𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

The pose was a carbon copy, the smile nearly identical and there was the same badge on the shirt.

To promote his signing on loan from Juventus this summer, Marseille commissioned a special image of Tim Weah replicating a famous French magazine cover announcing the arrival of his father, George, to the club 25 years ago.

DE PÈRE EN FILS 🔥
Deux générations, un même maillot. Timothy Weah a recréé la Une de son père parue dans notre magazine Onze Mondial.

(📸 @OM_Officiel )#OM #TeamOM pic.twitter.com/swB2iH5gtU

— Onze Mondial (@OnzeMondial) August 7, 2025

It was a bold statement, and one which may have invited some unnecessary extra pressure on the 25-year-old USMNT striker. Yet on Tuesday night, he justified the hype and offered another neat touch of symmetry with his father by scoring on his Champions League debut for his new side against Real Madrid at their historic Bernabeu home.

It was not the younger Weah’s first time in the competition; he appeared 14 times in it for Juventus, and scored in a defeat by PSV in February. But this strike, a powerful finish beyond the giant Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, against the first-half run of play, was far more memorable and stirred echoes of how his father had announced his arrival at another French club, Paris Saint-Germain, on his Champions League debut for the club in 1994.

U.S. readers watch here:

TIMOTHY WEAH SILENCES THE BERNABÉU! 🤫

What a moment for the #USMNT forward 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/9IgCp3TkIN

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) September 16, 2025

UK readers watch here:

Weah scores his first goal for Marseille to give them the lead against Real Madrid ⚽️

📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/LXLsNbj2kH

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) September 16, 2025

“(The Bernabeu) is definitely football royalty,” Weah told CBS post-match. “You see it and you feel it when you walk in. It is the field of dreams. As a kid, you dream of moments like that, and there is no better club to do it with.

“In 100 years, I didn’t believe that I would play here. I grew up in Rosedale (in New York City, where his parents lived after his father retired) playing on a small turf pitch, so coming here was definitely a dream come true.”

The original headline of that magazine cover, from Parisian football quarterly Onze Mondial, was ‘Weah L’OM Au Coeur’ (Weah, Olympique Marseille at heart). With his goal Tuesday, Tim has staked his own claim for a place in the affections of Marseille supporters.

He still has a long way to go if he is to make an impact similar to his father on the European game. Weah Sr. remains the only African player to win the Ballon d’Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year award in the same year.

That was in 1995, after exceptional spells at Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan. He scored 55 goals in three seasons for the former and 58 in five seasons in Italy.

By then, Weah Sr. had already made his name in France after a spell with AS Monaco, where he spent four seasons and helped them win the Coupe de France.

Marseille, where he moved ahead of the 2000-01 campaign, was his last European club. Relatively speaking, his five goals in 20 appearances during one season at Stade Velodrome were modest. Nevertheless, he remains an iconic figure for the club — and the regard in which he is still held was evident in August when Tim followed in his footsteps.

George Weah in action for Marseille (Gerard Julien / AFP via Getty Images)

George was a special guest at his son’s unveiling, with scores of fans gathering at the club offices to greet them. Even Marseille manager Roberto De Zerbi was a little starstruck: after hugging Tim, he shook hands with the man he glowingly called “Big George”.

Then, as Weah Jr. went to sit down in a chair set up before a camera, the photographer told him to perch on the chair’s arm so George could take the prime spot.

Maybe this shouldn’t be a surprise. George, after all, is a figure who transcended sport when he entered politics after retirement and went on to become president of Liberia from 2018 to 2024.

There was time afterwards for Tim to occupy the big chair, clutching a copy of that recreated Onze cover, and later standing proudly with the Stars and Stripes as a nod to the nation of his birth.

“When I got the call from Marseille, my dad was the first one (on the phone),” Weah told CBS. “He said he loved it there, and it is something special playing for this club.”

Only time will tell if he can one day be remembered by Marseille supporters in 25 years, but his strike in Madrid was certainly a good start and sparked dreams among the traveling fans of a famous win against Europe’s most successful club.

That was not to be. Madrid, as it tends to, roared back to grab a 2-1 victory despite being reduced to 10 men when Dani Carvajal was red-carded on 72 minutes.

If George was so inclined, he could tease his son that he had scored a winner at the Bernabeu — for PSG in the quarterfinal first leg of the UEFA’s now-defunct Cup Winners’ Cup in 1994. But Tuesday’s strike will give Weah the belief that he can make his mark on this season’s competition.

Tim Weah was a threat at the Bernabeu (Thomas Coex / AFP via Getty Images)

He has scored in his last two Champions League appearances, having gone without a goal in his first 13 appearances in the competition. He also became the first American to score a Champions League goal at the Bernabeu.

It represents tangible momentum for Weah, who had already had a positive start to life in Marseille. He already had friends in the dressing room, particularly Angel Gomes, a former teammate at Lille.

Weah was used from the bench in their opening Ligue 1 game against Rennes, a 1-0 defeat, but has started all three following fixtures (two wins and a defeat) and has clearly formed a bond with De Zerbi, at least if his recollection of why he signed for Marseille is anything to go by.

“He called me late (at) night and told me how he wanted me and that he is going to be able to make me a better player,” Weah said. “I believe him. I believe in his philosophy, and I believe in everything he does. Once you have a coach who loves the game, it makes you want to love the game too and enjoy playing football. I would fight to the death for him.”

Weah’s goal was not his only bright moment in a hard-working display against Madrid — shortly before scoring, he cut inside Carvajal and fired a powerful effort over the bar — and he looked exhausted when he was withdrawn after 78 minutes.

Defeat may have stung, but for Weah at least, this represents another step forward. Next up is another chance to make his own history. On Sunday, Marseille hosts PSG, their fierce rival. George was acclaimed by both teams; Tim can be a hero to Marseille if he can maintain his hot streak.

Marseille was runner-up to Luis Enrique’s champions last term. If Weah can help them upset the new Ligue 1 order this time around, before aiming for home-soil glory with the U.S. in next summer’s World Cup, he will become a cover star all by himself.

(Top photos: Getty Images; Onze Mondial via X)