Golazo 100 continues ranking the men's top players in the world; USMNT return to action vs. Colombia

UEFA Euro 2024 is almost here! This time next week, European soccer's big international tournament will be getting underway in Germany. There is a bit longer to wait for Copa America, but the USMNT, Mexico and Canada are continuing their preparations these next few days. We also have another dose of Golazo 100 brilliance for you. Jonathan Johnson here to fill you in. 

📺 Footy fix

All times U.S./Eastern

Friday, June 7
🤝 Friendly: England vs. Iceland, 2:45 p.m. ➡️ ViX

Saturday, June 8
🇺🇸 NWSL: NJ/NY Gotham vs. Angel City, 2:30 p.m. ➡️ Paramount+
🤝 Friendly: USMNT vs. Colombia, 5:30 p.m. ➡️ TNT
🤝 Friendly: Mexico vs. Brazil, 8:30 p.m. ➡️ FOX Deportes and TUDN

Sunday, June 9
🤝 Friendly: France vs. Canada, 3:15 p.m. ➡️ FOX Soccer Plus
🇺🇸 USL: Louisville City vs. North Carolina, 10 p.m. ➡️ CBS Sports Golazo Network

⚽ The Forward Line

💯 20 new names in the Golazo 100

Another day and another instalment of our Golazo 100 which features the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Aurelien Tchouameni, Ollie Watkins, Leroy Sane and 2018 Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric as the list works its way from No. 60 up to 41. This is the definitive guide to the 100 best soccer players in the world right now and what better way to warm up for this weekend's meeting between Mexico and Brazil than a look at two Premier League-based Brazilian stars in Arsenal's Gabriel and Newcastle United's Bruno Guimaraes?

• Gabriel -- Center Back, Arsenal: "Arsenal's successful evolution into a defensive powerhouse under Mikel Arteta has lined up with the upward trajectory of Gabriel, one half of a center back pairing that allowed the Gunners to book back-to-back second place finishes in the Premier League. The Brazil international has evolved into one of the game's best modern-day center backs, ranking within the Premier League's top 20 for touches and attempted passes during the 2023-24 season and posting a passing accuracy of 89.1% as part of an Arsenal back line that collected 14 clean sheets in league play. Gabriel has plenty of range, too -- he was key as the Gunners absorbed all of Manchester City's pressure in their 0-0 draw in March, while demonstrating an attacking flair after scoring four goals this season, demonstrating a clinical ability on set pieces. Gabriel's versatility means he delivers just about everything in a top-choice center back, which feels appropriate since the 26-year-old is emerging as one of Arsenal's mainstays and shows no signs of slowing down four years into his stay in North London." -- Pardeep Cattry
• Bruno Guimarães -- Midfield, Newcastle: "The heart and soul of the Newcastle midfield and regularly linked to Manchester City, the former Lyon man has quietly become one of the most well-rounded midfielders in the game. His ability to play as a deep-lying midfielder or even higher up centrally, he possesses a top-level ability to deliver the most perfect of passes forward and is a regular goal scorer. Equally as important, he relishes the opportunity to go in for a tackle and does it with power and precision, recovering the ball and getting counter attacks going. His seven-goal campaign this past season sees him with 17 goals in just two and a half seasons at the club. He had just three goals for Lyon from 2019-2022. For Brazil, especially after the era of Casemiro and Fred, he will be vital to any success of the Selecao this summer in the Copa America. He has the opportunity to be the new face of that Brazil midfield in a vital era as they look to regain their South American dominance." -- Roger Gonzalez

Where do Gabriel and Bruno Guimaraes rank, though? You will have to tune in or read up to find out where the two figure as we pass the halfway stage of our 100-strong reveal and work towards next Wednesday's finale as the remaining 40 will continue to be released from Monday.

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🔗 Midfield Link Play

🇺🇸 USMNT gear up to face Colombia

The USMNT will be in action this weekend against Colombia as Gregg Berhalter's men begin preparations for this summer's Copa America on home soil with a friendly vs. Colombia in Maryland. This tournament is a chance for the U.S. to make a deep run and to start to think ahead to the FIFA 2026 World Cup and American hopes will be high due to strong home support. All eyes will be on captain and Milan star Christian Pulisic after a fine debut season in Serie A and the 25-year-old is the only USMNT representative in this year's maiden Golazo 100 which Chuck Booth dug deeper on.

• Booth: "The only American player to make the list, Pulisic is coming off of an impressive debut season with Milan along with his fellow national teammate Yunus Musah that saw him register 15 goals and 11 assists across all competitions which is yet another strong European season for the American. This year marked a year of career firsts for Pulisic. His 12 league goals are the first time he's broken double digits in league play over the course of his career. His eight league assists are also a career high. But just as importantly as those stats, for the first time in his career, Pulisic showed an ability to regularly get on the pitch, and stay there.
  
  "He played 36 out of 38 league games for Milan, a career best, and only the second time he's ever cracked the 30 game barrier, with the first coming way back in the 2017-18 season with Borussia Dortmund. Similarly his 2600 league minutes played is a high-water mark, topping his 2300 minutes from that same Dortmund season. Pulisic played more this season for Milan than he did in his last two years combined with Chelsea. Still, his ranking still shows how far Americans have to go. Ahead of Copa America and the World Cup being in the United States in 2026, the only other Americans who received any votes at all by the ranking panel were Weston McKennie and Antonee Robinson."

Can Pulisic and his U.S. teammates build up strong enough momentum ahead of Copa America? Group C with Uruguay, Panama and Bolivia looks manageable enough for the hosts, but things could get tricky coming into the later stages where Colombia or Brazil could be quarterfinal opponents. It will be an acid test of American credentials looking ahead in two years' time when Pulisic and this group will have been expected to grow together and there is no better opportunity to put those hard yards in than now with serious competition in similar settings to the big one in 2026.

🔗  Top Stories

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😤 PSG reportedly owe Kylian Mbappe $86 million: Real Madrid's new man is said to be short of back pay, bonus. 

🆕 San Diego FC sign Chucky Lozano: Newest MLS franchise lands a major coup with the Mexican star for inaugural year.

🗳️ VAR stays after vote: Premier League clubs will retain VAR after a vote on Wolves' motion to abolish the rule.

💰 The Back Line

💵 Best bet

• Friendly: Mexico vs. Brazil, Saturday, 8:30 p.m.
• 💰 THE PICK: Vini Jr. to score 2 or more (+1100) -- Brazil start their Copa America preparations on Saturday with a friendly in Texas vs. Mexico. The Selecao drew 3-3 with Spain in a friendly last time out while El Tri were suffered a blowout loss to Uruguay in Denver this past Thursday. Jaime Lozano's side have lost 24 of their 41 games against the Brazilians and this appears likely to be similar. Dorival Junior's men beat England before drawing with Spain back in March so 2024 is off to a decent start compared with a dreadful 2023 and three straight losses in 2026 World Cup qualification. A 10th Copa America title in the U.S. this summer is the aim and Vinicius Junior is fresh from his UEFA Champions League success with Real Madrid which is not ideal for Mexico.

📺 What's on CBS Sports Golazo Network

☀️ Morning Footy (Weekdays 8-10 a.m.): Hosts Susannah Collins, Charlie Davies, Nico Cantor and Alexis Guerreros help fans get their day started on the network's flagship morning show with highlights, interviews and the biggest soccer storylines. Morning Footy is also available in podcast form, so you'll never have to miss an episode.

📦 Box 2 Box (Weekday afternoons): The news-driven show quickly recaps all the latest headlines from around the world with panelists previewing the top matchups of the day. Catch Box 2 Box on CBS Sports Golazo Network on the CBS Sports app, PlutoTV and Paramount+. 

3️⃣ Attacking Third (Monday, Thursday): The leading women's soccer podcast and social brand is now a live studio show. The NWSL season is back and our coverage of the women's game is stronger than ever. Our analysts will be breaking down the USWNT, NWSL and European domestic season all year long.  

👟 Kickin' It (Tuesdays): CBS Sports Golazo Network's new unfiltered interview show returns Tuesday Hosted by Kate Abdo, Clint Dempsey, Mo Edu and Charlie Davies, the group chat candidly with the biggest names from the Beautiful Game and share their stories from on and off the pitch. 

⚽ Call it What You Want (Monday night): A weekly podcast where Jimmy Conrad, Jesse Marsch and Charlie Davies cover all things USMNT and the state of the beautiful Game in the United States.

🥅 Scoreline (Daily): Scoreline is the newest place for fans to catch up on all the biggest news and results impacting global football, match highlights from the top soccer competitions and all the can't-miss goals from the day's action, starting Thursday and airing seven days a week.

📺 How to watch: CBS Sports Golazo Network is a free 24/7 channel exclusively dedicated to offering unparalleled coverage of all the top soccer competitions worldwide. You can stream for free on the CBS Sports app, Pluto TV and Paramount+.