BONUS PODCAST! The 30 - Season preview 2025-26

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1:30Hello and welcome to another episode of The 30, a podcast which is normally exclusive to our Patreon members. And if you are a Patreon member, you will understand what The 30 is. If you don't understand what The 30 is and why you're listening to this on the main Arsecast feed, I will give you that answer in a second. But just to introduce my regular co-host for this podcast, it's Phil Costa. Hello, Phil. Hello, Andrew. Yes, we're in the mainstream. No paywall for this. No. It feels good to be back, though. I'm happy to be doing this again, because once you get in the in the rhythm and the routine of doing it every Monday, we're on talking and it's nice and we can talk about stuff that happens, usually laughing at people as well, which is always good.

2:09So. So, yeah, it's it's good to be back. It is. And we're all refreshed and recharged ahead of the new season after a summer, you know, where a lot of stuff has happened. But just to lay this out, for anybody who's listening who isn't a Patreon member, one of the podcasts that people get every week as part of the extra content on Patreon is this one. It's called The 30. And it's where we talk about all the weekends, Premier League action in 30 minutes, more or less, always more. That is the key to this podcast. It might sound like, well, 30 minutes, but you usually get twice that. So it's double value.

2:45That's the great thing about this show. And I don't know, maybe I'll try and describe it a little bit for people who might want to get on board this season. We look at all the games that happen in the Premier League unless a bad thing happens somewhere and we don't want to talk about it. So there's the Arsenal game and there are usually nine other Premier League games. Sometimes there are only eight Premier League games because as a general rule, we don't talk about Tottenham if they win. That's just kind of what we do around here. And that seems fair, right? I mean, that's the most principled thing we do on this podcast, I think.

3:20So entirely fair. And, you know, on the occasions that they don't win, for example, it's almost like a bonus for the listeners. Yes. We can do a deep dive into their high line, for example. Thank you, Saranj, wherever you may be. Rest in peace. A defensive mistake, an injury could happen somewhere. So, you know, it's a bonus added piece of content for people if they do lose or do draw in a funny way. But if they do win, it's almost wiped off the face of the earth. Exactly. I think most people can relate to. We will make no reference to it whatsoever because we don't believe in that. It's sort of like hiding under the bed covers from a monster.

4:02If you can't see the monster, the monster can't see you. That's exactly where we are with this. Is it silly? Is it juvenile? Perhaps. But that's our commitment. And generally speaking, you know, we will take a relatively lighthearted view of the Premier League action. Obviously, there are serious topics and serious topics happen within the Premier League and serious things to discuss. We don't shy away from those. But as is the sort of arse blog theme in general, you know, we're not going to take everything too seriously. All of this shit is out of our hands, out of our control, and all we can do is react to what other clubs do and what happens in the Premier League that we can.

4:40So there's always stuff. Stuff happens. Memes happen. Little audio clips happen. Someone will say something in a post-game interview that's worth, you know, snipping out and then using over the course of the season. We have those things. And, yeah, every Monday, basically, unless there's a Monday night football game that's worth it, we will have this podcast for you. So on top of the Arsecast Extra on a Monday, if you are an Arseblog member on Patreon, you also get this podcast. So there you go. There's our sales pitch to the people. Anything you want to add before we start to talk about what's happened this summer and look at some of the teams?

5:14Not really. I mean, I think it is important to stress that we do take a lighthearted look at stuff and we'll have a joke about things. But we do also talk about stuff that's important. So refereeing decisions, racism, violent conduct, all of this kind of goes into our remit. So I think it's, you know, you get the funny side, but you also get the serious side as well, which is good. And what I love actually about the 30 is how engaged people are. You know, it's really nice to have built a sort of community of ultras in terms of this podcast, because they're always there. They're always commenting.

5:48We get a nice discussion going on Discord as well, which I really enjoy. It's actually one of the things I really love about doing the Patreon stuff on the Arseblog side of things because people are so engaged and I love it. So hopefully we can get some new people on board this year. Yeah, hopefully so. So let's start, I think, by looking at what we might consider the rivals to Arsenal this season. And we can do some quick predictions a bit later on. We can talk about the top four, the bottom three, some individual bits and pieces as well. But I think when we're looking ahead to the season, we all at this point understand what Arsenal have done in the transfer market.

6:28And there are things that we hope Arsenal might still do in the transfer market. But I think we have to look at the other teams. And I suppose we should start with Liverpool. And they've bought well, I think it's fair to say. They've also sold really, really well. So when I do figures in this particular section of the podcast, I'm taking the figures that were posted on the Sky Sports website. So if you go for a list of summer transfers, Sky Sports will bring you up what each club has spent or what, you know, the players they brought in and the players that they've sold. So my sort of calculator calculations, I was going to say back of a matchbook, but I didn't use a matchbook.

7:12I used a fucking calculator on my phone, primarily because I don't have a matchbook. I have no need for matches in my office. Anyway, Liverpool have spent£293 million this summer, which is kind of extraordinary. The players that they've brought in, of course, Milos Kerkhez from Bournemouth, Florian Wurtz, Jeremy Fringpong, the goalkeeper, whose name I should have practiced before I came on. Do you have it? Mamardashvili. Mamardashvili. That's the guy. Eketike, Hugo Eketike from Antarkt Frankfurt. So between all of those incomings, they've spent£293 million, according to Sky Sports. On the other hand, they've also brought in basically£200 million.

8:00Darwin Nunez, nothing dodgy about that one,£56 million to Al-Hilal, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Queving Kelleher, Gerald Kwanzaa and Luis Diaz and some dude called Tyler Morton, who I'd never heard of that they still managed to get£15 million for, which is, I don't know how Liverpool keep doing it, but they keep doing it. So how do you view their business incoming and outgoing with the, I suppose, Alexander Isak-shaped elephant in the room as well? Oh, that's a hefty elephant as well, I'd say, because I'm going to talk about him first, because I think we can address their business in general. But I still think they'll get Isak done.

8:39As we're sitting here on the 12th of August recording, I think he'll be a Liverpool player by the end of the window because he's doing a jokeres and really forcing things through. There was an Ornbaum this morning saying that he's adamant he won't play for Newcastle again. There's no desire to reintegrate to the squad. I think there was another silly report that he'd moved out of his house today. This is only going one way. and it basically means pay up and we'll let him go um and i know there was the 110 million pound bid earlier earlier in the window which was rejected out of hand and as it should be by the way because 110 million is kind of stupid for alexander isak even though it is technically a a british transfer record or could end up being a british transfer record but newcastle have leverage here there's three years left on his deal they could always call his bluff and keep him We've seen this happen before with Luis Suarez, Moises Caicedo, even Harry Kane, where they make the big song and dance about leaving and then they're eventually brought back into the squad.

9:45They play nice for a year and then they go the following season. So that's an option. I don't think it will happen. I think if Liverpool get close to£140 million-ish, they'll get him. It's just a waiting game now. It's Isak and his people in one corner. There's Newcastle in another corner. Liverpool in another corner. They've all got a safe face somehow. They've all got to think about how they're posturing to the public. I think it will get done. But as usual, a lot of good business being done either way, ins and outs for Liverpool. Do you have a stance on the ESAC thing? Do you think it will happen?

10:19I think it will. I don't think he's taking this stance without some real reassurance from Liverpool that they will do what it takes to get the deal done because he's basically burned his bridges. It's not impossible when a player does this to sort of go back and eat some humble pie. But ultimately, you've got a player who does not want to be at your club on your hands. An unhappy guy creates an unhappy environment. Would I be sad if that was the case? Absolutely not. Like if he stayed at Newcastle and was miserable and the Newcastle fans were having, you know, having spent a week coding him off and Liverpool fans excusing his behavior all over the place, which is quite funny as well.

10:58You know, they get mad at Trent Alexander-Arnold for respecting his contract and then going to join one of the biggest clubs in the world, if not the biggest club in the world. They go mad at Trent, boo Trent for that. But they'll be like, oh, Alexander Izak, he really wants to come to us. What a guy. The sort of inherent hypocrisy of football fans is evident over the course of this summer. I think it's a similar thing for us with Jokeres. I don't think this was quite as, what's the word I'm looking for here? I don't think Jokeres was as disrespectful to sporting as Izak is being to Newcastle.

11:32Certainly there appeared to have been some agreement with Sporting. It just was about the framework of that. But look, we all want the player to come to our club. I think he will end up there. And I frankly find it quite scary that they might have that kind of firepower at their disposal with Mo Salah, with Akitike, with Alexander Izak, with Florian Wurtz, other good players, Sabaslai, Alexis McAllister. You know, they're going all in on the attack, I think, Liverpool. You might ask some questions about their defence, but I think you can live with a slightly iffy defence if you've got the ability to rip teams apart the way they might, you know?

12:14So, yeah, it is a huge investment as well, isn't it? When you think about it, that kind of money, FSG, have not normally been that kind of big spender, but I suppose when you do have some connections to Saudi Arabia and they can offset some of your spending, it makes it a little bit easier. It does make things easier. And also Liverpool haven't really spent that much at all over the last two seasons. So these funds will have been building up in the background quietly. They've obviously got Champions League money. They've got the Premier League winners money coming in as well. They sell well. So it didn't really surprise me that they went all out this summer, but I have to say I didn't expect them to be this aggressive.

12:56And even when they signed Eketike, I thought that would be it for their ESAC pursuit because they're very similar players. It's a bit strange to sign Eketike and then sort of ship him out to the left if ESAC does eventually sign. But I guess the way they're looking at it is he is the best striker on the market. And do we want to risk him going elsewhere next summer? I think Barcelona could be in play next year. Potentially PSG could be in play. Maybe even Arsenal. Who knows? So I think this is a kind of now or never thing for them. and they've got the funds to do it. So yeah, I think that'll get done.

13:30I mean, Arna Slott did a great job balancing the side last season. I think they repurposed Gravenberch after Zubamendi rejected them. But as good as they were, Salah had a freak season and played 37 games. Virgil van Dijk had another freak season and played 37 games. You know, if that happens again, then fair enough. But now I think there's an onus on slots to truly print yourself on the side and your values and your principles after taking the skeleton of Jurgen Klopp's team. And that's what I'm interested in watching because I would probably put them favorites again at this point, but I don't think they were challenged enough last year.

14:11And this won't be groundbreaking analysis, but I am looking at them defensively. And I think they could be vulnerable, especially in wide areas. Replacing Trent and Robertson was never going to be easy. And they've gone obviously for Jeremy Frimpong. on the right side, Milos Kerkhez on the left. That is very attacking, very forward thinking. It's also quite small and there will be spaces. I mean, we even saw it in the Community Shield on Sunday. How many times were Palace able to get in behind Kerkhez in particular with Saar running down that side, Munoz running down that side? It was a clear plan for them on the day and they'll need to find that balance again, which is entirely normal.

14:49New players need time to adjust. But you do look at some of the attacking firepower and you think, Florian Wurtz, young player in the Bundesliga, young player of the season in the Bundesliga. So elegant, graceful, tricky, can play left, can play central, is so good in those half spaces, scores a lot of goals, gets a lot of assists. Hugo Eketike as well scored a lot of goals in the Bundesliga last year for Eintracht Frankfurt, has sort of found his feet again after being lost in the shadows a little bit at PSG. He sort of found his love for the game, for football again at Eintracht, which is you know i think that they do they they are like compound v for strikers they just find a way to get them fit and firing again and they can score a million goals there you know cody gap pose already there salah i've got no doubt that he'll score 20 goals again this year because that's what he does so there's just a lot of ability and pace and firepower and goals in that team and you think there are issues defensively but if they score four goals every game conceding two doesn't really matter and it's very liverpool that's very liverpool to be able to do that and i know they were so good defensively under jürgen klopp actually one of their best teams when they won the league was was i think it was 1920 um during the the covid pandemic or just the start of the covid pandemic they were unbelievable defensively so i don't think they really care and it is it is a bit worrying to see them be the best team in the in the league attacking wise last year and then say okay we're going to sell luis diaz and a couple of other people who were important for us and just upgrade on them again yes um so i am curious to see how they get on because there's a lot of change happening uh obviously darwin's going out diaz has gone out the tragic passing of of jota means that he won't be there, obviously.

16:42So there is a lot of things to balance here, but on paper, it's frightening. Yeah, it is. It's really, really frightening. And I think we need to, obviously we can't do anything about it because it's the rest of the league's responsibility as well. But we need to maybe accept that even though we want to see ourselves a bit more like Liverpool, we won't be there and maybe lean into what makes us a good team, which is sort of being a bit more balanced and defensively strong. Whereas Liverpool, I think, are just going to be like, okay, goals, goals, goals, attack, attack, attack. How many can we score per game?

17:17This is going to be us this year. So yeah, really interesting to see how they get on. Yeah, I think so. I think the question about the defensive solidity is an interesting one. Van Dijk not getting any younger, of course, and the two changes at fullback. I think people underestimate just how good and consistent Alexander-Arnold and Robertson have been for Liverpool over the last number of years. And I like Kerkhez. I think he's been very, very impressive at Bournemouth. And Frimpong, you know, a very good player as well. But let's see how it all plays out. If they do get Isaac, I don't think there's any doubt that Liverpool are, by some distance, the favourites for the Premier League.

17:54That remains to be seen. But hopefully it is a long, protracted, drawn-out, miserable experience for all concerned that has an impact on the way that they play. Let's talk Manchester City. money spent 160 million they brought in Baby Reindeer Ryan Aitnuri Ryan Cherky from Lyon Svera Naipan from Rosenborg a player that Arsenal were reportedly interested in back in January and James Trafford a goalkeeper they brought in from Burnley who they used to own him and then they sold him to Burnley and then he's come back for 31 million after having a you know an unconvincing first Premier League league season with Burnley and obviously did a bit better last time with them in the championship.

18:40They've come back up. They've only sold one player and that's Kyle Walker to Burnley for 5 million. So the differential or the price net spend, if you want to call it that, is 155 million. I'm really interested in this because Pep Guardiola has never had to do a rebuild. He's never been anywhere long enough where he's had to properly rebuild a team and rebuild a squad. But I guess when you win four Premier Leagues in a row, you get the license to do that, even if you have an offseason, which they did. But I am curious to see what the motivation is like again. Does he feel refreshed? Does he feel up for going for it again and putting in all those hard yards, if you like, on the training ground and that intensity that he has as a manager with a new group of players?

19:30because I think, I don't want to say it was the old Reliables, but there was a lot of familiar faces. There were a lot of familiar faces in those Man City teams that won the league for those four successive years. Can he then shape it into something new that can compete? Yeah, I have absolutely no idea what to make of City this year. And also, I felt like I haven't seen them in pre-season at all. I know they were in the Club World Cup, but usually some clips or goals pop up at some point, extended highlights. and I haven't seen a single thing. So is that intentional? I don't know. Maybe they're just giving their guys the appropriate amount of rest, which is good.

20:06Although I did check earlier and they beat Palermo 3-0. So that's it. But yeah, this was a team in need of surgery. Although most of their January signings haven't worked out, apart from Marmouche, who I think was good when he came in in January. But Kusanov, nowhere to be seen. Vita Rees has gone out on loan to Girona. they did a great job securing him or selling them selling him to their to themselves basically Nico Gonzalez is already being linked with an exit after joining in January from Porto so it's it's definitely an ongoing process I mean Kevin De Bruyne has gone Carl Walker's gone so there's change happening here and Scott Carson has gone as well after 50 years at Man City as their third choice goalkeeper Scott Carson has finally left Best job in the world.

20:56I mean, yeah, so I'm looking at two signings in particular. You mentioned one, Tijani Rinders. He has been one of the standout midfielders in Syria, almost Gundogan-esque in his profile, box-to-box, with a good goal threat, nice feet in the area. He can sort of break in transition as well, comfortable on the ball in all phases. But Ryan Shirky as well. I mean, I've known about him since he was 17 when I used to watch a lot of youth football. unfortunately I can't do it so much anymore but he was just so obviously going to be good the way I saw him in in the UA for youth leagues at various under 17 championships and under 19 championships he's got this incredible ability to be good on both feet he looks so natural he's skillful he's got vision flair a real throwback actually to a to a time where you know playmakers and and these sorts of number tens were a thing but they sort of went out of fashion a little bit and he's just come back and sort of said well I'm here and I can play wide and I can play central and I can give you some x-factor and he's just so much fun I'm quite sad to see him there because Pep maybe has a reputation for killing these sorts of players or not killing them but but finding a way to put them in his in his image which maybe isn't so jazz and improvise it's more you're going to be part of system here and i think you can see that with jack greelish as well but i don't know if they're weaker i don't know if they're stronger i mean obviously the the main topic now is jack greelish is going to everton on loan um mcatee is going to nottingham forest and servinho could potentially be going to spurs so that that means one thing to me and and it's going there they're going to go big they're going to go big for another winger and i've got a feeling it's rodrigo yeah there's been talk this week about their interest in Rodrigo.

22:48It feels like a very Manchester City deal to do. I know this is a name and we'll probably talk about somebody else. We mentioned we don't really talk about Spurs and we won't, but we can talk about a player who's been linked with Spurs that I think will agitate Arsenal fans a little bit given some of the mentions this season. But Rodrigo is a player that had been mentioned in relation to Arsenal. It feels like a very city deal to do simply because it's going to be really expensive. I think it's probably going to be 80, 90 million euros there or thereabouts. And Arsenal, as we've seen, have spent about 190 million pounds this summer and only brought in about four, four and a half at this point.

23:27And that was Nuno Tavares being sold to Lazio. So there is a gap there in terms of our net spend. But what City can do and what they have done, what they have done consistently is pay the wages that these big players want you know the holland transfer for example was not an outrageously expensive transfer but although we don't know the full details you can be quite sure that the package that early holland is on is basically beyond what most clubs could ever have paid or could pay at that point you know so that that strikes me as something that Man City do on the regular. Rodrigo, coming from Real Madrid at 24, is going to say, I want 250, 300, 350, which I think is probably out of reach of Arsenal and probably most other clubs at this point, but not City because they have a way of just throwing money around and, well, it doesn't seem to make any difference what they do or who looks at it and how long they look at it, they can just keep doing it.

24:34Yeah, it's pretty mad, isn't it, that we still don't have a resolution in terms of their 115 charges. But on the pitch, they can't go short or they can't go into the season short in the wide areas because they're so important under Pep. And I know Oscar Bob is coming back. Pep likes him. He can play on the right, but it's not enough. So they'll dip into the market for sure. And Rodrigo ticks the boxes because he's versatile. He's at a good age. there's been a previous contact before with Pep he likes him so I would be quite surprised if all of those three players go out and then Rodrigo doesn't come in to be honest and there's also been change at boardroom level executive level obviously Hugo Viana has come in from sporting he's replacing Pep's mate Chiki Begiristan so that's an interesting one he's been kind of a key figure for them over the past decades they work very closely together with Pep obviously there's that Barcelona connection as well.

25:29So I'm not so hot on them. I have to say, it's just a feeling I've got. I'm sure they'll be good and up there and close to us wherever we finish, but they don't give me at the moment that sense of inevitability, which is something that's terrified me over the years with City, with Gundogan scoring in title runs, Kevin De Bruyne just finding a way to score or assist from nowhere harland scoring foden popping up with something and they've got an incredible defense that has sort of aged out a little bit john stones is not really fit and firing like he was i know ruben diaz is still there but there's been a lot of change at fullback so in midfield rodry's had a setback you know i i just i i think they're in transition you know and I still think they'll be good but I don't get the oh you know I don't get that that feeling of it where there's just this existential dread that whatever you do City will just match it or go one more so um maybe that's a window for us maybe it's a window for for some other teams we'll talk about maybe even Liverpool but I think they'll be good I like some of the players they've brought in but this is very much a transition year for me and I think there might be a way in for some teams to kind of close the gap which is which is um interesting and also I I could sit here in nine months and look like an idiot.

26:47Yeah, of course. Which is entirely possible, but I'm not totally out of the ordinary. But yeah, it's just a feeling that I have about them that I think they'll need a bit of time to get it right. Yeah, maybe so. Look, there's still a couple of weeks left in the window and they might push again because that is what they do and pretty much always have done. And Pep, he does like to spend. There's no question about that. Let's talk about Man United, who I think are really, really interesting. because one of the big problems they had last season was a forward line that was absolutely crap. It was complete garbage.

27:21Hoyland, Xerxes, whoever else they had at that point. I can't even remember who they were playing with half the time. They've completely and utterly revamped that front three, I guess. Maybe not the front three per se, but they brought in Benjamin Sesko, a player Arsenal were linked with. They brought in Brian Mbomo, who's a really, really good player who impressed us a lot at Brentford when we talked about them last season. Mateusz Cunha from Wolves, a very, very interesting player. Someone we were linked with in January. I'm not sure there was anything really, really close in that regard, but certainly a player that Arsenal were looking at.

28:00So they have added quality. There's talk of Garnaccio leaving. There's talk of Anthony leaving. Like Anthony has been told, apparently if you don't accept one of these loan deals, you're just going to sit in the stands. need a decent time at Bettis, I think. But they look like they're addressing some of those particular issues, whether they have what it takes at the back and certainly in goal, there's another question. But as a way of sort of getting your fans excited, bringing in three, I guess on paper, good quality attacking signings will certainly give the Manchester United fans some optimism.

28:38They had a terrible season last season. And I don't think they can be that bad again by any way. I just don't think so. And I think Amorim, despite the fact it took him a while, it's still taking him time to really implement himself at that club. I think this is where I'm really curious about what we see from United. Can he do that now this season? He didn't really do it last season. He had lots of time. And other managers, as we said, have come into a football club and changed the style and changed the tactics and been effective in a way that he really wasn't last season. But I still think he's a good coach and could take United in a different direction this season.

29:17So what's your take on what they've done so far? Their net spend, well, they've spent£214 million. They haven't sold anybody yet. And there's still talk about them going after Carlos Beliba, for example, at Brighton, who's a good player. I saw£100 million plus price tag going with that. So I don't really understand how Manchester United could possibly afford that with all the rules and regulations that are in place. But, you know, clubs don't really seem to give a fuck about that these days. So what's your take on United as they stand right now? Yeah, they're going to have Baliba working in the canteen at this point to help make up some of the staffing issues.

29:57Yeah, I'm going to be very careful about what I say here because I've got no interest in jinxing our first game of the season. but surely things can't be as bad as they were last time around. I mean, they started the season with Eric Ten Hag because they couldn't find anyone who wanted to join after they won the FA Cup. Things went from bad to worse and then that mess of a squad, that mess of a manager were exposed and then things didn't really improve under Ruben Amarim whose efforts to try and implement a new system was like teaching Mandarin to a bunch of monkeys. It just wasn't working. They looked so clueless and confused every time they were playing.

30:37And losing that pathetic excuse of a Europa League final just summed them up, really. But they've spent more money than I thought they would or could this summer. And like you said, they could be still going in for Belieber. Even Donnarumma's been mentioned, weirdly enough, and with City, which I don't get because he's like the antithesis of what Pep wants in goal. But it's quite clear. Mateus Cunha and Brian Umberma were two of the best players in England last season and undoubtedly improved them in attack. I want to see if they can maintain their ridiculous finishing streaks because they were the two biggest ex-G over-performers in the Premier League last year.

31:18So maybe they might revert to the mean a little bit. Obviously, I think Umberma was the biggest ex-G over-performer in Europe. And that's not taking anything away from his quality or how well he did at Brentford last year. It's just a fact. So they will improve. I would be amazed if they finish 16th again. They managed to get Sesko over the line as well. So he'll give their front line some added threat because Hoyland looks like he's being forced out as well. Maybe AC Milan on loan has been the talk. Joshua Zerksi, I think Amarim's given up on him being a center forward. I've seen ships move quicker in the Suez Canal.

31:54To be honest, I think he's useless. so again it goes back to yes you've improved your attack but there's a the rest of the team that you need to figure out and I just think there's so many issues defensively and Bruno Fernandes aside in midfield they've got no real penetration from those areas although Kobe Maynou Mason Mount can be decent on their day but it's it's just not the same Casemiro's finished they've got Ugarte in there who's just a glorified shin kicker um so i think they've got a real lack of quality in in central areas and also in defense they could be um without lisandro martinez for a little bit longer so there's talk of luke shaw being the outside center back delete again fine but nothing crazy lenny euro still finding his feet so yes they've absolutely improved in attacking areas which they needed to do but i'm looking at them again defensively and thinking this is going to take a more time and be more money to fix because I don't rate the individual talent to be honest yeah I mean Harry Maguire and Andre Onana what a combination uh you know uh like you I don't want to jinx anything too much ahead of our first game of the season but you know whatever you pour into your um I mean Liverpool have poured or will pour a lot into attack you know on the basis that they've had this excellent defense, one of the best goalkeepers in the world in Alisson and a very, very, very good partnership between Van Dijk and Kanate.

33:24There's no two ways about that. We're two really good fullbacks either side of them. So they poured their attacking money on top of what I think is already a decent platform or certainly was a decent platform, even if you've changed up both fullbacks. But United's defensive platform is non-existent, you know. So they can focus on the forwards, but if you're porous at the back, which I hope they will be, and I hope they are on Sunday, obviously, it becomes a bit more difficult. Right, let's go to Chelsea. Chelsea have bought a lot of players because that's what Chelsea do. £256 million spent in the market so far.

34:06They have, to be fair, though, recouped 154 million with some sales. Nani Madweke, principal among those, to Arsenal. We hope he does really well. But a dodgy one, João Felix to Al Nasser. How they... Listen, I don't even want to go there. I think we all understand that there are things at play that we can't speak out loud, but that we all suspect very, very strongly. So their net spend, I guess, is in the region of 100, 102 million pounds. Last season, I think what's interesting about Chelsea, last season they had a first-team squad and then a shadow squad for their European games because they were in the Europa Conference League.

34:55And even with some fringe players, those players were essentially too good for everybody in that competition. they finish fourth and i think in part because they were able to keep players fresh and fit and ready for the weekend in the premier league they now have to contend with proper in inverted commas european football is that going to be the big challenge for chelsea again they have a very very deep squad they've bought some good players but the the challenge for chelsea and enzo maresca will be having to deal with proper midweek games where you don't get the opportunity or the luxury, if it were, if you want to put it that way or other, of resting all your best players.

35:38Yeah, definitely. It's the obvious one for me. I think they were in a very fortunate position last year because like you said, even their second or third choice team was still miles better than anyone else in that competition. position. So they did have that luxury of ultimately playing once a week in the Premier League. They were keeping people fresh. I mean, Cole Palmer wasn't even included in the group stage Conference League squad. So that just shows you that they took it as a joke. I mean, it's always difficult to judge Chelsea simply because their player turnover is so big every season. They'll buy 10 players, they'll sell 10 players.

36:14So you always have to consider how they will fit in, what system they decide to play, whether or not it will be different to how they played the season before. But I think, annoyingly, they're going into the season in good shape after winning the Club World Cup, obviously, as well, the Conference League. They seem to have figured things out under Enzo Maresca. And they started well last year as well. It was only in February, March time where they started to slip away. You saw some of the inexperience in their squad. They couldn't handle some of the big games and the pressure that came with that.

36:48So there's definitely an element of a broken clock being right twice a day to their transfer business. I think it's very scattergun, but if you buy enough good young talent, a few of them will eventually become good. And I'm quite sad because they have signed a few players that I like. Obviously, Jamie Gittins is a really fun winger. Jor-El Hato, someone that Arsenal followed for a long time, I thought he would have been a really good signing for us, João Pedro has hit the ground running there. Esteval as well, one of the standout talents in Brazil. So they're doing this thing where they're just hoarding talent and eventually that will work in your favour.

37:24They've already got a good squad there that will be a bit more familiar with each other. Something I am keeping an eye on as well, not just their Champions League exploits, but the injury situation, because I know they've got a huge squad but some of those guys played 65 70 games last season because of the club world cup as well which extended things for another month um and i think that will have an effect down the line they were they've already lost levi colwell um for the season he did his acl in training which can happen it could be like a freak injury and no no connection to the club world cup at all but it does seem it's a bit of a coincidence and i know james madison did his one in pre-season and then Spurs weren't in the Club World Cup but I will be watching that closely I think as well especially when you've got injury prone players occasionally like Rhys James can their bodies hold up that's what I'll be looking at can they go the distance at full pelt twice a week because it's a young squad it's a very young squad still and this is going to be a lot of pressure on them now some people are even talking about them for the title so they'll be up there I don't know if I'm going to put them in the Liverpool Arsenal City trifecta yet, but they'll certainly be up there and they're a threat.

38:36They've got a lot of pace going forward. So it's just really annoying that we keep giving them money. And I'm not just saying we in terms of Arsenal, I mean everybody. We'll get on to them later. But for example, Keenan Dewsbury Hall going to Everton, 30 million. how Armando Breuer he's missed 80 games in the last three seasons 20 20 million how you know so it's just an incredible skill to have and Liverpool have it as well where they just find fees for their players um so I would love to be able to take a leaf out of there but but yeah Chelsea an interesting one certainly talented but a few things to to watch out for some banana skins I'm not 100 convinced by them defensively you know they do have a lot of attacking talent a lot of good midfield talent.

39:25Defensively, I'm not 100 % sure. I mean, they've got loads of players back there. I'm just looking at their squad on transfer marked and it's like, oh, you've got six center backs and five right backs. So it's not that they're short of options, but I just don't know that they've got the kind of quality that you need to win a Premier League title. So we'll see. And I guess, you know, there's every chance between now and the end of the window that they spend again and bring in more players because it's just what they do.

40:31Thank you.

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42:12I want to talk about some other clubs as well. Let's talk about Crystal Palace for a second, because I do wonder if there must be something enjoyably frustrating about being a Crystal Palace fan at the moment. You win a trophy in May, you've won the Community Shield, but then there is this issue with Europe that is in some ways their fault because they didn't abide by the rules. They didn't check their emails, which is completely dumb. But then on the flip side of that, there are other clubs involved in multi-club ownership who are allowed to play in the same European competitions because they haven't engaged in this sort of arbitrary blind trust nonsense that UEFA have cooked up to allow clubs with the same owners or in multi-club models to play together.

42:57It does seem a little bit unfair. Nottingham Forest, by the way, the biggest snitches in the Premier League. but they haven't really done anything in the market this summer. Mark Gahey could leave. He's got a year left on his contract. Eberache is a player who Arsenal have been linked with. I think primarily that interest was there before Ethan Wenaire signed his new contract and that might tell you something about that situation and might tell you something about whether Arsenal are really interested now or not. He's being linked with Spurs, which is annoying. Can I ask you, like, if Eze was being linked with Aston Villa or being linked with Bournemouth or Brighton or something, you wouldn't feel the same way about it, would you?

43:40Even if you like Eze, and I do, and I'd love to see him, you know, in red and white, I think he'd be a really fun player. If he went somewhere else, I'd be like, yeah, I can see why, because there isn't really the room in the squad for him at this moment in time at Arsenal. But there's another part of you that goes, don't let him go there. Don't retire from football at such a young age. You know, you want to kind of rescue him. And he's got Arsenal history. He grew up at Arsenal. And you're sort of like, we can't let that. We've got a duty of care to this young man to rescue him from ruining what's left of his career.

44:17So it is more or less that Tottenham thing. So let's hear what you've got on Eze. and then Crystal Palace because Oliver Glasner has done such a good job there. He must be at his wit's end with what's going on with the squad, the lack of investment, the lack of, you know, building on what he has done there. He must be so frustrated with the way Palace is being run at this moment in time. Yeah, Oliver Glasner has done a superb job. And maybe there's a hot take in there about him later on towards the end of the podcast. But yeah, as a, I mean, anyone who's listened to this podcast will know how much, how much I love him, how much we love him.

44:56You know, every week there seems to be a bit of skill or an assist or a goal. And we're just sitting here going, oh, that'd be fun at Arsenal. That'd be fun at Arsenal. I'll take him at Arsenal. And we're just sort of sitting there waxing lyrical about him, drooling and daydreaming. But you're right to say that he's not a natural fit in the squad, but I still think he could bring immense value to it. I think he's more than capable on the left. I think he gives us a lot in central areas where I think our attack has faltered at times. So to see him, you know, like you said, I'd be able to accept it if he went elsewhere, to a city, to, you know, whoever else, Chelsea maybe, even though that would make me a bit sick as well.

45:38But there's just a feeling about Spurs. And when Maddison went down, I thought, hmm, there's a space for him here that maybe wasn't there before. And, you know, I tried to be a bit nonchalant about it and say, oh, Bilal Elkanus would be a nice fit for Spurs. But Eze was always in the back of my mind. And that seems to have been, you know, accelerated over the last 48 hours in particular. They've obviously spoken to him and his people. So it would be a huge shame because I think there's a lovely story there. I think we need more technicians at the carpet. I think we could do, you know, great things with a player like him at the club in terms of his ball carrying ability, his ability to shift and shoot, his quick feet in wide areas, his combination play.

46:21I think he's just a lovely player to watch. But maybe Arsenal have something else up their sleeve. Maybe they need to wait for some dominoes to fall in terms of departures. Either way, it does seem to have died down a little bit, which is a shame. So, look, I like Thomas Frank and now he's retired. So if Eza wants to take that same route, he can do it. He's just dead to me thereafter and won't be on my Christmas card list. No, no, no, exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Going to cross him off that one for sure. Let's talk about a team that sold really well, who had a really good season last season. They just sort of fell away towards the end of the campaign.

47:03But Antonio Iola was very good and did a great job at Bournemouth last season. But they've sold Dean Housen to Real Madrid, Milos Kerkes to Liverpool, Ilya Zabarni to PSG now. But they've brought in quite a lot of money. Jadon Anthony went to Burnley for 10 million. So you're looking at, you know, 150 odd million, 155 million from a Bournemouth perspective, which is big, big money for a club like that. They've only brought in a couple of players, a guy from France, and they've brought in a goalkeeper who I think is way too expensive from Chelsea. but that's another one of those. How the fuck did Chelsea get that kind of money for that goalkeeper?

47:43I think they've got Darren Brown in the negotiation room, just like flicking a watch saying, you will give me£25 million, you will give me£25 million. And then like, how about we give£25 million? Deal. Okay, you're done. Okay, that would explain it. I mean, that sounds absurd, but also perfectly reasonable as well. But there's scope, obviously, for Bournemouth to go out and buy a few players. They're going to need to buy a few players, a few defenders. I think, but probably need to add something to their attacking lineup as well. They will have money at their disposal. Yeah, definitely. I mean, it's a big shame for a club like Bournemouth because you feel like you do all of this scouting, you get a good team together, they play really well in the Premier League, they have one season together, and then all of a sudden four of them are gone.

48:29Three of them are gone and you have to rebuild again. But I think it's a huge credit to them, their recruitment team, also andoni iraiola as a coach um to have been able to improve these guys i mean obviously they were talented when they came into the club but obviously you have to take a punt on people and milosh kirkhaiz was in the eredivisie with azed alkmaar you know ilia zabani was playing for dinamo kiev um so they weren't you know slam dunk signings by any means obviously um dean hausen as well was at juventus where they were happy to ship him out for psr reasons or you know whatever their financial situation is so these were no guarantees um and they managed to turn into a really good premier league squad last year i think they've got buffo de diakite coming in from lille as well who's a good player he was actually on my radar as a kind of center back right back replacement for tommy asu a couple of years ago when it became clear that he wasn't really gonna be fit enough to be able to to maintain a role in this squad but they've spent quite a bit on him i think it was 35 million euros so it's a heavy deal um their second most expensive signing ever behind ever nielsen but at this point now if you're going to build you need to spend a little bit so i think there will be scope for them to spend a little bit more towards the end of the window i think dango watara might leave to go to brentford so that could be another 20 ish million in the coffer for them to go out and get another forward so they've managed to sign semenyo who was obviously one of the main candidates for an exit this summer.

49:57So I really hope that it doesn't derail them too much because I really like the manager. I think they did a great job last season. And for a club that nearly went out of business 16 years ago, I think they would much rather be selling three players for 150 million than being a bit upset that they're not able to build on last year. So they'll just go again. They've got a good team there behind the scenes, finding players all the time. So, yeah, really, really happy for them. And they're just a team that I have a lot of respect for in the Premier League because I think they do stuff well. All right.

50:29Speaking of teams you have a lot of respect for, let's talk a little bit about Newcastle. There's my gag. But why don't we talk about Newcastle and talk about Aston Villa in the same breath as well? Because there's a bit of a transfer story involving Jacob Ramsey going maybe from Aston Villa to Newcastle. Newcastle have had a frustrating window, I think you would say. Obviously, the Ezek thing is a big issue for them. Anthony Alanga is the only player that they've brought in. Aston Villa, relatively quiet as well. They brought in a forward from Nice, I think it is. But they haven't really spent a great deal of money either.

51:10You know, are those two sides without a bit more investment going to struggle to not to finish top 10, but to really push for the European places? Yeah, ultimately they're being strung or hamstrung by financial issues, right? I think it was obvious last year that Villa were very close to breaking some rules. I mean, their wages to turnover ratio was like 96 % or something stupid like that. So they really gambled in January with a few loanees. They brought in Marco Asensio. They brought in Rashford. obviously they sold John Duran and then went all in on Watkins so it was clear that they were very or needing to tread carefully around this this stuff but unfortunately they couldn't get over the line with Champions League football they sort of bottled it a little bit towards the end of the year but also they had a shocker against United on the last game of the season where that ridiculous goal was ruled out and it's obviously had a big effect on them now look they still did an amazing job to finish sixth.

52:10I think this squad is a good squad, but Emery has shown again that he's kind of the perfect man for this team in that they're a big club, but still quite underdoggy. And I think that's the perfect place for him. I don't know if I would trust him at an elite side, but this is kind of perfect territory for him. Evan Gesson, good player, played very well in France last year, but I just look at them and think they will be between sixth and eighth, but whether or not they have enough to go further is is my question and also i think defensively they're not they're not overly convincing with that high line is what i would say and i know it's it's how they want to play it's how they they choose to play and it's fine um but yeah i just think defensively they can be a little bit weak even though they have a lot of talent in them in attacking areas so that's them newcastle this is an all-time stinker of a window i mean they lost they missed out on joao pedro they missed out on ekitike they missed out on trafford sesco obviously that seshko as well they they were looking at samu agehawa from porto and that seems to have died down wissa can't get out of brentford so it's just like every player they seem to be chasing is not is not joining them so at some point they need to find a way to get a signing over the line i don't know if the isak thing is is sort of derailing that as well a little bit because is he staying is he going they don't know how much money they're going to have to work with eventually So it's just been a really, really awful summer.

53:39Their sporting directors left the club. Obviously, Dan Ashworth left the club as well. There's a weird power dynamic with Eddie Howe and his brother in terms of the recruitment there. So it's just a really strange situation. They keep crying PSR issues. And I'm, you know, entirely accepting that they are in a sticky situation there. But also, I don't think they've spent that well over the years. I think they've brought in some good players, but also I see some players there that haven't really added much value. I think they needed to strengthen, particularly in central defence for a long time now, and they haven't really done it.

54:18So it's just a really difficult position to be in for them. And it's a shame because they would have been sold all these dreams. When the new ownership came in, Mike Ashley went out, they're going to be the richest club in the world. We're going to spend billions like City did and PSG did and all of these teams did. but it hasn't quite worked out that way and it shows you that still even if you do have money being able to attract people is something else altogether and you know being big dogged by United for Cesco, Chelsea for João Pedro it just it just leaves a bit of a sour taste so it has been a bit of a reality check when in theory winning your first piece of silverware for how many years with all these good players at the club should have been a springboard they seem to have gone back quite considerably, which I will not be shedding a tear about.

55:06No, not at all. I think it was always going to be a big challenge for Newcastle, you know, despite the money at their disposal or the funds from the ownership at their disposal, just to sell Newcastle as a destination for top footballers. And that's not being disrespectful to the city. But if you have your choice between London or Manchester in the Premier League or even Liverpool, that's where you're going to go rather than the Northeast. So I really do hope that they continue to struggle. They've brought in Aaron Ramsdale, of course. He's back in the Premier League. And, well, listen, I like Aaron.

55:39He's a good guy. But if he can carry on this sequence of relegations, I will put him on my Christmas card list with a little gift basket of nice biscuits as well. So we'll see what happens there. Let's do a few quick things to sort of finish us off here. one of the things we talked about quite a lot last season on on the podcast was the fact that the three promoted teams were the three teams that were very very obviously going to get relegated from pretty much early on how do you feel about the teams that have come up this time around do you feel that the one or two of them might book the trend a little bit is there potential room maybe for one or two teams who are established in the premier league to sort of fall away and end up in that relegation battle.

56:28You know, it's Leeds, it's Burnley and it's Sunderland. Granit Xhaka, of course, back in the Premier League with Sunderland. I did like the, see the video that he did with Sunderland. The one word response. Yeah, exactly. When I think of Sunderland, I think, amazing. Let me just get my thesaurus out. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Who are you most excited to play with? Everyone.

57:01He hasn't seen the updated squad list for the year, obviously. He hasn't. But listen, good luck to him. But what do you make of the promoted teams? Would it be a good thing? I think personally it would if at least one of those teams could demonstrate demonstrate that the promoted teams from the championship have the ability to come into the Premier League and compete? Because it feels like more and more it's like three go up and the three go down again. And the only change is like whoever comes up from the championship. Yeah, I don't know if there's an immediate contender for a team that could buck the trend.

57:41I think they're all going about it quite differently in terms of their transfer business, which is interesting. and there are certainly a couple of Premier League teams that I don't feel good about this year. Brentford being one of them, West Ham being another team that I'm not convinced about at all. So they could be in the mix for a relegation, for example, or a relegation fight. Even Wolves will be there or thereabouts, even though they finished last season very strongly. Leeds, their transfer business has followed a very consistent theme, which is basically sign all the big fuckers who can compete physically in midfield and head everything out in defence.

58:18I mean, Anton Stack, Jakob Bijol, Sebastian Bornau, Sean Longstaff, they're all huge, strong, leggy players who can hold their own in terms of their spaces. I mean, Bijol in particular, he's a centre-back coming from Udinese. He had the third best aerial success rate across Europe last season behind Virgil van Dijk and Nikola Milenkovic. So they've signed a real sort of force there. but despite their 100 point season they actually won the championship Daniel Farker doesn't really have a lot of credit in the bank there were calls for him to be sacked when they were clear you know at the top of the table last season because they have this weird habit of collapsing and one defeat can quickly turn into three or four plus their playing style was a bit sterile at times and there were rumors that the club were ready to sack him this summer if they found a more exciting candidate i mean obviously they're owned by the 49ers enterprise now um who own the the nfl team they're very smart data driven i'm sure they'll have other managers lined up so i think he's got a few months but i wouldn't give him a huge amount of time because they're their fingers sort of hovering above the red button if that makes sense and then burnley um if you could put a cricket sound effect for this section because i could probably um that would probably offer more than what I could tell you.

59:34They're managed by Scott Parker. They kept 29 clean sheets in 45 games last season, which is really impressive. They have lost James Trafford, who was a big part of that record, although I still think he looks a bit like a lanky six former, and I think he will struggle if he plays consistently at this level. But I don't mind them coming back with a strong defensive identity because I like it better for a promoted side than doing what Burnley did last time under Vincent Kompany because they were just eaten alive playing that possession-based style of football when they realised that everyone else was better than them, but not only better, but fitter and stronger.

1:00:13So that just killed them completely. And they didn't change. There was no point at which they changed. So that's going to be their issue. Can they find the level? I mean, obviously they signed Leslie Hugo Chukwu, who's a decent player from Chelsea. see marcus edwards could be a decent pickup as well but again armando broyer is he a is he a level raiser i'm not sure um i think he's too injury prone and goals are ultimately the most important currency for you um so yeah my hopes are not super high for them and sunderland it's an interesting one actually because when it comes to their transfer business they've done the opposite of what leads have done and they've invested heavily in youth and it's consistent with their model under their ownership under Kirill Louis-Dreyfus, which is more youth-focused anyway, but they're still effectively gambling on potential.

1:01:04I mean, they get these players in before anyone else does and hope they can develop and find their feet quickly. I mean, Jara, they signed from Strasbourg, really good box-to-box midfielder. They got Noah Siddiqui from Saint-Gilois, Chemsdine Talbi from Club Bruges. So they found a couple of these gems in Belgian football and French football. Obviously, Simon Adingra as well has gone there. I didn't think he got entirely fairly treated at Brighton. I thought he was a decent player. Granit Xhaka is going to be there as a bit of a handholder, the experienced guy. He spent two weeks with Eric Ten Hag and said, nope, I'm getting the fuck out of here.

1:01:39Enzo Lefay in there as well, who's like a good player. He's played at Roma, was in France as well. So there is pressure on them to survive, obviously, but I don't think it will be as intense as Leeds or Burnley, for example, who have been here before. they've worn the t-shirt they're a bit yo-yo whereas sundern will be just riding this euphoria and sort of attacking it with a freshness and a vibrancy they've got a good young team i still think they'll fall short in the end because it's a it's a big jump um and i think as much talent as you do have in terms of a 20 21 year old 22 year old it's very sobering the premier league um and we've seen seasoned professionals come in for a lot of money and still struggle but I think they'll be here with a freshness and I don't know if every game, every result will be a referendum but I don't know if I would be comfortable backing any of those promoted sides as a sort of option to buck the trend if that makes sense.

1:02:35Okay, I'm going to put you on the spot and I'm going to, like one of them is going to do it. Which one do you think will do it? Like Sunderland have been out of the Premier League for eight years. Yeah. I feel there's an element of sort of Luton Town a couple of seasons ago to Sunderland. I don't really back them. Scott Parker, I'm sorry, Mr. Cardigan, I don't really rate his ability, you know, to do the job at Premier League level, right? But I also think there are a couple of teams this season who may well fall quite a bit short of where we saw them last season. So you mentioned Brentford, Keith Andrews has taken over there.

1:03:14He's got a big job in his hand. They've lost Brian Mbomo. So they've held on to Dion Wissa for now, but who knows what might happen there. I have a feeling they're going to struggle. I have a sort of gut feeling about Fulham as well this season. Okay. Who, Marco Silva's a good manager, he's done well, but they really haven't added anything to the squad. Not at all, yeah. You know, they've got some good players, but I just wonder if they go on a bit of a run. I'm not sure they'll get all the way down, but I'm going to pick of the three promoted teams to stay up i will pick leads me too right i think i think if if if anyone's going to do it it will be them because they've got a bit of premier league now in there i think they've signed a lot of players who can suit the premier league um kind of big guys strong guys covering space good at heading the ball out i think they've got a few talented players in transition as well i still think they're short in attacking areas to be honest to make a big um impact in the league i I mean, obviously, when you look at them, when they had Marcelo Bielsa at the club, they had a lot of exciting young talent there, like Crescenzio Somerville.

1:04:23Rafinha was there. They had Willy Nonto, who's obviously still there. But I just think they might fall short in the attacking areas. Dan James is there. But again, he couldn't really cut it at United. But I think if one of them was going to do it, I would go for Leeds as well. But I think the Premier League could do with that. It could do with that by all accounts. it's just getting really difficult because the gap is only getting bigger every year. It sure is. Okay, right. Some quickfire ones before we finish. Give me your top four. It doesn't have to be in order, but the four teams you think are going to finish in the top four.

1:04:57We're not committing to order. No, no, no, no. I think it's too much to ask people to predict exactly the way it's going to end up. You just don't know. But I think it's sort of more interesting to sort of predict the top four and see in what order they finish. If we get all four right, who knows? So I'll let you go first. I mean, I've got three. I think there's three that are obvious. Yeah, it's nothing too groundbreaking here, but it's going to be Arsenal, Liverpool, City and Chelsea as my top four. Okay. I mean, Arsenal, City, Liverpool are mine, my three. Chelsea should but I don't see anyone else If it's not them who would it be in your mind?

1:05:47It sounds absurd but I was just sort of looking at Manchester United simply because of the stature of the club but I do think those issues that they have defensively and in midfield make it a little more difficult so I will go with Chelsea yeah I don't really see anyone else. We had one here, like, who are going to be the dark horses? I don't see a team that could be dark horses. You've got one. Go on. I've got one. Everton. Everton? I think Everton could do something next year. I really do. What? Yeah. I'm all in on the Moyes machine. I think. New stadium vibes. Everyone's happy. They've completely rebuilt their attack.

1:06:31They've got Greedish coming in. They've signed Tieno Barry, who's like better on steroids. Illiman and Jais had a really good preseason. They could sign Tyler Dibbling.

1:06:42They're doing stuff. Okay. You know? Okay. I'm all in on Everton. All right. Well, that's a fairly hot take, I would say. I don't think there's any chance that they're going to finish in the top four. But, you know, I could be wrong. And I will... Maybe not top four. But yeah, yeah. It could be top six. Top six. Yeah, you never know. I mean, Moyes has the experience and the new stadium is either going to be a real positive for them or completely weird. And it takes them a while to get used to their new surroundings. Like wearing a new pair of shoes. Yeah, exactly. I've got blisters on your heels for six months of the season.

1:07:15Who is going to be the golden boot? Ugh, boring. Erling Haaland. Yeah, that's what I have written down as well. I will go different to you, Erling Haaland. Is there a... Oh, God. I mean, none of us expected Wisser to be there, Chris Wood to be there last year or thereabouts. I know Salah ran away with it in the end, but... Yeah. You know, maybe there could be someone coming out of the blue. I just need to look and see, is there a 33-year-old journeyman from New Zealand who, you know, we're not expecting... Because they grow on trees. They really do. The one I would say is, depending on if, when it gets sorted, it could be Isaac at Liverpool, who could push Haaland, close and look as Arsenal fans we would hope that Victor Jokeres could push as well I just think absolutely we'll probably have a bit more rotation up front than Manchester City and maybe Liverpool if they do get Isaac in so it could be more of a share the goals around situation for Jokeres and Kai Havertz I hope that's it but like you know I'd quite happily let Haaland or Isaac or whoever or Salah win the golden boot if we We can get to 20 gold plus seasons out of Yacharaz and Havertz, which I think would be super beneficial for us.

1:08:37Young player of the season. The only thing I could think of here is like somehow Phil fucking Foden will win this again. Yes. 35 year old Phil Foden with his 18th young player of the year award. I fucking love winning young player, me. I'm going to go for Morgan Rogers. Morgan Rogers. Even though he is getting on a little bit in terms of this award, but he would be eligible. Okay. He is who I'm going for. I think he's going to have a big season for Aston Villa. I'm going to go completely crazy and say, Ethan Wannery, why not? Why not? Why not? Why not? It could happen. Why not? It could just as easily happen as anything else.

1:09:23Plus, I can't really think of any young players at this point in time on other clubs. Right. I think the final one that we have, unless you've got something else to add to this in the end, is the first manager for the sack. Yeah. Well, there is player of the season as well, and I put Bakayo Saka. Okay. To break Thierry Henry's assist record. At last. At last. With a 20-goal season contribution as well. 20 goals, 23 assists for Bakayo Saka. I'm all in. I'm all in on that. We need to end this on a positive note, as could be some of these sacking options. There's two in my mind that I have. Go on, hit me with yours first.

1:10:04Okay, first one is Eddie Howe. He was not on my list. Yeah, I just feel like he could struggle. A bit of a messy divorce happening there. Maybe so, maybe so. The other one, and this is another club who I think will have a significant differential between this season and last season, the season that they had last time around and the season that they're going to have this time. And that's Nuno Espirito Santo. To get the Marinakis chop. Yeah. Yeah. Under the guillotine. Exactly. I think Forrest completely and utterly overperformed to a ridiculous extent last season. Like fair play to them. Oh, for sure.

1:10:47Until such time as they became, you know, snitches. And we know what snitches get. Stitches from being chopped by Mr. Marinakis. But no, I think they just were, it was a lightning bolt storm in a teacup. Is that the right way of putting it? It's just like a cocktail of whatever. A good cocktail for them. It worked out. And I don't think there's any chance that they do that again. And I think Nuno will be the guy to get the chop because that guy does not mess around. As soon as he does, things are going the wrong way. So those are my two, Eddie Howe and Nuno. Okay. my one is a bit rogue as well and it's actually oliver glasner but not because he'll be sacked i think he'll walk he'll resign yeah um and actually as we've been recording there's been an arm bomb oh no saying that that liverpool are in talks with crystal palace for mark gahey so if he leaves and if ezra leaves and they haven't signed anyone i think that situation could get very messy very quickly.

1:11:51He's alluded to it a couple of times as well. He said, I thought we'd be more aggressive in the market. I was promised players quickly. And look, we're here on the 12th of August and I know they're doing really well. But at some point, do you just stand still? And I do get a bit worried for them about that. So I think he'll walk. That's my take. I wonder what the price for Gahey is. he is in his last year, in the last year of his contract. Yeah, they said there's no official bid yet, but LFC stepping up efforts. So I think it could be 40 mil. 40, 50 mil. And actually he should be in the door at Liverpool because he can play both sides.

1:12:33So he solves a lot of issues for them. And it's just a nice contract opportunity as well with him having one year left. I don't mind that, to be honest, I have to say. That doesn't bother me, Mark Gahey going to Liverpool. pool. I think he's decent, but I don't think he's particularly special. I think he's quite small. Maybe they don't need anyone special, though. No, no, that's true. They've just got all the guys in the world to score the goals. But if they drop 40-odd million on Gehi, and then they're looking to spend another 150 on Ezek, which is what it could easily be, that's another 190 million pounds.

1:13:10They found oil under Anfield. Yeah, exactly. What's going on? Is there a diamond mine under there or something? It would bring their outlay, and I'm not saying their net spend, but it would bring their outlay close to half a billion pounds in one window. I mean, what the fuck is going on? Yeah, that is pretty mad. Is there a reserve player that they'll sell for 50 million somewhere? Yeah, Scott Strunkerton. He's come up through the academy. Of course, yeah, he impressed me for England. They're going to sell him to Bournemouth, who are desperate for players for 78 million pounds. And that's how they balance the books.

1:13:52That's how they do it. So, yeah, I think Glasner. And it would be a big shame because I think Palace have found something really good under him. But I'm just a little bit worried about the situation. Okay. Give me one then, you know, beyond a guy walking. Give me a guy who you think might get sacked. sacked i

1:14:19daniel farker okay he'll get sacked november christmas time they'll bring in someone who will have a glasner-esque impact and sort of finish them 16th or 15th glasner maybe they'll bring in glasner glasner well that leads have a big red bull connection now yes of course Yeah, yeah. That could work with his Bundesliga slash Austrian roots. So, you never know. That would be interesting. Football's done some weird shit, Andrew. It really has. And football clubs these days are ruthless. And there is a ruthless 38-game Premier League season ahead. And you can enjoy it with us on Patreon if you so decide.

1:14:58If you've enjoyed this episode and you'd like to hear one of these every week in which we talk about all the weekend's Premier League action, you can sign up. It's just$6 a month. plus VAT, where applicable, at patreon.com forward slash arseblog. It gives you access to the 30. We do a preview podcast for every game. You get Discord chat. You get a weekly newsletter. Andrew Allen puts a weekly newsletter together, and it supports everything else that we do on arseblog. All the free stuff that's out there for everybody. If all of that is worth$6 a month to you, patreon.com forward slash arseblog.

1:15:31Right, we better leave it there. Phil, as ever, thank you very much indeed, And I'm looking forward to spending these 38 games and the whole new season with you every week. Absolutely. Yeah. Batteries are recharged. And also another advert for the Patreon. Could there be another new player pod coming? That's true. That's true. We do. We do a new player podcast every time we sign a new player. So there's, there've been quite a few of those this summer. So in about three weeks, there were 15. I mean, look, if you want to know more about Rafael Leal, when we sign him on deadline day, you know where to sign up.

1:16:03Well, you're giving people hope there, Phil. So let's hope that that does come true or something comes true before the end of the window. Whether it's Eze, whether we save him from Tottenham, whether he goes somewhere else, we'll wait and see. For now, though, folks, take it easy. Hope you enjoyed this show. We will catch you on the next one. There's more to come, obviously, this week. We'll have a regular Arsenal season preview Arscast and, of course, a preview podcast on Patreon looking ahead to our first game of the season against Manchester United. For now, though, take it easy, and we will catch you on the next one.

1:16:45We'll be right back.

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