a “complete disaster” as he apologised to fans in an open letter.

Whisper it quietly, but there are suddenly loads of ace kids in Serie A - Planet Football
We have good news for anyone who still misses the days of Serie A in the 90s - it’s been ace this season and there are a sh*tload of potentially world-class youngsters breaking through.

England vs Netherlands: a tale of two epic games at Euro 88 and Euro 96
Between the heroics of Van Basten in 1988 and Shearer in 1996, when England faced Holland in the Euros, explosive games were the norm.

MLS/Americas

US men’s national team names 28-man roster ahead of pre-Gold Cup friendly | MLSsoccer.com
The Jamaicans are coming to DC United’s Audi Field on June 5.

Detroit City FC is going pro, whether American soccer wants it or not | Culture | Detroit | Detroit Metro Times
On most summer evenings, the 1994 World Cup soccer field on Detroit’s Belle Isle glows with golden hour sunlight.

Rest of the World

Caf Champions League: Esperance awarded win after VAR controversy - BBC Sport
Esperance win Caf Champions League after opponents Wydad Casablanca refuse to continue playing when VAR was unavailable to judge a disallowed equaliser.

Other

French women's team moves out of training camp to make way for men - Reuters
One step forward, etc.

How Football Leaks Is Exposing Corruption in European Soccer | The New Yorker
While Rui Pinto sits in jail, his revelations are bringing down the sport’s most famous teams and players, Sam Knight writes.

2019 World Cup: Previews of every team in the field - Black And Red United
Profiles of all 24 teams that qualified for France 2019.

“The Bane of My Existence”: U.K. Sportswriting’s Access Crisis - The Ringer
Could this be the dark future of U.S. sports coverage?