Arsenal run riot at Spurs but Manchester City keep pace – Football Weekly podcast

19:00Barry Glendenning:City have won 79 of their last 80, playing 105-year-old Hungarian in midfield.

19:05Jonathan Wilson:And yet still it doesn't feel like they're quite ready to go on a run. Do you think... I mean, it's in that interesting situation, Wilson, where it's in Arsenal's hands and it's in City's hands. So whose hands will it be in in the end?

19:18Barry Glendenning:I don't know. I mean, this is a really obvious thing I'm going to say, but I think that game of the Etihad might be quite crucial.

19:24Jonathan Wilson:Do you think the... No, no, I agree with you, and thanks for pointing it out. Hopefully, I'll get a longer answer from John Bruin on this. But people are saying, like, the Carabao Cup final is just before that, isn't it? And saying, you know, whoever wins that will automatically go and win the league. I don't know if that's true, because, you know, games are different. But it is fascinating that those two games are so close together.

19:41John Brewin:Yeah, it is. And it's nice to have those sort of series of games. I know there's only two, but it reminds you. I remember Barcelona and Real Madrid used to sit with play each other every week in the Pep and Mourinho era or something like that. And Liverpool and Manchester City had quite a few meetings. That's what you need, isn't it? They're both staring each other down. Pep was talking about cocktails at the weekend, of course, with Mikel Arteta. Yes, capperinias and daiquiris. Yeah, yeah. I don't think Mikel's quite the guy to, you know. What do we think Mikel drinks on a night? You know, the odd beer.

20:25Barry Glendenning:Well, he specified he does not drink cocktails. He may have humoured Gary Cottrell, but he did not humour a question about what booze he's going to drink this week. He just looked confused and said, I don't drink cocktails. And then there was an awkward silence and we moved on.

20:41Jonathan Wilson:Yeah, that one fell flat, yeah. I think after his romantic surprise me, Gary, maybe Gary Cottrell got excited and thought he could take it, you know, in any direction he wanted. He might be a single malt man, don't you, Arteta, at some point? You know, he could do an advert for whiskey.

20:59John Brewin:It's interesting, isn't it, to compare the two managers because we have this idea, and no one's got proof of this, that Pep's in DMOB happy mode and is maybe eyeing a life beyond, a football where he can drink Cabrinas every day if he wants to. Whereas Mikel Arteta is here for the long haul. It is, you know, 100 % focused, you know, no detail left unturned, you know, wakes up in the middle of the night and considers, you know, the grass at the Emirates and stuff like that. Whereas Pep's, you know, he's done all that. There's no need to consider that stuff anymore. And he's doing stuff like playing Nico O 'Reilly as a number 10, when he has Phil Foden and Ray Ancherky.

21:45John Brewin:I mean, this guy's just, you know, just kicking back, just enjoying himself. Yeah, free jazz in it, you know. And it's funny, Nick O 'Reilly reminds me of a thing that I remember reading about no less than friends Beckenbauer and Emlyn Hughes, which was that by playing in defence, they were probably cheating because they were too good to actually play in defence. And, you know, Nick O 'Reilly's got a long way to go to those levels. Emlyn Hughes is a very good player, by the way. and Beckenbauer, I'm sure the listeners know all about. But what a talent. Where has this guy come from? I think he's only played something like 33, 34 Premier League games.

22:23John Brewin:And he's been brilliant this season. He's got to be one of the players of the year, hasn't he?

22:28Jonathan Wilson:Yeah, it's worth saying that Beckenbauer, absolutely terrible captain on a question of sport.

22:35John Brewin:Would he confuse John Reid with Princess Anne? That's the question.

22:39Jonathan Wilson:Of course he would. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Anyway, that'll do for part one. Part two will begin at the city ground. That's a spectacularly obscure reference.

22:50Barry Glendenning:The weird thing was, it was exactly what was in my head, but I just thought there was no point in saying it.

22:56Jonathan Wilson:I even knew it was John Reid. Trying to get in the younger listeners. And we're doing, you know, the picture round on Question of Sport in 1988. This is going to go well, isn't it?

23:15Jonathan Wilson:Welcome to part two of the Guardian Football Weekly. So, Forrest Nill, Liverpool 1. John, you did the minute by minute. The last few minutes, you had quite a job on, didn't you there?

23:23John Brewin:Yes. Well, Liverpool were, and Arna Slott agreed with this, and Jamie Carragher said this, were as bad as he'd seen them this season, which is pretty bad. Yeah, and they didn't... Obviously, Jamie Carragher kept his language for a family audience. But I do remember seeing him years ago at Hull where Liverpool lost. And I do remember him coming over to us in the press corps and just saying one word and just saying, atrocious, and then walking off. And I felt that that's probably what he thought of that first half performance. So they did get better in the second half. let's also credit Nottingham Forest for a much improved performance Vitor Pereira doing what Vitor Pereira does he was the other manager that I met this week I shook two managers hands this week Max, I shook both Igor Tudor and Vitor such a class from both of them you've got to say doing that shaking hands with the journalists

24:24Max Rushden:I'm going to say Igor Tudor has the firmer grip Barry, you are 100 % correct

24:31John Brewin:that is, yeah Did they single you out, John? No, they just do the rounds. And, you know, I did have a... Got it. I said to Vitor, good luck. And he said, good luck. He goes, look, man, yeah, we're going to need it. Which I thought was quite nice, you know. Okay.

24:49Jonathan Wilson:It's like you're in a movie. Yeah. It's like you're in a heist movie with Vitor Pereira just before you and him go into the bank vault and you say, good luck, Vitor. We're going to need it. Dan, and the montage starts. You get in the car. This is exciting. Anyway, carry on to the game, if possible.

25:04John Brewin:Yeah, I see us very much as the Thelma and Louise of the Premier League, yes.

25:15John Brewin:But Forrest were really excellent, apart from up front, and this is where they ran into issues. Virgil van Dijk had one of his less solid games, but still Liverpool's defence held fairly firm. Igor Jesus actually does well in Europe, but not so well in the Premier League. And, you know, Callum Hudson-Odoi let an early chance go that I think he will have regretted because not so many chances came their way. And it was one that got away from Forrest. And then, obviously, the two goals, the first one from Alexis McAllister, a good friend of mine said at the time, he hadn't scored all season. So it's one of those where a player's just waiting for the ball to go off his backside for his first goal of the season.

25:57John Brewin:And it actually happened, except in came VAR to show that it actually hit his elbow as well. And McAllister was fairly even-handed about that. And then Forrest just, I suppose, went to sleep, really, probably tired. Ortega made a save, but Ortega had a very good game and then McAllister scored. That's a big win for Liverpool. You know, it hauls them into the top four. but it feels a bit like Jonathan said that the results have been good or better of late but it feels like there's a lot of that sort of thing they're having to grind this season it's been unhappy they're probably waiting for the end of the season but I felt sorry for Forrest and as Jonathan also said earlier there are signs that Vitor can turn it around a bit of vitamin P can get Forrest out of it which is a big worry for Tognam

26:50Jonathan Wilson:Yeah, Carl says on the McAllister disallowed goal, can anyone think of a more perfect analogy to prove that those at Stockley Park don't know their ass from their elbow? I mean, I did. Like, Barry, I know it's a handball, but the football fan in me doesn't want that goal to be disallowed. Like, it just, am I being ridiculous? Am I just going so far down that I don't want any handball to be a handball? But it just feels like, you know, he's just blocked it from Mollah Aynah, How he's letting that drop there, I mean, that is ridiculous. But maybe I'm being ridiculous. I mean, by all means, I'm happy to be told I'm ridiculous.

27:27Max Rushden:You're entitled to your opinion, I guess. I mean, the fact that McAllister was quite sanguine about it afterwards was probably... I have to say, it took me a lot of replays to establish that it had actually hit his elbow. But I guess if your back is to the ball, and there's absolutely no way it can be intentional then. But yeah, I don't have any strong opinions one way or the other. I do think Forrest were desperately unlucky in this game to come away with nothing because Liverpool were shocking in the first half, not brilliant in the second. And I suppose after they'd got away with that first one from McAllister, the second goal was kind of identical-ish.

28:16Max Rushden:so you know you should have learned your lesson and i presumed it would be offside but i because virgil's such a hulking presence i like many other people i suspect i hadn't seen little olaina uh hiding behind him he's not a hobbit keeping him on sides by a toenail so that's fair enough can't really complain about that but yeah i thought it was very i thought forrest deserved the point. Curtis Jones was a late call-up because Florian Wirtz got injured in the warm-up and they really missed Wirtz and Curtis Jones seemed to be at the heart of everything bad that happened to Liverpool in the first half.

28:57Max Rushden:Everything seemed to be his fault but I don't think he was alone. He was just conspicuously that little bit worse than McAllister and Gravenger Birch as well. He didn't have a particularly good game.

29:10Jonathan Wilson:Liverpool are, they're not into the top four, they're level on points now. Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool all level on the same points. Manchester United, of course, got that game in hand against Everton tonight. Palace won Wolves nil Wilson. High up the running order, mainly because Oliver Glasner's desperation to get sacked is just quite entertaining. On Thursday night, after the draw in the Conference League against Zrinski-Mostar, he thought, OK, I've got to have a go at the fans. Maybe that's my opportunity. They can sing whatever they want. I know what I'm doing. I would say the most important thing is to stay humble.

29:39Jonathan Wilson:I think the same for the fans. Stay humble. Never forget where you're coming from. I think a few who are so critical in this situation are not humble anymore. Forget where you're coming from and it's usually in life you are punished for this. But unfortunately for him, Gessin gets this late winner and they win the football match. And so he clings on against his will.

29:57Barry Glendenning:Yeah, I mean, it's just sad how that sort of degenerated. And you'd say that the last season we were talking about how great it was that Newcastle and Palace had both, in Newcastle's case after a 70-year gap, in Palace's case for the first time ever, won stuff or won things domestically. And actually both of those triumphs, I mean, it's not going to matter in 10 years. I suppose it's not going to matter now, but they have slightly been tainted by the fact that in Newcastle's case, the hero of that final was Alexander Izak, who then leaves in the summer in pretty acrimonious circumstances. And now, you know, Glastner and I guess Ezzer were the two big keys to Palace's victory.

30:37Barry Glendenning:Ezzer goes, I don't think I was speaking the acrimonious thing people understand that's just the structure of football now. But, you know, Glaston, he's chipping at the fans, the fans are having a go back at him. And that situation's all gone a bit unpleasant. So you're really not allowed to be happy for very long in football, are you?

30:55Jonathan Wilson:No. Do you think, John, it's affected Glaston's reputation? Like, do you think this will impact on the level of club he goes to next?

31:03John Brewin:Yes, and I think if you look at his previous career, things have unravelled elsewhere as well, which may have potential employers looking at. I noticed that he quoted from Gary Barlow there. Did you see that? Never forget where you're coming from. Oh, yeah. Yeah, so, you know, take that.

31:26Jonathan Wilson:We're pretty big. He didn't have a choir of schoolchildren behind him, did he? You know, that's what he needed.

31:31John Brewin:Maybe that's what he'll get for the big send-off at the end of the season, though I rather doubt it. I suppose the thing is they were playing Wolves. Wolves just are unlucky, aren't they? I think they were okay in this game. Rob Edwards is doing a reasonable job because I think we all know that his job is to keep things happy and on an even keel until next season when the real work begins. And I think he's done a pretty adequate job in that respect. But yeah, a late goal, a celebration. Do Palace fans sort of reluctantly celebrate that because they want him out? I mean, it's just such a strange vibe.

32:14But I mean, Palace has always been sort of, in their time in the Premier League,

32:19John Brewin:they've had a succession of managers, from Ian Holloway. I mean, I think if you remember, Ian Holloway sort of decided that he wasn't up for it. And then they got in Tony Pulis. I remember Tony Pulis did that really excellent job and then he walked away and then they had Allardyce and they had Roy Hodgson in and out, the De Boer thing. It's Palace and managers. It's like they don't stick around for a particularly long time. And I think a lot of the time they're straining against a club that's ambitious but is working around a pretty limited budget and a limited scope. and Glasner's from the very start almost from the transfer window that he didn't get the players the first transfer window he didn't get the players that he wanted has been banging his head against that and he's done a good job within that but his ambitions to go to a bigger club perhaps might well have been affected by his conduct I think that's fair to say

33:19Jonathan Wilson:Yeah, Arakadari looked like a guy who'd missed his last four penalties is a guy who'd missed his last four penalties three at Genk, one at Amiens and Crecci at the time was on the pitch scored 12 in his last 13 so it's odd that Orikadari took it he got nothing excuses the racist abuse and we're going to talk about that after the Chelsea Burnley game that he received online Barry was Crecci unlucky with that second yellow I thought he knew the whistle had gone and then kicked it away but then said he didn't hear because it was a bit it wasn't like a proper welly it down the line it was a bit of a half-arse clearance but maybe he hadn't heard we don't know

33:55Max Rushden:yeah I thought he was a little bit unlucky because the ball hadn't gone out of play and it was being contested. So I think you could have given them the benefit of the doubt. Wolves are a bit unlucky here. I think Edwards has done a good enough job. They're obviously going to get relegated, but I think they could still have a say in who goes down with them because they still have to play West Ham, Leeds, Spurs and Burnley. you'd imagine Burnley will probably be gone that's the last day of the season that'll be a you know one last hurrah for both of them before they go down into the championship but I'm kind of impressed with the the job Edwards has done he's you know Wolves don't resemble anything like the rabble they were before his arrival Yeah I totally agree

34:49Jonathan Wilson:it'd be quite the catharsis won't it that last day everyone's relegated but we all still love the game it might be a beautiful thing. Wilson, Chelsea won, Burnley won. Deserved point for Burnley. They almost won it at the end. Like, you know, like Fleming scores that header. They'd already been warned. I think Ashley Barnes had a header from a Ward-Priest corner. Then Brun Larsson has that chance. And there's just something about Burnley. Like, they will go down. I know afterwards Fleming was saying, look, you know, this could be the impossible dream. But I do love how they are just not giving up.

35:17Barry Glendenning:Yeah. And I guess one of the positive things of set plays is if you do have an edge over the opponent and the opponent can't work out how to stop you, every single one is suddenly fascinating. But I mean, Chelsea's mark on that was dreadful. I mean, I find trying to work out who should be marking whom almost impossible. So Mike Richards was blaming Andres Santos and it looks terrible that he just lets, Andres Santos just lets Fleming run past him. The only thing I wondered, and as I say, I find this far too complicated to actually understand. I need somebody to talk me through it. But he had gone through Andrew Santos' zone and maybe he thought, well, that's not my job anymore.

36:00Barry Glendenning:And I think it's Tosin Adirabayo is sort of, then he's sort of just standing there watching as Fleming gets close to him and doesn't advance towards him. So whoever's fault it is, it is somebody's fault and it has gone wrong. And I think Liam Rossini is right that Chelsea shouldn't be letting in goals like that. Maybe you get one corner that happens with him. If that was a piece of goal, fair enough. But the fact it's repeated and they weren't able to correct that. And Chelsea have had this problem all season with set plays, long throws. They've let in a lot of cheap goals through that.

36:36Jonathan Wilson:Although it's difficult, you know, chat at a corner when you're defending. It's quite hard to communicate. Not my zone, your zone, my zone. In my zone, at your zone. Like with any sort of accuracy. Is there a blurred line between zones? What was interesting about Rossini was he said one of our players missed his assignment, which either is, as Barry and I were discussing yesterday, either is that didn't do his French homework assignment, or it's like a sort of FBI hitman didn't do his assignment. But he said someone marked the wrong guy, which reminds me of Sunday League where you try and mark someone smaller than you early so you don't have to mark the hulking great centre-back that comes up from the back.

37:17Jonathan Wilson:And there is some coward in the Chelsea squad that we don't know that was meant to mark Zian Fleming but didn't.

37:22John Brewin:Can we credit James Ward-Prowse with his delivery? I mean, I think that the whole issue became an issue for Chelsea, is that they could not deal with the quality of James Ward-Prowse's delivery. I mean, Scott Parker talked about that afterwards and Liam Rossini acknowledged it as well. It was, you know, in the set play era, it is odd that obviously Nuno and James Ward-Prowse have had some sort of personal relationship breakdown for whatever reason. We don't know. That was both at Forest and West Ham. It felt like he would have been a lot of use to West Ham with the players they have. And then Burnley have the benefit of Ward-Prowse for the moment.

38:07John Brewin:No, he only came on as a substitute and Chelsea had failed to kill off the game. A long-arrived Football Weekly hero, Ashley Barnes, who 11 years ago, I was at a game in which he and Nemanja Matic got involved in a contretemps and Matic was sent off for retaliation. So those with long memories booed Ashley Barnes. I do have a long memory but I wasn't booing him Fair play for remembering that Yeah and yes I suppose Ashley Barnes and James added the chaos element that Rossini's team don't deal with too well, it's a game they should have killed off but I don't get to the Stamford Bridge too often and I saw some complaints about the atmosphere after and I have to share with that it's a game against Burnley so it's a Saturday three o 'clock it's not you know the highest grade fixture but it was a bit empty and it felt like the game was just sort of ebbing somewhere and that's where Scott Parker and Burnley saw their chance and they got into it credit to them you know it's funny isn't it Wolves have got a very low total Burnley have got a very low total but you can't say either of those teams have given up they've impressed in their own ways haven't they and I suppose it shows it speaks to the quality that's in the Premier League you know and Flemings was a great header.

39:33John Brewin:Well done Burnley, I've got to say. Liam Resenia afterwards was very honest, which I think is something, sadly, that's going to count against him at a certain point because that's just the way that us in the Carrion media are. He's going to say something that's going to count against him.

39:50Jonathan Wilson:Fofana was sent off. He and Hannibal were subjected to racist abuse from this game online. Orochidare was abused yesterday. Romain Mundell missed a chance for Sunderland. he was racially abused. Kick it out. Say this has been an appalling weekend after four players called out racist abuse they've received on social media. But the sad fact is we know it happens regularly. The message from them is loud and clear. Action must follow. Players cannot be expected to tolerate this behaviour and nor should anyone else. Meta, responding to the BBC after the Fafana and Hannibal abuse, said no one should be subjected to racist abuse.

40:24Jonathan Wilson:We remove this content when we find it. No one thing will stop racist behaviour overnight, but we'll continue working to protect our community from abuse and cooperate with police investigations which barry is good words from

40:35Max Rushden:meta but i don't know if anyone believes it no i don't think they make any more than a token effort to remove that kind of content it's difficult to know how to police it unless the police actually get involved find out who's posting the abuse subject them to the full force of the law and and they should be jailed, and people have been jailed for it in the past. But beyond that, it's difficult to know what more can be done. I presume quite a lot of the abuse is coming from outside the United Kingdom. I'm not saying all of it is because some people in the UK have been prosecuted successfully. But I don't have the answers.

41:20Max Rushden:But I do think it is disingenuous of Meta to claim that they're doing everything in their power to stop it.

41:27Jonathan Wilson:Yeah, and this is just the stuff we see. I'm sure there are loads of players that just don't publicise the abuse that they're getting, and it's just incredibly depressing. Anyway, that'll do for part two. Part three, we'll round up the rest of the games.

41:52Jonathan Wilson:Welcome to part three of the Guardian Football Weekly. Villa won Leeds one, and Baz, this is so tough for Leeds to take. The free kick from Anton Stack is so good. They played brilliantly for so much of this game. And a win would have been enormous in their survival race.

42:07Max Rushden:Yeah, you do tend to see their manager rueing missed wins a lot in post-match interviews. We hear a lot about teams throwing away points from winning positions. I'd like to know, and it would be easy enough to find out how many points leads have thrown away from drawing positions where they should have won. And I think this was a case in point. Still a point gained, and they shouldn't forget that. They deserve to win. The Anton Stack free kick was brilliant. Pulls it into the near top corner when Martinez was expecting him to go the other side. And Villa were booed off at halftime. And, yeah, Tammy Abraham knees one home at the death to rescue a point for Villa.

42:56Max Rushden:And I think, yeah, it's probably a point they were lucky to get.

43:00Jonathan Wilson:Rory says, is Anton Stack the biggest big man you've ever seen taking a free kick like that? It feels like a mistake. It reminded me a bit, Wilson, of Gary Mack versus Everton. It's slightly different, but you know, the sort of seeing the keeper in the wrong place. But can you think of, I mean, I suppose Ronaldo's quite tall, but he hasn't scored a free kick since I think the early 2000s. But like, is there anyone else out there? Any other big men?

43:23Barry Glendenning:I guess the unusual thing about it is there's this sort of a craft to it whereas you think of something like Ronald Koeman who is a big man who would take free kicks but he just

43:33Jonathan Wilson:yeah

43:34Barry Glendenning:who just absolutely muller it and I guess I mean a stack can muller it absolutely but I mean when he arrived he came with a bigger reputation and when I spoke to people in Germany about him people said no he's actually he is really good he will be Leeds as best player this season I was a bit sceptical but he has been excellent and it's because he's got that combination of the physicality but he's also can you know can can pass a ball and can shoot Producer Silas says Zlatan I mean maybe yeah

44:00Jonathan Wilson:Murillo they like

44:02John Brewin:Forrest occasionally just decide you know go on big man have a pop from here don't they that's you know and if he gets behind it then well you don't want to get in the way I think yeah

44:13Jonathan Wilson:you're right it's a good point from Wilson though like it's a it is a perfect you know it's a it's a it's a Predators free kick not a Robert Huth get over it and take a goal kick type free kick. West Ham, Neil Bournemouth, Neil Barry, you found the first half of this so bad you watched shiny Saturday night TV instead.

44:30Max Rushden:Yes, I watched the first half there was nothing of interest happened whatsoever and the second half I spent watching Michael McIntyre's big show so the second half could have been brilliant. I haven't seen it I'm afraid.

44:44Jonathan Wilson:Would you recommend the switch? Bruin not impressed.

44:49Max Rushden:Yeah, I mean I'm not really a Michael McIntyre fan. And I'm aware comedy is subjective. I'm more used to seeing him as a cutaway in the crowd at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Peter Crouch and Abbey Clancy were on it, so it wasn't entirely on the football related. They were up in the Waldorf and Statler box. And yeah, it was, you know, as Saturday Night Light Entertainment goes, it was fine. I'd had a few pints. I'd met some friends in the pub for the Ireland-England rugby match. so it was grand I was kind of half asleep

45:24Jonathan Wilson:West Ham are in the relegation zone Wilson they are two points off Forest four points off Spurs six points off Leeds and they have started playing better this is another game where I think they could have won they may regret these missed chances they've got Liverpool away Fulham away City home Villa away so they could have no points from those four games maybe I'm just speaking hopefully my Tottenham hat on but like that is a tough run for them to continue their sort of mini resurgence.

45:54Barry Glendenning:It is. I mean, there's two ways of looking at it. They're 2-0 up at Chelsea and lose the game. They're 1-0 up going into injury time against Manchester United and draw the game. This game, I think they had 2.7 XG against 0.6, 0.7, something like that. So they probably should have won the game. And you think if they did have those seven extra points, then obviously have you had seven more points, you'd be in a better place than the table. but they'd be out of the relegation so the pressure on Forrest and Spurs would be far greater. They've just got to hope that the upturn in form will continue.

46:29Barry Glendenning:I don't think any of those games are... I mean, the thing this season is there is no great team in the Premier League. There is no City getting 100 points, Liverpool getting 90-odd points. So every game is an opportunity to get points and the way West Ham play, the fact that they sit back, they absorb possession, they strike on the break. Even dominant as they were in terms of the XG on Saturday, I think they still only had just over 40 % of the ball. But it doesn't matter to them. It suits the way they play to play against better sides. And you look at Liverpool, you look how bad they were first half against Forrest.

47:02Barry Glendenning:There's no reason why West Ham can't get something from that.

47:05Jonathan Wilson:Yeah. Cases, what do you make of Alphonse Areola DJing in a bar after West Ham's game in the middle of a relegation dogfight? They're allowed to let their hair down. He has some hair, Barry, doesn't he? I mean, obviously you wouldn't know who it was. You'd think. Oh, DJ Lucas Fabianski. On the steel wheels, playing the platters of Matthew. Is that McCloschko? There it is. Who's that? Who's in goal there? Anyway, well done to him for pressing play and then moving. It looks like he's in the kitchen. Well, didn't Liam Ross Sr.

47:34Max Rushden:get photographed having a beer after Chelsea drew Burnley? I mean, that's a scandalous behavior.

47:41John Brewin:He was also accused of having no aura because he was drinking. what looked like a... You know when you get a pint and it's sort of overfilled and it's the sort of flaky bit, you know, like a foam at the top? It looked like a bad pint, but he hadn't even started it.

48:00Max Rushden:It looked like a bad, very expensive pint you get in a massively overpriced hotel.

48:06John Brewin:Yes, bang on, Barry, yeah.

48:07Max Rushden:In Docklands or something.

48:09Barry Glendenning:Yeah, well, it looked like a... I'm not sure it was an overpriced hotel. It looked like a Holiday Inn Express bar, something like that. It looked very sort of standard budget-y.

48:21Jonathan Wilson:Can anyone have an aura in a Holiday Inn? Can anyone? Would Oliver Reed have an aura if you saw him having a shit pint in a Holiday Inn? Who has an aura when they're just having one pint of Heineken alone in a travel lodge? It's just not possible.

48:37Max Rushden:Yes, Wilson?

48:38Barry Glendenning:The Holiday Inn chain, I think, is named after the Bing Crosby film Holiday Inn. So I'd like to think Bing Crosby could have an aura and a Holiday Inn. But John and I had a pint with Sam Allardyce and Jim Montgomery in the bar at the, what's it called? The Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Garden Court, next to the Stadium of Light ones. And I would say Sam Allardyce had an aura that night.

49:00Jonathan Wilson:Fine. Well, that is true. Big Sam, you can see it. Brighton won 2-0 at Brentford. Massive win for Fabian Herzler. James Milner's record-breaking 654th Premier League appearance, one beyond Gareth Barry. Our own Barry has already explained why James Milner is a fraud on this podcast because Gareth Barry has played many more minutes. But, John, this is a, you know, sort of, you think, well, that's Brighton probably safe and they really needed a win and Brentford is not an easy place to go and credit to them.

49:32John Brewin:No, great win for Brighton in which actually James Milner played very well. So well done to him on his big game. I suppose it makes James Milner being a 40 year old appearance record appearance probably makes us all feel very old in this quartet because I think we all remember that his lead beginnings of those at that early goal At Sondland on Boxing Day Yes well I knew you'd remember yeah he I was going to say interesting quotes from Keith afterwards and he said the thing is for the last 10 games we've been the best team in the Premier League, so, you know, not to feel too... And I thought, God, Keith, you know, I mean, that's...

50:15John Brewin:You're veering... I mean, I'm a fan of Keith, I should say that. I think he's done a great job. We all do, obviously. But you're veering slightly into Brendan territory, aren't you, with things like that. It was a slightly odd comment to make. Maybe in person it felt a bit better than it did when I was just reading it on the BBC text, but it was like, ooh, that's a bit much.

50:38Jonathan Wilson:Fulham won 3-1 at Sunderland. Good game here, wasn't it? And, you know, we'd mentioned Ramiro Mandel getting that abuse. No justification for that. He has a big chance at 0-0 just before Fulham take the lead. Jimenez scored a penalty after that. Calvin Bassi had his shirt pulled by Brian. Brobby, Brobby, Brobby. I didn't think Brobby had the dexterity to grab hold of a shirt, but there we go. Well done. Angulo was absolutely terrible.

51:03Barry Glendenning:I've... Yes? I'm frustrated by Angulo already. I thought he was bad against Liverpool. I thought he was awful in this game. Missed a good chance. Gives the ball away a lot. But actually, the thing I thought was inexcusable was he tried a turn. I think he probably did get caught, but doesn't get the free kick. And he just stays down, forces the game to stop. Then he stands up. He's not injured. He's just whining. It's been something someone's been pleasantly free of for quite a while. Just get up, get back in position. And he didn't do it. So I was not impressed by him at all. Sunderland's new left wing signing.

51:42Barry Glendenning:And the sooner that Xhaka is back and Lefeuille can move back to the left wing, the better. I did like the look of Jocelyn Tarby on the right until he got injured, though. He was a young Ivorian who was very lively in the first half.

51:55Max Rushden:Yeah, I saw the Sunderland line-up. I'd never heard of him. And I'd go, who's this guy? I had to go and look him up. So they now have a Tarby and a Talby. Yeah.

52:05John Brewin:Very exciting.

52:06Max Rushden:Yeah. The one thing I would say about this game is at 2-1, with 10 minutes to go, it looked like Sunderland would get a point and then Fulham scored this wonderful breakaway goal orchestrated by Harry Wilson with a brilliant finish from Alex Evobe. Yeah.

52:26Jonathan Wilson:Elsewhere, Sheffield Wednesday, we all know the plight they've been in, relegated from the Championship after a 2-1 defeat at their rival Sheffield United. They were 2-0 down, and Calvin Phillips, who announced to the world that he plays for Sheffield United by getting a straight red. One of those where he takes the ball and then he really crunches into the knee. He can't catch a break, can he? Wednesday scored straight away and he thought maybe they will keep themselves up at least for this game. But yeah, that's the earliest ever relegation, obviously. In the SPL, Celtic and Rangers both dropped points and Hearts won.

52:58Jonathan Wilson:I was with a Hearts-supporting mate yesterday who was just absolutely terrified as Rangers got from 2-0 down to 2-2 and thought they were going to win it. And anyway, Hearts, four points clear now of Rangers, six points clear of Celtic, have a game in hand. Old Firm at Ibrox next weekend. Let's go to the Jazz Bar with you and Murray next week then. And Mike says, can we have a mention for the Kiwi Derby and the legendary home goal? I sent this to you, John. Yes. Absolutely. It's Wellington versus Auckland. I think Wellington lost 5-0. It was 0-0 at the time. And an amazing get-launch clearance almost on the edge of the box.

53:30Jonathan Wilson:And it's just a great moment of football.

53:33John Brewin:it's what we love about the game poetry poetry yeah

53:37Jonathan Wilson:the keeper is far out and then he just sort of heads it into his own net I encourage you all to go and search it out so anyway

53:43Barry Glendenning:that'll do for today thanks everybody thank you Wilson cheers thank you thanks Baz thank you cheers John

53:48Jonathan Wilson:thanks for having me but my weekly ears produced by Silas Gray our executive producer is Ian Chambers we'll be back on Wednesday

54:07Barry Glendenning:This is The Guardian.