As if he’d not made enough of an impression since joining AS Roma on loan from Manchester United in the summer, defender Chris Smalling really stood out as an exceptional talent on the week of his 30th birthday. 

It’s hard to believe that only as far back as April 22, 2018, Napoli beat Juventus 1-0 in Turin to move top of the table with only four games remaining. Maurizio Sarri — himself now in charge at Juve — had broken the club record points total in each of the previous two campaigns, and would do so again in 2017-18, but the Naples men ultimately finished second, albeit with yet another unseen total of 91 points.

After nearly a month of waiting for the Concacaf Nations League to kick back into gear, the tournament is finally back this week with the final two matchdays in group play. 

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

With the action in Italy heating up both on and off the field, it’s time to get you caught up with what’s been happening in the world of Serie A and, as always, “10 Things” is here to bring you right up to date.

Another round of club play is in the books, and several of the region’s top players were in the headlines once again through clutch goals, quality performances, and even uncharacteristic errors. 

From the English top flight to the French capital, several of Concacaf’s stars were at it again for their respective European clubs over the weekend. Here are three of the top storylines in case you missed some of the region’s top players

It's hard to imagine a more perfect round of playoffs this year for Major League Soccer's new format for the second season. With only one game between sides to determine who moves on, the six games this past weekend were chock-full of attacking soccer, absolutely maddening drama, and results that point to the regular season now being even more important with five of six home teams moving on. You could not have imagined a better weekend for MLS.

“This is a new situation for me, something I've never experienced before.”

Since bursting onto the scene with Borussia Dortmund as a 17-year-old, Christian Pulisic has had quite a few up and downs in his young career. First, it was carving out a spot for his club in Germany and then almost immediately becoming a starter with the U.S. national team. Then Pulisic was part of the U.S. team that spectacularly failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup despite his goal in a 2-1 loss to Trinidad & Tobago. 

Club soccer is back in full swing on the heels of the second international break of the season, and there were plenty of storylines to digest, both within the region and across the pond. 

Last Friday's win for the USA men's national team at Audi Field was easy enough, but then again, Cuba were never going to put up significant resistance. But a 7-0 romp might have eased some concerns about Gregg Berhalter's side, one which hasn't impressed much since he took over the setup back in December 2018.

Back in September, we picked Gleofilo Vlijter as the standout performer from the first set of Concacaf Nations League games. The Suriname striker scored six goals in two wins, including four goals in a 6-0 triumph over Nicaragua. The 20-year-old added two more goals to his tally in October, taking his competition leading total to eight goals from four games.

This past April, the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) found themselves at a catch-22. 

The Concacaf Nations League kicked into full gear over the last week with opening acts by Mexico, the U.S., Honduras, and Costa Rica. Everything went according to plan for the big boys in the region, with the lone exception of Costa Rica, who find themselves in a dogfight with Curaçao and Haiti.