In short
The episode of ESPN FC (Halloween special) focuses mainly on Premier League matchups, especially Liverpool vs Aston Villa, plus a discussion of Real Madrid’s Vinícius Júnior controversy.
Guests
Craig Burley (former Liverpool player; football analyst), Steve Nicol (co-host/analyst), and Frank LeBoeuf (former France/ Chelsea player; analyst). The show also includes recurring ESPN FC panel banter and costume talk.
Liverpool vs Villa topic
Liverpool are struggling (six losses in seven), and Arne Slot says he’s “completely happy” with strategy and squad quality despite results.
Key claims
the panel argues Slot’s optimism is “fake,” Liverpool’s issue is performance/chemistry and missing form, and the manager may not have a reliable “best XI” due to injuries and out-of-form partnerships (notably Van Dijk–Konaté).
Notable examples
Salah “produced absolutely nothing,” and Liverpool’s press has been half-hearted, leaving space for teams to play out from the back (Chelsea/Man City clips referenced). Prediction debate: Burley expects a draw; Craig predicts Villa 2-1.
Other segments
Spurs vs Chelsea (Chelsea’s recent dominance; Cole Palmer absent) and Real Madrid vs Valencia (Mbappé highlighted). Real Madrid topic: whether Xabi Alonso should have punished Vinícius after off-field disciplinary issues; panelists argue discipline should include benching, not just accepting apologies.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOLiverpool’s Current Struggles
1:30 to 3:56
Discussion on Liverpool's performance and upcoming match against Aston Villa.
“This is just me every day giving the crazy clown vibes.”
Arnis Slott's Strategy and Confidence
3:56 to 5:32
Analysis of manager Arnis Slott's comments on the team and strategy.
“And instead of tricking you, we're going to treat you and talk about the big one in the Premier League this weekend.”
Concerns Over Liverpool's Form
5:32 to 7:46
Hosts discuss the problems with team performance and player form.
“I couldn't really figure out what he was on about.”
Frank's Analysis of Liverpool's Situation
7:46 to 11:40
Frank shares his thoughts on Liverpool's current challenges and management.
“and the two strikers and Virgil van Dijk and Kanati as a partnership and if you were offered in the summer Milos Kerkhez, because Stevie talked about him last year, really liked him.”
Tactical Approaches for the Upcoming Match
11:40 to 14:01
Discussion on tactical strategies for Liverpool's match against Aston Villa.
“others are only 10 % of their level so what do you want me to do?”
Analyzing Liverpool's Struggles
14:01 to 19:48
Discussion on Liverpool's performance issues and Aston Villa's strategies.
“He needs to be taken out, I think, for his own good as well as the team.”
Prediction Insights for Liverpool vs Aston Villa
19:48 to 21:28
Predictions for the upcoming match and its implications for Liverpool.
“that everyone gave for this matchup now.”
Analyzing Chelsea's Performance and Future
23:21 to 28:00
Discussion on Chelsea's recent form and managerial challenges.
“All right, well, another big one in the Premier League coming up this weekend And it is a nice little London derby north up against west as Spurs host Chelsea.”
Chelsea's Tactical Dilemma
28:00 to 29:56
Analysis of Chelsea's squad and tactical decisions ahead of a match.
“I don't understand why he doesn't play Estival from the start.”
Chelsea's Tactical Dilemma
30:00 to 30:18
Analysis of Chelsea's squad and tactical decisions ahead of a match.
“Legally, we can't say drinking Storm makes you smarter and more focused.”
Show all 20 chapters
Chelsea's Tactical Dilemma
30:21 to 30:46
Analysis of Chelsea's squad and tactical decisions ahead of a match.
“You think you know a browser, but Gemini and Chrome?”
Vinicius Jr. Controversy
30:50 to 35:15
Discussion around Vinicius Jr.'s apology and the repercussions of his actions.
“and plan de paz, a peaceful plan or a plan for peace.”
Managerial Authority and Player Discipline
35:15 to 39:29
Debate on the importance of managerial authority in handling player issues.
“he should have been given a dressing down, a statement should have come out, moved on.”
Kylian Mbappé's Success and Halloween Fun
39:30 to 42:00
Celebrating Mbappé's achievements and sharing Halloween stories.
“he's lost the opportunity to stamp that authority.”
Halloween Pets and Animal Rescue
42:00 to 42:45
The hosts discuss Halloween themed pets and one host's experience with animal rescue.
“Yeah, you already said that, and he's doing your ankles barking at you.”
Football Treats and Tricks
42:46 to 45:02
The hosts share their thoughts on which football clubs have been surprises this season, discussing both treats and tricks.
“Likewise, which club has been the biggest trick?”
Halloween Costumes and Personal Stories
45:03 to 47:28
A light-hearted discussion about Halloween costumes, personal anecdotes, and playful banter among the hosts.
“And they drew against Paris Saint-Germain at the Pag des Princes.”
Teasing and Personal Vulnerability
47:29 to 51:17
The discussion turns serious as the hosts reflect on the impact of teasing, personal vulnerabilities, and shared experiences.
“Well, they're cemented in, though, aren't they?”
Ghost Stories and Paranormal Encounters
51:18 to 56:05
The hosts share their ghost stories and experiences related to the paranormal, discussing beliefs and personal encounters.
“when my teeth got knocked out, but, you know, you could have them, you know, these days, you would have the implants put in.”
Ghost Stories and Halloween Costumes
56:05 to 59:53
A lighthearted discussion about personal stories, costumes, and humor.
“I sent a picture to my mother and I say, mom, what do you think about that?”
Transcript
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1:21Hello, hello everyone and welcome to the latest edition of ESPN FC. Happy Halloween. Go on, Craig. All right, no, at least Stevie and I have made an effort. This is just me every day giving the crazy clown vibes. Won't be the first time anyone's called me that. When I walked in, he was already in. I pushed the door open and I looked at you and I went, oh my God. You did. And what did you say? I hate Halloween. Yeah, to be it. This is actually Stevie Nichols' jacket, and it just brought the perfect crazy clown vibe to me. Didn't you say it suited me? I was being polite. Well, let's welcome in a certain Frank LaBeouf, or at least I think it's Frank LaBeouf.
2:02Oh, my God. Oh, no. Give me some break. Or at least I think it's Frank LaBeouf. Hold on. People are going to turn the TV off. I love it, Frank, getting into the Halloween spirit. What's it meant to be? Hold on, what is the... You know, I really did it because of Alexei. You know, I used to do it when I was living in LA, in France. It's becoming a little bit, you know, something. But right now, it's not that huge. But I say for Alexei, and just to see Craig's face right now, I just did it for that. You made Craig smile. Yeah, no, I'm not being funny. What is he, though? Well, I mean, the word that he is, I cannot use.
2:43I feel you. But I will say this, Frank. That's grown on me. I think it suits you. It does, doesn't it? I mean, particularly the nose ring coming out. You know, that can be jive. Have you seen that? The meat chops. Oh, yes. You know, it's nice. And the tattoo for my mom. Oh, I love that. It's kind of giving WWE wrestler. Frank, was that your inspiration? Yeah, from the 90s. It's giving out what's in Frank's mind. Yeah. He's giving Tiger King. Look at that. Come on. Oh, my God. Can barely tell the difference. Not too far. Not too far. He's just missing the nose. Come on, guys. Yay. I love that. I love that.
3:28Frank getting in on the Halloween spirit. We're going to try to bring it for the rest of the video. But I promise you, I'm going to try to be serious during the show and give good analysis. I'll make a change, no? I mean, when I woke up this morning, I didn't envisage Frank's armpits being on ESPN FC. They're quite smooth, aren't they? Well, if you like that kind of thing, I don't know. All right. Let's talk some football. Let's talk some football, shall we? And instead of tricking you, we're going to treat you and talk about the big one in the Premier League this weekend. It's a mighty battle between 7th and 8th.
4:06Liverpool up against Aston Villa. Liverpool six losses in their last seven games, most recently two. Crystal Palace in the league cup while Arnest Slott spoke ahead of the Villa clash. Let's hear what he had to say.
4:20I'm completely happy with the team, with all the quality we have. And I'm also completely convinced by the strategy and the policy we have. Maybe last season we were more lucky or now we're a bit more unlucky. Again, no excuses for our results before people are going to say this again. But we had to play a lot of away games with only two days rest in between. That would have been a difficult schedule for every player last season. I mean a player that has been fit throughout the whole season, but that has not been our situation. The thing that gives me the most confidence is the quality of the players we are having.
4:56And the amount of chances these players are still creating. This will eventually always lead to these players scoring more goals than we've done till now. and we have to address certain other things. But yeah, if I talk about that, if I'm speaking about what we have to improve, people then tell me I'm using excuses. So maybe it's better now just to say we need to address certain things to do better. All right, not quite the face of a man who's lost six in the last seven, but Stevie Arnislav, they're just doubling down on the fact that he's happy with his players. He's happy with his strategy. What do you make of it?
5:36I couldn't really figure out what he was on about. It didn't seem like particularly forceful in anything. He was kind of fudging it a little bit, just throwing all kinds of different things in. You know, for a guy who... Does that worry you now? Well, for a guy who last year absolutely 100%, when he sat in front of a microphone, I sat in front of a press, talked sense, was clear, was you were in no clue what he was talking about. I've sat and listened to that, and I really don't know what his point was. He kind of covered four, five, six different things a little bit, but none of them were particularly forceful, as if he actually believed what he was saying.
6:21So, yeah, don't talk. You know, if you don't have anything strong or correct to say, don't say anything. Just keep it short and simple and get out. I think he was batting away some of the stuff that has been coming his way. And one of the things he mentioned was strategy. And that's not necessarily his strategy. I think that's a generic club strategy in transfers. People have said, did you need to bring in the two strikers? And Isaac, which was quite late. And Hugo Eketiki, which was a little earlier. And the Mark Gehe deal fell through on the last day. And I think people have been pointing to the strategy.
7:01and I think he was trying to answer that and say, no, I'm okay with the strategy. The other thing was, when you look at a lot of departures, I mean, there's a lot more departures, but a lot of them are players that weren't really going to play, if we're being honest about it. Some of them are obviously players that would have featured, most of them from the bench, like Harvey Elliott and one or two others. I think what he's saying is, if you look at the Liverpool team on paper and you put the team down, you would be relatively, you would be very happy and go, well, that's a good side. That's a good squad.
7:37Now, I think that's what he's trying to say. What he's not been able to sort of articulate or get over onto the field this season is the performance. You know, if you were offered Mo Salah and the two strikers and Virgil van Dijk and Kanati as a partnership and if you were offered in the summer Milos Kerkhez, because Stevie talked about him last year, really liked him. most people liked him there was a lot of suitors if you were offered these players you would have taken them the problem is there's a lot of them out of form there's a lot of them short of confidence and he the manager that is is I get a feeling he sat with his his coaching team moving the little pieces of the jigsaw and the chessboard around what do you think about that what do you think about Alexander Arnold what do you think about sorry Andy Robertson at left back, which Stevie thinks might happen this weekend.
8:32So you think he doesn't know exactly what his best 11 is for this Villa game? And I think that's where the manager is. And I think we all agree, I think it's been a mistake not to play Eke Tiki in a couple of the big games. And in some sense, I'm a little disappointed if Izak isn't available, which I don't think he is, because I would have liked to have seen what that decision was going to be. Can I just... That question of, do you think he knows? what his best 11 is. I think before a ball was kicked in anger, he had a good idea of what his best 11 would be. But I think, and I know it's just, I'm sticking up for Arno Slott all the time, but quite honestly, if you are the manager of Liverpool, how are you supposed to pick your best 11 when you don't have 11?
9:18When you've only got a couple that are actually, you know, both individually and in, you know, partnerships. Salah and Bradley tomorrow. you know, they've played together this season already. They look as though they've never played together. That's not the case. Last year they were great together. You know, Gakpo and Robertson last year played together. They were great together. Now, this year they haven't really played together, but there's no guarantee that they would. McAllister, Gravenberg and Soblezai are about as close in terms of playing together as anywhere on the field. But even they haven't been great.
9:54And of course, in my opinion, One of the most important partnerships in any team is the centre-back partnership in Van Dijk and Kanaty. Compared to last year, have been absolutely awful. So, you know what, it's tough being on the slot right now. Because trying to figure out your best 11 when nobody's actually kicking the ball properly is really tough. Be even tougher after these three games. Yeah. Villa, Real Madrid, Man City. It's almost like he's picking the least out of form players at the moment. But he's going to have to figure this out at the weekend. Well, let's go to Frank now because we definitely want to continue looking at his brilliant costume.
10:35But Frank, what do you make about what the boys have to say? I agree with the boys and I especially agree with what Stevie just said about the fact that he hasn't got the best personals right now. and if he knows what his best 11 would be, he cannot count on it because they're not good enough and they only the shadow on themselves. But, you know, television exists. So if we're not at Anfield Royal, we can see the games and he doesn't need to go into that fake optimism and trying to explain that he's happy. He cannot be happy with what he sees. He cannot be fully happy because of what the players are showing.
11:15So we see it as a shamble right now. We know that they can improve. We know that some players are going to get better. And Liverpool, of course, will try to fight for the title. But right now, again, we only see the shadow of the players. And you don't need to lie to us. I mean, who do you try to persuade? Nobody. Just say what you see because we're going to agree with you. I'm not happy. Some players are injured. others are only 10 % of their level so what do you want me to do? I try my best, I do my best I try to support the players but something is wrong right now and I really hope with the players and all the squad I'm going to work very hard to make sure Liverpool goes back to its best but don't lie to people, I mean it's useless I don't know what's wrong with those coaches who think that we don't see that we are blind and we don't see what we see on the field I hope people actually watch the start of this show and don't just sort of nobody's just sort of flicked on now and Frank's there with like a nose piece and Frank's speaking so passionately and seriously it's me guys in case he doesn't recognise it's me there's our favourite they're letting anybody on this show now was that your projected 11 for Liverpool or was that just one it's what I think he should probably play I think the fact that other than Robertson everybody else has had a week off.
12:40You know, and again, part of the interview we didn't see on there was him complaining about how they played so many games and, you know, this whole thing. And no Verts again, which seems like we're not even batting an eyelid here and he was a gazillion pounds, you know, dollars, whatever you want to do. You can't afford to gamble on Verts. You have, I mean, right now he's gambling on a lot of players, particularly Salah, who's produced absolutely nothing pretty much so far. And so you can't have too many completing out gambles. You need to fill the side with players who you think you know you're going to get a certain level from.
13:17And so that's why I've kind of gone again with the tried and trusted. I've had Robertson in there because Kirk is doing more damage to the whole team. Not just the fact that him and Van Dijk just have not... They don't understand each other. That would be the best way to put it. So that's why I think get Robertson back in. Him and Van Dijk know each other. They know exactly pretty much what they're going to be about. And more importantly from Robertson's side, Aston Villa don't have any pace down that side. It'll be John McGinn. And so John McGinn's not running away from anybody, really. So you can play Robertson there.
13:53So I've kind of gone with the tried and trusted. They've had a week off. No complaints. Now you have to produce. Kirk is... But a huge game. He needs to be taken out, I think, for his own good as well as the team. He's Welsh. Now, taking a player out dents your confidence, but continue to put him out there. And see Van Dijk yelling at him. And see the struggles and see, you know, obviously Van Dijk's been very public on the field about his unhappiness with the positioning and his passing and what forth. But if we think, and we talked about this, Stevie and I, a couple of days ago, if we think Villa will try and hit on the counter, if we think Liverpool will try and press, if we think Villa taking into account their recent performances against Tottenham in particular and Man City will try and invite Liverpool onto them at Anfield, they've actually been pretty good at playing their way out from the back.
14:48And the one thing Liverpool have struggled with this year is just leaving an amount of space for players to do this. And this is Bandeja, I believe. Liverpool have left this space a lot. and if they do that at the weekend, Stevie, and have this kind of scenario, they're going to have problems again. Well, if this is a scenario that does happen, then you cannot expect anything other than a stability to at least get opportunities, if not score goals. I mean, they're almost on their own goal line here. I think this is Pau Torres, right? Man City are pressing. They're not panicking and they will do the same at Anfield.
15:26They're taking their time. There's not a lot of space. It's quite tight. They see the space. They attack the space. And before you know it, from their own goal line, Aston Villa are getting that City back four. And we know Liverpool have been weak in that position this year. And when you're talking about Liverpool not pressing the ball properly, right there, they actually got out. There were three Liverpool players around the left back. And so, straight away, you've got three men out the game. And you talk about not pressing it properly. This at Chelsea, it typified the whole performance. It was a kind of half-hearted press that never really got close to anybody.
16:08And Chelsea did this brilliantly. They played out from the back. They switched to play. We've circled Robertson because, you know, Stevie thinks he's probably going to play tomorrow. But it's not Andy Robertson and his pomp. We know that. He struggled when he's come into the Liverpool side. He struggled for the national team when he played. He made some mistakes. He struggled on this occasion. But it might just be his experience that means that he comes in and obviously Kerk is his form. But what Liverpool have tomorrow is a Villa side who have started the season really slowly. They've picked up a head of steam.
16:41They don't mind going away and sitting in and being tight and defending. But they're also trying to play out from the back. And we know the Liverpool fans, they'll try and push this Liverpool team forward. They're desperate to get back on a winning streak. They're desperate for momentum. them. So when they go and press, if they don't get it right, you saw from those clips here against Man City, Villa will play out from the back and if they can beat that press and get in behind the midfield, where have Liverpool been weak this year? Middle of the park, back four, that's where Villa will try and get at them.
17:13You have to realise that when you're going to close that high up the field, everybody has to do it. And I'm not talking about the front three, I'm not just talking about the back three, I'm talking about more importantly, the two centre-backs have to be on the midfield guys, pushing them forward, letting them know that they're there. Because if they don't put, they can't push in if they're worried about what's going on behind them. And so the two centre-backs, again, it's not just about defending if you're one of the centre-backs, it's about talking. It's about pushing the three in front of you to go and close it properly, knowing that if the ball eventually gets behind them, you're right up behind them as well instead of those huge big holes that Craig was talking about.
17:55So again, the two centre-backs, the job is not just to defend, the job is to make sure the middle are pushing high up and getting in good positions also. Frank, as Craig pointed out, and we just saw there from a couple of those highlights, Aston Villa definitely will be smelling blood in Liverpool's water. Yeah, yes, definitely. And the experts on that matter, We saw on the two clips that you showed against Manchester City that they really mastered the situation and they can be under big pressure. They keep calm and they're clever on the passes that they have to make and they go into contract time very quickly.
18:34It's very impressive. And the clip that we watch about Liverpool playing against Chelsea says it all. And in a way that Liverpool doesn't know anymore or right now how to work together. So you were talking about Kerkers and the fact that he's not feeling good, that he's maybe not supported or maybe Van Dyck doesn't understand him. Yes, that's clear. But it's also about everybody. And it's like a domino of things that where somebody something doesn't go right, but nothing is there to compensate or to or to help out. before you had Travenberg and McAllister working. If somebody was going on the side at front, somebody was covering and making sure that in case of counter-attack, they were there.
19:20So everything was put on very, very nicely, which is not the case right now. And you had the same with Anderson at the time, where in 2020, Liverpool was the best team in the world. And then they lost it, they got it back with Travenberg last year. and McAllister and the year before, but now they don't have it. So because everybody is independent from each other, it's becoming very complicated. All right, well, let's have a look at the predictions that everyone gave for this matchup now. And I believe I'm the only one that actually went for a result, did not sit on the fence. I've gone for a 2-1 Aston Villa win.
19:59Everyone else went for a draw. Stevie, it's not a loss for Liverpool, but again, not a win for your boys. You've been broken. I've never seen you this down and pessimistic about them. I can't justify why I think Liverpool are going to beat... Even at home at Anfield. Yes. There is nothing. You know, we can't just pick scores and opinions out of fresh air. Yeah. Fantasyland, what we want to see and what's going on and dreams. Ooh. Reality has hit Liverpool. And the reality is that getting a point at Anfield against Villa might help towards turning the corner. And again, for me it's really about how Liverpool play, to be quite honest.
20:46If Liverpool were lights out, creating chances, goalkeeper stands on his head, people are missing from two yards, and they lose 1-0, in some ways I'll be like, you know what, now I think we're seeing something. So yes, of course I want them to win, But it's a bit of performance. And the truth is, with the ability they've got, if they do give a performance, then they should win the game. But I cannot sit here and tell you that that performance is going to come against Aston Villa. I just can't. Manager doesn't know either, does he? No. Our boy's broken, Craig. No, he's all right. He's been broken for a while.
21:27But that has nothing to do with Liverpool. Life. That's just life. Life broke, Stevie. He's a strong Scotsman, though. I believe in you. Gab Marcotti here for Gusto. Right now, everyone is trying to run leaner, tighter budgets, smaller teams, higher expectations. Now, the last thing you have time to waste on is manual payroll or chasing down an HR form. Gusto is how small business owners get time back when every hour counts. Gusto is online payroll and benefit software built for small businesses. It's all-in-one, remote-friendly, and incredibly easy to use. so you can pay, hire, onboard, and support your team from anywhere.
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22:53But for the ones who always rise to the challenge, Granger has your back. From professional-grade products you can count on to fast, dependable delivery, they're there to help you keep things running smoothly. Plus, their technical product specialists are here to help answer your toughest questions. And because Grainger knows safety is always a priority, they're committed to being your partner in protecting both your people and your facilities. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, clickgrainger.com, or just stop by. All right, well, another big one in the Premier League coming up this weekend And it is a nice little London derby north up against west as Spurs host Chelsea.
23:30If you have a look at the recent results between these two, Chelsea have won four in a row. Chelsea actually have only lost once against Spurs in their last 12 games. Now, Craig, I feel like these stats are showing a more dominant Chelsea than the Chelsea we're seeing right now. Yeah, and they're a little bit inconsistent as well. Well, and part of that was the Ange Postacoglu era where, quite frankly, in terms of team shape, it was a shambles. Was it one of the games? Did it not go down to nine men and they're still trying to play this high line? I mean, it was just bonkers. So although Spurs have got a raft of injuries, which we know about, what they do have is a manager who's trying to find that balance between the entertainment side and the defensive structure.
24:20and I think they've been better defensively. They've not necessarily got the attacking side of it right. Maybe that's a personnel thing with where the likes of Chavis Eamons and Richarlison and others, you know, Brennan Johnson, a few of them struggled. But I just feel it could be closer this time because of Thomas Frank's organisational skills and what he brings, what he brought to Brentford and what he's brought early on to this Tottenham side. I'm still waiting for this Tottenham side to excite me going forward. They've been OK. I think the big plus for them has been Joao Paulinho. I think he's a really good player to come in there and protect the back four.
24:58But once he's done that, and once him and Bentoncourt, whoever it is, have got this good shape, it's who else is going to go and be the creator. So I've gone for a tight one in this one. Because again, Chelsea, they can be really, really good, or you just don't know what you're going to get from them. Frank, exactly what Craig said. We really sometimes just don't know what we're going to get from Chelsea. What version of Chelsea do you think we're going to get in this game? Well, I want to believe that we kind of, or Chelsea is kind of the black cats of Perth. You know, during my time and Craig's time, I think we haven't lost against Spurs for 20 years, something like that.
25:43And we can see on the last four games, you know, it's hard for Spurs to have a result against Chelsea. I want to believe that he's going to carry on. Yes, there is no certainties because of Chelsea inconsistency. And because Thomas Frank, I think he's kind of an expert and making sure that Spurs play is better than the previous years. So it's going to be tight. I saw Chelsea winning it away from home because I want to believe that history will again carry on between Spurs and Chelsea for the good of the Blues. But nothing is sure. I mean, yes, it's going to be tough. We even saw that on the Carabao Cup where Chelsea were dominant.
26:27But it's only at the end of the game that they got it through. But yeah, let's see what's going to happen. I think it's going to be a great game. It's going to be an offensive game. It's going to be very attractive and entertaining. But the result is my result, but there's not any certainty again. Well, Chelsea, no doubt still missing their X factor, Craig. That is Cole Palmer. In the meantime, what does Enzo Maresca need to figure out about finding that right balance with his current attackers?
26:58Good question. Oh, thank you. I don't know. I mean, two of those losses, you know, he was ill-disciplined. with Brighton and Man United. The Sunderland game, it was sort of backs-to-the-wall stuff for Sunderland, Stevie, wasn't it? And then they got undone. Yeah, I mean, it was a smashing grab, let's be honest. You know, Neto's looked sharp. You know, João Pedro's a good player. They clearly haven't got the number 10. They've got to get the balance right in the middle of the park. What they did against Liverpool, we said it at the time, what Chelsea did in that Liverpool game, and they clearly haven't been able to do this, if they had been able to bottle that, and run with it, you're going to pick up, you're going to win more games than you're going to lose.
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27:40You're going to win more often than not, because that was a really good performance. And maybe some of it was down to the way Liverpool are playing. But they've not been able to sort of take that forward and go with it. And you can see the change. Garnaccio has come into the side. You know, there's been these changes. You know, you mentioned there's no Cole Palmer. They had the sendings off. There's been changes at the back. So there seems to be an inconsistency within team selection. And I certainly don't think that helps. I don't understand why he doesn't play Estival from the start. I really don't.
28:08I would switch Nets. You're talking about how do Chelsea take a step forward. Well, how about you play Neto on the left, you play Estival, and then you play Jao Pedro. I mean, and then you've got Caicedo and Fernandes behind that. I mean, that's a great weapon there, the five of them. So why don't you do that? I mean, the playing against the players, who Craig said, going forward, you don't trust any of the forwards. who's going to score the goals but that five that I've just mentioned they're capable of beating anybody so I'm not Gernacho's biggest the manager, the manager's got to pick the right team I don't know about you I mean, yeah he'll do some good things I'm not Gernacho's biggest I'm far from his biggest fan Just overall or within this Chelsea set-up?
28:54In general and I don't mean his attitude and behaviour Man United didn't want him in the end you could say that was the manager and he didn't want quite a few players but I think he'll flatter to deceive you know he'll pop up with remember the overhead kick at Everton a couple of years ago he'll do something spectacular and then he'll do nothing again anything of any note for a long period I just don't think he's got any consistency and I think he's the type of player that will get you the sack so as Stevie said I think he's going to have to figure something else out he had a monomer come off the other day as well come on attitude Oh, you're not.
29:32We've had enough of that this week. Yeah, we've had it. And maybe talking a little bit about that. We'll see. No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Let's have a look at the predictions for this one. I've gone with the 2-2 draw. So has Craig Frank going with a Chelsea win as a former Blue himself. And Stevie going as well with a Chelsea win. All right. Well, we'll be looking back at that game as well as Liverpool's on ESPN FC tomorrow. Make sure to look out for it.
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30:45All right, well, this is what's being said in the Spanish newspapers. What did I just tell you? Quiero pedir disculpas. Talking about Vinnie Jr. wanting to apologize. and plan de paz, a peaceful plan or a plan for peace. That is exactly what they are saying. Xavi Alonso had to speak about the Vinny Jr. saga in his presser ahead of their La Liga action this weekend. This is what he had to say. Para mí fue un comunicado muy valioso, muy positivo, en el que Vinny demostró su... la honestidad. Él habló desde el corazón, lo que significa este club y lo que quiere dar. and for me the most important thing was what he said to his colleagues, to the fans, to the club.
31:31And for me I was very satisfied, as I said before. And since the Sunday, the issue closed. No repressal.
31:55Do you agree with him? No, bad move. He's going to bite him. Completely the wrong move. Somebody steps out of line like that, you have to discipline him in some way. And in Vinny's case, the only way you really hurt Vinny is not by fining him or anything like that. It's by not playing him. Because that's why he's going crazy. Because he's not getting the time on the field. So the only way to discipline this guy is by not playing him. And you get the perfect opportunity at the weekend where the opposition you're going to beat them regardless whether they've any plays or not. And then you've covered every base as a coach.
32:30You've taken the big picture into consideration. You've made a statement. This guy's not going to rule the roost. I'm in charge here. Instead, he's gone for the old, well, he's apologised to the team. Now, if I'm the coach and somebody steps out of line for the first time, I'll accept the apology to the team because it's the first time. I'm not going to do it again. You know, it was one of those moments, a rush of blood, whatever. But he didn't even mention the manager in that apology. Of course he doesn't because he's not interested. This is apology. This guy's already apologised previously. This guy's already done the same thing previously.
33:08But yet you're going to let him away with an apology. No, I'm sorry, no. He hasn't apologised to the team. He hasn't apologised to Xabi Alonso. And we did a bit of this yesterday. Did a bit of this Sunday. Did a bit of this Tuesday. and you probably will have to when Real Madrid play this weekend did a bit of this yesterday a lot of this yesterday doing a bit of it today I think we should be disciplined I think today's producers should be taking off the show next week well I'm not here I don't care but you know for bringing it up again but what happened yesterday we got Gustavo Hoffman back on again and he said the reason he's not apologised directly to the manager is because he believes Vinicius Junior rightly or wrongly that there are other players who may follow There are other players who are not happy with the methods.
33:53How many times do we hear that? I do love that word. Yeah, and we discussed it yesterday. I said, look, how about the method that's got you a classical win that you didn't get last year? How about the method that's got you to the top of the league? How about the method that got Bayer Leverkusen their first ever title in Germany, which they did under Xabi Alonso? Is he going to throw all that out the window for a bunch of babies? And there might not all be babies, but he's the biggest one, isn't he, Vinicius Junior? He's a great talent. Don't get me wrong. He's a fantastic player. You love watching him.
34:23He'll do some brilliant things. But he's a gigantic baby. The Ballon d 'Or was absolute proof of that. And Real Madrid, by the way, as a club, were not far behind. So if there is some mini-mutiny behind the scenes and Vinicius Jr. thinks he's got a bunch of followers coming his way, then maybe for Xabi Alonso, when they get the odd bad result, that's going to be a problem. but maybe these followers that Vinicius Jr. thinks and his mates and his teammates maybe they won't come maybe they won't follow him to this promised land of going against the manager because they'll see the results they're getting game time and it just all feels needless it really does I mean this should have been dealt with properly by Monday morning last week after that classical win this should have been absolutely done with he should have been in the manager's office, he should have been given a dressing down, a statement should have come out, moved on.
35:20But what we had, according to Gustavo yesterday, was Vinicius' team unhappy with his amount of minutes he's getting. I mean, come on. There is bad decisions from the player in terms of the off-field stuff, but when you're listening to bad management and bad advice, that makes you double down and that's what he's doing. Frank, what do you make of how this has all panned out and Xabi's decision to not punish Vinny Jr. at all? I'm against. And I'm against, and for the same reason that the guys, you know, you have to put your foot down and explain to the guys, you know, that I'm the boss. And I'm going to tell you what I'm going to do.
36:02And I don't care about your apologies. Good, good for the teammates. But me, I have a job. And my job is to be above you and to make sure all the squad is happy. And the squad is happy. When I decide to substitute you, you shouldn't send a message that you shouldn't go out because you're better than anybody else. You're not better than anybody else because on that situation, I needed some fresh players to keep the result, maybe to score another goal. There is a reason why I do that. I don't do that to punish you. I do that for the squad. And nobody is bigger than the club. Nobody is bigger as a player than the coach.
36:41The coach has to be respected. And if the result don't go, don't worry. The coach will be the first to go because it's hard to get out of 30 players instead of one coach. So that's not a problem. So I think Xabi Alonso, for his own sake, should have put his foot down and said, no, no, that's not enough. I'm sorry. You're going to be punished. You're going to be on the bench. You know, one time it's a mistake. The second time is a stupidity. and I want you to know how to stop that and how to think that you're better or above everybody else. And he didn't do that. So what are the others going to do?
37:22I think Stevie alluded it the last time I was in the show. They say, well, you know, he didn't do that for Stevie. It's for Vinny. I'm going to do the same and show to the world that I'm above the coach. If the result goes the way we think it will, it's Valencia, the third bottom of the league, they're struggling. To be honest, I'd set him on the bench at best and I wouldn't bring him on. I'd just leave him there. Particularly if they go two or three and up, I'd leave him. Then the big question will be, for Xabi Alonso and even in Vinicius Jr.'s mind, is that Liverpool game, which is a Champions League game.
37:55Now that's, you know, the crux of this is he's put his manager in a position because what if they were playing Atletico Madrid in the Madrid derby, which they've already played this season and lost. But what if that was the game upcoming this week? What if it was Espanyol who are flying? What if it was Villarreal that are flying? What if it was a game against one of the real top teams in Spain that was going to be one of the defining games of the season? What would Alonso's decision have to be because of Vinicius' lack of actions or lack of responsibility been taken towards his manager? The fact that Valencia has kind of fallen on Alonso's lap in a sense because had it been a game of a much bigger magnitude, and I say that with all respect because you can lose against weaker teams, but it just makes it a little easier, I would imagine, to make a stance.
38:45But I get the feeling this is not the last time we'll be having this conversation. Alonso has absolutely lost the opportunity to stamp his authority. 100%. 100%. You know, he probably wouldn't. there's a chance he probably wouldn't have played Vinny in this game to save him for Liverpool. And if that's the case, then you'd be smart. And you tell everybody he will not play against Valencia. Because you know he's not playing anyway, but nobody else knows that. And then you look smart, but you've made a statement. This whole no punishment, doing nothing, has done nothing but just leave the whole thing in the middle of the clouds.
39:21Because nobody knows now. And Alonso, for me, is a big loser. He's made no statement whatsoever. and regardless of whether he plays against Valencia or not he's lost the opportunity to stamp that authority. Welcome to Real Madrid Well from a negative at Real Madrid to a positive at Real Madrid and that is this man right here, Kylian Mbappé he won the European Golden Boot, he got one of many trophies I'm sure he's going to add to his cabinet after scoring 31 goals last season Well you'll We'll get to see Kylian Mbappé, no doubt, in action tomorrow as Real Madrid will be hosting Valencia in that game.
40:014 p.m. Eastern time is when it kicks off. But remember, we're on 30 minutes earlier with the pre-show. Are all batteries the same? That's like asking if all soccer players are the same. Take Messi, the most decorated player ever. Is there any other player who has achieved that? No, just him. Now take Duracell. Is there any other battery with power boost ingredients inside? No, just Duracell. Remember, goats only trust goats because they're built different. And Messi only trusts Duracell. I am one of Mochanui. On July 10th. Maui, you will board my boat and restore the heart of Te Fiti. And here we go.
40:47The journey begins. See her light up the night in the sea. She calls me. The ocean chose you. Let's go save the world. I got your back, chosen one. Disney's Moana. Boat's neck. His name is Heihei. His name is Yum-Yum. When he goes in my tum-tum. Game theaters July 10th. Rated PG. Parental guidance suggested. All right, well, that's it for the show, but Extra Time is next, where we get a little spookier. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha.
41:21God. Good one. Oh, happy Halloween everyone once again and welcome into Extra Time. You know I get this thing with kids. Oh, you do it very well. Oh, thank you, Frank. I just let the dogs out. Three of them. Would trick or treaters come to your house? So you're the answer to that question. In the driveway. So that the trick or treaters don't come to your house? Correct. Craig sets his dogs on trick or treaters. I can't. It's important to say he has really cute dogs. They're like Labradoodle, Golden Doodles. They're not like Gobermans. To be fair, I have got a rescue. Aww, Papa. And he... Yeah, you already said that, and he's doing your ankles barking at you.
42:03He's got... Well, he's perfect for the kids coming at the door, because I mean this in all sincerity, he's got big teeth and one eye. He's got an eye missing because he had to have it taken out. Aww. Had to have it removed, which I did myself. Yeah, I did it at home. Did a DIY job. So he's got... He's got one eye and big teeth. That's enough to keep the kids away. Great, Burley. Heart of gold, animal rescuer. You have gone up in my estimation. Well, we can get you to stand on the front. I know, I might. You can just put me in front of your house today. I wasn't much of an animal rescuer when it was three grand to have his eye taken out.
42:41Geez. Yeah, and all this stuff. That's it. All right, let's get into it. First question now. Happy Halloween. Which club has been the biggest treat? Likewise, which club has been the biggest trick? I think we already know the biggest trick already. The biggest treat would be, I think Bournemouth would have been a big treat this year. They sold Hoisin, Zambanya. I always got this name wrong. Zambanya? Frank Zambanya? Yep. PSG, Zambanya. Yeah. And Kirchiz. But they're still going. Shouldn't even have gone down that road, should I? Oh, yeah. I suppose you could say them and... Liverpool. Yeah, Liverpool.
43:24In England, anyway. Yeah. Barcelona. Have been the biggest trick? It's a trick we saw coming. Did we? From last season, we knew that Highline was going to get caught out. I know it. I suppose Hans have, like, tricked us in the sense that we thought he would definitely address it. But, alas. Trick or treat, high line or not? Exactly. You know what's coming.
43:55I slightly disagree. Oh. Hearts. Hearts and Scotland. Top of the league by eight points. Eight points ahead, yeah. Doesn't that bother you a little bit? No. Why would it bother us? Oh, you're in for the whole Leicester run. Well, Stevie asked me the other night, and it was a bit of a guess, but it's 40 years since Sir Alex Ferguson had an Aberdeen team that was able to topple the old firm. So there's a long, long way to go. It could be this year. That's been the biggest treat for you tonight. What about the biggest trick? I mean, Wolves. You know they gave him a new contract after the bad start of the season and now they're talking about sacking him.
44:36It's a prayer. Those days of going to the pub after the game which he was doing. Last year he was going to the pub and having a drink with the fans. I'm telling you, he ain't doing that this year because he's going straight out the window. Hey, if we pay him up, we can go every day of the week. There you go. Frank, what about you? Biggest trick and biggest treat? Biggest treat would be Strasbourg. Very impressed the way they play. The second or third in the league won. And they drew against Paris Saint-Germain at the Pag des Princes. and that was a hell of a game. That was a great game with very good players involved.
45:14So I enjoy watching Strasbourg right now. And the biggest trick it's hard for me, but I would say Wolverhampton. I didn't expect them to be so low and promised to for me the relegation. And Marseille top of the league, Frank.
45:37Not really, I think Paris came back. Marseille drew against Angers in the midweek. And I think lost the game last... Well, no, I think they're second. They're second, third is Strasbourg. Monaco is first, maybe. Oh, apparently they're third. His nose ring is falling out. Oh, is it falling out? Frank, is that a real nose ring? Yes, yes. No, that's a fake one, you know, and the tattoo is fake too, but my wife enjoyed doing it. She was, I was like a little papetta. She made some makeup. She was on. She was very happy. Have you seen my necklace? Very nice necklace. That was a very nice necklace. Frank, I love it.
46:21I'm, I don't know. I'm somebody obviously completely crazy, stupid and happy to be. That was normal for all of us, just like me, being a clown. But at what point, he's done all the work, he's got the tattoo from the other half, he's done all the hair, he's got the heart, he's got this ludicrous vest, he's got the vest. At what point, at what point do you go, what would finish this off is a nose ring? I think the nose ring brings everything together. He's giving like hard, punk rough. No, you know what, you know what, because my name is Luz. My name is LaBeouf, meaning the beef. And, you know, the calves and the beef, they have this, you know, like a bull.
47:10You know, that's the little family touch, I would say. I love that. A lot of thought went into that. I really love that. I love when everyone goes deep for Halloween. More thought went into that than the show. Next question is actually for you, Craig. Burley. Ooh, last name basis. Do you take your teeth out and scare the trick-o-treaters? No, you just send your dog. My God. Well, they're cemented in, though, aren't they? Oh, they're well cemented in. I was going to say, I don't think they're not removable. He paid the big bucks so that they stay in. Well, they are removable. But a good right-hander would.
47:47Oh, yeah. They can remove all our teeth. And apparently there is a very long queue of people that would like to do that. You know what? You know what, I'm gonna be a little bit serious about that. You know, when people, they make fun of me, for example, not having hair and Craig not having teeth. I've got teeth. It's like, you know, insulting somebody. No, you got teeth, but you were missing when I... I've got teeth, but have you got a car? When you were playing... Have you got a car? Yeah, I got a car. Is it your car? I got two. Yeah, well, you got two cars. Are they both yours? Yeah, because you paid for them.
48:23Yes. Yeah. His teeth are his own. He paid for them. Well, not them all. Well, you know, I tried to defend you because when you were playing, you know, you were not wearing teeth when we were playing because you were afraid of losing it. I don't know what it was. Dangerous. Whatever. But you know what? Saying that for my hair, for example, people teasing me, I'm okay with that. But it's like, it's kind of a trauma for me. It's like, you know, insulting somebody being fat or being too skinny. I don't like it. I smile about it, but I don't like it. It's a vulnerable spot. Trauma. Yeah, yeah. It's okay because we are mad.
49:07Craig, should we stop teasing about your teeth? What's traumatic about, what's he turned into? I'm not even going to go down that road because that's a very, you know, that's a dicey road at the moment. But what happened to this? Oh, everybody loves it. Now, people think that they have the right. And they can rub your bald head. But I wasn't fashion in it. In the 90s, no, no. But when I shaved my head, it wasn't fashion. And you had to be a skinhead or a Buddhist in order to shave your head. My father thought I had leukemia. And he said, no, no, no. You let it grow. You know, you have leukemia.
49:42You're teasing me. So that wasn't fashion. I was the first guy in France who allowed myself to shave my head. And I told you, Gianluca Vialli, when I came to London, would shave my head, but that was special. My brother was a commercial, and he didn't shave his head before the year 2000, 2001, because his boss didn't want that. That was something for the man. So what you're saying is, it doesn't bother you now much, but it did bother you at the time, right? Exactly, exactly, because you look older when we know that in football at 30 years old you're already old. We hear that, that at 30 years old you're old because you're at the end of your career.
50:28And at 23 I look like being 30. You look 70 now. That was kind of a trauma. Yeah, but a good one. Well listen, I've got another question for you. How did you manage to finagle a question about my teeth round to being about you? You baldy heat. No, because I agree.
50:54Now, because sometimes what I say, Craig, is people, they have easy fun with others. They're bullies. And they make fun of people. And sometimes you have to calm down a little bit, you know, because it's personal problems. and calm down. You can make a job once, twice. That's a great message, Frank. Anybody can make fun of us. Me and him, we don't care. You know, the thing is, when I was 17, when my teeth got knocked out, but, you know, you could have them, you know, these days, you would have the implants put in. I'm talking about when this happened, it was 89, 90, you know, so you could have them fixed in, but at that point, you know, particularly the way the game was played, at that era.
51:39They just get knocked out again. You're going to get, there's punches, there was no varm, there was less cameras, there was elbows and fighting. So, you know, I lost mine enough. So, I'm getting falsies. I waited till, I waited till I finished. I got mine knocked out as well. Everybody gets their teeth knocked out playing. You've got to wait till you finish because if you get them done, they'll just get knocked out again. Yeah, fair. You wait till you're done till you just get falsies. And you get the Roberto Firmino. Yeah. Love that. I have noticed a lot of people to Liverpool. Yeah. Not him.
52:11He's gone now. He's left. A lot of these people like Firmino, Klopp, I think maybe Brendan Rodgers before. Oh my gosh, yes. It's too white. They go to this dentist. I don't know if it's a job lot. Magallies as well. They get a deal where they go there and they say, give me the most ridiculous white teeth you've ever seen. Big and white. Big and white so that when I smile, you go, false as hell. Yeah. Not even try to blend it in. No. Jurgen Klopp, oh my God. You could put his teeth in a horse. Holy shit. Yeah, Fiamino as well. That's too much, yeah. Next question now. This one's for Stevie. Stevie, how unbearable is it to watch Liverpool on the downhill while Manchester United is on the upswing, especially sitting next to a fan like Alexis?
53:00Have I made life unbearable for you, Stevie? Signed by Alexis. No, you can't be any more unbearable than I make of myself. Yeah, that's true. Do you remind yourself constantly how terrible you guys are at the moment? Well, whenever it comes up, yeah. Well, you know what it's like. I mean, you're... No, I definitely know what it's like. I should have come to you for help because you've got so much experience. I'm feeling like this over the last, what, 10 years, 15 years? A bit longer than that. So I can't believe I never called. The first call I should have made was to you. I know. I message you every time Liverpool lose and I just give you the eyes and I say, are you OK, Stevie?
53:36and then you just hit me back with an emoji that we're not going to share on television right now. But I just wanted to say that as we were talking about shared trauma with Frank, we've shared trauma and we can find support in one another. I have to give a straight face saying that. Oh my God. Next question. Oh, this is an interesting one. Any paranormal encounters or instances where you guys thought it was, but it turned out to be something else? Did you guys have any ghost stories that ended up maybe just being your missus or your dog just walking through the house late at night? Come on, Stevie, I feel like you have one.
54:15No, the problem is we stayed in a rented place in Sheffield. Oh, here we go. And there was one night I swore at the time I saw a little girl at the bottom of the stair standing in front of the spare room. I would have run. Too many beers again. Well, that's the problem. The problem is I had a few beers. Oh, okay. I really don't know whether it was just the beer or whether I say it. Or an actual ghost. Did you say something? I said to Elma. I'll hazard a guess. I'm going to say it was a ghost. Sheffield has a lot of ghost stories. Sheffield, well, and Darby, I've learnt. They have a lot of ghost stores.
54:57Oh, really? The most ghost stores per square mile. Yeah. Where did you find this out? I did a few of them. There's a lot. I tell you, haunted stuff is my thing. Frank, what about you? I feel like you. I wonder why. I'm not even going to sit. I went to Scotland once and I went to an hotel in Lough Lomond. And supposedly the lady at the counter said, you know what? The room number 10 is haunted. and I said, okay, I'm not going to get it. I'm going to get the next room. And I spent the whole night long, you know, trying to see if a ghost will appear. I didn't see anything. I was so disappointed. It's like the Loch Ness, but never seen it.
55:44Frank, do you believe in ghosts? Not really. But you know what? When my father died and he was young when he died, I really hoped that he would give me a sign. I was expecting something. nothing came up but um i was ready to believe in it my wife she believes you know sometimes she's assigned oh i have a sign from my grandmother a grandmother died like at 101 years old 101 years old two years ago and every time something i appreciate always my grandmother she says hi i love that i love the fact that she believes it and she believes that's a sign maybe it is but we don't have any confirmation so far your father would be really proud the way you dress tonight.
56:31Yeah, yeah, he would have loved it. I sent a picture to my mother and I say, mom, what do you think about that? I say, well, you know what? I think I wouldn't have recognized you if I would have come across you. But I say, mom, and my two brothers say, yeah, it's why you are the favorite son. It's because you have that tattoo. It's a fake one. Might as well get a real one. Frank, your dad used to wear a bill ring. No. I'm really keen to hear more about Stevie's ghost story with a little girl, but we'll get to that after the show. Final question. Who is the ESPN FC member most likely to dress in something silly on Halloween?
57:14Besides me, Craig, because I know you're good. I know. We don't have one. We've got two. We've got two. It's just me. and it is LaBeef I actually think mine's pretty good do I look do I look unhinged you don't have any mirrors in your house no you've given me so many avenues to answer that do the laugh for the last time I'm giving you the bait tree and today you're allowed when you said they look unhinged there's various answers and I'm not gonna I'm not gonna use any of them oh oh it's fine but I actually think do us the laugh do us the laugh for the last time we're all good We're all grown-ups.
57:55I mean, are we? It's all relative. But I actually think another one of our members from the ESPN FC fan is notorious for dressing in a silly costume that I still think he thinks he can fill out quite like a Henry Cavill. Every single year. These are all different years, different Halloweens, and our Dan Thomas still believes he is Superman. What about the muscles in that, boy? Look at the muscles. Well, Reiner is Superman. I want to send him a kiss. He's Superman Reiner. He is Superman right now. Stevie, you saw him recently. I saw him yesterday. Oh, he's in Good Nick. Yeah, I've got to tell you.
58:33He was the driver. A couple of times. A couple of times. We got to the hospital, right? Yeah. So we're going through the parking lot to park. So we go through. When you get to the hospital, you know the speed bumps? I forgot about Dan's stitches. Oh, no. Were you just flying over them? Well, he never said. The first time, I didn't realise, but I went over the speed bump, right, and I didn't slow down. And he started sniggering, right? As you do. Yeah. As you do. He does. And he started sniggering. I was like, oh, he's flying. And then another one came up, and I did the same thing. And then he just turned and looked at me, and then I went...
59:11Oh, sorry. Forgot about your thousand stitches in your stomach. And he went, yeah, can you calm down? I was like, oh, sorry, Dad. Oh, Stevie and Nicole. If anyone needs someone to drive you to doctor's appointments, Stevie will get you. What's your professional medical assessment of the liver transplant? Well, personally, I think it went well. I was a little... The stitches were a little red, but that's calmed down. What have you advised? I recommended to him plenty of sausages and cigarettes. Oh! Oh,
59:47as you do. That's the key. Plenty sausages and cigarettes. All right. Well, that's it for this edition of Extra Time. Make sure you tune in to ESPN FC. We'll be back tomorrow. Better dressed. I won't be. I still might be coming as an unhinged clown next week. So look out for that.
1:00:27We'll be right back.
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From the publisher
The FC crew look ahead to Liverpool vs Aston Villa as Craig Burley explains how Unai Emery's side can exploit the Reds' lackluster press. Plus, the guys continue to break down the fallout from Vini Jr's El Clasico substitution reaction. Frank Leboeuf also explains why he thinks Chelsea will get a win at rivals Spurs on Saturday.
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