Celtic’s crisis grows and drama in the Carabao Cup – Football Weekly

0:00This is The Guardian.

0:301978. Where does that fit in the Venn diagram? Then to the Carabao, Lewis Miley puts Newcastle past Fulham in the last minute. Ray and Cherky shines again for City, while Chelsea see off a spirited Cardiff. There's a Premier League preview. Newcastle, Chelsea, Spurs, Liverpool and Villaman United stand out. There's the Guardian's top 100 footballers. Some belated half and half scarf excitement. Your questions. And that's today's Guardian Football Weekly. On the panel today, Barry Glendani, welcome. Hi Max. Hello, Jordan Jarrett, Brian. Morning mate. Welcome, Sam Dalling. Hello, Max. And friend of the pod, host of the RGC podcast, Barca Jim, Jim Burke, Celtic fan.

1:06Welcome, Jim. How you doing, Max? All right? Yeah. Yeah, how are you? We're speaking far too often these days. We really are. Do you know what? I mean, okay, so Paul says Wilford Nancy discussed. It's a fascinating story about sort of how he was appointed and how they've gone and the timing of the appointment. and we have touched on it in previous pods. But like I said, lost four in a row for the first time since 1978. My first thought was a stat from before I was born. Mull of Kintyre by Wings was number one at this time, Jim. You lost 2-1 to Dundee United last night, which was Dundee United's first time they'd beaten Celtic in 11 years.

1:45Their first win in eight. So it's unlike the three previous defeats, which have been difficult games, I guess. And Celtic were unlucky in this game, I guess. I think that's a very kind synopsis. We didn't have a shot in target after the 13th minute, Max. We started really well. The first 10 minutes or so, we started really well. But then it was more a case of Dundee United being bad than us being good. And then at halftime, Jim Goodwin got Dundee United in, sorted a couple of tactical tweaks, and we never laid a glove on them for 45 minutes. And I know, let's deal with the entitlement thing right away.

2:24Everybody's going to say, Celtic fans, you win everything. but what you're all complaining about, we expect better from the resources that we've got. It's as simple as that. And to be outplayed by Dundee United for 45 minutes and not lay a glove on them for another 35 minutes, that's not really on, Max. I mean, Chris Sutton said, look, after that Mayedemus, you might just wonder if it's not meant to be for Wilford Nancy. Bottom line is it's more substandard players than the manager. It all goes back to a poor summer. Celtic look like a third-place team at present. Is that fair? I mean, it's not just him, right?

3:00It's absolutely fair. I think Barry wrote a really good piece about Celtic and it just is the fact that this is all of their own doing. You know, this isn't external forces working against Celtic. This is a lot of grown men shooting themselves in the foot. Brendan was at his games, bringing him into conflict with the board. Tisdale, the man from that footballing hub of Exeter. No disrespect to Exeter, by the way, of course. Well, you can say that, Max. I'm going heavily on disrespect to Exeter. In fact, there we go. I'm creating beef with Exeter. Everything was just self-inflicted. That's the bottom line.

3:46We weren't a result of external forces. We have brought this upon ourselves. and I can't see any... I mean, the manager before the game, you know, said, football, it's trial and error. Really? Trial and error? You're getting paid whatever you're getting paid. Football management isn't trial and error. Well, maybe he's right. I mean, this is the thing. Maybe I was thinking about this because he obviously, he's fascinating. And the Venn diagram that he posted, which turned out to be a sort of accidental, just trying to change his profile pic. But if you haven't seen it, it is like any Venn diagram and a great chance to talk about Venn diagrams that I don't think we've ever had since I started the pod.

4:32Things you can control on one side, things that matter on the other, and a little shaded bit in the middle with, you know, what you should focus on. And, you know, a bit like football being trial and error, like strip it back. Maybe he's right. Maybe he's trying to say there's an existential point here that football doesn't matter. that's what he's been brought to Celtic to do to make this deeper than it is but you know there is it is fascinating that there is a real sort of Russell Martin vibe to the way he talks about the game Well exactly and the thing is I say Max I've said this to you before you start to sound very much like you're pitching for one of those high performance type gigs mate that was all a bit to you know who I mean but that actually that's the Russell Martin thing's not a bad thing to bring up because Celtic should have learned from looking across the city what happens when you bring in somebody who maybe hasn't operated at a level where the demands on them are so big it was clear to me after two games that Nolce was out of his depth and nothing has happened since then to change I mean, after the game we were close to winning come on you were but I think he's all wrong right well he said after the game I think I'm in a good direction with the players today he saw we had a good performance we're improving we're close to winning keep the faith Celtic fans are going to want to hear that after their fourth consecutive defeat and they've just been beaten by Dundee United I mean we've already spoken at length about the recruitment The AGM we mentioned on Monday where Celtic fans were condescended to and sneered at by the club hierarchy to within an inch of their lives.

6:28But the thing is, Wilfred Nancy coming in, he came in on the back of a very underwhelming run with Columbus Crew. Before that, he was pretty underwhelming, I think, at Montreal and Impact. now Paul Tisdale who Jim mentioned their former head coach of Exeter City I think Paul listens to this podcast or he certainly used to but Paul I like him he's that guy you know he wears he used to stand on the cravat and the pork pie hat good guy I had some dealings with him just he got in touch once after something we'd said I think it was the pod not the radio show but So he worked with Kwame Ampadu, Ethan's father, at Exeter.

7:17And Kwame worked with Wilfred Nancey at Columbus Crew and is now his number two at Celtic. So people are putting two and two together, possibly getting five, but they're assuming that the link between Tisdale and Ampadu and Ampadu and Nancey is the reason Nancey rocked up at Celtic Park. and we don't know for sure because Paul Tisdale doesn't speak publicly. But I suspect Paul probably isn't that popular at Celtic at the moment because he's in charge of recruitment and the recruitment, I think it's fair to say, has been pretty dismal since the summer. Yeah, I mean, I suppose the thing is, Jim, it doesn't matter if you appoint somebody you know if it's good and goes well.

8:04In the same way, it doesn't matter if your appointment is left field and it works, but if it doesn't work, it immediately becomes completely nonsensical, doesn't it? It's exactly it. And, you know, the mood with the fans even before his appointment wasn't great. There's a kind of narrative that it's the youth and the malcontents that are driving the complaints against the board and whatever. That's really not the case. There's a much wider discomfort amongst the support, simply on the basis that we look at the resources we've got And we really shouldn't. I mean, 10 months ago, we ran Bayern Munich really close in the Champions League.

8:43And in the space of 10 months, we're now being well beaten by a St. Mermen team and a Dundee United team in the space of three days. Now, at some point, somebody has to ask the question, why has that happened? And the only logical explanation for me is you look at the board. and that includes all of the recruitment in terms of both players and management and also the potential issues with Brendan as well. It starts at the board and it really should finish with the board but at the same time the fans at the moment I mean we're at our wits end. Jim, Peter Lawl, the chairman, he announced yesterday he's stepping down because of the abuse he's been subjected to And I think, to be fair, the Celtic fans could have behaved better at that AGM.

9:37I don't think that's an unfair assessment. So it isn't entirely Lowell and Desmond and Desmond's son's fault that that AGM was shut down so quickly. But will he be missed? He must have done some good work over the years because Celtic were winning all around them. he has always been a very divisive figure in the support he has had periods where he has been very popular but a lot of it he has been very unpopular simply because there's been various times where we maybe should have kicked on like the Bayern Munich situation is a is one and he has become a bit of a figurehead in some fans' eyes for the failure to do that.

10:30The AGM, I suspect that Lowell saw the opportunity to draw what would have been potentially very difficult. The fans did give him the opportunity to draw that AGM to a close. The booing and the pantomime booing and hissing when he walked in and holding up the red cards, I didn't follow it live. I was working And then when I saw it, I thought, oh, the fans, oh my goodness, how stupid. You shouldn't have given them the opportunity. Then I saw Ross Desmond's comments and I thought, well, fair enough, lads. So yes, there was a bit of blame attached to the fans, Barry, but I can't get away from the fact that the current board and its current situation is manifestly unfit for purpose.

11:17Peter Law said, I believe that my 18 years as chief executive and three years as chairman at the club have shown my ability to meet and overcome challenges on many fronts. But abuse and threats from some sources have increased and are now intolerable. They have dismayed and alarmed my family at this stage of my life. I don't need this. I cannot accept this. And so I leave the club I've loved all my life. The motivations and aims of these detractors can be investigated by others. I prefer to look back on my career at Celtic with deep gratitude and satisfaction. What happens now, Jim? We've got a blueprint what to do when a manager isn't fit for purpose.

11:51and I think we have to go with that. Truthfully, if they put me in charge of Celtic at nine o 'clock this morning, it would be a strange move. I'll say that. You don't even follow the AGM live. Call yourself a real fan. I would say to the manager, look, you're a square peg in the round hole. Thank you, but off you go. And then just reinstall the management team that was there before. And I'm not Martin O 'Neill's biggest fan, incidentally. I've got issues with Martin, but put Martin O 'Neill, Sean Maloney and Matt Fotheringham back in charge of First Team Matters and see if we can rescue the season.

12:31I mean, Martin O 'Neill hasn't exactly been helpful because he rolled a grenade in on Monday when he went on TalkSport and blithely announced that he'd have happily stayed there until the end of the season if he'd been asked. But he wasn't asked. and a lot of Celtic fans think he should have been left in charge for the Hearts, Roma and St Mirren games but then if you do that it shows you've no confidence in the guy you're appointing that might have been sensible with the benefit of hindsight but it isn't exactly a vote of confidence in the new guy no um sam did you want to come in oh i was just i was gonna say a similar thing about the o 'neill element doesn't help a new manager right when you stick a club legend in as an interim and then say to someone that none of the fan base have heard of right this guy is going to follow the man who brought you so much success and yeah he stuck his oar in that i'm going to stick my oar in and this is awful because it's that thing that all of us football fans when we hear people talk about our club who have literally no real knowledge they've cursory like read a headline or two and then they suddenly make like definitive statements i'm going to try and defend nancy a little bit like so i know i know very little about celtic although dundee united versus celtic at tannidace was one of the first ever games of football i went to because we used to go up to scotland every year but you watch the highlights right is it kenny the center forward right they should be two three nil up like if that goal goes in and we're talking about these such fine margins right this conversation isn't happening because they want it done the united and of course everything wouldn't be fine but i do have a degree of sympathy for him i thought he interviewed quite well afterwards what else can he say he's asked those questions like he isn't going to come out and say yeah actually we were really rubbish i probably should go and the very final question about a nine minute interview was so um have you got i'm paraphrasing but have you got renewed resolve or do you think it's probably time to like to walk away and he's like he's like and he nancy like visibly bristles at it and he comes back and rightly so like what a silly question he's like no i've been here two weeks um and that's i think where the players are moving in in my direction so he hasn't had a pre-season like he's coming he's playing a new system i as i say i know not much about self to chris sutton and everyone seems to be saying the recruitment is really bad they haven't got center forwards i mean it doesn't help nancy's style is to play like one centre-half, isn't it, with kind of two wing-backs.

15:11It's almost hammering. Like, he's a three-at-the-back man. It just feels... I know Celtic is a massive club, and I understand the strength of feeling, but like it was their 15th loss of the year, of the calendar year, and I think they lost four in 2024. So it does... There's a lot of things that suggest it isn't just this one man, which you have said. The fact he couldn't tell the difference between Twitter and WhatsApp in terms of changing his profile picture is a little bit worrying. With that aside. Yeah. Stuart Holden, the US international who played for Bolton for a while and is now back in the States, says that I genuinely feel for him.

15:45A lot of factors at play, a really tough schedule of games. He's proven himself as an excellent coach in MLS, great at developing players. But the European pressures at a club like Celtic demand winning from the off. I hope he gets more time to get his fingerprints on the team. But unfortunately, I don't think he will. He's been too naive in how quickly he thought he could implement his style of play and get wins for which he might pay the price. And I suppose that's the point, Jim, isn't it? He has gone in and said, you know, Martin O 'Neill plays a certain way and I think we can play this way.

16:11Yes. And in those three fixtures, it's sort of mad. Well, that's it. And to be fair, Barry mentioned a grenade. He actually launched two grenades, Barry, because he also said that Nancy hadn't even asked him really about the players. There was a wee kind of 15-minute handover chat where it was just probably a, where's the parking spot, blah, blah, blah. anywhere nice to eat in Glasgow, that kind of thing. And he didn't ask them about the players. So Martin's got previous convictions for mischievousness. And I think there's a bit of, I think he maybe saw to himself, I could be back in time for the Rangers game in January if I play my cards right here.

16:54All right then, Jim. Well, I wish you the best. I don't know if you want to, it's nice for you to come on. It's nice to talk to you. But obviously, if it starts going well, we probably won't. No, absolutely. And I don't want to be on here for years, in fact. Well, until Scotland beat Brazil, of course. Yeah, exactly. Don't, don't, indeed. Or lose to Haiti. It's one of the two, isn't it? Cheers, Mel. All right, cheers now. Bye-bye. Jim Burke there, Pastor Jim from the RGC Celtic podcast. And that'll do for part one. Part two, we'll do the Carabao Cup quarterfinals.

17:35Welcome to part two of the Guardian Football Weekly. So the Carabao Cup semi-final draw, Newcastle, Man City, Arsenal, Palace v Chelsea. Who's going to win the Carabao Cup, Jordan? Oh, who's going to win the Carabao Cup? I don't know. I think you've got some really strong teams left in there. I could put an argument forward for everybody. Obviously, Arsenal, Palace do have to play, so they've got the most amount of games left to play. I think City look really good. I think City are kind of getting into the groove. I think City are purring, which is concerning for my team and everybody else. If we start with the City win last night, what's really scary about the City win is that they're now winning quite a few games in second gear.

18:21They seem to be just not expeding too much energy in getting wins in the league and in the League Cup last night over the line. Beautiful goal from Shirky. and I think they'd have to be the favourites. I do. I think Arsenal are wobbling. That's for sure. Crystal Palace, I think it was a long shot. Chelsea, who've got potentially Arsenal or Palace in the next round. I don't think you can rule them out. They seem to have a really good cup record over the last few years. But I think City are the other team that I'd put the smart money on at the moment. Yeah. I mean, that Cherokee goal, Sam, he is one of, currently, right now, one of the most exciting players to watch based on, you know, that Rabona that I criticised in this finish.

19:01But, God, he strikes that. It's like it's sped up, isn't it? Yeah, I mean, it was beautiful. The little touch, it was such a subtle, the movement to shift it from left to right. And then the time, I mean, if we did one of those graphics where the time between, like, ball leaving foot and hitting the net, and it does take a little nick off the defender's head, but it's only about a yard away from the line there. It's such a pure strike. Didn't please Pep, though. Did you see Pep afterwards said, oh, yeah, close to the 18-yard box of the opponent. He is an exceptional player. It was a fantastic goal.

19:30So it's not necessary to be a journalist or a manager to realise he's a fantastic player. Now, I love the fact that he has chucked journalists in with managers as if we are somehow great judges of footballers ahead of the general public. But then his last line was, after that, he didn't play very well. So it's not enough to score that absolute belter. He's called him out in public. But yeah, Man City look really good. And he is a lovely little footballer to watch. It really was a super strike. and also that touch as he touched it Mikael Damsgaard just came in shot and went out of shot didn't he just he's still he's still running um I mean anything else from this than the City win take your eye Baz I mean James Trafford had another had another game which was nice for him yeah I mean you give a passing mention to a Brentford player there they they also participated in this game.

20:20And Keith Andrews is getting a bit of shade for leaving Jordan Henderson and Igor Thiago at home. They weren't even on the bench. I don't think they were injured. And Brentford have Wolves on Saturday, I think, or Sunday. And they're actually staying up in Manchester. They were due to train at Manchester City's training ground this morning. so people are saying this is a competition Brentford should be trying to win so why are you leaving out your star striker and one of your most influential senior players but we always hear this during cup games, league cup games FA cup games, other squad members deserve to get a run out you mentioned James Trafford there he played, he kept a clean sheet, he made a few saves I thought Valde Marson in goal for Brentford as well instead of Queevy and Kelleher.

21:20He played okay. He was all right. Can't say I'd ever heard of him before. Yeah, I don't really have anything much else to add. Trafford played. He didn't concede. So, you know. Yes, Sam. I know you've talked about James Trafford before. No, I'm not going to go on James Trafford. Brentford have history. I remember being on this show this time last year and they'd just played up at Newcastle in the cup quarterfinal and we were very surprised that they'd left Mbwemo and I think it was Norgard out there. They basically left two of their most exciting and best attacking players out at that point. So they obviously don't prioritize this competition.

21:54I mean, is it worth talking about the potential red card? Keith Andrews was certain that Kuchinov should have been sent off. It was that tackle on Sharder. He's outside the box. He is going through. It is a clear goal-scoring opportunity. I think Brentford are staying up and they're training at City's training ground today. So him and Guardiola was asked about it afterwards. And they're going to have coffee and discuss it, Guardiola and Andrews. But I think it's a very legitimate shout. And had VAR been in place, I'm not sure Kushinov stays on the pitch. And that could have changed it. Yeah, let's go to the game at St James' Park then.

22:26Newcastle beat for him 2-1. A nice moment for Lewis Miley, Sam, there in the last minute. It looks like he's grown a foot in the last year. In my mind, he's tiny, but he's enormous. He's just been solidly on the weights for a year. They talked about in the last 18 months how the boys become a man. And he is still 19. He was 17 when he first played. I stood next to him in a lift at one of the European games earlier in the season. And while he is a big, tall man, he still looks very much like a child. But yeah, he has become... Newcastle needed a local hero right after Sunday. And they had a local hero at the start.

23:00There's been a bit of controversy about the song. We come out to local hero and the players had decided, apparently, that they knew better than the fans and they wanted it a little bit earlier in the playlist. They wanted something that would get them up for the game at St. James Park. so we haven't been coming out to local hero. It didn't land that well. The fans weren't, I mean, all these fan consultations that you seem to have that are just meaningless. No one asked Newcastle fans about that, but that was back. So there was local hero in its rightful place at the start, a local hero at the end.

23:28He has become, he's ahead of Joe Linton. He's in Newcastle's best midfield free now. He's played 65 odd games at 19. There was a point, he made his 50th appearance for Newcastle earlier in the season and he had to turn his, it was on his Twitter and he turned the comments off because he'd been getting so much social media abuse. And we know what social media is like, but he is becoming ahead of Joe Linton. It's this Newcastle trying to develop someone who is a little bit better on the ball, isn't just a fighter in midfield. He's got that little bit of quality and he looks like he believes he should be there, which I think was the difference previously.

24:07he's been someone who sort of gets the ball and then immediately just gives it to Sandro Tonali or Bruno Gimerez because he's almost deferring to them whereas now he has that little bit more confidence he plays with his chest up he scored a couple of goals scored with his head away at Leverkusen last week did so again this time he played it right back as well and Howe said afterwards that basically he gave him a load of information on the morning of the game that's how often Newcastle are playing so he's clearly an intelligent footballer and at the moment he is in a better stage in his career than Elliot Anderson was at a similar age like he's getting game time Howard's played him like eased him in pretty well and is now probably in Newcastle's first choice 11 which I think is kudos for him and it's lovely obviously he's got a younger brother too there was an older brother who played a little bit in the 21s he's now at Hartlepool and there's a younger brother so presumably the younger brother is it's going to be even better.

24:59Wow the next longstaffs Jordan. Just a quick point on both the managers, Max. I think I've heard in recent months talk from the Newcastle fan base about Eddie Howe having potentially reached his peak and maybe the cup win last season was as good as it was going to get and they're not overly happy with his performance this season. I don't agree. I think there's more to come from Eddie Howe. I wouldn't be stunned if they did win this cup again this season. But I think that kind of is an interesting contrast to Marco Silva who it looks to me is a manager that maybe has peaked with Fulham. I don't know where Fulham can go.

25:37Their ceiling seems to be a European spot of which even that they're struggling to try and get. Do you say peak in terms of this is the best that he can do or the best that he can do at Fulham and he could do better somewhere else? Because he's often been in that. He's sort of the last person in the conversation for Tottenham, for example. And also Marco Silva might get it, but he doesn't. Yeah, no, I think what I mean, I think he's peaked with what he can do with Fulham. But I also don't know if Fulham, and I say this knowing that Crystal Palace won a trophy last year, but I don't know if even Fulham, there's a higher ceiling for Fulham to be...

26:13Do you know what I mean? If they're not going to win the League Cup, they're not going to finish above 7th or 8th. I don't know, A, how much further they can go. But yeah, I don't also know how much further he can go with them. I just thought that was a nice contrast with the manager that I think actually could still do some more with their club, i.e. Eddie Howe. Eddie Howe definitely seems to get more of a pass than other managers whose teams are struggling, I think. Now, I do appreciate Sam mentioned that Lewis Miley had to play it right back last night. At the moment, Newcastle have Lewis Hall, Dan Byrne, Ciarán Trippier, Tino Livermento went off last night with what looked like it could be a bad knee injury.

26:58Emile Crafts, Sven Bachmann, all out injured. So that's a lot of defenders. They played Chelsea at home, I think, at the weekend. So I guess it's going to be Lewis Hall. And with Alex Murphy, the Irish kid, he came on last night. he'll probably have to play at left back, will he? So they're really down to the absolute bare bones in terms of defence. I mean, did Eddie Howe get any grief or much, if any grief, after the debacle on Sunday, Sam? I know you wrote about the game and you weren't impressed with what you saw as a Newcastle fan. It's such a difficult one. Eddie Howe, I've said it before, like, brilliant manager, done amazing things in Newcastle.

27:44The worry is and the concern is, I'll answer your question directly. Yes. Yes, he did. Because, and I know you talked about the game, I didn't listen because funnily enough, I have disengaged from that game completely. I wrote my report while standing in a police cordon afterwards and that is it. I don't need, I didn't need anyone to tell me how rubbish Newcastle United were that day. I saw it for my eyes, for myself. I think he got everything wrong. Say again. Did you see the goal? I saw the goal. I saw the goal. It was the best header I've seen Nick Valtamada come up with in his time at Newcastle.

28:24I also, I parked in Sunderland City Centre. So once I'd found a reasonable police officer to allow me out of the queue for the Metro, which I was stood in for an hour and a half, I had to walk through Sunderland City Centre listening to pubs full of Sunderland fans singing Nick Valtamada, he's one of our own. That was tough. the thing Sunday Eddie Howe got everything wrong and right here's so here's the thing right this is Newcastle United fans do not think we have there's no divine right to be in the top five to be a top club but we're getting told by the CEO that Newcastle were aiming to be a number one club in the world right never going to happen unrealistic but that is what the club are openly saying the ambition so when you're measuring where Newcastle United are and what the team is doing you have to go well that's what the club's trying to do it is it anywhere near getting them and when you're going away like the away record is is horrendous and when you're going away in the biggest game of the year and it is the biggest game of the year and i don't think the players appreciate that and not even trying to score a goal for an hour or so anthony langer who is up there if not the worst pound for pound signing you kind of stuff had it's a strange signing um hadn't started a game for a while and suddenly starts that game in the 94th minute there was that fracas where everyone got booked and some of them like did really well they got newcastle to do exactly what they want to do and everyone in the away end is going oh finally you actually showed some fight you guys have realized we're in a derby game and in that away end two and a half thousand in the away and you take out the corporates um i don't know seven eight hundred tickets right what you've actually got and this is not ranking fans in terms of importance or anything like that saying people are better fans but what you've got in that away end are the people who have followed Newcastle United around the country like you need a lot of points to get that ticket and there was a lot of we're a bit fed up with this from Eddie Howe and if you just start to lose that group forget about social media if you lose the most loyal fan base then you start to be in a bit of trouble and he hasn't and it was an emotive reaction but I still think there's a lot of people that shut down legitimate questions about Newcastle's evolution from a side who are brilliant in one-off games who are brilliant at playing on the break and beating the big teams almost I'd almost expect us to beat Chelsea the thing about Sunday was it was so predictable Newcastle fans knew we were going to get that performance Chelsea at home big game team coming at us injury crisis perfect we'll probably win that game I think Lewis Hall will be back I think they were just protecting last night and but what I've given is a very long answer to what is quite a complex question but I agree with Barry he does get a bit of a free pass like a Premier League manager should always be under pressure and in my day job if I'd have turned up for something with our basically the firm's most important client and performed that poorly I would be under serious pressure after last Sunday so it's a tricky one I don't think he is under any pressure the club is too Eddie Howe centric actually it's set up around him he has a lot of power at Newcastle United Football Club and I'm not saying they should get rid of him either but how much credit how long do you give someone people that this whole oh he's got enough credit to be given till the end of the season like like is that should that be a thing in football elite sport I don't know and that doesn't just apply to how it applies across the board can I take back my answer Maxson I'll take that back I was going to say, for the tape, Sam's day job.

32:00He's a hitman as well. So it's important that, you know, he does exactly as instructed by his bosses. Chelsea, who Newcastle played at the weekend, they won 3-1 at Cardiff. That game played on Tuesday night. And actually quite an interesting game, I thought, Barry. And Sani and George on Tuesday said Cardiff would give a good account of themselves. And they did. Yeah, they were no doubt spurred on. a full house in the Cardiff City Stadium. I thought they played with, they didn't seem to be in any way overawed by the arrival of Chelsea. They played with ambition, confidence, pinged the ball around nicely.

32:40And ultimately they lost because their players aren't as good as Chelsea's players. Chelsea are a much better team. But they certainly didn't disgrace themselves, went behind to a soft goal, Dylan Lawler, the Cardiff centre-back, gave it away very cheaply. And Buenonati, Chelsea just swarmed forward and Buenonati fed the ball to Garnaccio, scored. Then Cardiff equalised, brilliant David Turnbull header from a peri-ing, how do we say this, G cross. And then, yeah, Chelsea sort of ran away with it at the end. Garnaccio and Pedro got two more. But I thought Cardiff were decent. And, you know, they obviously have bigger fish to fry, trying to get out of League One.