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In short
Football Weekly Extra - Episode Summary
Episode Title A Dier finish for Manchester City in Monaco and a Premier League preview
Episode Description Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Lars Sivertsen, and Mark Langdon as they discuss the recent football matches including Monaco's late penalty against Manchester City and victories for Arsenal and Newcastle. The episode includes a preview of upcoming Premier League matches, including Chelsea vs. Liverpool and Arsenal vs. West Ham.
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Key Discussions
Monaco vs. Manchester City
- Match Overview: The game ended in a 2-2 draw, with controversy surrounding a late penalty awarded against City after Eric Dier kicked Nico Gonzalez in the face.
- Panel Opinions:
- Barry Glendenning: Called the match report subdued, reflecting City's lackluster performance.
- Lars Sivertsen: Raised the question about overhead kicks and their legality in goal situations.
- Mark Langdon: Highlighted Haaland's exceptional goal-scoring ability and City's tendency to coast through games.
Haaland and City Performance
- Erling Haaland: Noted for scoring two goals with little involvement in the build-up, raising questions about City’s playing style accommodating him.
- City's Strategy: The suggestion that City should focus on pressing for additional goals rather than sitting on leads, leading to unnecessary vulnerabilities.
Arsenal vs. Olympiacos
- Match Summary: Arsenal won 2-0, though it wasn't as straightforward as the scoreline suggested. Martin Ødegaard was highlighted for his outstanding performance.
- Player Analysis:
- Ødegaard: Instrumental in Arsenal's play and returning to form after injury.
- Rea's key save was pivotal in maintaining the scoreline.
Newcastle's Victory
- Match Result: Newcastle won 4-0 against Union Saint-Gilloise.
- Performance Highlights: Strong attacking play noted, with Valtin Mardet, Ilanga, and Gordon shining, and Tonali’s midfield control praised.
PSG’s Late Win Against Barcelona
- Match Analysis: PSG secured a late 2-1 victory over Barcelona, showcasing resilience despite missing several key players.
- Player Highlights: Notable performances from young talents like Lamin Yamal and Nuno Mendes.
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Premier League Preview Upcoming Matches to Watch
- Chelsea vs. Liverpool: Anticipated as a critical match for both teams, with Chelsea struggling due to injuries and suspensions.
- Arsenal vs. West Ham: Arsenal expected to dominate given West Ham's defensive frailties.
Managerial Perspectives
- Thomas Frank (Brentford): Facing scrutiny amid recent underperformance.
- Ange Postecoglou (Nottingham Forest): Challenged by a tough start to the season, with upcoming matches seen as pivotal for his tenure.
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Popular Opinions and Listener Engagement
- Listener Inquiries: Engaging discussions about tactical decisions and player performances were reflected in listener questions.
- Cultural References: The episode featured humorous references to footballing traditions and anecdotes from the panelists.
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Conclusion The episode encapsulates a vibrant week in football, highlighting key matches, player performances, and the anticipation surrounding upcoming fixtures, while maintaining a light-hearted and humorous tone throughout.
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*For additional content and support independent journalism, visit [The Guardian Football Weekly](https://www.theguardian.com/footballweeklypod).*
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Mark Langdon:This is The Guardian.
0:30Mark Langdon:at Union Saint-Gilois. PSG went late in Barcelona. There's that high line again. Other things we already knew, like Yamin Lamal is a lot of fun and Nuno Mendes is too. The best of the rest sees Rasmus Hoyland looking like an elite centre-forward. It's just incredible how many players get good when they leave Old Trafford. We'll look ahead to a Premier League weekend, including Chelsea-Liverpool and good at set-pieces Arsenal versus bad at defending set-pieces West Ham. We have confirmation of a raft of Turkish listeners will answer your questions. And that's today's Guardian Football Weekly.
1:03Mark Langdon:on the panel today barry glendening hello hi max from the racing post mark langdon joins us welcome mark hi max and hello lyle civinson hello max uh let's start then with uh monaco 2 manchester city two i like the start of will unwin's match report barry it had been a subdued night in monaco with manchester city sleepwalking to victory until nico gonzalez kicked eric dyer in the face in a failed attempt to defend a free kick it's quite an accurate reflection i think i mean there's a bit of controversy not everyone thinks that's a penalty um but it was quite the moment yeah i
1:34Max Rushden:don't see how it could be anything other than a penalty and i'm surprised there was controversy pep cardiola seems to have been quite miffed about it and but erling haaland uh when asked after the game what he thought said i didn't see what happened but i suppose if you kick someone in the face it's probably a penalty i'd be a subscriber to that view of earlings yeah i don't think you can have any complaints i think i knew um eric dyer had gone to monaco but had forgotten and then was surprised to see him but uh he took his penalty very well i suppose yes manchester city were sleeping walking to victory they didn't play especially well against the team i think we all probably thought they'd beat fairly comfortably.
2:24Max Rushden:Phil Foden was probably the standout performer for them. Well, him and Haaland. I thought Haaland's second goal ahead was terrific. Foden's return to form is something for Manchester City fans to be cheerful about on a night when otherwise they didn't have a huge amount to be cheerful about.
2:43Mark Langdon:Yeah, I suppose on the penalty, Lars, the counter-argument is, okay, there's not a huge amount of contact. I don't know how much there needs to be, if any. and is it that actually Eric Dier fouls Nico Gonzalez by heading his foot or is that not a legitimate thing? Okay, fine.
2:59Lars Sivertsen:Absolutely. I feel like Erling Haaland has stolen my lines here because I was basically going to say, well, if you kick someone in the head, there's always a chance the referee is going to give a foul. I think we had a comment from a listener who asked, are overhead kicks now banned? which I think maybe that's a slightly more interesting place to go in it. I know in this case it was a defender trying to clear it, not an attacker. But it does arise a question because of one of the goals Juventus scored. I know I think we'll probably get to that game. There are similarities in terms of where the boot is versus proximity to opposing heads.
3:34Lars Sivertsen:So I think there's a question to be asked about where that leaves overhead kicks in the crowded field. And I guess very often it leaves them being given as fouls. we can all just agree if you're a defender and an opponent is going for a header don't go with your foot like it's just it's just very little upside to that maneuver it doesn't make any sense and it was really good stuff by by eric dyer actually yeah and it did just watching him score
3:59Mark Langdon:a penalty mark made me think of england columbia and then i watched that bbc montage one of the best montages after the game you know in 2018 where it just showed all the missed that all the penalty misses and all the sadness and then dire scoring and then bobby robson dancing and butcher and waddle doing that anyway i mean it's not a question to you mark i just i just really enjoyed it i suspect i mean back to this game and we should talk about harland right because as barry said the header is brilliant because you've got to generate so much pace and the first one is just one of those god his legs are so long and and another one of those conversations about seven touches in a half
4:33Barry Glendenning:and two of them are goals yes um yeah he doesn't get involved in in the build-up and i think that Pep Guardiola has learnt to live with that and is trying different ways to reinvent maybe what he wants to do on the pitch to suit Haaland as well at times. And why would you not try to play to Haaland's strengths when you've got somebody as good as they've got up front? I think we have seen them, even in the recent weeks since Dunaroum has come in, go longer and try to hit Haaland quicker and to be more direct at times. And we do take it for granted just how many goals he's scored just because it's become the norm, much like how it was for Cristiano Ronaldo and for Messi when they were scoring two and threes most weeks.
5:26Barry Glendenning:But the header particularly is sensational. I mean, he was up against three former Premier League defenders, the Monaco back three, Salisu, Eric Dier and Keira, who was at West Ham briefly so he would have he was up against familiar foes and probably not the biggest surprise that he managed to come out on top on that individual battle but I think for City so sloppy at times this was exactly the same thing that happened against Brighton when they were in complete control didn't go for the sort of the killer goal that would have put them to a felt they could just see it out and gave away a stupid penalty um and uh once again just i i think there is something there for city uh about them just feeling they can see games out rather than play to what i still think is their biggest strength which is um in the final third and harland so i think they would have been better trying to get the the third goal um rather than
6:21Mark Langdon:sort of sit on that 2-1 yeah and barry every time you don't win a game or you sort of show fallibility It just means that air of invincibility that they no longer have more and more teams think, actually, this isn't, you know, they're just another team.
6:34Max Rushden:I don't think anyone's going to think that as long as they have Haaland playing, as long as they have the players they do, and as long as Pep's in charge. Although it did almost get to that stage, or maybe it did get to that stage last season when they had that massive wobble. But I think it would be very naive to think of them as just another team. I mean, they hit the bar twice last night and not shots that skimmed the bar, like spanked off the bar. So on another day, they could have won comfortably. But again, I'm getting bored listening to myself saying this. These results at this early stage of the Champions League, they don't really matter.
7:17Max Rushden:it's not a bad performance or a very workman like performance is obviously a cause for concern but the draw they've got what four points from two games that's fine it's not a problem
7:30Barry Glendenning:I am one of them people that shouts at Barry when I'm listening great great he just says every Champions League game the result doesn't matter and eventually it must matter because not all of them
7:43Max Rushden:can qualify eventually at some point they will
7:45Barry Glendenning:matter but at the moment i don't think they do these points you know add up um as as you go along
7:51Max Rushden:and i am aware of how this league system thank you thank you barry yeah we're three points for a win
7:56Barry Glendenning:one for a draw because psg won it from you know way back um last season there's this belief that oh you can as long as you finish in the top 24 like it doesn't matter but psg got breasts in the um sort in that playoff draw real madrid got manchester city and one of them teams went out And PSG then had to play Liverpool. So they won on penalties, but they could quite easily have lost that game on penalties. And people would have been saying that PSG are bottlers and that Luis Enrique might not even be in charge. That's how kind of fine a line and fine margins you get in football. I think you have to give yourself the best opportunity to qualify in the top eight initially.
8:42Barry Glendenning:and yeah it's going to be a bum fight for those those top eight spots because there's a lot of teams that will feel like oh well that draw doesn't matter um you know we can just finish in the top eight and we saw last year they didn't um you buy Munich Real Madrid Man City PSG all finished outside the top eight Bayern Munich nearly nearly went to Celtic um as well so I think you want those those two matches off and I think you you really want to finish in the top eight and And dropping sloppy points could be costly in about three months' time.
9:16Max Rushden:Would the counter-argument to that not be that Liverpool finished top of the league last season, only dropped three points and ended up going out to the eventual winners in the last 16?
9:28Barry Glendenning:Yeah, but the counter-counter-argument to that is that most of the other teams, so Arsenal finished very well in the league. I can't remember the exact things, but Barcelona were semi-finalists. inter had done very well in the league they were semi-finalists so i think psg were the kind of anomaly from that and on on the the other side of that when liverpool were really unlucky but most of the teams that finished high up in the league phase you know were then able to benefit from that it was just that the ones that won um did come from way back so i'm not saying that they i'm not saying it's desperately important but i think there is there is more importance maybe than
10:06Mark Langdon:barry thinks i would say yeah what a polite row this is and i suppose another thing lars is actually if you win the first, how many points do you need? 11 or 16? If you win the first five, then you can rest players. You know, there is this whole thing about fatigue. So, you know, I don't yell at Barry. You know, long term, it's important for us to have a good working relationship, I suppose. But I don't know, where do you stand on the furious Glendening-Langdon debate?
10:30Lars Sivertsen:You know, I'm really enjoying this because I'm getting early World Cup vibes. This reminds me of the discussion we have at every single international tournament when we're looking at permutations for the last round of the group stage and we're thinking, oh, if they finish there, they play then. The point that's always made is that you will eventually have to play good teams if you want to win it. And I guess this is true about the Champions League. But I am probably a believer in the idea that playing fewer good teams is more advantageous. If you can get a good draw for as long as possible, that it will help you go further.
11:03Lars Sivertsen:England fans would agree with that, I think. so I am kind of slightly on the Langdon side of this divide of like actually finishing high in the league phase is quite a good idea and at the risk of being a complete sycophant here I'm going to give the moderator points here because I think Max I think your point about resting players is a very good one I think it's an issue of the schedule as we keep hearing all the time is really punishing so if you can have an early sort of you get four wins on the board in this group stage so you can just kind of cruise for the rest of it and just pick a reserve side for a couple of these games.
11:37Lars Sivertsen:I think that's very helpful in terms of squad planning. So I do think it does matter a little bit.
11:41Mark Langdon:Sadly, the moderator can get no points in such a court, but I appreciate the sentiment. Arsenal 2, Olympiacos 0. That was not as straightforward, Barry, for Arsenal as the score suggests. They had to, you know, Olympiacos had a few chances, but I suppose unlike City, it was a game they sleepwalked into winning and won.
12:01Max Rushden:Yeah, I would say Martin Odegaard was not sleepwalking. He was outstanding in this game from start to finish. He was really, really good. Yes, good point. Good as I've seen him in a while. So he's clearly shaken off that shoulder injury, which I was worried about, actually. I thought that might be one that would just bother him incessantly until he was forced to have surgery or something. But he seems to be okay to have made a full recovery. He was so good. He was instrumental in setting up both goals. He created two good chances that weren't converted. He should have scored, but was denied by an excellent save by the Olympiacos keeper.
12:42Max Rushden:I would say it was fairly straightforward for them, but David Rea didn't have a huge amount to do, but he made one terrific save from Daniel Podence. Me neither.
12:57Max Rushden:Victor Glockerez had an interesting game I guess he didn't score he he was very unlucky not to to score what the goal Martinelli ended up the opener that Martinelli ended up tipping over the line when his effort hit the post yeah he looks kind of out of place in that Arsenal team I'm not saying he is out of place he just looks he sticks out like a sore thumb not necessarily in a bad way i presume the goals will come from at some stage but the the goal he didn't score where he just barged through two defenders onto a through ball from odegaard and then got his shot away it was it hit the keeper and was diverted onto the post martinelli finished it off for him
13:40Mark Langdon:but i think arson lee the player like that yeah are you saying i'm sort of amidst all this sleek grace he's a bit of rough yeah yeah dirty bit of rough
13:51Lars Sivertsen:it's funny because he looks so clean he's a very tidy guy but that was always going to be a little funny if you add almost like a battering ram number 9 he's not Paul Warhurst anything up there but he is someone who's quite a direct hard running center forward to a team that for so long have played with almost various iterations of a false nine i mean the guy who's played up front for arsenal under arteta the last few years is i mean the identity has changed but it's usually been someone who wonders someone who comes short they used to have a coming you know come in if you bring havertz back in there he's going to come short more and link up with the midfielders more and he's going to look more like he fits into that but i actually think the fact that he's a little different is what i like about him at arsenal because he adds a completely different dimension now it might take a little bit of time for the players around him to get used to that.
14:44Lars Sivertsen:And it might take a little bit of time for them to spot all those runs. But I actually think that the fact that he sticks out could in the long term be a bit of an advantage.
14:52Mark Langdon:And I suppose, you know, look at the depth. They did have to bring on some of their A-listers. I mean, it's hard to decipher, such as their squad depth, Mark. But, you know, to start with a good team and have Rai Saka, Eze, Timber, Calafiori, Mosquera, and Waniere on the bench is quite something.
15:10Barry Glendenning:They have got a squad that should be able to compete on every front. And it'd probably be a benefit to Arteta that they can have strong domestic cup runs as well, just to make sure that everybody feels part of it. That could be a slight issue. You sort of went through that bench there. There'll be a lot of players that feel like they're starters and that, you know, he's calling them finishers, but, you know, essentially they're substitutes. and while you can share around the minutes, people want to play in the big game. So it's a different approach to, you know, Arteta came through under Pep Guardiola, who is the opposite and says that, you know, he wants to work with a small squad.
15:51Barry Glendenning:I think as long as you're winning, everything is okay. And the second that you don't, you know, people start questioning, why is this player not playing? Why is that player not starting? And it can become a slight problem. but I just wanted to shout out that Raya save because 1-0 if it goes 1-0 who knows how that game turns out it was fantastic and do you remember when he first arrived that there were a lot of people really angry that you know Aaron Ramsdale was about to be displaced as Arsenal's number one and you look at kind of where Ramsdale's career has gone since and what Raya's doing at Arsenal And that, I think, shows that Arteta is capable of making really big decisions.
16:33Barry Glendenning:And he obviously wants a lot of players and competition for places. It just can be a problem, I think, if you're not winning, because everybody then starts to question whether you've got the right start in XI.
16:45Mark Langdon:Thanks to Chris for pointing out that Mikel Arteta is going to hire some RAF pilots to talk to the squad. He was talking, Bariat, something I'm sure you went to, the Lead Better, Live Better Summit 2025. 25 uh maybe you're the you might be in the keynote speaker he was chatting alongside legendary basketball coach steve kerr and he said he was asked about leadership and he said the british fighter planes i will get in touch with those guys how they communicate because that is life or death i'm sure they don't use 20 phrases or 20 words if there is one word don't say nah the wind is coming this way now you have to turn left because boom dead so it will be one word i suppose you have to think of ways to get to I mean it's easy to mock isn't it are they always outside
17:31Barry Glendenning:of their technical area as well
17:32Mark Langdon:I don't know it is easy to mock, I'm trying to think can we mount a defence for bringing in fighter pilots to say this is good
Read the full transcript
17:42Lars Sivertsen:I feel contractually obliged to point out that that is something Böderglimt do they have a former fighter pilot doing mental coaching with the team anyone who's read any long read about Bologlin in the last four years will tell you this. It has to be a part of all of those articles, and it is indeed part of all those articles, but it is stuff that seems to be working for them. I think that's...
18:03Max Rushden:I think instead of player names on the back of Arsenal's shirts, they should have call signs like Maverick and Goose and Iceman. And Biggles. Who gets Biggles? That would be Declan Wright. Or actually, Gajokrez, his hair, He's got quite raffish wing commanderish hairstyle, doesn't he? Yeah, that is true. If he could grow a moustache and he could be Biggles.
18:28Mark Langdon:Look, they are good and they're defensively very good and good defenses win things. They could easily win something this year and then, you know, they may mock us because we do not bring a fighter pilot in before the pod to get us in the mood. Maybe we should. Maybe we should. Yeah. Yeah. Well, I don't know. We don't want people. We want people wasting words. It fills up time. It's good for us. It's precisely what we don't need is one word answers. Union Saint-Grois 0 Newcastle United 4 I mean Newcastle won this very comfortably Mark I mean good I guess the most important thing is they scored some goals because they've been pretty goal shy recently.
19:00Barry Glendenning:Probably an easier game than it could have been because Union have to can't play their European games at home so they were playing at Anderlecht so maybe home advantage was negated there but I liked sort of the way that Newcastle attacked in the game and it was the first time that Volta Mardet um Ilanga and Gordon had started together and you could see the idea behind it because if you defend high to negate the threat of Voltemada in the air then the wingers can run in behind and then if you drop deep you can put crosses into you know a giant forward so um I think those combinations started um you know to really look slick and that hasn't always been the case so far from Newcastle and um you know in midfield they're as strong as ever I thought to Nali was exceptional the way that he sort of drives the team forward and a really good way to respond to what would have been disappointing way you know to lose that Premier League game on Sunday and as I was saying to Barry earlier you know these points are important and yeah I think it was a big win for Newcastle having lost on match day one.
20:11Mark Langdon:Yeah three goals in four starts for Valtemar de Lars. And you spoke about him already, about how he does have a good touch for a big man, and he does. And so he can sort of, in a sort of buy-in way, I guess, you know, he can drop deep and link the play for two quick guys alongside him. And he's also like good in the box. I don't know how much he knew about that finish, but I'll give him some credit. I thought he sort of adjusted his feet quite well.
20:38Lars Sivertsen:Instinctive finish, Max. Instinctive finish. Okay. It's really the two headers in the Premier League that's caught me by surprise, because that's really not something he was doing very frequently in spite of his very large size last season. But no, he is a very clever striker, and it is something that kept an obvious alert here, if we're back to the call signs. But with Ezek going, Newcastle kind of needed a striker. And I remember watching 90 minutes of Newcastle playing Aston Villa earlier in the season, and it was extraordinary because they had to play Anthony Gordon up front in the middle, and they kept getting into crossing positions and there was just, there's really no point putting anything in there, is there?
21:15Lars Sivertsen:And it is. It seems to be something football is defaulting back into, the return of the big man, which I am delighted with. I think we all are. The big centre forward is back and it's a tremendous thing to see.
21:27Mark Langdon:Yeah, this week, Karl-Heinz Rummenegger, I don't know how much we should pay attention to him, probably not a lot, called Newcastle. Well, he said he congratulated Stuttgart for finding, quote, an idiot who would pay that much money for Valtimada.
21:39Barry Glendenning:we certainly would not have done that buying the furious because they he was the one that they lined up probably for next summer and assumed that that would be a succession planning kind of for when harry kane leaves um and i don't think they were and they're usually in a very powerful position with other german clubs and they they get what they want um in the bundesliga and And they wouldn't have been expecting Newcastle to have paid that much money. But, you know, I think Eddie Howe said it best when he was just talking about what the market is, what the market is.
22:15Lars Sivertsen:They were trying to get him this summer as well. They just couldn't. Stuttgart were holding out for a price that they just couldn't pay. And I do wonder if it's sometimes that we because we watch a lot of the Premier League. We consume a lot of media to do with the Premier League. We cover the Premier League. kind of assume that the prices and the money that's being thrown around in this league is in any way normal like the discrepancy between the financial situation in england and the rest of europe including a team like bion is quite stark at this point so we see our newcastle have dropped 70 million on the striker and i say yeah that seems like normal behavior just any other place in the world it's very abnormal like these sort of sums do not exist in football in the same way
22:51Mark Langdon:they used to uh two nice spots sam dalling uh podder in the crowd cheering anthony gordon's first penalty and barry our friend sofian bouffal there he was your bouffal it's true yeah sofian
23:04Max Rushden:formerly of southampton plays for union there's a few good stories there the union lineup kevin mcallister brother of alexis liverpool's alexis he was playing for them and their captain is a fellow called christian burgess during the first half on tnt adam Somerton was portraying him as this modern day Dick Whittington who left Portsmouth to go and play for this down on its luck Belgian side union. But instead of having a bag on a stick and a cat, he packed, I think, seven bags into the back of his Audi A5 and off he went. So he's the skipper. And Adam's story sent me a Googling, so I found an article on the BBC.
23:55Max Rushden:He's a history graduate and a vegan. He went to Borough at one stage, and Tony Mowbray, I think made it a condition of signing him that he had to finish his degree, which seems like a very Tony Mowbray thing to do. Hats off to him for that. And then there was another fellow, Ross Sykes, who went to Union from Accrington Stanley. And he's a boyhood Newcastle fan. So it was a massive deal for him to come on and get some game time in the Champions League against Newcastle.
24:32Mark Langdon:Interesting stuff. And that'll do for part one. Part two will begin with PSG's win at Barcelona.
24:44Mark Langdon:Welcome to part two of the Guardian Football Weekly. So PSG left it late. They beat Barcelona 2-1. What a high line right at the end mark from Barcelona. So watching that going, what are you doing?
24:55Barry Glendenning:Thinking of other ways to kind of talk about Barcelona when they're defending. But it is just such an obvious flaw in what they do. Although I feel hypocritical because I love watching them play. And one of the reasons they're so exciting going forward is because they put pressure so high up. and to do that the defenders have to be on the halfway line or even beyond that at times. But there is a game state situation there and I think once you're in injury time, don't leave yourself that vulnerable. It happened last season against Inter where they had the game won and I don't think you need to be so adventurous at those times as well.
25:39Barry Glendenning:It was a really interesting match. I think one of the improvements that the Champions League has made now is that you do get these headline acts every single week. And that wasn't really the case in the last group stage. It's just a shame so many players on both sides were injured, particularly for PSG, Marquinhos at the back, Xel Neves in midfield, and then all of the front three were missing. and so it was an unusual front three for PSG. Mayulu and Bai and Barcala sort of as the front three, but they still had Lee and Gonzalo Ramos on the bench. So frightening depth really. I think the Barcelona were the best side over the course of the 90 minutes.
26:26Barry Glendenning:The Laminya Mal versus Nuno Mendes kind of battle on Barcelona's right was the highlight of the game. I think that the referee Michael Oliver was right not to send Nuno Mendes off. I didn't think that the foul when he was already on the yellow card on the edge of the box was necessarily a yellow card. But I know Barcelona were angry that that wasn't given. And it was a decisive moment, really, because Luis Enrique reacted to that by bringing on Lucas Hernandez, played him left back. And I think that him and then Nuno Mendes were able to stifle Laminya Mal, who I thought had been the best player on the pitch for an hour.
27:01Barry Glendenning:but then slowly PSG just got a grip and a handle on it and then won it right at the end through Ramos. So a big win for Paris Saint-Germain, just in the context of proving that they can do it with so many players out. Because last season, it felt like they had a nice run in terms of injuries. You knew what their starting XI was every week, but they've proven they can do it other ways now.
27:25Mark Langdon:Nice line from Sid, writing about Nuno Mendes, saying he was going past people like Carl Lewis at a sports day. Worth mentioning Rashford as well, Lars. Sixth successive game, he's had a goal or an assist.
27:36Lars Sivertsen:Yeah, he's making contributions. And this is, I guess this is what they were hoping for from him and that I think a lot of people are hoping that he'll kind of find himself. He's ended up in a situation which is kind of perfect. Like he's getting plenty of minutes, but it's not like he has to play every single minute and be the guy who's pulling the cart all the time. And I think the expectations are probably a little bit lower than they were at United. It's not the same spotlight on him at all times. And it seems to be working in a pretty good way. I want to flag up that I'm continually baffled by the situation with Gonzalo Ramos.
28:13Lars Sivertsen:He comes on and scores the winning goal. But it is slightly odd that promising and talented that he may be. That's Eni Maullo who's starting ahead of him. And Ramos feels like every time I'm watching PSG, he's coming on and scoring goals. It's almost constant. And you can look at his stats as maybe a little meaningless because he tends to be a super sub for a team that dominates their games. But he scores an extraordinary amount of goals for the amount of minutes that he's on the field. But Luis Enrique seems to quite aggressively not fancy him, I think. It's fair to say. And it's quite odd. It's quite odd that he didn't move in the summer.
28:51Lars Sivertsen:And it remains a little odd, I think.
28:52Mark Langdon:Maybe he's just happy being a finisher. That's what he likes to be. in every way. Speaking of finishers, John, amongst others, came in with, it's an open goal, but we'll take it. This Hoyland guy looks pretty good. Maybe a Premier League team should take a punt. Napoli 2, Sporting 1. Both goals set up by Kevin De Bruyne. We know Kevin De Bruyne is good, but we didn't really see Rasmus Hoyland be good for Manchester United. But both, they're very different finishes. They're very different goals, Barry. But they look like, if you'd never watched him or he'd never been in the Premier League, this guy, that guy's, Just a really good centre forward.
29:27Max Rushden:Yeah, and if either of those opportunities had come to him at any point last season, you'd have bet the farm on a missing both of them. And I suppose it's just indicative of what confidence can do for somebody. And it helps that Kevin De Bruyne is providing the assists after the game, Hoyland or his people, I'm not sure whether it was him or representatives, put on social media that me scoring two goals with Kevin De Bruyne providing both assists was not on my 2025 bingo card. We were discussing bingo for reasons I won't go into before the game or before we started recording this podcast. I didn't have Rasmus Hoyland knowing what bingo is on my bingo card, I have to say.
30:18Barry Glendenning:Well, my nan would have, Barry, because she'd have had two cards as we were discussing earlier. She used to play for two people.
30:24Lars Sivertsen:We do have bingo in Scandinavia. It is a thing. Okay.
30:30Max Rushden:I thought it was a particularly English pursuit or pastime.
30:35Mark Langdon:What's the Norwegian for bingo and is it just bingo?
30:38Lars Sivertsen:Yeah, it's very much bingo. I assume the same. I wonder about it. This made me think. Is just leaving Man United the key to success and happiness in life? and I wonder if this also applies to like members of staff and people who have just worked in the ticket office and you know I swear we have obviously they famously used to have a lot of staff and now they have slightly fewer staff I guarantee you people who have worked for Man United and have then moved on with their lives are listening to this pod right now they must be and I would like for them to write in like has has everything come together for you like have you have you had tremendous success in your professional and personal life almost immediately after no longer working for Man United because it just seems to be very very consistent
31:21Mark Langdon:yeah I'm just trying to think like who who has left and gone on and played incredibly well of course McTominay um Anthony's done very well at Betis hasn't he uh Rashford is doing well at Barcelona you have Hoyland here am I forgetting any am I am I forgetting like hordes of them
31:37Lars Sivertsen:I put Lukaku in that bracket he's gone to Italy and won the league there after leaving United
31:42Mark Langdon:yeah I mean it's it just seems staggering or maybe we just don't notice the ones that leave and aren't good because it sort of helps for this sort of amusement of just Manchester United getting into every conversation. So I just thought they were really good goals. The first one, the first touch is good. Gets it out from his feet. Looks like he's quicker than he was at Man United. Finishes well. The second is a really brave header. You're spot on, Barry. I just think there's no way he'd have scored those ones.
32:09Max Rushden:This time last year, he wouldn't have got it out from under his feet. He'd tripped over his own feet. to be fair to him while his spell at United was anything but a success he wasn't getting much service when he was ploughing a very lone and forlorn furrow up front that is true
32:28Mark Langdon:Carabag 2, Copenhagen 0 Lars you volunteered to watch this one, tell us about it
32:33Lars Sivertsen:yeah the horseman from Azerbaijan I did watch it in the sense that it was on as I was tidying my apartment but it was Carabag had the better of the first half it's kind of a weird playing surface it was like Copenhagen were more sloppy than you'd expect in possession Carabag were moving the ball a lot better FC Co improved I thought in the second half but they couldn't, they had more chances but they couldn't find a way to score and eventually lost to 2-0 it was not massively eventful and life-changing for me I have to say and on behalf of my Scandinavian brethren I was a little bit disappointed that they couldn't get anything out of it but that's two wins and two for carabag you have to you have to respect it
33:15Max Rushden:carabag are subscribing to the langdon view uh the preposterous langdon view that winning games
33:22Mark Langdon:early in this competition is quite handy i don't buy it for a second yeah well yeah you'll you'll have the last laugh barry when carabag don't win the champions league won't you um uh brissy
33:34Barry Glendenning:dortmund four athletic bill bow one what did you make of this mark i think from athletic have been one of I think the biggest sort of disappointments so far I've had a hard enough start you know playing Arsenal and then away to Borussia Dortmund but I yeah I expected more from them this season just overall I know that Nico Williams has been injured and you know he's a very important player for the team but just you know I don't think they should be losing 4-1 against the Borussia Dortmund team that's definitely not you know a strong version of Dortmund they're not as good as the ones we've had before but uh girassi is i think one of the most weirdest players around because he just scores so many goals and it was a kind of um yeah a fluky goal he got um last night as well but he's he's sort of goal record is um just sensational but whenever i watch him i don't actually feel like he's he's that good um he and so he just um one of them players that just scores goals and lots of them you know they'll go in any which way and this was one of those cases but a good result for Dortmund um poor poor from Athletic.
34:46Mark Langdon:Does anyone have any strong thoughts on Villarreal 2 Juventus 2 or Leverkusen 1 PSV 1 Barry?
34:51Max Rushden:We discussed overhead kicks earlier and Federico Gatti scored an excellent one for Juventus big centre half not the kind of goal you would expect to see a big centre half scoring he didn't boot anyone in the head he just struck the ball so well done him. Apart from that, I do not have any thoughts.
35:11Lars Sivertsen:I mean, I guess the boot was head adjacent but no one really stuck their head into it, I guess. But yeah, it was a very good overhead kick. For sure.
35:19Mark Langdon:I suppose how late can you put your head into the foot? This is the key. Trevor Sinclair's gone up and he's taken it. If a Barnsley defender was to run into his foot now, it's unlikely the goal, that would be chalked off. But in the moment, Could you have the presence of mind and the bravery to just headbutt any errant foot and therefore the overhead kick would be disallowed? Anyway, Europa League, Europa Conference League tonight. Celtic Braga, Forest Midtjylland, Villa go to Feyenoord, Rangers go to Sturm, Gratz, Crystal Palace go to Dino Akiv, Aberdeen, Shakhtar, Shamrock Rovers, Sparta Prague and Shelbourne versus Hakken.
35:58Mark Langdon:So if anything dramatic happens, we'll cover those on Monday. As well as that, we'll cover the Premier League and we'll look ahead to the weekend of fixtures in just a second.
36:15Mark Langdon:Welcome to part three of the Guardian Football Weekly. So Chelsea, Liverpool, probably the game of the weekend. And it is interesting now, Liverpool are on this, you know, this disastrous two-defeat run, Mark.
36:26Barry Glendenning:Yeah, I do think there's been an overreaction following those two defeats. players were rested against Galatasaray. It's not an easy place to go. We're talking in cliches. And the Palace game, first half, Palace were definitely on top. Second half, I felt like Liverpool were the team. I wasn't surprised they got the equaliser and they were the ones I felt were going to get a win. And I think that Palace are a good side this year and they've just lost it right at the end. I wouldn't be that concerned just yet. I think that there is an issue with Virts just not settling in and accommodating him and being sort of one person down in midfield as a consequence, as unbalanced them slightly.
37:09Barry Glendenning:But I'd still say they're in a better spot than Chelsea, who didn't have much of a pre-season. I'm not sure if that's the reason for some of the injuries. PSG, we spoke about earlier, have got injuries as well, but they're not the only two teams in that situation. But Chelsea have got a lot of defenders out through suspension or injury. And that's not ideal when you're playing against that Liverpool front three. And I spoke to a Chelsea season ticket holder yesterday who said he was still behind Maresca. But in his friend group, there's definitely a turning with some. And so I think they've got within the next few Premier League games, they've got Liverpool and Tottenham.
37:56Barry Glendenning:if he loses both of those I think he will sort of lose a fair chunk more of those that are kind of on the fence at the moment.
38:04Mark Langdon:I mean come on Mark, when did Chelsea ever lose to Tom? I mean they're just never ever ever.
38:10Barry Glendenning:No, that's a very fair point Gary Lineker maybe but yeah it's a long time, or Dele Alli as well but yeah it doesn't happen very often
38:18Mark Langdon:The thing about Chelsea, Lars Liverpool have signed up to players but you sort of have a vague idea of how they're going to you know the starting 11 find myself sort of impossible to know what chelsea will do i mean i know it's early in the season it takes time for teams to settle and mark has mentioned all the injuries and suspensions but they're just such an odd team yeah it does feel like they
38:39Lars Sivertsen:haven't quite like congealed into a consistent 11 as consistent team that's that's that's true i still feel like we can be pretty sure i was about to start saying what i think the lineup will be and I realized no we cannot be halfway through that I don't got it well Pedro will be up front I'm sure and both Enzo and Caicedo will start and probably Pedro Neto I guess I think with Chelsea as well right now they've had a man sent off in three of the last four games which seems bad like this is very unhelpful if they're trying to get results and I think with this game in particular now they have something like four center halves missing so there'll be probably a little bit makeshift at the back so against that Liverpool front line could we make could we make it four and five I wonder it's it seems like a thing that could
39:27Mark Langdon:happen who will play down the ledge you think Garnaccio I'm trying to think who would be up against whoever Liverpool chooses right back and whether Sabah's lie stays at right back I would
39:36Lars Sivertsen:like to say Estevão because he looks so exciting like in the sort of an unending stream of talented guys in their late teens early 20s that they've been buying since the blue toad bully takeover Estevão is the one, obviously Cole Palmer, obvious example, but of the more sort of left field ones, Estevão is the one that looks like, my God, this guy could be an actual global superstar at some point. He looks so incredibly exciting. So I would like to see him as a neutral here, just have as many minutes as possible going forward.
40:04Mark Langdon:Nuno goes to the Emirates, Barry, you sort of touched on this I think yesterday, but it will be interesting to see how West Ham defend corners and if Nuno has managed to do anything against a team that score so many more goals from corners than anyone else.
40:18Max Rushden:Yeah, West Ham will be provided with a very stern test as you're going to get when it comes to defending corners against Arsenal. It's very hard to see anything other than an Arsenal win in this game, but there is the possibility West Ham will have a bounce of sorts following the departure of Potter.
40:40Barry Glendenning:I think, did they win there last season? Yeah, relatively speaking, they've got a good record at the Emirates, given the quality gap between the two teams.
40:51Max Rushden:And this is the kind of rake Arsenal, well, last season's Arsenal obviously did tread on and get slapped in the face. I don't think that will happen this weekend, but I wouldn't rule it out either.
41:07Mark Langdon:Ange goes to St. James' Park with Nottingham Forest. what have you made of the you know Ange Ball 2 in the Premier League Mark yeah I mean it's not
41:16Barry Glendenning:started very well it's not a big surprise that it hadn't started that well I mean to put a manager that's so different to the previous one in charge of a team with no pre-season that doesn't feel like that the wisest decision from Mr Maranakis didn't feel like it was the strongest interview process either um you know i think that people knew for a long time and that ang was was going there and um it was um i think it's all a bit odd um really or you know posicoglu will want to get back into the premier league but it just feels like a tricky one to take because nuno had done such a good job um playing such a different way to to to have the immediate impact i think would be hard for a lot of managers and now they've got the Sunderland game you felt like was the ideal opportunity to get the win they lose and then all of a sudden you've got to go to a Newcastle team that's resurgent after their Champions League win so I think it's yeah it's a horrible horrible looking game for Poster Coglu I'd I would I think I'd be more surprised if he was still there at the end of the season than not I just don't see it working out I have to say
42:28Mark Langdon:I think this game last year last where Chris Wood turn into Ronaldo and score a hat-trick was that the year before I feel like that could be any game
42:33Lars Sivertsen:in the last couple of years I'm just Chris Wood thing doesn't make any sense to me but it just keeps happening I I'm I'm getting like I don't mean to make light of this but I'm getting like Tottenham PTSD from this start of Nottingham Forest because I I haven't watched any of the games in their entirety so I'm not going to have two strident opinions on on this I'm going to have an interruption but they keep like not winning games and I keep checking the stats and it seems like they had a lot of shots and stuff and then i see and interviews going oh yeah i thought we thought we had the better of that game and then i take the result and they haven't won it was like yeah that's that's very familiar like i've had quite a lot of that just sort of note of compassion to the nottingham forest fans who like yeah you're not alone we've
43:13Max Rushden:a lot of us have experienced this before i i would argue in angel's favor they really should have won that game against sunderland like they had a lot of shots the sunderland keeper had a brilliant game.
43:27Barry Glendenning:They played well at Betis as well and still concede two goals.
43:32Lars Sivertsen:Yeah, it's funny that. It's funny how that keeps happening.
43:35Mark Langdon:Sunderland go to Old Trafford. Barry, you are quietly confident or perhaps loudly confident going into this game?
43:39Max Rushden:I give Sunderland every chance of turning them over, definitely. And if they do, it's going to be interesting. Last game before an international break, I would imagine if United lose at home, given their current run of form to a newly promoted side that will not go down well at Old Trafford in the stands or in the boardroom. Hopefully, Sunderland can do a number on them just to see what happens next. You know, you'd give any team in the Premier League a chance to beat Manchester United at the moment and Sunderland have got off to a great start. So, why not?
44:16Mark Langdon:The early kick-off on Saturday is Tottenham's visit to Leeds. I think they're unbeaten at home. You know, the Elland Road factor. Mark, what's the Spurs sentiment over Thomas Frank? Seems like they get to this moment where it's all good and then they've got a game that's really winnable and they don't win it and you just go, oh God, and then they'll go again.
44:37Barry Glendenning:They felt nothing more predictable than pointless Wolves sort of turning up at Tottenham last week with an opportunity to narrow the gap on leaders Liverpool and really struggle for 90 minutes. Leeds are good at home. Seen that already. and probably kicking themselves that they didn't beat Bournemouth last week. From Tottenham point of view, if you'd have asked me this question maybe 10 days ago, I'd have been really positive. But the last couple of performances have been way short of the standards that were set in the admittedly away games, actually, Man City and Brighton. And because the attack's not flowing at all from open play, I do wonder whether they might actually be suited to playing away from home.
45:19Barry Glendenning:and then maybe it didn't look like that on Tuesday in Norway. But generally speaking, I think there'd just be less pressure on them to try to create a big problem against Villarreal, against Bournemouth and also against Wolves. So I'm staying patient with Thomas Frank, but he will need at some stage to get the team clicking in the final third.
45:42Mark Langdon:Yeah, I mean, part of that is, you know, you need Jerry Simmons to be the creator. There just aren't that many creators, right, with the injuries to Maddison and Kudasiewski.
45:50Barry Glendenning:Yeah, I think that's fair. And the reliance on Kudas is too much, really, because that has been the tactic so far this season. Give it to him and hope that he can sort of dribble past everybody. And it's not a bad tactic when it works, but it's not really sustainable. It's just where does Simons play? I think he doesn't look comfortable out on the left. But when you're easing him into the Premier League, as Liverpool are found with Verts, like playing somebody like that in the centre is also, you know, I'm not sure he's fully up to speed yet with the Premier League. He had his best 25 minutes playing centrally against Brighton.
46:27Barry Glendenning:I think that's very different when you're chasing the game in that situation rather than starting there. So I know he's one of Barry's favourite players. I'm sure he will come good, but just a bit of patience required with him.
46:38Mark Langdon:Essentially, he does move like this. They both have that sort of languid style, the way they carry the ball. It's so beautiful, but not a lot happens. quite a lot of time. And you're right, no time on the ball. Bournemouth, Fulham, Everton Palace, Wolves, Brighton, Villa, Burnley, Brentford City. Anything pique your interest, Barry?
46:55Max Rushden:Well, Palace are on this very long unbeaten run. Could come to an end tonight, obviously, but going to Everton, I remain unconvinced by Everton. I think they've been getting a few results they haven't deserved. Who did they play on Monday? West Ham. Thought that, yeah, they were bang average in that game. but in Injai and Grealish they have two really good wingers they just have no one to finish off all the crosses and good balls that they provide and that's an issue unless I suppose it's too early to judge Thierry O 'Barry but yeah they need a striker who's firing and they don't have one at the minute
47:38Mark Langdon:Okay let's go to we'll obviously cover all those games on Monday to Turkey Corner Sadly for you, Mark, it's not a food-based part of the meaty. You won't be surprised. You will not be surprised to know.
47:51Barry Glendenning:I might get my cheese done while we're here. And I could do some Donner meat.
47:56Mark Langdon:All the cliches. Lovely. We're all winners. Korkyeng, if I've pronounced it correctly, says, Hi, on Wednesday you're asking how many Turkish listeners you had. To my knowledge, let's face it, it's not that extensive. I'm the only one. I found Football Weekly right after Galatasaray's 3-2 away win against Manchester United. to check what the English media thinks. And I've been an avid listener since. Listening to the Liverpool game reactions of the pod was a full circle moment for me as a fan. I will have a nose job to breathe properly next week. Not a vasectomy. So Barry's unimpressed words are more than welcome.
48:26Mark Langdon:It's been 30 years since I had a big operation. So you can say I'm a bit excited. Our first nose job on the pod is very exciting. So good luck with that. Let us know how it goes. But you're not alone. We had a raft of Turkish listeners get in touch. Cenk, presumably not Cenk Tosin just says, hi Max, we're here as Turkish listeners Cheers! Rizvan says long time listener of Football Weekly, lifetime Galatasaray supporter, after hearing you wonder in today's episode, I can confirm you have at least one Turkish fan in me. I can also confirm that the Galatasaray goal music is the melody of I Will Survive but based on a Turkish version of the song by Ajda Pekan who is considered Turkey's version of Madonna I appreciate Galatasaray being considered dark horses in the Champions League this year considering last time we were in the Champions League and had Wilfried Zaha and Hakim Ziyech.
49:13Mark Langdon:You said the team had an expendables feel to it. Big fan of the podcast. Thanks for all you do. Lots of people got in touch talking about I Will Survive. Yannick saying, just want to chime in on your take on Galatasaray's gold tune. It is actually I Will Survive, specifically the version made by the Rotterdam pub Apres ski group called Herma's House Band. Okay, so we have some controversy here. It is coincidentally the only, the gold tune of Feyenoord at Rotterdam I'm Celta Vigo and I believe Benfica. Have a nice week. Thanks for the nice podcast. Cheers, Yannick. Novid says, Turkish listener here who lives in Spain.
49:46Mark Langdon:It's a Man United fan that's been listening since 2008. My favourite member of the pod is Barry. Is the right answer. Could have been original, Novid. Yeah, you could have been original. But you chose to follow the herd like the sheep that you are. Anyway, thank you to everyone, to all our Turkish friends and to everyone around the world. Thanks for listening and that'll do for today. Thanks, everybody. Thanks, Barry. Thank you. Thank you, Mark. Thank you, Max. Thank you, Lars. Thank you, Max. Football Weekly is produced by Joel Grove. Our executive producer is Phil Maynard. We'll be back on Monday.
50:21Max Rushden:This is The Guardian.