UCL Standouts And Flops

23:57And there is no excuse other than this team was not ready to play. I think they took it for granted. They thought they would just show up. I think the lineup itself was taken for granted by Pep Guardiola. The choices that were made and then the performance, the individual performance, The lack of work rate from Manchester City, embarrassing. So if there was ever a time to feel like you've hit rock bottom in a season, this feels like it for Manchester City. At least I do. Maybe they don't, but I do. They were spanked by Butler Glenn. And mind you, were they not spanked over the weekend too by Manchester United?

24:35That's a double spanking. And yet there was no reaction from Manchester City.

24:39ESPN FC Crew:What was the most concerning aspect for you, Stevie, with City? I think the team he picked was completely wrong. You're picking Rodri, who hasn't recovered yet from his knee injury. You're playing in zero temperatures. You're playing a guy who still can't get around quite well. And you're going to play him on this artificial surface as well. I mean, that's a horrendous decision. And then you stick Rico Lewis beside him. And then you play the two centre-backs. You've got Aki. The fact that they're playing on the AstroTof, it's about experience. Because it's just not the same. And so you go with experience and you get through it and you get something from the game.

25:25ESPN FC Crew:And in my opinion, Pep has to take a huge amount of criticism for the team he put out. And also, you have to be able to smell as a coach when the players are not quite up for something. You've got to be able to spot it and nick it in the bud and get them going. all the other things, just basic coaching, never mind your tactics just generally get your team up for it and the one thing that I think makes this even worse than it possibly could be, is you're playing against a team who haven't played for six weeks, six weeks I mean that's a pre-season so yeah, horrendous from Man City How much can you blame the pitch and the conditions if you are City and use that as an excuse Don?

26:09ESPN FC Crew:No, I mean you can lean on the pitch slightly i mean when i was recovering from an acl and we'd done a pre-season and tromso in norway and we got there and it was a plastic pitch but i was just recovering and i asked alan pardew i said can you stand me down for this game because mentally i wasn't quite ready it was one of our first couple of games back i said i'll play every other game for you in pre-season i just don't like the feeling of first couple of games back but rodry's been back a while he's an experienced player he's it was more the attitude k i mean stevie said nally said you've got to play the conditions right so being cold is fine it's cold in manchester it's cold everywhere in england in this time of the year it wasn't that cold by the way it was like minus one minus two it wasn't it wasn't ridiculously cold um so you play the conditions and and as a manager the guys have heard it a million times in the team talk it's right match these for energy match these for commitment and the cream will rise to the top what you can't do is you can't just take liberties and get the ball down a minute one against the team as stevie said who hasn't played a game they've Had a couple of sort of behind-closed-doors games where they've scored eight goals, 2-4, 1-4-0 win and 1-4-1 win.

27:13ESPN FC Crew:But their season doesn't start till March. So the application from the City point to what Ali was saying, that's what you would lean on more if you're Pep. Thinking we didn't even lay a glove on them. Like, we didn't compete. We just thought we could rock up there. We could get the ball down. Minus two, plastic pitch. They're really fit in terms of how long they can last, 45 minutes to an hour. and we'll be all right because we're Man City and we're worth a billion quid. You just can't have that attitude. You've got to give teams like Bodo respect, and you have to play their game, your game and their game, how it should be played, as in fighting for every ball, going for every tackle, winning every 50-50.

27:51ESPN FC Crew:Then once the game calms down and it goes your way, that's when you start playing. So everything from minute one was just a mile off. And the surprising thing is, as I mentioned earlier, they were coming from what was a humiliating result against Manchester United. So if you have to get your team up to play to a certain standard when you were just humiliated in a Manchester Doherty, then he tells me something deeper about this group. Not just the manager and his selection, but the group itself. It's like, what kind of game did they think they were going to get at Boto Glynn? With all the conditions and yes, the Astros, what kind of game did you think you were going to get?

28:38What kind of energy did you think you were going to get from the crowd? Were you surprised that this team was up on your face and willing to challenge you and going for 50-50 challenge and winning duels? How is that a surprise? And if that's a surprise, it's a lack of preparation both from the manager, the coaching staff, and more importantly the players in not showing a sense of pride of, we just got our backsides handed to us by Manchester United, outplaying every sense, and we're doing the same thing against this team?

29:07ESPN FC Crew:Come on now. Can I just say, yesterday we found out that the Man City players had paid... The tickets. The tickets. The total cost for everybody was$9 ,000. $9 ,000! What are you saying, Stevie? I mean, they probably carry that around in their pocket between a lot of them. And one night they did the flights and the hotels and everything else. The tickets. Yeah, go on, Dan, and then I've got another question for you. Sorry. Yeah, sorry. I was just going to say the takeaway, not just from that Bodo game, but I was obviously there commentating, and you've got a great angle and you can watch the game.

29:46ESPN FC Crew:Sorry, but you watch the game unfold. But when you're watching a game live rather than from a booth, you can actually watch other players. And Erlen Haaland was absolutely fuming. Back in Norway, he was screaming at his midfield players, he was screaming at his wide players, he would get no service whatsoever. There was a rumour that Florentino Perez and Real Madrid might be putting a bid in for him in the summer. It just looked like... And it weren't his fault, because he wants his players and his teammates to do more for him. Every time they got it wide, they never put it in the box, he wasn't getting any service.

30:19ESPN FC Crew:He just looked in this game, and rightly so, really, really unhappy. And I got the sense like he was unhappy playing in this team. So I think Man City and Pep have got to be a little bit careful that they don't just play unattractive football and not get your top man and get your centre forward loads of service. Otherwise, you might think, like, what am I doing here? Like, I know I'm scoring goals, but do I want to be touching the ball six times in the game? He didn't enjoy his foot the other day, and it was plain to see. Well, Don's actually taken me where I was going to go. So let me come back to you.

30:50ESPN FC Crew:I know you were talking about it the other night, the concern of Erling Haaland and not goal scoring at the moment. What do you think of what Don's saying there and the service not coming his way? Well, it's clear to see that the service wasn't there. But when the service did come, there were a couple of opportunities for Erling Haaland that he did not take. So it's easy for him to be frustrated. And I would be, too. As a center forward, you live on service. You live on the quality of play around you. And that is just not happening right now. In fact, it's not even getting close to him. The possession of Manchester City is not dynamic nor clean enough for the ball to actually get to him in advantageous position.

31:24They're losing the ball about 20 yards away from actually getting to him or before it actually gets to him. So that's frustrating. But the one thing that you can do is that when the chances do come, you have to take advantage of them. And the one in the first half that falls to him on his left foot, in which he's made the move to where he gets ahead of the defender, that has to be at the very least on target and it wasn't and that's not on Rodri not being able to move that's not on Rico Lewis playing a holding midfield and not right back that's not an Ida Noren playing right back instead of playing on the left that's in that moment in that sequence it's not about him yelling at everybody else he has to yell at himself as well you have to take some responsibility early Holland because while the performance of the team was awful in that moment in that where you could have changed the game you could have changed the momentum you could have changed the feeling for the whole group you came up short as well yeah absolutely let's get

32:22ESPN FC Crew:to some more of the picks then don because you've gone for psg and your disappointing picks but have we not seen this story before don't do so well in the league phase turning on in the knockout stages yeah well to stevie's point early on uh when he was mentioning liverpool sitting top of the group but they were really unlucky because psg will bang average last season and finished in the sort of playoffs and Liverpool drew them. Yeah, I mean, it was a last-minute goal. I mean, Luis Suarez is banging in goals. Not Luis Suarez that played for Liverpool, but the new Luis Suarez, he just cannot stop scoring.

32:53ESPN FC Crew:He looks a real poacher, a real finisher. I was just surprised by the scoreline and the late goal. Strike on the edge of the box and then the follow-up there, goalkeeper could do better. I think it was just more stunning looking around Europe and looking at the results that were coming in, that PSG struggled in this game. and it wasn't just the last minute goal because a 1-1 draw wouldn't have been the end of the world. I think it was actually the performance. The performance wasn't there. You're going to pick it up for ESG? It's hard to, when we have seen this team actually haven't done it before, in terms of not being all that great in the league phase and doing enough and advancing and then picking up momentum.

33:37I don't know that they're able to do it on back-to-back seasons, but you give the benefit of the doubt because you have earned it in the case of PSG. And I actually think that PSG were outplaying Sporting for long periods of time in this match. They just didn't take advantage of their opportunities, and they allowed Sporting to hang around, goalkeeping mistake, and now the situation looks a whole worse than it really is. I think PSG will be fine.

33:58ESPN FC Crew:Yeah, okay. Let's remind ourselves of Stevie's picks and the most disappointing. Napoli are among it for you. Kante does not have a good record in Europe, Stevie. It's horrendous. I mean, it just makes... It makes no sense. You know, his teams are always organised. They don't give much away. You know, when it matters, certainly when it comes to domestic fixtures, they get the job done. But he just can't seem to get any team, never mind just this Napoli team. He just can't seem to get it done. And if ever they needed to win a game, it was against Copenhagen. And they find themselves outside the qualifiers.

34:37ESPN FC Crew:I mean it's just a horrendous I mean look at the state of that 17, 16 and 16 and actually you'd have to say you would put money against them not qualifying because he just doesn't get it done when it comes to European football he's got it mastered when it comes to domestic leagues but in terms of Europe he can't it seems like he can't get a team to open up and play when the opportunity arises when it comes to being tight as I said and not giving things away he seems like a master because that's how they win leagues that's how his teams win leagues but when you get an opportunity in Europe to open up and play he doesn't seem to be able to get his teams to do it and that really is the problem I don't think it's the living that he's got on his team it's his coaching has to be What can you put it down to Don?

35:29ESPN FC Crew:Why do you think this happens? It's hard to try and put it down on the overall picture what I would say about the Napoli team squad this year, it's very light. I mean, there's no Lukaku. He hasn't been fit all season. No Kevin De Bruyne. But the team that he picked is still a strong side. I think Noah Lang is going to go, I think, to Galatasaray. So he's losing bodies. And that's why I think in this window, he needs to sign one or two bodies. But that result just didn't do anything for them. It's kept them outside the playoffs. I think they've got Chelsea at home on match day eight. So that's a huge game, being former Chelsea manager.

36:02ESPN FC Crew:So it's a game that they have to win. I'd probably make them slight favourites in it because the Conte side will be hard to beat. They need to win, obviously, so they'll try and open up at some point. But he's not really a gung-ho manager. He's more tactical and he doesn't really care on performances or being stylistic and being lovely to watch. It's all about the wins and churning out the wins and the points for Napoli. Won the league last year, as we know. We know European football, so that fell in his favour. But the overall picture, to be honest, I don't think anyone knows why he seems to struggle in Europe.

36:35ESPN FC Crew:It's a real mystery. Did you hear what player Don brought up there? Lang. Lukaku. Lukaku. Lukaku. I knew it. Do you think they'll qualify? Do you think they'll progress in the Champions League at least, Don? Well, it depends on the results in and around them. I mean, I'm not sure when we looked at that league table before. I mean, they've got Chelsea at home, so it has to be a must win. I mean, that's why I think the draw against Copenhagen didn't do anything for them. They had to beat them. It would have put them in a better state of mind and better off on the table because then Chelsea game, they probably, if results went their way, a draw might have been good enough.

37:12ESPN FC Crew:Now it sticks to pressure on Antonio Conte. It sticks to pressure on Napoli. But what you will get, I mean, out of all the games, I think on match day eight, there's some crackers. I think I'll be tuning into that one because the atmosphere in the Maradona against Chelsea is going to be electric. Yeah, speaking of Chelsea, Ale had Chelsea in his most disappointing list, even though they won their game against Paphos. So why are they there? Well, you just said it. Against who? Paphos at home. And it was a struggle. This wasn't an overwhelming performance from Chelsea in which they were just creating chances here and there and everywhere.

37:47And the goalkeepers having to come up with saves. No, no. Paphos. Paphos. Paphos. were very much in the game. They were very much part of the story. And you sort of have to kind of on a set piece, broken play, you get your goal, you win the game, and you say, well, okay, that's it, it's enough. Three points and we move on. Well, I guess so. And maybe I expect too much from Chelsea, but I do want to see something different than what I've already seen from Chelsea. You have a new manager in place, and it doesn't feel like there's a whole lot different about this group. There isn't a whole lot of energy for this group in the final third.

38:26There isn't a whole lot of creativity. Everything is happening all so slow, all the time. And the possession that goes nowhere in particular with any sort of dynamism, with any sort of change of pace. Paphos. At home. Chelsea should have been a whole lot better than what they were.

38:44ESPN FC Crew:Don, what have you made of Resenia's first games with Chelsea? He's done all right. He's churned out a couple of wins. I think the fascination, and I know his dad, Leroy, really well. I've known him for 15, 20 years, so I quizzed him on what Liam's style is going to be and what it was at Strasbourg. And he had a group of players at Strasbourg that were young, fit. They wanted to be on the front foot. They tried to press like you wouldn't believe. They had loads of energy. They wanted to step onto teams. A little bit naive sometimes, but they were young. And he said to me, he said, what will happen when he's at Chelsea?

39:15ESPN FC Crew:He said he's got an old head on young shoulders. He will play a left-back in Cucurera at left-back. you will not see him inverted. You won't see the goalkeeper take any chances in playing little fiddly balls into midfield, he said. So he'll keep it sort of pretty basic on that front. But I think to Ali's point, he's only been there a little while. He has to try and implement his style. It's still very, very young. I know we lean on that a lot, saying Chelsea are a young side, but it is factual. And I think what he'll try and do, I think over the piece, probably not this window, but in the summer, it screams out for experience, especially at centre-back.

39:49ESPN FC Crew:it screams out for one or two players but one really experienced player that can lead the players in front of him when you're playing against Paphos for example and they hit the crossbar or you might be under the pump when they play a tough side in the Premier League and you need to have players that can manage minutes in the game if you're winning 1-0 with five minutes to go you know get players in and around you that's going to give the manager a chance to deliver a team talk at half time with your lead in the game not just players here there and flying and everywhere and doing what they want because they are young and so talented.

40:22ESPN FC Crew:But I just think like where they're going to be in six months' time, you have to give Liam time, you have to give him a chance to put his stamp on things, give him a chance to make signings. I'm sure they'll improve, but you just think at the hierarchy, there's rumours in this window they're going to sign more young players. And it's like, I get it, but please sign some experience. As you say where they're going to be in six months time, it's not in Stevie Nicholls top five in the Premier League. Well, I mean all the things done, particularly about the experience thing, I mean they've got enough experience in this team.

41:01ESPN FC Crew:I would say the one thing I've noticed since we senior got there is that when you bring a new manager in and every manager does things slightly different. And so when you're talking to players and you're asking them to do things slightly different, when you're asking nine and ten players to do things slightly different, there's no question it affects the team. And I think since Ressinia's gone there, they don't play at a good tempo. It's almost like they're overthinking. They're thinking about where did he want me to be and how did he want me to do this? And when you do that, you lose a little bit of pace in the game.

41:38ESPN FC Crew:And I think that's the only thing that's wrong with him. other than having no experience apparently the pace in which they played the game and that's why it took them so long they've done that Stevie under Maresca they've done that under Maresca I mean the Chelsea fans last season at one point at the start of the season were bored at Stamford Bridge because they were so slow I thought on occasions they did have a bit of pace about them but I don't think you can say that about right now certainly the game since the seniors come in they've looked a little one pace they haven't gone at teams you know with numbers and Parfumas quite comfortably got plenty of people behind, plenty of players behind the ball and that tells you that they're not getting at them quick enough.

42:18ESPN FC Crew:So until that changes, too many teams are going to keep them out and then of course, you can't rely on them defensively and the goalkeeper in particular. So yeah, I think it's not going to be plain sailing for Rosinha. Well, I agree that you've got to give a new manager some time. the one thing that we always talk about when it comes to a new manager is that you see a different type of energy about the team. And if we cannot tell the difference between Rosinha's team and Maresca's team, even in the level of energy, then that tells you something. And that's the part that I was concerned in watching this game against Pafos.

42:53To Stevie's point, yes, it was one pace. So just the energy, the feeling, the vibe, the stadium, everybody's looking for something a little bit quicker with more intensity, making sure that you're forced to turn over and higher off the field, that you're creating chances. You may not win games 5-0, but at the very least, you're painting a different picture than what you've already seen, and we haven't seen that just yet.

43:18ESPN FC Crew:No, and there'll be a lot more talk about the Champions League over on the Gab and Jules podcast. The latest show drops today, and you can check it out wherever you get your podcasts. In today's world, planning ahead isn't always top of mind, but not having life insurance can leave families facing difficult financial uncertainty during already emotional times. In many cases, loved ones are left managing expenses, debts, or long-term obligations without a clear plan in place. Life insurance is one of those ways to help provide financial security and support when it's needed most. That's where Ethos comes in.

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45:10ESPN FC Crew:Everyone thinks that they know FC Bayern. But to really understand this club, you have to come to its home. And this home is a temple of football. Fit for giants of football. Welcome to Munich, a city of tradition. This city is built on its legacy.

45:35Beer halls that have stood for centuries. Tradition, resilience, all of that put together. And out of this, Bayern Munich was born.

45:45ESPN FC Crew:Oh my God. This is Discover Club FC Bayern. My son!

45:57ESPN FC Crew:Just some of the great content you can get on ESPN Plus when it comes to our Bundesliga coverage. And Bayern Munich will be back in action on Saturday morning against Augsburg. Ali and I will be in the chairs bringing you all the build-up to that game from 9 a.m. I think it's Bundesliga-Schaque. No, Bundesliga-Schaque is back. Bundesliga-Schaque is back. That means it's going to be an eventful game. Because whenever Shaque's in the studio, that's what happens. All right, big news on Thursday is an announcement from Casemiro that he will be leaving Manchester United when his contract expires at the end of the current season.

46:35ESPN FC Crew:There'll no doubt be more talk about that on tomorrow's show, ESPN FC, as they look ahead to Arsenal against Manchester United. Be sure to be with the team tomorrow. All right, let's get you caught up on some Europa League action. This is Fenerbahce taking on Aston Villa. And the 25th minute is when we're going to see Villa score. And it's a header from Jadon Sancho. I don't think I've ever seen Jadon Sancho score a goal with his head. Well, you have now. I didn't know he could header the ball. But he's shown us here, he absolutely can. Redirects it back from where it came. Keeper had no chance, really.

47:15ESPN FC Crew:Yes, now there was a big moment at the end. 92nd minute, Uri Tillemans gets subbed off. and there's a bit of a shoving with Unai Emery. You saw that, Don. What was going on here? I have got no idea. I mean, it's very weird. Can you imagine if the shoe was on the other foot and Tielemann shoved his manager? But, I mean, he is. I mean, he's very erratic, isn't he? He's very emotional. We've seen that lately when his team have scored a couple of winners in the Premier League and he's lashed his coat down Unai Emery. The only thing I can think of is they're so close. The only thing I can think of is that they're very close and they've got that sort of rapport where they can be sort of aggressive towards each other or from the manager to the player.

47:58ESPN FC Crew:But it just looks very, very weird. So in the press conference afterwards, Unai Emery was saying, he's my son, he's my son. So as you say, Don, it's a very close relationship between these two. What do you make of moments like this, Stevie? Are we reading too much into it? Or do you have these special relationships sometimes with one of your players where it's like a family member? I don't care how good you get on with somebody. You can't be shoving somebody in public like that. You just... You can't do it. Don't do it. I don't care how well they get on or how they don't get on. You don't do that.

48:31ESPN FC Crew:All these sort of things should be done behind closed doors. So now all that's going to happen is if they turn up at the weekend, the tournament doesn't play well or scores their own goal or whatever, then it's going to go back to that. You know, no. As a manager, you keep your hands to yourself. You don't expect it from your player, so don't be doing it to the player. So I don't care how well they get on. No, you don't do that, and he's out of the big time. What I read from it is that, and again, this may just be speculation, but as Tillemans is about to be taken off, I'm guessing that he was unhappy and gave some demonstration, gesturing with the arms, and Unai Emery was not happy about it, and hence why Unai Ahmed is telling him this sort of thing.

49:15Like, don't give me that nonsense. I feel like Tillemans, as he was coming off, he may have felt like he may have crossed the line and he was almost kind of offering some sort of peace. He's kind of reaching like, all right, okay. That's a quick U-turn, by the way, from being upset. Well, I'm just merely suggesting that he may have realized that maybe it was unnecessary what he was doing, and hence why he was sort of kind of reaching to him. He almost went for the handshake. He almost went for like, okay. My point is, if indeed this is how the episode kind of developed, if you're Unai Emity and you are obviously upset about the attitude of the player, what you do is there's a coaching box, right?

50:05If he's coming on this side of the coaching box, You go to that side of the coaching box and you completely ignore the player. You ignore the player and you focus on what's important at the time. And what's important at the time is the game in front of you. You finish the game off. And then right after you shake hands with everybody and this and that and the other. And you get into the locker room. You then call him into your office. What? And then you can have the back and forth. And now back and forth that will have a beginning, a middle, and an end. right then and there, and nobody knows about it, just the two of them.

50:40They resolve it, and it's game over.

50:42ESPN FC Crew:My own theory is, having listened to some of the Villa players recently doing interviews, when they talk about Unai Emery, they all say the same thing about the small details. He really hammers them home. And my own theory is that Telemans has done something really simple really poorly. and the kind of manager that Unai Emery is, you know, normally it's big things that managers go crazier, but it seems like this guy goes really crazy about the little things, just the little things that make all the difference. That would be my theory. But saying that, you still don't do that. I can tell you this much.

51:26Regardless of what the behavior was from the player and the manager, if you're continuously, as a manager, nitpicking, nitpicking nitpicking it wears on the players and yes it's important to hammer the details but if if the players then cross over into an area in which all right okay enough is enough all right i i got you i hear you hey bro relax i hear you i got you and it drives them crazy you can only get away with that for so long and you can only get away with that if the team is winning but when the team starts losing, then all that nitpicking from the manager is going to drive the players nuts.

52:05ESPN FC Crew:And of course, another theory, Don, could be that the pressure is getting to Unai Emery. We heard him at the weekend say they're not even top five contenders. Yeah, I mean, he does come out with strange ones. I mean, I don't know if you can remember a scenario a few months back when Emi Martinez was missing and he just kept saying to the reporter, bizot, bizot, bizot, about the number two goalkeeper. He just said the same thing. Then at the weekend, he's come out and said, not top five contenders. And then the report asked him a question, and it just went dead air for about 10 seconds. And she said, okay, thank you.

52:39ESPN FC Crew:And he went, good evening, and walked off. I think he's got some strange mannerisms about him, but he's a top-class coach. And as Stevie said, it might just be something simple where he's give one sloppy pass away, or he was just out of position at a critical time in the game when Villar win them 1-0. at a tough game in Fenerbahce and the crowd were on them. It was a great game of football to watch. Matty Cash hit the post, but they were quite good. They could have got it back to 1-1. And he might have just been more or less saying in that one moment, you could have cost us the game by something like your positional sense just was off or you flew forward when you should have been defending.

53:14ESPN FC Crew:But he is, he's that type of guy. I mean, I'm glad I wasn't Tielemans there because I probably would have reacted against my manager, which wouldn't have been good. That wouldn't have been a good look. So it probably would have got a whole lot worse. So Tielemans has actually took it really well for him. OK. Well, we'll see if there's any more signs of the cracks starting to show at Aston Villa. But that will do it for that game. There was another one. Maybe he didn't have enough hair gel. He was upset about it. Volonia against Celtic is another game we saw and we're going to see a bad mistake from Luka Skorupski, the goalkeeper here.

53:47ESPN FC Crew:It's going to allow Celtic to take the lead through Rayo Hitate. I mean, He swung at that as if he'd never played football in his life. Look at this. What's that? I'll tell you what it is. It was an eventful first half for the goal scorer because he was already on a yellow card. Then the bad fall from him here to get his second yellow card and by the 34th minute he'd scored and been sent off. What an idiot. I mean, seriously. What's he doing? 40th minute, corner for Celtic and Celtic take a 2-0 lead here through Austin Trustee. But in the second half, this is when we would see Bologna fight back, Teisterlinge with a goal back here.

54:33Flecken at the near post, second header, 2-1.

54:35ESPN FC Crew:In 72nd minute, Jonathan Rowe is going to get the ball, he's going to take it from distance and score to make it 2-2. I'll tell you what, thank you Mr Hatati. that's what the manager's going to say as soon as this game's finished he's going to walk in the dressing room and he's going to get it both barrels so that's just a little bit of Europa League chat for you there and over on ESPN FC you can keep up to date with everything that's been going on in Europe partner with Amazon Hub Delivery to earn extra income for your business with your business assist with local Amazon deliveries and get paid for each package you deliver When you become a partner, you and your staff will deliver packages to customers in your area on a schedule that works for you.

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55:40ESPN FC Crew:Avoiding your unfinished home projects because you're not sure where to start? Thumbtack knows homes, so you don't have to. don't know the difference between matte paint finish and satin or what that clunking sound from your dryer is with thumbtack you don't have to be a home pro you just have to hire one you can hire top rated pros see price estimates and read reviews all on the thumbtack app download today okay it's been a very good week for liverpool fans they've had that nice three goals that they scored no it's actually very nice Yeah, I don't know. Here's something else for you to celebrate, because one of your own is comedian John Bishop, and Beth Lindop, one of our own, got to interview John Bishop and the actor who's playing him, kind of imitating him in a new movie.

56:29ESPN FC Crew:The movie is called Is This Thing On? Here she is with Will Arnett and John Bishop. Well, I'm here inside Liverpool's trophy room, Anfield, which has had two very special new additions today. I'm joined by Will Arnett, star of the critically acclaimed new movie, is this thing on and John Bishop, whose life story actually provided the inspiration for the film. Will, first of all, just tell us a little bit about the movie, how it came about and how John got involved. Well, John got involved from, I got involved because of John. We happened to meet years ago and he told me this, his story of how he became a standup comedian.

57:06ESPN FC Crew:And that really, it really stuck with me. And not just that, but also how it changed him as a person and changed his life. And, you know, we ended up talking about it with my writing partner and came back to John and said, would you mind if we took a chance at writing this film? And John was very gracious about it. We started working on it years ago. And now here we are in Liverpool. Years later, it's very sort of surreal, really. Yeah. I mean, eight years is a long process. I mean, for you to see sort of elements of your life adapted on screen and for it to be back here in Liverpool, how does it all feel?

57:41Well it's funny because we were talking before about the fact that we had this conversation the film was getting developed and during that time we'd never really had a conversation about the affinity that we have for Liverpool, that Mark's a Liverpool fan, Will's a Liverpool fan, I'm a Liverpool fan, it never ever sort of got mentioned and then when I saw the final cut of the film and there's references to Liverpool in it, there's Will at one point singing the Ali Ali song in the toilet stand, there's a t-shirt and you think oh my god it's screaming out this connection, which at the time we just never discussed.

58:16ESPN FC Crew:Yeah, and Willemar, right in thinking you did a bit of stand-up in preparation. What was that like? Yeah, scary. Did you get any tips? I mean, yeah, I mean, people like John make it look so easy. And when you get out there and you see what it takes to get up on stage and not just, first of all, you've got to come with material, you've got to be prepared, you've got to write jokes and understand that and then get on stage and perform it. And not just perform it, but deliver it and work with the audience. There's a sort of a relationship there. All the sort of the different layers to being a stand-up.

58:49ESPN FC Crew:It's quite complex and difficult. And I already had a healthy respect for stand-ups and I have an even healthier respect for them now of what it takes to be, not just a stand-up, but to be good. You know, at the end of the day, hope is why you come. It's not the reason that you stay. Yeah, and someone who's always watching back in the studio is Stevie Nicholman. I mean, you've seen him a lot as a player. We were just discussing, obviously, as a full-back, he doesn't have too many eye-catching goals to look back on, but he was a special player. No, he was a special player. He was amongst that body of Scottish players that we had as well, that were the backbone of the club.

59:25And I think sometimes when you look at football now, it's different because the players are brought from all over the world. There was a time when Stevie was playing, and now everyone on the ground was four steps removed from everyone on the pitch. Everyone knew someone who knew someone.

59:42ESPN FC Crew:Ah, little mention, Steve. I don't know. It was like that, wasn't it? Thanks, Beth. Yeah, Beth didn't help out. Oh, Beth absolutely threw you under the bus, sir. Wow. I threw you a few, Beth. The story, though, John Bishop's beginnings, I know you know a little bit about that. It's funny, right? Well, he basically was at a comedy club because he just wanted a beer and decided to give it a go. just off the bat and then he ends up having the career he has. He's definitely a funny guy. Oh, his part is great. Just like our Stevie Nichol. All right, stick around with us here on ESPN. Who's obviously not a goal scorer.

1:00:20ESPN FC Crew:Yeah, Extra Time is on the way next. Cheers, Beth. We'll be nicer to Stevie than Beth was. Don will be back to answer your questions soon.

1:00:31ESPN FC Crew:Welcome into the latest edition of Extra Time. We've got Don and Ali and Stevie here in the studio to answer your questions. Let's get started with a question from James, who says, Is the Champions League weak this year as Spurs, Chelsea, Newcastle, Liverpool and Arsenal are in the top eight? Will an English team win the Champions League this year or will Spanish, German or French sides knock out all English sides again? That's a lot of questions. That is a lot of questions. Yes, a lot of layers to that question. All I would say is that this league phase allows for a lot of this stuff to happen.

1:01:13And some people like it, some people don't. I think there isn't enough jeopardy in this league phase where teams can lose three games, even four games, and still have an opportunity to advance or at the very least get themselves in the playoffs. And so teams that have been abundantly average, even some of them are below average, in their own leagues have opportunities to string the result here or there. You beat Kaira Almaty, you beat Pafos, you beat this guy and that guy. And now all of a sudden you look like you have been great. And the truth is, and while Liverpool were good against Marseille, they haven't really been all that great in the Premier League.

1:01:55And we know this. and never mind Spurs. That's a completely different story and a different conversation. But those things can happen because I think to some of these teams, playing in Europe has been, instead of a burden, has been a relief. Like, well, we don't have to concern ourselves with the disappointments of the Premier League, and now we've got an opportunity to play against this team that we should beat, and they do. And you see perhaps performances with more freedom than what you usually see on the weekend. And I would also go as far as to say with less pressure than what you see on the weekend.

1:02:33The league phase allows for that.

1:02:36ESPN FC Crew:All right. I don't know about the other questions. I only answered one of the questions. There's a lot of Champions League questions today. Peral, a year later with the new Champions League new format, would you say games are more exciting given that everything comes down to match day eight? I want to hear your thoughts. Have you enjoyed it more in this format? I have to say when they changed it I was against it but I do actually like it more than I did with the league set up, two going up because it was very quickly we knew exactly who was going through, in fact before the ball was kicked most of us could pick who the two teams going through were 99 % of them anyway so I think this has mixed it up I think it's more interesting.

1:03:24ESPN FC Crew:But at the end of the day, the tournament doesn't really start until the last, what, 32? It doesn't really. And then we'll find out what everybody's made of then. Absolutely. Don, percentage chance the Premier League have six teams in the top eight of the Champions League when the league phase wraps? I tell you what, when I was away in Bodo and I was seeing the scorelines come in and I seen Tottenham win against Dortmund. I was like, wow, that's an unbelievable win. And then someone told me they were fourth in the table. I was like, what happened there? Our Tottenham ended up in fourth. We're no dig to them, but it was just astonishing.

1:04:03ESPN FC Crew:Percentage's chance, 20%, I think, is going to be pretty low. But I'm with Stevie. I love the new format. Because whatever night, Champions League night, you switch on, you are going to be seeing amazing games. Whatever night it is, there's big games on. there's fantastic games going on I think the standard's pretty good I think like Stevie said once you know the top eight or nine they go through and then the qualifications and the draw after that that's when it starts to become fascinating once the teams have been eliminated and once the teams that have played in the playoffs then that draw then to find out which one of the top guys have drawn against the middle sector teams I think that's when you start going right this is like this is business time percentage chance that Don is going to tell us that he went to Boto-Glind again 100 % And that he was commentating the game Yeah, he was there, it was Baltic, it was cold Don and Ali, I want to hear your thoughts On the debate between the Premier League Getting stronger or weaker And if you agree with Stevie or not So remind us on your thoughts here I don't think Craig was really listening When I said stronger I meant more from a physical and pace Physically stronger Standard And the other thing is is that teams mentally are a lot stronger as well playing against the big boys.

1:05:24ESPN FC Crew:You know, it used to be that, you know, probably 70 % of the teams you played... The circus was coming to town and, you know, if you can get anything, it's great. Not anymore, you know. Whether it's Brentford or Bournemouth or anywhere else, these teams are like, well, we can win today. It's a completely different psychological thing in their head. where that doesn't happen in other leagues. It doesn't. So that's what I meant when I meant by stronger. That's what I meant. You know, more on the physical side and the mental side as opposed to actually ability. Did you listen to what Stevie said just then, Ale?

1:06:05I heard him. I listened to him. I think some of it has to do with the availability of substantial amounts of money in the Premier League, not just for the top teams, but for just about everybody. And so, therefore, your squads at the bottom end are or should be stronger than what they used to be when this money wasn't available in the manner in which it is available now. And so the expectation should be that, indeed, you should be able to compete against those teams above you. And it also, I think, coincides with the fact that some of the teams that we consider to be among the best teams historically in the Premier League have had very weak periods over the last few years.

1:06:47Say, for example, Manchester United, or you could go down the list in terms of teams. Not that Spurs should be a team that should be winning the league, but they should be better than what they are. And I think you can say that about this league, is that the level of performance, while it may be tougher, stronger physically, once you get past Arsenal, because I'm not even going to include Manchester City, not after the week they've had. The rest of those teams, they are flawed, they have issues, they have concerns, and those flaws and those issues and those concerns give some sense of belief to those teams that come into their place and actually play these teams and say, we have a chance today.

1:07:31If Manchester United were flying, if Liverpool were flying, if Chelsea were flying, and they had that sort of confidence and that sort of presence about them, I think lower opposition teams will have a tough time but those teams haven't been flying and so it gives life to everybody else

1:07:45ESPN FC Crew:City's probably the best example of what you were saying you know, losing De Bruyne you know, all these players going and they have the money to replace them but they're not as good as they're not replacing them with the same or better and so with other teams and I mentioned it yesterday you've got Brentford spending 42 million on a player so they're obviously getting stronger so yeah Dan? Yeah I think we're very nostalgic when we look back at 90s or noughties football and I think if you're being honest I think if you look at a team like Arsenal I don't think any Arsenal player probably gets in their best team if you look at Chelsea I don't think any Chelsea current players get in their best team so I think you know I think the football was different it was more sort of entertaining it was You don't see number 10s.

1:08:38ESPN FC Crew:We don't see Dennis Bergkamp. We don't see Gianfranco Zola. We don't really see Eric Cantona. The systems, everything's changed. Ali made a good point. I think when you look back at probably 15, 20 years ago and the likes of Norwich were in the Premier League or Huddersfield and David Wagner or Wigan, they were getting beat sixes and sevens and they'd be happy. We used to sit here and say, ah, they'd be happy to lose 2-0 today as long as it doesn't damage their confidence. The team now at the bottom of the league because there's so much money and everyone's investing, All around the world, the data, the analysis, everyone signing players from all around the world.

1:09:11ESPN FC Crew:All the teams down at the bottom are the middle sector teams. They're all strong, so they're all difficult to play against. That's, I think, to Leonon Stevie's point where it's still a hard league because the teams are getting better. But then I think when you look at some of the major teams this season, and it might just be this season only, Newcastle away from home, seeing miles off it. Tottenham are miles off it. Man United at times have been miles off it. Chelsea are unlike them. There's probably one or two teams that I'm missing that would be normally trying to compete for the top three spots.

1:09:41ESPN FC Crew:So I think we'll come back again. I'm just going to drop a little name for you off the back of this story. I was chatting to Noel Gallagher the other day. Huge City fan. I'll just pick that name off the floor. Yeah, thank you. And he said to me, he said, I know what a title-winning team looks like, and it's not us. He went, Arsenal will romp the league this year. They are a title-winning side. He said, but with the signings that Pep's making, we'll be back next year. And when he said it, and I thought, I could sort of see that. I could believe that. I hope you asked them who he was talking about.

1:10:11ESPN FC Crew:I haven't seen the Man United game. I haven't seen the Bodo game. I think he's more or less nailed it. We have a bit of fun, Kay, don't we, with my percentages on City. And I've been off 50-50 or, you know, 60-40. City are way off it. It's more 70-30, 80-20 at the moment. I thought you were dead serious with his percentages. He's saying he's having a laugh. He's just having a laugh. I don't know Gallagher the same No Who's he by the way Well Was he at Borough Was he at Borough Glimm I think he was Was he Baltic and Cole Don They had a concert The same night Yes Absolutely Maybe you've been talking To the next person this week Percentage chance I think he was on a half-time Was he on a half-time Half-time show Half-time show It was actually It was actually On a different show It was a different show Don Percentage chance Michael Carrick Can lead Manchester United To the Champions League Next season So I think that's getting them into the Champions League for next season.

1:11:08ESPN FC Crew:Yeah, I think they've got a great chance. Because I think the coefficient might be five again. So I think there's every chance they will. I mean, they've got no more games left. They've got no more games left to play. They're out all the domestic cups. So they can literally play Saturday to Saturday. I think he's going to do a good job. I think, I'm not comparing him to Ancelotti, but the job that Javi Alonso tried to do at Real Madrid was the right job to try and do, but the players just didn't buy into it. It's too political, that club. I think at Man United, Michael will just organise them slightly.

1:11:43ESPN FC Crew:Steve Honolulu will do most of that sort of work, but I think they'll just put an arm around one or two. He'll give them a bit of confidence. He'll make them feel loved. He'll tell them how good they are. You have to say, off the back of one game against City, they were incredible. That's the best Man United performance I think I've seen. I think for at least 10 years. So I think top four, top five, I think it's well on for him. So 70, 75%. Okay. Don, rank the following in terms of best midfield engine in their prime. Modric, Barella and Sabozlai.

1:12:25I guess Don doesn't want this question. Doesn't fancy him.

1:12:28ESPN FC Crew:Should I explain this one? Yeah, I think so. Maybe you read it again. Done? Done? He gone. He's gone. He's gone. Didn't fancy it, did he? Is that enough? Go ahead, Stevie. Well, that's tough because...

1:12:46ESPN FC Crew:Modric... Modric started... Modric, when he started, it's a different era now with training and recovery and the whole thing. So it's hard to gauge. I mean, Zob is like... That's the best you've ever said it, by the way. That's the best you've ever pronounced it. Get it on tape. You probably have to say Barella and Sobber's Lie. Two in a row. Get around better than Modric did. But again, it's unfair on Modric because, as I said, the recovery and the pace and just in general, things are quicker today as they always are time goes on players get quicker alright well I don't I'd have to go with Varela and Sobosla it's hard to separate them but over Modric because of that I don't care what era we're in I'm taking Modric over Varela and Sobosla Modric I think it's a category when it comes to this question I still think it's a category above of Varela and Soboslav.

1:13:58So on my list would be Modric, Varela and Soboslav. As a player, yeah.

1:14:04ESPN FC Crew:I'll take Modric. But that's not a question, though. We're talking about the engine. I also take Modric. I think he's taking Modric. And I think that Dunge has taken a call off Noel Gallagher saying, why are you talking about me? Or Michael. Also, you forgot about Michael. Michael. Michael is me. And then, of course, Leroy. Yes. Leroy was telling me how Liam plays. 15, 20 years I've known him. I quest him over his son. What? Sid Lowe, Stuart Robson. Yeah, my son's got an old head on Young's old. Back in the studio tomorrow. Make sure to join us on ESPN FC.

1:14:52Two teams, one cup. The primetime stage is set for the TGL presented by SoFi Finals, Los Angeles Golf Club versus Tigers Jupiter Lynx. Keep up, it's playoffs. Tune in Monday, March 23rd, 9 p.m. Eastern on ESPN2, and Tuesday, March 24th, 7 p.m. Eastern on ESPN and on the ESPN app.