Sports
Why the super sub is one of football’s most valuable roles (and why nobody wants to be one)
Ask any forward tagged with the ‘super sub’ label if they take pride in it, and you’ll get the same response.
“I hate it,” says Adam Le Fondre, who scored eight of his 12 Premier League goals after starting as a substitute. “I have always thought I am good enough to impact the game from the start.”
Some see it as football’s most backhanded compliment. For strikers, the select few that did not get pushed back to midfield or defence in youth football, it’s even more of a kick in the teeth. They have gone through their footballing lives as the leading player, only to become known for their contribution from the bench.
But the truth is that super subs are almost always a pivotal part of wider club success.
“Having four good strikers is a fantastic position to be in,” former Premier League manager Harry Redknapp tells The Athletic. “When you’ve got someone on the bench, you can look around and think, ‘Yeah, he can get me a goal’. When you’re sitting there with nothing on the bench and no goalscorers, it’s a very difficult situation.”
At Tottenham Hotspur, arguably the most successful period of his 34-year tenure in football management, Redknapp developed a reputation for stockpiling and rotating top-class strikers. During his spell in north London, Redknapp had Jermain Defoe, Peter Crouch, Darren Bent, and Robbie Keane, all of whom have scored over 100 Premier League goals, as well as Roman Pavlyuchenko.
“I was lucky that I knew the strikers I had well, and they were great guys and professionals,” says Redknapp. “I’d worked with Crouch previously and known Jermain since he was 14. Strikers are desperate to get on the pitch. They’re bursting to score a goal. The lads I had were not sitting there sulking. They want to get on the pitch to prove they should be playing in the first place — almost to stick two fingers up to you for not starting them. That’s what you want.”
Redknapp valued impact substitutes throughout his managerial career (David Cannon/Getty Images)
As if to prove the point, Defoe, Crouch and Pavlyuchenko are three of seven players to have scored a record five winning goals as a substitutes in the Premier League. Of Defoe’s 162 Premier League goals, 24 came from the bench, another competition record. During Redknapp’s tenure, his strikers fired Spurs to the Champions League alongside Gareth Bale and Luka Modric, the first time they had reached Europe’s premier club tournament since 1962.
This season, Jhon Duran has emerged as the Premier League’s standout super sub. The Colombian forward has scored six goals in nine games in all competitions for Aston Villa this season, with his second-half goal from distance in Wednesday’s 1-0 win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League among the best of a spectacular collection.
His goalscoring return would be outstanding for the 20-year-old if he were Unai Emery’s main man in attack, but he has spent just 28 per cent of the available minutes in the Premier League on the pitch and has scored five of the six after beginning the game on the bench.
Duran has only started three times in the Premier League for Villa since moving from Chicago Fire in MLS in 2023 and is not yet seen as a 90-minute player by the Birmingham club. He is direct, confident to take risks, eager to use his powerful shot from distance, and quick enough to exploit the space left when the game opens up in the second half.
Replacing Ollie Watkins, a ferocious presser who sticks to the game plan and tires out defences, the conditions are perfect for “captain chaos” to profit from the England striker’s hard work.
“(For substitutes), a lot of the time it’s about trying to get them to understand their role within that team,” says Sammy Lander, a dedicated substitution coach and consultant who has worked with various club and national teams, including the USMNT. “Aston Villa are a really good example of that. You can easily identify squad roles within their team.
“I work with clubs where we recognise specific quiet periods for existing starters, and that’s when we target appropriate substitutes. Being deliberate with subs is important. Emery is not just turning around to look at a player, sticking him on in attack and hoping for the best. There are processes.
“For a lot of clubs, it’s still an overlooked area of the game where you’ve got an opportunity to bring in new tactics, players and solutions. When I started my role, I did a big questionnaire with managers and staff and found a recurring answer: that substitutes were often done with a gut instinct. I’d be very surprised if Villa are operating on that level. It appears they have much more of a process with Duran, which is why they’re being so successful.”
Duran had another successful intervention against Bayern in midweek (Michael Steele/Getty Images)
Emery backed up that thinking in his post-Bayern press conference. Before the game he spoke to his assistants and players about Duran’s ability to shoot from long range being a potentially effective tactic to exploit Manuel Neuer’s positioning, as the German ‘keeper often comes out far from his line. He also linked it to a goal he scored against Hibernian in the qualifying rounds for last season’s Europa Conference League, where Pau Torres played a similar pass to his assist for Duran against Bayern.
While no forward is ever completely content with limited contributions from the bench, coming on to benefit from tired legs can often be a route to goals. Le Fondre, who made his name as a prolific striker in the EFL, got his Premier League break in 2012-13 with Reading and scored 12 goals in his only season in the top flight. Of that number, eight were scored from the bench, the joint-fifth highest proportion of substitute goals in Premier League history.
Like Duran, he benefited from the hard work of another forward occupying the central defenders before he often came on and made an impact from the bench. In his case, it was the 6ft 2in (188cm) Russian striker Pavel Pogrebnyak.
“When I’m on the bench, I’ll be watching defenders and assessing their tendencies,” says Le Fondre, 37, who now plays for FC United of Manchester in the seventh tier of English football. “If someone’s not having a great game, I’ll know that’ll be the defender I’ll pick on. I’ll watch for spaces to see if I can exploit them when I get on.
“Naturally, if I was coming on, we were either chasing a game or trying to find a winner. With that mindset, the team changes the way it plays. We’re going to take more risks and put the ball into dangerous areas much more, so I’m obviously going to gain off the back of that. Playing on the front foot and being a little more assertive will always help.”
Le Fondre after scoring the second of two late substitute goals against Chelsea in 2013 (Scott Heavey/Getty Images)
A positive team culture is an essential component in ensuring ‘super subs’ do not become frustrated with their diminished role. Manchester United’s treble-winning squad of 1998-99 had Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Teddy Sheringham, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in attack, four international strikers who could have easily found moves elsewhere to become starters. But Alex Ferguson created an environment at Old Trafford where competition was strong, driving each other on.
“The problem is not when you have too many, it’s when you don’t have enough of them,” says Redknapp. ”The competition fires the players up — the best motivation is when you know ‘If I don’t do something soon, the manager will bring me off’.
“Watkins is playing very well, and he’s a top player, but he must be thinking, ‘Hang on. Every time the other fella comes on, he keeps scoring a goal. How much longer will he keep starting me and not bringing him into the starting line-up?’. It pushes whoever’s got possession of that shirt. They know they’re under severe pressure if the subs come off the bench and score to keep their place in the starting line-up.”
Pioneered by Eddie Jones, the former England and Australia rugby union head coach, Duran’s role in the Villa side is best described as a “finisher”. The concept of starters and finishers, which takes inspiration from closer pitchers in baseball, spins the negative connotations around substitutes and uses positive language, highlighting the essential job players from the bench have in winning matches.
Manchester United’s treble-winning side in 1999 has strong competition up front (Alex Livesey /Allsport)
Former England boss Gareth Southgate adopted the language ahead of England reaching the final of Euro 2020, describing Jack Grealish’s impact using those terms. Eberechi Eze, who came off the bench three times in England’s run to the final this summer, had a similar role at Euro 2024.
“It’s not just about the 11,” Eze told Mail Online in the summer. “It’s about the whole team, the culture, the collective. You win the tournament as a collective.
“It’s putting your ego to the side and focusing on what’s important for the team. If you have that type of culture, which we do, you’ve got the best chance. The manager spoke about ‘finishers’. We call them finishers. We know that. The players that come onto the pitch there is a mentality about it; there’s a way to go about it. That role is important. It’s not just about the 11.”
Still, it’s one thing to adopt that role for a short time during a summer tournament for your national team and another to accept it in the long term at the club level. Le Fondre was willing to put his ego aside to contribute from the bench as Reading unsuccessfully tried to stay up in the Premier League, but was back to playing a more primary role again the following season in the Championship.
Villa have a long-term plan to incorporate Duran and Watkins in the starting line-up, but there is awareness that Duran can only be a super sub for so long. He’s a precocious talent with confidence in his ability to back it up, and suitors will try their hand at his signature — as they did in the summer when he was linked heavily with numerous clubs including West Ham and Chelsea.
“(Duran’s) getting more wanted by the week,” says Redknapp. “His performances from the bench are making clubs look at him for when the next window’s coming around. He’s in a good position right now under Emery, but he won’t want to sit around for a year doing what he’s doing. He’s going to want to start.”
(Top photos: Getty Images; design: Eamonn Dalton)
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The wait is officially over. The FIFA World Cup has arrived.
For the first time ever, three nations—the United States, Mexico, and Canada are co-hosting the tournament. It is also the largest FIFA World Cup in history, expanding to a 48-team field. Squads from around the world have arrived in North America with one ultimate goal: capturing the iconic World Cup trophy.
Here’s the latest look at some of the most notable news surrounding the World Cup.
June 12:
Official Injury Update On Neymar
Brazilian star Neymar Jr. will officially miss Brazil’s opening match against Morocco on Saturday. Neymar was named to Brazil’s 2026 FIFA World Cup squad despite a calf injury, and now won’t be available early on. Manager Carlo Ancelotti said that “Neymar is working very hard to recover as quickly as possible.
“The expectation is that he will recover and rejoin the group next week.”
Google Doodle Has World Cup Fever
In case fans didn’t already have World Cup fever, they can open their web browser.
Google is officially ready for USA’s opener against Paraguay, as the home page features a custom, USA-themed Google Doodle.
The Doodle features red text with a blue outline, as well as a soccer ball along with an interchanging USA crest replacing the “O’s” in Google.
James Cordon Stretches With Christian Pulisic
James Corden joined Christian Pulisic and the United States men’s national team for a training session ahead of their World Cup opener against Paraguay.
After meeting with head coach Mauricio Pochettino and going through a film session with the players, Corden and Co. hit the pitch for practice, where he helped serve as a water boy.
Corden tried to help Pulisic stretch out his legs after practice before he was stopped by a member of the coaching staff. As Corden walked off, Pulisic sprayed him with a water bottle.
DR Congo Arrives to the World Cup in Style
The DR Congo men’s national team isn’t set to play until Wednesday, June 17, against Portugal in Group K, but they’ve already made a statement upon arrival in Houston, Texas.
The squad arrived in style, stepping off the plane in striking black, jaguar-inspired outfits that quickly turned heads. The bold look fits their nickname, Les Léopards, and sets the tone for their World Cup presence before they even face Portugal.
DR Congo may be heavy underdogs, but they’re already winning where it counts off the pitch, taking the fashion battle before kickoff.
Canada’s Jesse Marsch Takes Dig At USA
The Canadian men’s national team is set to face Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday afternoon. Ahead of the match, head coach Jesse Marsch took a subtle jab at the United States men’s national team during his remarks on Thursday.
“In the U.S., we had to beg players to sing the national anthem,” Marsch said.
The United States conducted a months-long search for a new head coach in 2023, with Marsch emerging as the frontrunner and making it clear he wanted the job. Instead, they chose to rehire Gregg Berhalter, a decision that may have left Marsch with some lingering resentment.
Marsch’s subtle jab could take on added stakes if the United States and Canada meet during the FIFA World Cup. The two nations could potentially face off as early as the Round of 32 or the Round of 16.
June 11:
The pressure of competing in the 2026 FIFA World Cup is high, but that hasn’t stopped players from enjoying some downtime with their teammates. Norway star Erling Haaland was spotted at the Stanley Cup Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Carolina Hurricanes.
Haaland appeared to be enjoying himself as the Hurricanes secured a Game 5 victory, taking a 3-2 series lead over the Golden Knights. The Manchester City striker drew plenty of attention from fans in attendance as he took in the action from the stands.
The Norway star was seen celebrating in the stands before turning his attention back to international duty, with Norway set to face Iraq in Group 1 play on Tuesday, June 16.
Australia Coach Popovic Signs Extension
Australia coach Tony Popovic has signed a contract extension through early 2027 on the eve of his team’s World Cup opening match against Turkey on Saturday.
Football Australia said Friday that the 52-year-old Popovic’s deal now extends through the Asian Cup, which will take place in January and early February in Saudi Arabia.
The former Australia international was hired in September 2024 and led the Socceroos to qualification for the 48-team tournament.
“I’m proud to lead my country into a World Cup, but most importantly, I want to ensure that our team is fully prepared and focused on our group matches against Turkey, the United States, and Paraguay,” he said of Australia’s opponents in Group D.
Canada Captain Sidelined For Opening Match
Canada’s captain and star defender Alphonso Davies will miss Canada’s World Cup opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Davies’ status has been questionable due to an ACL tear and other injuries during the club season, which limited Davies to appearing in two of Canada’s last 21 games.
Davies is one of the co-host’s more valuable players in terms of talent and experience, including 58 appearances in nine years with the national team. However, Davies’ injury does not rule him out of the entire tournament. His injury update and restraint from the opening match serves as a caution to heal his injury as the group stage unfolds.
After playing for the Vancouver Whitecaps in the MLS, Davies transferred to Bayern Munich, where he’s played since 2019. Canada is set to play Bosnia and Herzegovina on June 12, followed by Qatar on June 18 and Switzerland on June 24.
Captain Wataru Endo Withdraws From World Cup
Just ahead of Japan’s opening match against the Netherlands on June 14, captain and midfielder Wataru Endo has withdrawn his name from Japan’s World Cup squad and paired it with his national team retirement, per his statement on X. Endo has been dealing with an ongoing ankle/foot injury since February.
Endo has played for the Japan national team for over a decade, where he made 73 appearances and scored four goals. As a veteran anchor in the midfield, Endo has also served as Japan’s captain since their previous World Cup in 2022, where they reached the Round of 16.
As for Endo’s professional career, he first played for Shanon Bellmare from 2010-15, followed by the Urawa Red Diamonds from 2016-19, VfB Stuttgart from 2019-23 and has played for Liverpool FC since 2023. With Liverpool, Endo played a prominent role in the team’s Carabao Cup victory in 2024.
With Endo out, Japan has officially called Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder Shuto Machino to join the 26-man roster. Machino is entering his second World Cup and his fifth year with the Japan national team.
Marco Senesi Called Up To 26-Man Roster
Following the injury of defender Leonardo Balerdi, Argentina has officially called up defender Marcos Senesi to the 26-man roster. Argentina is set to open their World Cup campaign on June 16 against Algeria.
Senesi has been training prior in case of a last-minute call-up, and was named to the roster after Balerdi’s muscle injury was ruled out. Senesi has played professionally since 2016, playing for clubs like San Lorenzo, Feyenoord, AFC Bournemouth and is currently with Tottenham Hotspur.
Joining Senesi in the back are defenders Lisandro Martínez, Nicolás Otamendi and Cristian Romero.
In what’s likely to be Lionel Messi’s last World Cup, Argentina will look to repeat their historic 2022 World Cup win this tournament.
Tyler Adams, USA Celebrate Shocking Knicks’ W
Tyler Adams, United States’ midfielder, is a fan of the National Basketball Association’s New York Knicks. The Knicks are in the NBA Finals, on the eve of the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, so members of the United States’ squad gathered together to watch what turned out to be the largest NBA Finals comeback in history, with the Knicks coming out on top.
When New York won, the room erupted, with Adams especially going wild. And we know this because the reaction was caught on camera in the moment.
That couch is destroyed, but at least no one watching the game ended up as damaged as it did after Adams went climbing and kicking all over it! If the United States ends up having a major comeback or win in the World Cup, maybe keep the players away from any obstacles like that, though. Just to be safe.
Morocco Loses 2 Players To Injury Before World Cup
Morocco replaced two injured players in its World Cup squad ahead of an opening game against Brazil, including star winger Abde Ezzalzouli.
FIFA confirmed late Wednesday that former Barcelona player Ezzalzouli and Marseille defender Nayef Aguerd were withdrawn from the Morocco squad for the tournament.
Ezzalzouli helped Real Betis qualify for next season’s Champions League and was a potential breakout star at the World Cup. Aguerd was a cornerstone of Morocco’s historic semifinals team at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
They were replaced by Amine Sbai of French club Angers and Marwane Saadane, who plays in Saudi Arabia for Al Fateh.
Morocco opens against Brazil on Saturday at MetLife Stadium near New York, then plays Scotland on June 19 near Boston and finishes Group C against Haiti on June 24 in Atlanta.
Ezzalzouli injured his right knee in a warmup game against Norway last weekend, though initial tests suggested he could be retained in coach Mohamed Ouahbi’s squad to play in the knockout rounds.
Surprise World Cup Comeback For Austrian Midfielder
The last time Dejan Ljubicic played for Austria was nearly three years ago. Now a teammate’s injury has given him a surprise comeback at the World Cup.
Austria coach Ralf Rangnick called up Ljubicic late Wednesday to replace key midfielder Christoph Baumgartner, who injured his right thigh while warming up for a pre-World Cup friendly against Tunisia last week and needed surgery.
Ljubicic is set to join Austria at the team camp in Santa Barbara on Thursday, ahead of the team’s first game on Tuesday against Jordan. Austria also plays Argentina and Algeria in Group J.
He’s more of a defensive midfield option than Baumgartner, who scored 17 goals in all competitions for Leipzig in Germany last season and has remained in camp to support the team.
Ljubicic also plays in Germany on the Schalke team which secured promotion from the second division last month.
Ljubicic has nine games for Austria but none at a major tournament. His last appearance was in a friendly against Moldova in September 2023, and he wasn’t in the squad for any World Cup qualifiers.
CHICAGO — Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani was out of the lineup Friday against the White Sox after exiting the game before with discomfort in the back of his left knee.
Manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani had imaging done on the knee and showed “the normal wear and tear.”
“He feels fine-ish,” said Roberts, who hopes Ohtani will be back in the lineup this weekend. Ohtani remains in line to make his next pitching start on Wednesday against the Tampa Bay Rays at Dodger Stadium.
Especially at this point in the season, the Dodgers have incentive to play it safe with Ohtani’s recovery. Pushing him to return early and exacerbating the injury would be a larger blow to a team seeking its third straight World Series championship.
With Ohtani out, left fielder Alex Call was in the leadoff spot, and Santiago Espinal served as the designated hitter.
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With the largest World Cup field in the history of the tournament, 32 of the 48 teams will be fighting for a spot in the knockout stage.
66.6% of nations will advance out of the group stage this summer, which is a massive upgrade from 50% in past World Cups. Because of this, sportsbooks have adjusted with less favorable odds.
Prior to the start of the tournament, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, England, and Germany entered with the strongest odds to advance from the group stage, supported by recent major-tournament success and talent-rich rosters.
All five nations are heavily favored at -10000 to advance to the knockout round.
The Spaniards are the defending European Champions while the Argentinians are looking to win back-to-back titles. Germany has not made it out of the group stage in the last two World Cups, but has always been a perennial contender— having won four titles in its history. And then of course there’s Brazil, which has more titles than any country with five.
Now, after the conclusion of the first day of the World Cup, Mexico has joined the group at the top. El Tri has surged to -10000 to advance to the knockout stage after initially being just -1400. Mexico’s huge leap up the oddsboard is a direct result of its dominating 2-0 win over South Africa.
With that in mind, let’s dive into the odds for each team to advance to the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup as of June 12.
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Odds to Advance to Knockout Stage
Spain: -10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)
Argentina: -10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)
Brazil: -10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)
England: -10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)
Mexico: -10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)
Germany: -10000 (bet $10 to win $10.10 total)
Portugal: -5000 (bet $10 to win $10.20 total)
France: -5000 (bet $10 to win $10.20 total)
Belgium:-3500 (bet $10 to win $10.29 total)
South Korea: -2500 (bet $10 to win $10.40 total)
Switzerland: -1800 (bet $10 to win $10.56 total)
Netherlands: -1400 (bet $10 to win $10.71 total)
Morocco: -1000 (bet $10 to win $11 total)
Colombia: -1000 (bet $10 to win $11 total)
Uruguay: -1000 (bet $10 to win $11 total)
Canada: -1000 (bet $10 to win $11 total)
Ecuador: -900 (bet $10 to win $11.11 total)
Norway: -900 (bet $10 to win $11.11 total)
United States: -750 (bet $10 to win $11.33 total)
The U.S. men’s national team is currently -750 to advance from Group D (Photo by Omar Vega/USSF/Getty Images).
Croatia: -500 (bet $10 to win $12 total)
Austria: -500 (bet $10 to win $12 total)
Türkiye: -500 (bet $10 to win $12 total)
Ivory Coast: -500 (bet $10 to win $12 total)
Japan: -500 (bet $10 to win $12 total)
Egypt: -340 (bet $10 to win $12.94 total)
Algeria: -310 (bet $10 to win $13.23 total)
Scotland: -310 (bet $10 to win $13.23 total)
Senegal: -230 (bet $10 to win $14.35 total)
Sweden: -230 (bet $10 to win $1435 total)
Bosnia and Herzegovina: -220 (bet $10 to win $14.55 total)
Paraguay: -205 (bet $10 to win $14.88 total)
Iran: -200 (bet $10 to win $15 total)
Czechia: -165 (bet $10 to win $16.06 total)
Ghana: -140 (bet $10 to win $17.14 total)
Australia: -110 (bet $10 to win $19.09 total)
DR Congo: +100 (bet $10 to win $20 total)
Raúl Jiménez helped propel Mexico to a 2-0 win over South Africa in the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup (Photo by Yair Gonzalez/Jam Media/Getty Images).
Saudi Arabia: +105 (bet $10 to win $20.50 total)
Tunisia: +140 (bet $10 to win $24 total)
New Zealand: +150 (bet $10 to win $25 total)
Uzbekistan: +180 (bet $10 to win $28 total)
Cape Verde: +200 (bet $10 to win $30 total)
Panama: +200 (bet $10 to win $30 total)
Qatar: +275 (bet $10 to win $37.50 total)
South Africa: +320 (bet $10 to win $42 total)
Jordan +350 (bet $10 to win $45 total)
Iraq: +450 (bet $10 to win $55 total)
Haiti: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)
Curaçao: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)
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