The Preview Show: Chuck the league

0:00Stepping through the door like a troubadour everybody. Welcome to the Football Ramble Preview Show. The FA Cup returns this weekend. It's Friday 13th of February. I'm Marcus Speller. I'm Jim Campbell. And I'm the Dushina Huckderaja.

0:24Hello everybody. Would you Adam and Eve at Jim? It's Friday. I would. Yes. Springs in everybody's steps And Vish is already smiling Wondering how he's going to Ruin a pub later I mean I'm working but yeah sure That won't stop you I'm not going to send people to do it for me Where are you working this weekend? England and playing Scotland In the cricket and the rugby Boring At the same time I'm concentrating on the less posh one And it's up for you two to decide This sounds like some sort of student union thing. We'll play one half cricket and the other half rugby. And Vish can write it up. Yeah.

1:07I was going to make a Jim Ratcliffe joke there, but I'm not. Sir Jim, lest we forget. Yeah, that's why I've got the glasses on to seem smart. I'm not one of them. I'm just one of the smart ones. Oh, deary me. You knobhead. It's been a very rainy week in the kingdom, of course. I wonder if the waterfall has colonised Old Trafford, Jim. Oh, it could have happened. Yes. But who the bloody hell knows. Now, it's been a big week here at Ramble HQ on Wednesday. Thomas Frank was sacked on Thursday. Sean Dyche was sacked as well. Today, Vish, not sacked, is defending his my biddy aunt Bill. I'm hoping to sack the state of Vish.

1:47I wasn't sure if it was a kingdom or a republic, so I just went with state. What was Vichy France back in the day? Oh, goodness knows. It's up to them to decide their fate in the past. If you've been enjoying this content, please leave us a five-star review wherever you listen to your podcast. It helps us greatly. It allows more people to find the podcast and join this foul jamboree, which we love that you were a part of. Now then, Jim Campbell, Arsenal gained a point on Manchester City in the Premier League title race. Enjoy your optimism. They drew one all away to Brentford. a very tough place to go, of course.

2:27They're four points ahead of Manchester City. I look at the date, and we're pretty much mid-Feb, if someone had said at the start of the season, you'll be four points above Man City. It will be second, you'll be firsted by mid-Feb. You'd probably have taken that, wouldn't you? I absolutely would have taken it. And actually, you know what, last night, there were certainly points, certainly towards the end of the game, where you're thinking, oh, I'll take a point here. Because that ball is flying all over the shop at some quite weird angles. actually. I mean, the story of the game is Brentford, obviously, over how good they were, particularly after they scored.

3:02They completely reset the story of the game. They were so in control and I'd say they're probably the most organised team in the league because they deny you space so, so well. They really marshaled their opponent, particularly at home and they controlled Arsenal really, really well and I think there is probably a lot to be said for Arsenal's forward players being very underwhelming in this game. But certainly in that last 20 minutes, they couldn't get the ball to the forward players in the first place. So Brentford managed to nullify them really, really well. I know everyone talks about Michael Coyote's throws for good reason, because I think that man could probably actually get a kitchen sink into the box.

3:41It's incredible. But he's got a lot more to his game than that as well. Yeah, I was thinking about watching him yesterday. At the start of the season, obviously, it was very throwing heavy. But he is a, he's a, he's a, you know, not far off being a top four right back. I mean, quite literally, but yeah, yeah, there's so much more to his game, as you rightly say. Yeah. I, why did, why did Arsenal agree to the towels? Why would you do that? Do you have to agree between you? So a friend of mine pointed this out. They were like, hang on, there was a towel. There was a, a wiping of the ball with a towel going on.

4:19And I thought, I thought that was illegal. If you remember all that hoo-ha. apparently if both so a quick Google search AI Never Lies says that if both teams agree to towels then you could have the towels why would you do that Brentford away it's a good question that is a marginal loss are you a long do you have someone with a long throw no but we do persist in it I think Arsenal are one of two teams this season to not have scored from a long throw I think that information could be out of date and it's very possible that they are the one team this season that have not scored from a long throw I mean Rice is pretty pretty good at it.

4:53Calafuri's pretty good at it, but none of them have really got a throw that, for me, makes it really worth it. I think the idea is that it's always good to have the ball in the opposition's box, right? Yeah. So even if you're not directly scoring from it, I think there's an idea that people will be patient with this style and it will lead to goals. But obviously, Brentford are absolute masters at it. They do it in a completely different way. I think, is it 10 goals have come from those this season? I mean, they've scored a lot. It's absolutely mad. But it's funny, what you said earlier there about Brentford being the most organised side in the league.

5:24It's funny because, I mean, okay, but you look at, say, all the teams above them. Yeah, probably. I mean, maybe to an extent Arsenal, of course, being top of the league, but it's a great shout out for Brentford. And yet Keith Andrews says, I want us to choose chaos here and always play in a relentless fashion. And they've got a beautiful mix of that. Yeah, the players might have the best peripheral vision for their Arsenal League. Because it feels like, even yesterday, the number of passes they'd play around the corner, straight to teammates. Their ability to not just create chaos, but operate under it.

5:55I mean, there were times where it felt at the start that they couldn't really get much of the ball or certainly use it. It felt like watching Arsenal versus Arsenal light in the first half. Yeah. They were kind of cancelling each other out. And then in the second half, when things really did step up a gear, they were the calmest team. You know, even to the point of Martinelli's miss when he takes a touch and it was a brilliant save by... Keller. But there was a, you know, there was an option to take it first time. But obviously, because of how quickly everything was moving, he felt the need to take a touch.

6:32I think he's really got to hit that first time. I know it's easy to be wise after the fact. I felt that though. I mean, he also missed a really good chance against Nongen Forest. On his weaker foot, which he screwed wide, which perhaps was in his mind, actually. But those are two occasions where he's had a really good chance to turn a point into three. and that's a problem for Martinelli. He's got one Premier League goal this season. He's been great in the Champions League but often those games are very different in terms of intensity. Exactly, a lot more open. Often, you know, in a few occasions scoring from the bench, etc, etc.

7:05And he has to do better there. He just has to. No, I agree with you. Look, it will go down, of course, as Arsenal drop in two points, all my silliness aside. And we're getting to the stage now where everybody, like I said, people always want to say, that was the moment where it was right that was this that was that with Manchester City's comeback at Anfield people are obviously saying right their tails are up and so on and so forth yeah fair enough although I do think though and I'm going to agree with some Arsenal fans here I do think the media does like to pile the pressure even more on Arsenal now I understand well it's a narrative now though isn't it because it's happened three seasons in a row so I understand there's the narrative there it's a bit like with England penalty shootouts and all that kind of stuff you can't ignore what's happened and therefore you are going to ask it but when I think this idea of well Arsenal were nine points at one point ahead it's like no no the game hadn't finished so I do find that a bit silly yeah and also I mean that was it's like poor old Kevin Keegan's entertainers people said they blew a 12 point lead didn't they but they had 12 points when you know it had a game in hand on them so that was never really 12 points well that one I have more sympathy with because they were quite literally 12 points points on the board you sure but you know I think United won that game in hand so isn't it yeah the point you're making there I think it's also the people trying to will a title race into existence well we've got it but I think we had it even when it was well I mean we do kind of have it but I suppose in the you know Arsenal do play next yes yeah midweek next week and the other thing I would say about it is I think objectively here and now given how the game finished, that's a good point for Arsenal.

8:47Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, well there are those games and I think that you can look at, I suppose the difference is Arsenal didn't win the game, they have the lead and then they're pegged back and I think that if you look at some other title winning teams who go away from home to particular places where they're given a right run around and they go, you know, we get out of there with a one goal lead. I know on the radio last night, we were talking about when Chelsea won 1-0 at Blackburn Rovers. Yeah, yeah. And I think Cech might have saved a penalty from Paul Dickhoff that day. It could be a different game.

9:22But anyway, and Mourinho was really celebrating after the game. He knew it was a huge win to get out of there with a victory. Man United, when they won 1-0 away at Stoke, I think Carlos Tevez scored a goal. Those types of games. And the difference is... Win when you're not playing well, etc. Well, all that kind of stuff. When the going gets tough and you're up against it, Arsenal didn't win the game, but they were under the cosh at the end. But I think with Arsenal, that ruggedness if you like or chaos whatever you want to call it that Keith Andrews talks about which Man City definitely have that I think is what people want to see from Arsenal a little bit I think they kind of had it for the start of the second half sorry Jim I think they kind of had it for the start of the second half when they brought on Odegaard and then when he hurt himself trying to clear the ball where Lewis Potter scores he couldn't press as much he couldn't get around as much and then that ceded so much more ground to Brentford.

10:15And he was limping as he left the stadium apparently. So I think that's, I mean, obviously Havertz is missing for a month now. Ethan Raniere's got a loan. Marino isn't available. It looks like Odegaard's, you know, might be nursing something. It's like, have you checked how that happened straight away? Is he all right? Yeah. Yeah, I think, I think you're absolutely right, Vish. That was a big kind of moment because Odegaard came on for Ezer who was fairly game, but also quite ineffective. And there's definitely a conversation that is going to be had about him soon. What have you done to our boys?

10:50Well, it's funny. In a World Cup year as well. It's interesting that he had this. He's got a smile on his face. Do you remember his announcement? He's so happy. I remember it all. He would have been happier at Spurs. He had this reputation at Palace, didn't he, of kind of having periods in a season where he's maybe not as effective as he otherwise is. And obviously, he's not been playing as much as he would have done then as well. So I think there is definitely a sense with Ezzel that he's learning whatever it is that Arteta wants from him and that's kind of different. I think he's also used to playing in a very transitional team and waiting to pounce and waiting to spring rather than like searching for the ball and trying to get involved more.

11:24I think there's some recalibration has to happen, but I have faith in Nez's ability, you know, so I think that he's just going through a bit of a kind of patchy run. Look at how they massacred our boy. Don't worry, Thomas Tuchel and England can dust him off, hopefully. Yeah, I think the issue though is defensively Arsenal were very good for that period where they were having everything chucked at them. Declan Rice made a really great interception and Christian Mosquera And then chased after the interception and got it and launched the counter attack. It feels like there's two of him at times. And obviously Christian Mosquera Thiago gets away from him and the recovery run and the tackle on that is absolutely incredible.

12:03But essentially the front of the team aren't doing the same sort of level of work that the back of the team are doing. Also I think Gabriel was very very lucky not to get a second yellow Keith Andrews certainly thought it should have been a second yellow and thus obviously ascending off yeah I think it's one of those where you're lucky if it happens it's from the you've seen them given school of cards indeed it is Jim I think with Arsenal the criticism is definitely going forward whereas with Manchester City it's the opposite but of course with Man City when they are scoring goals it doesn't matter if they give away they're having a brilliant time indeed yeah so look it's heating up very nicely and there is a title race on don't you don't you underestimate that Villa are now seven points behind Arsenal are they backing it or is that still slightly wishful thinking wishful thinking okay now Brentford travel to sixth tier Macclesfield in the FA Cup on Monday night yeah we like a log ball dear that's going to be great isn't it is this not like a really exciting point in Brentford season now where the luxury of the choice between and not necessarily a choice but I'm purely saying that on squad depth but wanting to push for the league and hopefully getting into a situation you know in a couple of rounds time where you're like Brentford this is yeah we should focus on the FA Cup right or certainly we should put a bit more towards that because it's quite I mean I did not expect them to have the season they're having now and they could basically end up having a better season than Palace had last season yeah well I mean they reach 40 points with that draw last night.

13:41So they are safe. They might as well just chuck the league in. No, but I think the issue there is that... Issue, it's a lovely issue to have, isn't it? Surely they're thinking, we've got a really great chance at a European place here, right? I don't think they should chuck the league, Jim. Yeah, sure. I don't think they can. Well, look, they can chuck anything. It is realistic for them. But I don't think they can chuck the league. It's realistic for them to finish... Giving it to Coyote to chuck the league. But it is remarkable, though, because rightly so, they're talking and dreaming of European football.

14:14The clubs above them, Liverpool, Chelsea, Man United, Aston Villa, Man City, Arsenal. Everybody's saying at the start of the season they're going to go down. Extraordinary. Great stuff. They're so well run. That was the element of Brentford that always suggested that it was perhaps a little bit of an easy assumption to make that they would struggle because the work they do behind the scenes identifying really, really good people and the data-driven stuff they do in terms of Keith Andrews being there in the first place and having the influence he does shows that they are, again, an incredibly well-run club.

14:46And so you trust their decision-making, right? You almost feel bad for Keith Andrews at this point, given what's happened to Thomas Frank at Spurs. Bad? Well, to a point, because you're like, ah, okay, club get credit for that. Oh, I see what you mean. We see what happens when they leave. Yes. Well, from one very well-run club to another, Vitor Pereira has apparently agreed to join Nottingham Forest that ladies and gentlemen is marvellous news for the football album he's heard about the boos at full time and gone this is the place for me well of course no but first the points then the boos Jim yeah something about Vitor Pereira and Maranakis have worked together at Olympiacos Pereira won the double there didn't spend that much time there something about them meeting back up again at this point in their lives Yeah, just kind of like, I don't know, both walking into a bar and the bar clears out and it's just them two and the saloon doors are still swinging.

15:43So our little voice is going, but they have worked together before. Or Pereira's been invited to like an underground car park at night and then Maranakis just appears out of the shadows with one last job. They're like dining together on their own. And one of them's like, I'm just going to go to the bar. You've put a gun in the cistern, haven't you? Have you done that as well? Yeah What are we like? Gentlemen I don't think we should go in too much specific detail because they may well be able to use this against us inadvertently but anyway We're not signing a contract extension like Morgan Gibbs White did Can't get us like that I'll tell you what though it's they've pressed the panic button haven't they?

16:23We thought they did with Sean Darsh and in a way they did because it was a contract to the end of the season and I don't think anybody really thought he was going to be there beyond the summer well we haven't even got to spring and he's gone with Pereira again this is you are really it is to come in and do a specific job which he did at Wolves and then of course it didn't really happen Wolves are an even worse run club than Nottingham Forest you would say I mean maybe that's a touch harsh on Forest because you know it's European football they're both really badly run in very different ways aren't they but this is the man for that job this is a really lucrative profile to be able to get yourself, isn't it?

17:02You are effectively a consultant. You're like a sort of relegation battle consultant, and you come in for a bit, and then you steady the ship, you have the pints, etc., etc., etc. If it doesn't work out next season, and you get sacked, brilliant. Because you get loads of money, and then you do it again. I don't think he was that pleased towards the end of his time at Wolves, if you remember him having a go at the fans. While having a go at the fans. No, that is correct. He genuinely looked like he wanted to fight some of the fans Nothing about what you said And how you said it was incorrect Alright, fair enough Also, I think this was discussed yesterday On Thursday's Ramble as well But I do find it interesting about The timing of these appointments And some Forest fans Making the observation that Actually for the job I think Luke mentioned it on Thursday's show About how now is a good time for Dye to come in and save a club battling relegation.

17:58And he almost had too much time to work with them, which is a point other people were making as well. But this is right for Pereira, isn't it? Pereira has hit the right timing, kind of ran into the effort, if he gets the job, obviously, I think there's still a couple of things to talk about. FA Cup weekend, bit of a run-up into the next round of games, charismatic, worked really well at Wolves when he came in, through a degree of expectation because of what he'd done previously, but he obviously impressed the players and was a massive fan favourite, not just because of the points, but because of the points.

18:33And he might have the same effect there because... Well, that's what they're banking on. But Forrest are yearning for a bit of a character, aren't they? Someone who gets in a very different, daishy way. I mean, they've had a few characters recently. Yeah, that's true. It does feel like there's already a main character. Yeah, that's true. But it's almost like now enough distance from Nuno has passed that they're not necessarily thinking of like fuck why were you you know well with with forest a bit like palace you know it's all really yet but then it's not you know quite in the yeah they're not manchester united in that oh it's going badly we remember not that long ago when it was really bloody good they they know this and it's a bit a lot of palace fans to take them were saying oh yeah we just kind of reverted to where we were it was not great while it lasted or maybe there is a sentiment of that but obviously there's disappointment you think oh could we not have had this going on a little bit longer?

19:25With Forrest, again, those fans know that where they sit in the ecosystem and the grand scheme of things, this is like, oh, yeah, it was great when we were challenging for European football. Obviously, we want to get back to that again. But they are where they are. So I think with Pereira coming in, I don't know what the mood is, but I can imagine my guess, and it is a guess, would be, yeah, we need someone to come in and save us. The weird thing with Forrest as well is that this season feels ridiculous, doesn't it? And it feels like it isn't kind of indicative of what this squad is capable of.

19:56And you wonder, like, if Pereira keeps them up, and whether it's him or not, who's actually at the helm for the majority of the next season, like, will they be good again? Or will they be in a relegation battle again? It's so hard to know. They should be good again, shouldn't they? It feels like a false position, this, but it demonstrably isn't when you watch them play. It's Dice's limitations, isn't it? It's about someone who comes in and prefers to be defensive-minded and came in immediately and was like, right, we're in a relegation battle. It's like, you can't say that. It's too early. No, we're not.

20:23I know you're our third manager this season, but we're not in a relegation battle. And then he's just like, I'll show you. Yeah. Give it a moment. I think what you're saying there, Jim, is that, you know, how good is this team? Was it Nuno just managed to get it all going? Clearly, they've got some outstanding individual talent, as we know. You do wonder with some of those players, was it just they fitted in that manager system them were particularly good. And the boring thing is that time will tell, but that's why the summer transfer window will be crucial for them. Clearly, if they go down, they will lose players.

20:58That's just how it goes. Even if they stay up, they may well do. So that will be a crucial period for them. But anyway, I don't want to look too much into the future. Vita Pereira, it does very much look like he will be the next Forest manager because he has agreed to it. As he said, there's a few little bits and pieces to sort out at the time of recording. And I think it is a decent appointment ultimately, but I also think, more importantly, it will be good for the football ramble. So make what you will about that, everybody. In other managerial news, it's been confirmed that Tommy Tuchel has extended his England contract until 2028.

21:35He fancies a, I say a homish, it's not just England hosting games, of course. It's a British and Irish Euros in 2028. but I think you can call it a home tournament as well. It's mainly ours, yeah. We're the main bit, aren't we? Yeah, yeah. That's what you're saying, isn't it? Sorry, everyone. He fancies a British and Irish Euro 2028. Well, I mean... It's an interesting one. I mean, this is months before the World Cup, Jim. And also in the same few days in which Harvey Barnes declared that he wants to play for England. so maybe that has inspired Tommy Tuchel to want to be around for the home nation I have been waiting on I have been waiting on Barnes to see what he was going to do I think it got too late I think if he suddenly declared for Scotland it would have been a bit like come on nah do it Trey Adams did it fine he did yeah but when though when when they qualified oh did he oh I don't remember that it was so late when Trey Adams did it he rocked up with his passport and a kill up and be like hello lads I'm playing up top so with Harvey Barnes he's going to see what happens in the next international break and then maybe come May time we'll be who's Ganon Doak what where's this looking from yeah he's he's basically and I think not unreasonably he's looked at the players in that position and thought you know what based on how I'm playing I've got a chance here I mean as ever with that I know he's a bit uncouth because it's international football and it's about pride and where you're from, but obviously there is a lot of ambition tied to it.

23:19Yeah, of course. That's understandable. Yeah. No, good luck to him. Do you think the FA have gone too early with this Tuchel contract? Do you think they were, quote unquote, spooked by the idea of all these other clubs looking for people like players, what, managers of Tuchel's stature? Possibly. I think that what will have happened is a lot of rumours around Tuchel. We know he's linked from Manchester United for ages. Da-de-da-de-da. Tuchel is still seen as a very good manager in football. Clubs would still be linked with him. Whatever he does with England, actually, even if England were dreadful at the World Cup, I think he would still be able to get a very good job.

24:01What are you smirking for, Jim? That's just how I look, mate. Okay, fair. Well, good. Smirk away, sir. It's your Friday as well. I think with Tuchel that yes, they would have been, but clearly it's going very well at the moment with Tuchel. He is loving it, hence he's signed. Every time he does an interview, he's smiling away, he's smirking away, he's doing the Jim Campbell smirk. It's clicked, and I think that they think they're on to something good there. Do you think behind the scenes he might have been like, well, you know. Possibly. Quite possibly. Sorry, what do you mean by that? So I was wondering basically about, are there like shades of Capello to this?

24:44Wasn't there a World Cup, was it 2010? Well, that was the World Cup he managed England. But they pulled the cord unnecessarily early on that thinking, I think like Capello made eyes at, was it either going back to Italy or something like that? I'm not saying Tukul has. But a very different time that was with England. Sure, I just don't, I just really don't understand why this conversation or this thing couldn't have waited until after the World Cup. Indeed. But I think that one of the reasons will be because it seems to be going very well and everyone seems to be getting on very well. I understand Tuchel's had that before and it's ended not very well.

25:19But so far, so good. And I think for a number of reasons, as we've sort of alluded to there, that yes, if he's being linked and so on and so forth, they're thinking, do you know what, this guy... And also as well, realistically, are they going to get on paper anyone better than Thomas Tuchel? Yeah. They're not. and people you know the whole should it be an Englishman kind of debate that will always be there but they may well think well actually again who are the English candidates that we could get and also you have to remember it will be a tournament that is played on this this island and Ireland as well you can't if you have a strong manager yes we'll see what he does at the World Cup but you've seen in qualifying you know he's got a bit of work there the players are responding well to him he is a big personality Tuchel and he's won the Champions League he's got respect for the players providing it doesn't all go massively wrong they're thinking bloody hell there'll be huge pressure on England going into that tournament whatever happens at the World Cup if England do well in the World Cup people will expect them to do well if they don't do well they're like right come on this is a home tournament no pissing around kind of thing so I think if Tuchel's up for it everything's going well I can understand why the FA have done this yeah and also I suppose the thing I'm missing there is the fact that they do have to behave differently to a club because they're not going to be playing a manager of what Manchester United or even Newcastle would pay someone, yeah.

26:39Yeah, exactly, yeah. Producer Tom's wanting me to break now. Do you think I'm going to break now? We just had the Nations League draw. England are in with Spain, Croatia and Czech Republic or Czechia as they prefer to be known. Portugal, Denmark and... But you simply refuse. Well, I'm just reading... It's written in there. If it wasn't for me, Jim, if it wasn't for me, people may have forgotten that point this morning or this afternoon whenever you're listening to it. Portugal, Denmark and Norway are in Wales as group. That's a nice group for Wales, that. It's a nice-looking group, that. It is.

27:08I mean, it's a nice group for Wales if you enjoy playing really difficult games. Yeah. Do you like goals? Or they'll be playing scored against you. We've got Erling Haaland, Cristiano, Rasmus Hoyland. He's doing well. That's what I said. I said his name. Yeah, but you said it in a way. Yeah, you did. I did say it in a way, yeah. You said it in a snotty little way. Do you not feel, though? I feel that that's a group that they could do something in. But anyway. But Bellamy loves playing teams that are much better than them, doesn't he? True. So he's probably picked it himself. I'm glad England have got Spain, though.

27:38Good test ahead of those Euros in 2028. Anyway, let's move on to Scotland's group. Switzerland, Slovenia, North Macedonia. You can do the rest yourself. Coming up after this is FA Cup fourth round time.

28:01Average performance Average cup tyre In that we allow them to win 4-0 Welcome back to the Football Ramble everybody Manchester City versus Salford City Saturday 3pm The two cities go And battle it out at the Etihad The class of 92 Salford City were gubbed there 8-0 in the FA Cup last season they've got revenge on their minds Jim, have they not? Yes, now AIG became the largest shareholder of Salford City in December all very romantic, but the good news is, I think for the diehard fans of the club, is that they will if you like, rebrand or sort of revert brand, whatever the word would be, next season because they will change away from the colours of red, white and black, which they currently are, which were implemented by David Beckham, Gary Neville and co, who took over the club.

28:57And they will re-implement the club's traditional orange and black, which I totally forgot about that, that the class of 192 came in and Manchester Unitedised them. Yes. They don't get too much stick of that, whereas, oh, what's his name? Mr. Tan. From Cardiff City. At Cardiff City, changed the colours there and he got pelters, and rightly so. He did, you're right. Everybody should get pelters. I think your boys are getting away with a little bit too much there yeah we've all seen the Beckham stuff haven't we what's very interesting about that is there's been this idea well this rebrand has been described as like a David Beckham style rebrand is that a good time to do that let's be a bit more Mandelson not the time not the time Terrible timing What have you done with the announcement photos?

29:52They're really blurry His son's work I was going to ask you to clarify a few things but I think it's too short Carry on Vish

30:04Jim touched on a bit there even this is quite disingenuous because why they're doing it one of the things that the Solvers at Eona referenced is the influence David Beckham has had on Inter Miami and the fact they wear pink and having a recognisable colour and the reason they're going back to orange and black is there aren't many other teams in straight orange and black. And apparently Gary Neville has started wearing an orange watch strap. It's just high performance bullshit. Yeah. It's just bullshit. It's very easy JIT, I'd say. Oh dear. Someone should say that. That'll piss them off. Yeah. But that's the other thing about it.

30:38They're going back to their traditional colours but they're doing so to stand out in a David Beckham world. Yeah, so everyone's happy is what you're saying. I think everyone is really, everyone is over the moon, yeah. Yeah, well, the Salford City CEO did say back in 2025, all those months ago, by 2030, we want to become the best small club in the world. Even that, like we want to become like a boutique football club. That's essentially it. Oh dear, why is it always our boys? Oh, so would you like to see Manchester City beat the make nil again to teach them a lesson? I did actually find the initial 8-0 quite funny.

31:15Yeah, I mean, apparently they've been training with 14 against 11 as preparation for this game, which is smart, to be fair, isn't it? Because it is going to feel like that, yeah. I mean, yeah, that is an interesting technique or training method. We'll see if it works. Oh, no, we have the 14. Oh, dear. We've been doing it wrong. Yeah, if anyone gets injured and they have to draft in one of the 14, they'll be like, oh, it was much easier. I thought this was going to be. What happened? You train 14 versus 11? Yeah, we're fucking knackered. I know. Well, the manager, Carl Robinson, said, with regard to that 8-0 victory, he re-watched it and said, I'll be honest with you, I was watching the game last night and I turned it off at half-time.

31:54I thought it was actually pointless. Yeah, I mean, I feel like that watching City win sometimes. It's like, why am I doing this to myself? You know, sometimes, and it's because of your job as host, that you'll have to ask a question to move us on. And often it'll be like, similarly, do you think there'll be an upset in Man City versus 11? I wasn't going to ask that. No, but that's kind of why we're talking, you know, the kind of conclusion of when we talk about these kind of things. And I love the fact that even the Salford City manager is like, oh, what's the point? Let's just go there and have a nice time.

32:27He also said he doesn't want to see any of his players attempting to swap shirts at half time. Yeah. He said, I will go mental if I see that. I forget, did that happen in the first match? I assume it did, yeah. So he wasn't best pleased. so I do think half-time shirt swapping is pretty poor yeah well it's someone trying to get in there first isn't it yeah but I still agree it looks really terrible queuing up for the new iPhone energy yeah was there not a referee once who asked for Messi's shirt or something like that that sounds very MLS you know yeah I think there might have been something like that and they were just like come on yeah come on he's wearing it in the second half

33:13why do you keep moving the spray for us Grimsby Town versus Wolves on Sunday at 1.30 over to you Vish I seems a long time ago that we'll always have it we will always have Grimsby Town knocking Manchester United in a different competition as well but it hit the same part of the heart Grimsby have lasted longer than Manchester United in both domestic cup competitions where they were both playing. I want your take on that. What do you think? Would you say poor or piss poor? Piss poor, yeah. They should have sacked Amarim right after that League Cup game. I mean, I think the players I associate or the figures I associate with that game are Little Magnets, Ruben Amarim and Andre Anana.

33:58And that in itself shows some progress, right? Yeah, they got rid of all the Magnets now. They've come a long way. do you think Wolves could win the FA Cup? no right next question do you remember when Wigan won the FA Cup and got relegated? yeah why couldn't that happen to Wolves? because they're really quite bad yeah oh Grimsby are good aren't they? shit yeah well Grimsby are the second lowest ranked team left in the competition so you know with this particular round Wolves are the favourites yes and of course it's within the realms of possibility they could win the FA Cup but I don't think they will but I understand what you're going for here it would be utterly incredible if Wolves could do it even though my own team are still in it if you said if you offered me Wolves to win their breakup I'd take it yeah right and the only reason I say that and they beat Fulham in the final the only reason I say that is I don't think they're as bad as their league position I do agree with that I suppose as well there is sometimes like being serious about it you get teams who are struggling in the league and this is often the case in lower leagues as well and the cup provides a bit of relief, doesn't it?

35:04And the players play with a bit more freedom and a bit more expression. Do you think Burnley could win the FA Cup then? They also look pretty tidy in midweek, didn't they? I mean, essentially, for the benefit of their fans, I mean, two teams in the relegation zone who are done, in my opinion, give your fans something before the end of the season. Give them something to hold on to. Not necessarily the FA Cup, but like a good Cup run. I was about to say, it's quite a big wish. It's going to be a... It's going to be a Burnley Wolves final and we have to prepare ourselves for that. Lovely bit of orange.

35:38You don't see enough orange these days. I don't think so. That would be amazing, wouldn't it? Two absolutely nailed on relegation teams in a cup final, thinking it'd be great to win the cup. Oh, it's going to be hard to be in the Europa League and the championship. Yeah, games come thick and fast in both competitions. Yeah, yeah. Oh, dear me. Well, Grimsby, of course, they asked their fans to bring their Harry the Haddock mascots when they beat Manchester United. are we going to see more Harrys? You would think so. That must feel like a charmed item. Yeah, yeah, yeah. There is history between these two, of course.

36:08They played each other in the FA Cup semi-final in 1939. We were talking about the 30s the other day. The crowd of 76 ,962 remains a record for any game played at Old Trafford. That is amazing. When you factor in the rising population from then to now. I heard the other day somebody said that, I forget who it was, someone said that the population in the UK has risen by 12 million in the last five years. This morning. I looked into it and it was actually complete bullshit and an outrageous thing for an evil prick to have said. Yes, fitting with his character, but a character we don't like. But I can't believe that remains a record for any game at Old Trafford.

36:53Yeah, that is surprising. Surely they've, you know... That is also about how many he's made redundant at the club as well. it's been about 77 ,000 yes indeed indeed well good luck to everybody in that game that will help the economy go on coming up after this it's the Liam Rosina derby

37:22tonight at 7.45 Hull City versus Chelsea Liam Rosina of course played 161 times for Hull between 2010 and 2015. A bit nice to hear some comments his former teammates have been coming out with about Mr. Rosinha. James Chester spoke about their time together at the club. He said he was well-liked as a teammate and he wasn't afraid to be the brunt of the joke sometimes, which started well and you kind of go, yeah, that would be ideal for a manager to be well-liked. Can't have the manager as the brunt of the joke. He wasn't the manager at the time that James Chester's talking about. but he did continue and say on the coached away games the other lads and I used to play Mario Kart on our Nintendos meanwhile Liam would be watching old games of Rihanna in Barcelona and taking a huge interest in the tactical side of how different teams played now I know that sounds nerdy yeah but do you remember how good the Mario Kart era of El Clasicos were yeah they were out of this do you remember the one where there was like there was like six or five or six in one season yeah because they met in the Champions League and they played like four times in a month or some mad thing like that.

38:29Yeah, that's it, yeah. It was a Mourinho-Guardiola era. Yeah, but it was like, you know, Ronaldo, wasn't it? Ronaldo, Messi, it was stunning. It got a bit overkill. It was, but there was a, you know, there was a point before it tipped where it was like, this is class. Well, you'd have to have something to drag you away from Mario Kart. I do think missing out on Mario Kart is a big sacrifice. We hear about the sacrifices footballers have to make. We don't so much think about the sacrifices managers have to make. Mario Kart is a massive one. I do think there's a lot that a character like Liam Rosinia could learn from Mario Kart in terms of management.

39:05So, for example, you might be in the lead and someone might just chuck a squid at you. You simply don't know what's going to come next. You've got to watch out for the banana skins. Yeah, not just potential banana skins, actual banana skins. Yeah, especially on Rainbow Road. I reckon he played Mario Kart without using any of the accoutrements. Absolutely. Absolutely, yeah. It's a very serious reception. It's a racing game. It's all about racing. Well, how are they going to set up against Hull? They sit fourth in the championship to Hull City. They've only lost once in the last seven matches. They're a decent side.

39:38Chelsea, of course, will be favourites. But Friday night at the new camp of the North, Jim Campbell. It's a big one. It is, yeah. I think, but Rossini's done a really good job, hasn't he? Which I think the memes have obscured a little bit. and already this feels like the sort of game where Chelsea will be really really business like and just get this done and actually I feel like the players are having quite a lot of fun under him as well I think it's gone slightly unnoticed because obviously it's a small sample size but you're right I mean if Cole Palmer puts that one away right at the end of the game but not just that you do worry that Cole Palmer's broken now he's finally experienced emotion and it will all start to get to it I know what you mean yeah yeah yeah he's writing novellas and stuff but it's like he saw his reflection for the first time.

40:25Hang on, this can go wrong. What? Not just that, obviously they throw away the 2-0. A game they should have won and had. That would have been five wins on the bounce for them. They're obviously going well in the Cups, et cetera, et cetera. So yeah, you've got to say that they've had a new manager bounce and Rosinha was doing pretty well. It will be fascinating to see them away at Hull tonight. It's a little Friday night treat, of course, which we do appreciate. So I think Hull, you can imagine having Chelsea come to town. All the cliches will be true and it will be up to Chelsea to go there, like they did against Charlton and just quiet the crowd and go about and be very business-like, whereas Hull will be doing everything they can to try and disrupt that.

41:10Now, how about this? Former Chelsea man, Raheem Sterling, I say former Chelsea man, he's joined Feyenoord until the end of the season. It's a lovely gig, that. Yeah. Very, very nice. does he know it's not in London? he's about to find out isn't he? yes also just really confusing of him being announced and the manager Robin Van Persie yeah seems an odd fit really excited about him you know what I'm relieved he's left London there was so much talk wasn't there that he was trying to stay local for his family for understandable and obvious reasons but clearly that wasn't going to materialise so I think this is a good move he's got to play he's 31 he's already right do you know what I mean I understand he almost certainly would never get to the highs that he did previously partly because of age but mainly because he's been out the game so long and so on and so forth but to have that kind of talent just sit in there I know he didn't do brilliantly at Arsenal so we did see it reasonably recently but it's such a waste so he's got his family to think about and all that sort of stuff I'm delighted that he's just gone somewhere and a big club as well they are miles behind PSV in the Eredivisie so he's very very unlikely to win a title this season but you're right but go there so the pressure is slightly off but you're still playing at a huge club huge tradition and all that kind of stuff so it'll still feel big you see what I mean and I think that that is enough to inspire you if you go somewhere where it doesn't feel the same as where you've been previously you know you can think I don't know about this so I don't know I'm pleased yeah I know exactly what you mean because sometimes definitely in the ecosystem system of English football and the clubs he's played for in particular you can lose sight of how much emotion there is in football and how much love there is Farnold's a great club to punish that and just see you know just being in that stadium and the fans are basically falling on the pitch that's got that'll relight something within him the move though is someone from Serie A get him do you think the land of the old people get him in the land of the old people he'll run that he'll be king of that place yeah well he's got to prove himself at Farnold first yeah he does of course you know too late for a for a World Cup spot though for Raheem you would think.

43:19But you never know. Sometimes you do know. Chelsea's West London rivals, Fulham. Hello. They travel to Stoke on Sunday. Tricky one. Tricky all over the gaff, et cetera, and so on. I've been looking at the championship table, Stoke kind of mid-table. But as we know, the wind blows really, really wildly up there. And it favours them. Totally, yeah. And you don't know what to do. Look, Look, Fulham will be favourites for that, as I often say with these fixtures. But a tricky one, though. Yeah, absolutely. I can't stress the trickiness. The definition of a tricky one, isn't it? Absolutely. Yeah. Now, Stoke played Nathan Jones-Charlton on Wednesday.

44:02Yes. And Charlton won through a late Tyrese Campbell goal. And Charlton themselves, not doing brilliantly, they're seven points above the relegation zone. I mean, they've played 31 games in the championship, which means there's still about 25 games left of the season. So, you know, you could say they're in a relegation scrap, perhaps. So a very important win, and Nathan Jones knew that this was a vital victory. He celebrated it full-time by apparently shouting, fuck off to the Stoke fans. And the Stoke first team coach, Ryan Shawcross, squared up to him after that. It's what we expect from it all, and we're still enjoying Nathan Jones.

44:41Absolutely. The sort of man who immediately changes the atmosphere in a beer garden. It's like, should we drink up and go somewhere else? Don't meet his eye. Don't meet his eye. Oh, he's coming over. Burton Albion host West Ham on Saturday. 12.15. They get the day going. West Ham, of course, a hot off ending Manchester United's winning streak, which is an interesting way of wording it, as the producer has, considering it was a Man United late equaliser who stopped West Ham getting three points. But the West Ham players did celebrate by getting a haircut, which was quite enjoyable. Little dig to your mate Frank Vish.

45:19It was just clips of them getting haircuts. I don't think they got a celebratory haircut afterwards. Because also footballers always get haircuts before games. And also I don't really care about the haircut boy. Okay Vish. On West Ham's FA Cup hopes, Nuno Espirito-Sander said, it's a beautiful competition. We're going to compete. We're going to try and go through. That'll give them a real perk up, won't it, Jim? To hear the manager saying we're going to try and go through. Yeah, again, and it's an ideal fixture, isn't it, with all respect to Burton Albion? Because, again, as we were saying about Wolves, I know obviously West Ham are far, far superior to Wolves and have got themselves in a position where they have a real chance to get out of this when everyone had them dead and buried a little while ago.

46:00This is something that could provide some extra motivation, right? Some extra kind of sense of purpose to the season. Totally. And if you channel that right, that can be a really good thing. And they should win this. If they go down, at least win the FA Cup. Exactly. It gives everyone a lift, doesn't it, Viv? Exactly. Just get your hands on something. Totally, yeah. Well, of course, they used that victory against QPR in the early round of the FA Cup as a springboard into better performances, and it worked for them. So maybe this could have the opposite effect. Or if they win this. Or a trapdoor.

46:29Yeah, or if they win this, they're away. They got even better. Yeah. Jim's worried. Jim should be very worried, of course. we mentioned Burnley and they are they host League One Mansfield Town which you would expect Burnley to win wouldn't you Richard? Well you would because they're their favourites for the competition as a whole well according to you yeah whereas yeah Mansfield Town again sort of mid-table-ish in League One mid-table-ish yeah well they are mid-table I mean they're 12th out of 24 so Mid-Table-ish is a Fulham podcast isn't it? It should be it should be Oh you're happy with that little dig I don't quite like it Oh is it a dig?

47:13Yeah I mean Jesus at the Last Supper was Mid-Table-ish He was right in the middle wasn't he? Interesting Very interesting Vish Well of course Fulham are a London club who have won a league title in recent times Now My Biddy Aunt is happening after this podcast Vish still holds both belts. He's clinging to them like nobody's business. But I think... A head of relegation this season. I think I'm going to give him a good biffing later on My Biddy Aunt, which will be available to listen to later today. It'll be me versus Vish. Make sure to subscribe to the Football Ramble in your podcast app so you do not miss that.

47:53It's a real grudge match. We're very grudgy, aren't we? Yeah. Oh, you're going to get grudged in the nose. Yeah, all over your face. So Jim will be hosting... I'll grudge you in jeans. So there we are, everybody. Thank you very much for listening to the Football Ramble, part of the 8 Carts Creator Network. We've got to go and have a break before we do my biddy aunt where the bell is on the line. So we'll see you for that. Until then, thanks, Jim. Thank you. Thanks, Vish. Cheers. And thank you, Liam Rossini. you.

48:29The Football Ramble is a Stack Production and part of the Acast Creator Network.