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The 2 Robbies Podcast
Fiery London Derby Drama, Shambolic Spurs, Isak Strikes
Episode Overview In this episode, Robbie Earle and Robbie Mustoe provide a comprehensive analysis of Matchweek 13 in the Premier League, focusing on key matches, standout performances, and the implications for teams moving forward.
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Key Highlights
- Chelsea vs. Arsenal: 1-1 Draw
- Key Moment: Moises Caicedo receives a red card, reducing Chelsea to 10 men.
- Match Dynamics:
- Chelsea initially performed well but faced challenges with the numerical disadvantage.
- Arsenal, despite being favored, struggled to capitalize on the extra man.
- Discussions about the importance of physicality in English football were prominent, highlighting how it influenced the match's intensity.
- Tottenham Hotspur's Struggles
- Match Result: Spurs lose 2-1 to Fulham.
- Fan Reactions: The Spurs fans booed during and after the match, leading to discussions about fan expectations and player performances.
- Manager's Comments: Thomas Frank defended his players but noted the negative impact of booing from fans.
- Performance Analysis:
- Spurs lacked organization and failed to execute their game plan.
- Concerns about the tactical direction under manager Thomas Frank were raised.
- Manchester City vs. Leeds United: 3-2 Victory
- Key Player: Phil Foden scored the late winner.
- Match Insights:
- City showed vulnerability, conceding two goals at home.
- The victory was hard-fought, reflecting some of the current inconsistencies in their play.
- Liverpool vs. West Ham United: 2-0 Win
- Notable Moment: Alexander Isak scored his first Premier League goal for Liverpool.
- Tactical Adjustments: Manager Jurgen Klopp rested key players, including Mo Salah, which paid off with a solid performance.
- Emerging Players: Discussion about the contributions of Florian Wirtz and the potential for a squad reset.
- Additional Match Roundup
- Manchester United: Secured a 2-1 win against Crystal Palace.
- Aston Villa: Defeated Wolves 1-0, showing resilience and improvement in form.
- Newcastle: Dominated Everton with a 4-1 win, highlighting their attacking prowess.
- Brentford: Overcame Burnley 3-1, with Thiago being a standout performer.
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Key Takeaways
- Physicality in Premier League: The importance of physical play was emphasized, particularly in derby matches. Earle and Mustoe discussed how this impacts player performance and game outcomes.
- Managerial Pressure: Both Tottenham and Leeds United face increasing pressure on their managers. The discussion highlighted the need for strategic consistency and adaptability.
- Emerging Talents: The episode featured discussions on young players like Isak, Foden, and Wirtz, emphasizing their potential to change the dynamics of their respective teams.
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Conclusion The episode encapsulated the excitement and unpredictability of the Premier League, with each match showcasing the highs and lows of football. Earle and Mustoe provided valuable insights into the tactical challenges facing teams and the emotional responses of fans, setting the stage for the upcoming matches in Matchweek 14.
Next Episode: Tune in on December 3rd for further analysis after the midweek games. ```
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:12Hello and welcome to the Two Robbies podcast, your destination for in-depth discussion and analysis of the Premier League. I'm Robbie Musto, he's Robbie Earle, and here are today's topics. Ten men Chelsea hold Arsenal to a gritty 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge after Moises Caicedo's red card sparks a feisty London derby. Boos erupt in Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Spurs stumble against Fulham, increasing the pressure on Thomas Frank. Late heroics from Phil Foden snatches a dramatic 3-2 win for Manchester City over Leeds United at the Etihad. and Alexander Izak's first Premier League goal lists Liverpool to a 2-0 win over West Ham United.
0:51That's what we have coming up in today's episode. OK, my friend, let's start the weekend at the bridge, the big game. Chelsea, who were sitting closest to Liverpool before the game, were in third spot against an Arsenal team in such good form. the big news coming into the game that both Saliba and Gabriel were not available for Arsenal. From Chelsea's point of view, Cole Palmer was back on the bench. I think his last game he played was 20th September. I think we all expected a kind of top-end, tactical, kind of interesting game, Rob. Didn't quite play out in that respect as maybe we thought in terms of pure football.
1:34Yeah, I think particularly with Esteval, that was another big team news, isn't it? Estabelle started on the right side. And me and you were going through kind of tactical kind of simulations and this is what might happen and they get control of this. But we should know a bit better than that. These big derby games are so physical, they're so important, there's so much energy, intensity, emotion flying around that after like, well, in fact, the first challenge, wasn't it? It was Kukureo, wasn't it? Yeah, Kukureo and turn on Saka right in front of the left. It's like, oh, here we go. And it was kind of the same thing throughout the first half.
2:10Just before we move on, and obviously we've got a lot to get to, but does that in some way take away from the English game or add to the English game? Does that make the game... You know, we've been talking, and there is a bit of a theme, and maybe for another day, about new players being introduced to this league and how difficult it is to get in there. Is that evidence, Rob, of a top-class game today? If you don't bring a physicality, you're going to have no say in the game. I always caveat by saying we don't watch other leagues every week like the Premier League, but we have definitely, certainly watched a lot of games from other leagues.
2:43The intensity and the pressure in these matches and the demands of fans in England, they demand effort. They love a tackle. The Premier League knows that the fans love that, so the referees are encouraged to keep the physicality and the speed in the game. So to answer your question, yeah, it's an important part of English football. and what makes it difficult because not only the skill and everything else that's important in all divisions and all leagues, but English football, you've got to deal with that. And in some ways, I'm like, this is great. And, you know, Graham Lusso and commentary was enjoying it.
3:16We were enjoying that side of it. There's another side of it from my point of view. It's like, oh, I wish they'd start playing a bit of football. And we start to see who has the advantage, who's got it right. Because Chelsea started pretty well. Yeah, they did. But it was so hard. And then the first thing I guess we've got to get to, Rob, It was a red card of Moises Caicedo. And there's a lot of build-up in this game about Declan Rice and Moises Caicedo and who's better, you know, over 100 million. We did a little breakdown ourselves, didn't we? Just to show the strength of the two. Yeah, they're both brilliant.
3:43Both brilliant players. You build a team around. But Moises Caicedo, Rob, we know how ferocious, I'd describe him as a ferocious midfield player. Is this part of his game? Is that quite a big error? I'd say it's quite a big error from him in this match to get that rash, awkward, late, red card lunge. And it's a detriment to his... It's a really good question. Because part of what makes Moises Kasseda great is that raw, natural power and physicality. But if he can't control that, Rob, if there's times when he's got a yellow card, whether it's in the first or second half of a big game, and the manager still wants to keep him in there because he's so important, but is not sure that he might go flying into a challenge and lose a game, that takes away from his standing.
4:31Is it important to say I ain't got the data, in fact, in front of me? Yeah. I don't think this happened a lot to him, has it? Is there many red cards? Moises, Caicedos? No. And again, you always wonder with managers, and we see it now, sometimes they take them off. I think there was a shout that Tata made a change at half-time with Calafiore. He wanted to roll him into the centre-back and get Luis Skelly because he thought Esteval might just go over. But I hear your point. is there. Actually, I think he might have got a red card looking back. His first game. I think he's got one before. Maybe this is his second.
5:04And it's a long while, so I don't think we should be too overcritical. And I always remember, Rob, a story back in the day. I remember when Chelsea signed
5:18in midfield. In Gullicante. No, no. Not Desailly. Midfield player. McAlealy. It was after McAlealy. I think it was Jose Mourinho signing, who was the up and down, went against Steven Gerrard. Essien, Michael Essien. I always remember doing an interview with Michael Essien. I remember Michael Essien, if we get a chance, watch back, it was Liverpool played Chelsea and he went into a tackle and it's Didier Manor, I believe, and he got a red card. And, you know, there was a bit of talk like, oh, you know, this guy called the Beast and he's come from French football at the time and he was a monster.
6:00He was a brilliant, brilliant footballer as well, a really top-class footballer. And I remember doing an interview with him one time and said, oh, you know, we're a bit disappointed with getting sent off early on in English football. You just come into the game. You know what he said to me, which always stood, and I'm not saying the same, he said to me, I wanted to leave a mark. I wanted people to know not to mess with me. So it was almost like he was prepared to accept what the consequences were. He wanted to leave an impression. Now, I'm not saying Moises Corsado's the same. But in the game, it's important today, Rob.
6:34It wasn't that day for that. No, it wasn't. But I'm trying to say there is days or there is occasions where sometimes you have to stand your ground. That wasn't very much the day. But I was just trying to say, you know, there is circumstances where you can't take a step back if you want to be, you know, you want to be winners. But he crossed the line, didn't he? He did cross the line today. It's such a shame for the game, Rob, because I was so much looking forward to a kind of really confident... It's a shame for him as well, as much as the game. Shame for him that he's missing... But that changes everything.
7:04Yeah. That changes everything. And then because second half kicks off and Chalba flicks the ball on, goes into the back of the net. And then you have a situation where Chelsea have got everything to kind of work for. They've got the Stamper Bridge behind them. They're playing well. They're ahead of this. They've got their man down. And you know Arsenal are going to come at them and make it very difficult. Let's kind of zoom into the second half. Did Arsenal in any way disappoint you? I read some stuff online about a lot of people say it was a real missed opportunity, not good enough from Arsenal, should be doing it to create more.
7:36Given that game and what you just see, is that a little harsh? Should Arsenal have created more, Rob? They got the goal, of course. They got the goal. I suppose the reality will be yes. The reality will be yes. to be an extra man in that team, in that form, with the kind of quality you've got. So at one point you've got Saka on, you've got Madweki on. Yeah, the changes were made. Yeah, the changes were made. You've got Odegaard on, you've got Victor Jokeres on, you've got Mourinho up top, you've got Eze still in the central. So between those... They threw as much as they could. But it wasn't an actual day for the quality footballer.
8:13It wasn't a brilliant Saka day. I thought Eze was a little bit quiet based on what we saw. It was a little too physical for us. Last week, yeah. Odegaard came on and started to try and knit some stuff together but couldn't break through. I mean, give Chelsea credit defensively. I thought the refs put apart from the goal that they concede. Madoecki never really got himself away from the full-backs where he put good quality into the box. So, I understand when people say it's an opportunity loss but I kind of think a point, you know, Rob, based on where they were, is something you've got to sometimes be content with.
8:48So fair play to Arsenal, coming back, getting the goal, a bit frustrated, but they get a point. I feel like we should talk about Chelsea a little bit more. I know it was a funny day because you have one player, Moises Caissano, that goes too far in a very physical game. But I don't know, I just sort of warmed to Chelsea in that second half. That's not easy. When you've got Arsenal at full flow, with the subs they've made, all the changes, getting asked all those questions, and they stood very, very strong. I think we know they're a young, talented squad. Everybody knows that. But I think that we're seeing now, I don't know, because I said it went over the top, but they're physical as well.
9:27Those young players, they've got edge, they're aggressive, they're determined, they've got fire in their bellies when they needed to against Arsenal. I kind of feel like I've learned more about Chelsea. More about them than we did maybe against Arsenal today. I totally agree, totally agree. And you know what I was thinking, Rob, is that when you're Ganaccio and you're brought on, and maybe Esteval's a little bit different than he came off after the game, when you're Neto, when you're Enzo, maybe Rhys James is different because he's a defender at heart, but when you're a lot of those players, you really want to be doing the attacking stuff and getting forward and taking on.
10:05What you don't want to be doing is chasing people, tracking, doing duels, where, by the way, I'm sure the coaching staff are giving them plenty of credit, But people aren't seeing that stuff when you track 50 yards and you run and you get, then you go and you've got to run up. Nobody sees that. Nobody claps you. Those are things you have to do just for your own personal pride in the team's benefit. And I thought they did all those things without being asked. I'd love to have seen 11 v 11 for 90 minutes, Stamford Bridge, because Chelsea, you know, they're starting to look the real deal for me. and I actually don't think they're going to win the title this year, but Cole Palmer's sat on the bench.
10:46We have Esteval playing on the right-hand side. You've got world-class Cole Palmer. You've got Moises Caicedo, usually. Enzo Fernandes. I'm still a big fan of Pedro Neto. It looks like they're growing, building quite nicely, maturing quite nicely. Right at the bottom of my notes there, actually before the game kicked off, I wrote, we're going to learn a lot about Chelsea today and Chelsea are going to learn a lot about themselves. and I think the manager can sit back and think we're kind of going places we all sense that given the money and some of the talent it's starting to shine now at Chelsea but you mix that with some grit and some learning and some winning they've won titles, some trophies and some losing I'm excited to see how this is going to go given the talent, given the age given the clever manager and given the grit and spirit they've got in them I thought it was interesting we just picked up a little crumb of the Arteta interview after the game and he talked about I think he possibly is a little bit disappointed he didn't get this done because it's an obvious opportunity down to 10 men although we saw Man United everything showed that it doesn't always go to plan but I thought Rob he he's a little less emotional I thought there was a bit more emotional canal about his players I think he's understood that he sets a tone for a lot of the things.
12:09And I thought he was very kind of mature with his answers and the way he spoke and the way that he talked about his team. He's got some learnings as well in this piece. And it's never easy when you're two centre-backs. You're colossal. No, too, mate. Absolutely right. Before we move on, Rob, let's just take this opportunity to sort of have a little chat about the title race with these two. Yeah. And maybe for this year, maybe for the next couple of years. I just got a feeling that Chelsea-Arsenal, Arsenal-Chelsea in the next year or so is going to be quite the thing. I think there's no way... Arsenal are going nowhere.
12:49Look at the age of that squad and the players coming through, the young academy and all that kind of stuff coming through. The academy that's bringing them through, yeah. They're going to be right where they are around there for a while. And I think Chelsea are as well. You think City in a certain way, but obviously City are going to have... issues they're going to have to deal with and, you know... They do it a totally different way. They do it a totally different way. Liverpool, similar, the amount of talent there, there's still plenty of young players are going. But right now, you're dead right.
13:13We could go back to some of those Halcyon, Mourinho, Wenger days, where these were the top two teams. I used to remember going to those games, Rob, and they were brilliant. Wherever they were, whether it was Ibrey or the Emirates. Because of the Derby element. Yeah, and it's London. And they're both real, giant London clubs. Fun. Yeah, looking forward to it. The Premier League's got lots to look forward to. Let's take it to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, mate, where fans don't seem to be looking forward to football too much. I mean, Spurs with a bit of a shocking home rack. I think their only home win is against Wolves this season.
13:48Only one home win all season. They lose this game 2-1 to Fulham. Tete with the first goal, Wilson with the second goal. It could have been 3-0 after 11 minutes. Rob Chukwase with a shot that hits the post and goes out. Second half, Spurs do come back and they're good with a really nice finish. But they huffed and puffed and sort of went a bit damp towards the end from Spurs' point of view. Couldn't get the job done. There were boos during the game, Rob. A couple of players' mistakes. There were boos after the game that the manager obviously is not particularly happy about. Where are we with Thomas Frank, Tottenham and the future?
14:33Well, which way should we do this? Let's get to the booing bit because that's to grab the headlines, right? Thomas Frank afterwards, we show it on our air. Of course, it goes all over TV, all over the place, his interview. And it involves Vicario. Yeah. And there might be other bits that we didn't catch, but obviously he made a big mistake, a big mistake for a goal conceded for Fulham, Harry Wilson, who scores from when the goalkeeper comes way out of his goal. And then where it's very easy and very common to smash it into the stands to give himself a bit of chance to get back in the goal. He tries to play up the line.
15:03He slips. He goes right to their guy. A couple of passes or one pass and it scores. And there's another moment the ball comes through and Vicaru kicks it. And then you get the sarcastic cheers from his own fans as he does actually clear the ball a second time. Now, there might have been other bits during the game, but Thomas Frank basically said, they're not real Tottenham fans that boo their own players during the game. You know, going this is... Very strong. Yeah, and like, of course, I respect the fans come they pay money and they can do whatever they want at half time at the end of the game but during the game to their own players and that's the strongest I've ever seen Thomas Frank, he was the nicest guy in the world and sometimes you've got to bite back a little bit I feel like a club like that and the media will jump on you and you're the nice guy and I think he added in my opinion by the way this is very subjective and Spurs fans will have it their way and I've already listened and read a lot of stuff and a lot of the fans are like, I agree with him.
16:00And some of them are like, hang on a minute. The record you've got and the money that I spent, I can boo whenever I want to boo. How do you stand on it? The booing of a player, first of all, personally I don't like and I don't think it's helpful. Only because we've both been players, Rob, and if my fans were booing me, it would take me down rather than lift me. I get the booing after and I get the booing half-time. But, and I have to throw the but in, if I've paid my money and I'm at the game and Vicario makes a mistake like that and I'm unhappy, I don't think anybody should be telling me how I should or shouldn't be reacting.
16:45I guess he's just saying, if you're a real Spurs fan, don't boo your own player. Real Spurs fans, Rob, are paying a lot of money to go and watch that football club to hope that the goalkeeper's doing better. And from Vicario's point of view, he took his time getting back to goal like he was on a Sunday morning stroll. And then when he does get to goal and the ball's in the back of the neck, he turns around to one of his defenders or a Bergball or somebody and starts screaming at him and turning his arms. Like, whoa, whoa, whoa, Mr. Vicario. Nobody else has anything. It's your mistake. You've not got back.
17:19They've scored the goal. How about you holding your hands up and going, sorry, you know, to your teammates, maybe to the fans so they can see it and just sort of accepting the blame. Because that, Rob, also tells me it's a dressing room where people are happy to not take responsibility. Yeah, he should have already sounded absolutely right. Maybe just a nervous reaction. Reaction, right. He knew it. He's made an awful lot of laugh. He's angry with himself and he's kind of made it visual. Yeah, he's just trying to show some kind of emotion. I get that, but come on. So that's one part of the story of this game, Rob.
17:50The other part of the story is, of course, we both listened to all the press conferences before the game and the one thing I wrote down and he said it before the game, Thomas Frank, is you're going to see a reaction. We're going to go flat out. You're going to see the energy and the intensity from this team from the first whistle. So what am I doing? Studying the first few minutes and Spurs go and try to press Fulham a little bit to no avail. They didn't press very well. Fulham got their passing game going and of course they ended up scoring a goal in the fourth minute. Kenny Tetia gets a little deflection.
18:22After that, when they're behind, And I think we were both pretty harsh at half-time on our show with how poor that was from Tottenham. And a lot of the things we've talked about on the show, and others to be fair as well, is he's a reactive coach. So he reacts to what other people do. They're going to play like that, so we're going to do the change. And probably, Rob, there was times at the start of this where we were saying, kind of don't mind that. Ange was very much like, we're doing our thing, don't care what they're going to do. And at Brentford, we saw Thomas Frank do it very differently.
18:53Lots of changes. Here we go against good teams, five at the back. But are we seeing, Rob, I'll throw it as a question. Are we seeing the pressure, the expectation at a big club? To get a big club playing well, you've got to build them. You've got to build a philosophy, a style, a pattern. So everybody knows what they're doing. There will be minor tweaks when you play different. Some days it's not always going to work. Has there been too much change? So when they actually have to try and be expansive and attack, and this game was a great example, They look clunky, disorganised, stodgy passing, no build-up play, two up front that got no ball.
19:28I thought it was as bad a Premier League team kind of play as I've seen for a while. The problem I see, and I don't mean this in a glib or maybe in a smart way, is that as the Brentford manager, you don't really have to have or want as much possession. So you play with less of the ball. There's no expectation. There's no expectation. On a turnover, you're going to do certain things, whether they play through the lines, which they could do with Brentford. They could go long to an Ivan Toni or something. Or now and then they'd sit deep and just wait to win the ball. When you're Tottenham and you've got to have the ball and have a structure and a build of a way to play, they've played three games, I think, in six or seven days, Rob.
20:15They played Arsenal. Went with the back three. It was shocking. Yeah, very defensive. They played PSG. 4-2-2-2. Very different. Front foot, go for it, lost by three. And then they go to Fulham on a day when it was neither one nor the other and get beat 2-1 at home. So in a way, it's like, even as a player, what are we? What am I trying to do? Even if I'm trying to do and it's not working very well, at least I know what we are. And also, to finish that point off, when you're going to a team like Spurs or United or Liverpool, you're expecting them to be really really good so you're defensive and you're very cautious and when Tottenham don't have a great expansive attacking plan just kind of easy yeah yeah which it kind of was for Fulham I mean you know that's that it was such a disappointing day performance and then you know to step back it is still early Rob and maybe he's tried to do it his own way maybe he's going to learn pretty quickly and say okay we got to get a little bit more grooved and the consistency, the continuity, I think I used that word, continuity of line-up is important for building a successful team, I think.
21:24Maybe we're going to see a little bit more now from Thomas Frank. OK, let's have a little bit of a rethink here because he needs to. Because we know what Spurs is all about as a football club. If things aren't going well and they've had some great managers, all different types of managers, they just get rid. What I will say in your spot on, fans booing is never a good thing. fans booing and you telling fans not to boo is even worse. And a club like Spurs, you're right. Thomas Frank's got to concentrate on getting that football right and let the fans kind of work their piece out how much they support.
21:56I just wonder if that was a mistake from Thomas Frank. And the next time at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when the team isn't playing well, they're going to boo. What's going to happen? They're going to boo. And that might cause an issue. And before we move on, because I continually think after some times of the podcast, let's give Fulham a bit of credit, my friend. Let's give Marco Silva in this group of players who are not Tottenham, who are not Big Six, who are not Headline, who are not generally well-watched on our show, and we feature them that many times, who do keep the ball, who have got a system of play.
22:32You've got Josh King playing in the number 10, mate, who's as good a footballer as he is on the football field. Keeps the ball really well. He keeps the ball, knows when to speed the game up, knows when to sit off. You know, Iwobi and Harry Wilson. And I know Marcus Hill has been there a lot longer, of course, as a comparison. I know exactly how Fulham are playing. I know where players are going to pop up on the field. I know where they go from a five to a four. I know exactly how it all works. And I think I said before the game on the show, this could be awkward for Spurs. Because we've seen Fulham before, Rob, and I've been guilty of not giving them enough credit in games.
23:04And I come in the studio, I'm like, wow, didn't they play well? They can play a little bit They can keep the ball away from teams It's frustrating because you want to get the ball back I think that's exactly what happened in the first half And credit to the manager His contract's up, Marcus Yeah, and they're talking about a long-term deal, aren't they, to nail him down I think the club are going to have to show a little bit of ambition And show they're going to put a little bit more money in there I know they've got Kevin spent money for him late on in the window But they need a few more bodies around them A bit more quality to suit with Marcus Big win for them, mate That's a big win for them Excellent win away from home let's go to the Etihad Stadium Manchester City were 2-0 up Leeds came back to 2-2, game was in the balance Phil Foden had himself a day gets the latest winner to win it 3-2 for City wasn't classic City, it's probably a little bit more of the current City in terms of 2-0 up back in the day you'd think that's done and dusted but they kind of allowed, Calvert-Lewin got a goal and it's a bad Foul by Gavardy all gives away a penalty kick and all of a sudden everything gets a bit edgy.
24:08Foden comes up with a winner. But I said today on the show and Bex asked me about who's going to challenge Arsenal most. And I said Chelsea. I think Chelsea will give me a consistency above what Man City will give me between now and the end of the season. It's a tough shout. It's difficult. I know City can have their good days and that. There's no question. I feel their football's getting better. I think I said the same thing here. And we didn't get this. The window was all these games were at the same time. We didn't get a real close look at this. But they conceded two goals to Leeds United, Rob, at home.
24:42Yeah. And for as much as they are tilted to play, possession, possession, possession, attack, attack, attack, silky little players, really good on the ball, there's not much help for the defenders. And when Roger's not there, I know he keeps saying it, they're more vulnerable. Conceded two goals. It took a real effort from Phil Fogler. Celebration was pretty, you know. That's quite the celebration for beating a promoted team in Leeds United 3-2. And that often tells you, Rob, that the teams that win games easily, you're like, that's potential champions. We've seen this from other teams that get pretty close, that have to work really hard to win.
25:18I'm not saying that City can obviously easily win games, but that's still a bit surprising that it was that late, and it's a 3-2 scoreline against Leeds. So I still feel those issues of defensively, loose at times, is going to hurt them. It was Phil Foden. Are others going to score enough goals to maintain their push at the very top? He got a couple, didn't he, which helped. Just on Leeds, Rob, before we move on, because we've seen Leeds a few times this season. We saw them last week go 1-0 up against Villa and get 2-1. This week, 2-0 down to City, get back to 2-2, end up conceding a late goal.
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25:54Daniel Falk is down under pressure. They've got 11 points, mate. They're joint in the bottom three on goal difference with West Ham. Nottingham Vois one point above them. They sit 16th on 12th. Listen, everybody I think understands that Leeds will be in a fight to stay in the league. I know you feel quite strong on this. Daniel Falker kind of deserves a little more time to see if he's the right guy before there's a lot of talk about them moving on, getting somebody else in, looking for a change? We're talking to our research department. We need some data and fact on this and the effectiveness of changing the manager when you're a permanent side and you're in around the bottom three.
26:39What's the percentage chance of it working? It has worked, right? We've seen a few, haven't we? Even Wolves ramped with the manager's got fired. Pereira. Pereira, yeah. But mostly it doesn't. I always look at a team and see how they look. I think Burnley's the same. We looked at Burnley very close this weekend. We looked at Leeds United as well. And I think they're playing well. I think they missed Longstaff, I think, in midfield. Longstaff's injured and Stux had a concussion. Right. So there's plenty of power in midfield. I don't mind the back four. I worry about the creativity. So I still give them a chance to stay up.
27:12It's just whether you feel like, well, that squad, Rob, a different manager could do something different to Daniel Farker. He's got to get to know them pretty quickly. He's got to somehow get something else out of them, creative you know and that might be possible but I just think sometimes these guys are fired a bit too early I'd love to see Daniel Farker because I know his record in the Premier League with relegations and it's an easy like let's get somebody else in unless there's a really good candidate that's ready and able to take over straight away that'd be a good fit I say stick for a little bit they're not out of touch they're absolutely not out of touch but his name Brendan Rodgers name I know you think well Brendan Rodgers quality and what he's done in the past.
27:52We'll see. Let's go to the London Stadium, mate, because this was one of the, I think, important games of the weekend. West Ham United versus Liverpool. Liverpool coming off the 4-1 defeat midweek in the Champions League, backed up by the poor performance last weekend. We saw a change. The headline was the team. Mo Salah was, take your pick from drop, rested, not needed today, rotated or whatever other phrase you want. And it was a massive call. It's a massive call, whatever the reason. I thought, and I think we both spoke about this a couple of days prior to the game, we felt something had to happen.
28:36Mo was possibly the one who might miss out just in terms of the work rate that you don't get despite the goals that you do get going the other way. And on a slot, whether it's a gamble or not, took it and it worked. I like it when a manager literally affects the team to try and get what his desired outcome is. You can try and play out of trouble for the first 10-12 games, but at some point, when you can see the crazy amount of goals, you've got to be like, okay, let's throw the brakes on here. We did get a clean sheet and we've got Joe Gomez that you talked about a couple of weeks ago. Why isn't Joe Gomez getting a go?
29:14So a great shout from you. He comes in at right back. The midfield is the midfield. that we all know about that's proven. They're not old. They're proven. They should be able to keep doing it. And actually, Domic Zoberslai. Yeah, not in the same set up, was he? I thought it was going to be that, but Zoberslai played right-hand side and Florian Wirtz was back in the team as a 10. So it immediately feels, so Zoberslai playing in the right wing, I mean, he's going to give you an incredible amount of going back, which Mo Salah doesn't. And when Mo Salah's not scoring, then you lose some defensive help.
29:42So I just think it was a little bit back to basics. more defensive set up it's a stiffer team more durable Isaac, Wirtz and Gat there's so many good players Rob it has got to be a matter of time before they start winning games a little bit confidence comes back a little bit Gatpo's a steady Eddie by the way he hasn't dropped off much he hasn't dropped off much Gravenberg was good again it's just Wirtz isn't it I thought he was alright I thought he was okay today I saw some signs Rob some knitting together he put a couple of balls in that somebody gets on the end, they might get an assist. I thought he looked, I started to see a little bit of the Vurts that obviously I've seen in the videos.
30:22I've seen playing for Germany. Maybe the structure, maybe a better structured team allows him to do his thing. And I also feel like there's a reset in expectations. When he first came into the side and they were champions, and you're like, oh, go on then. We should be brilliant now. This is amazing. Let's be amazing. And they found it hard to be amazing. Now they've been knocked down a peg or two. Wow, OK, we're starting again. Oh, this kid's pretty good. He's pretty nice, knits it together. So I think there's a little bit of a different reset. I think it will help him now as they've had such a bad period and it's like, wow, this is shocking.
30:57And now they can start building up again. And I think he might do quite well from here. Yeah, I mean, great day with the clean sheet, the Isaac getting... Well, the big thing is Isaac as well, isn't it? The goal. I just want to talk to you about the Mo situation, Rob. If you're on a slot and you've got the win and you've got games coming up midweek and you've got weekend. Do you feel like you need to then get him back in? They play... They're on Sunderland at home on Wednesday. Sunderland at home on Peacock, aren't we? 3.15 Eastern on Peacock. Are you now thinking, OK, I'll get Mo in enormous light, you're saying, go on then, show me.
31:38Or am I saying for a while, just sit with me, Mo. Things are going quite nicely. I'm saying that. You're sitting in Stay here for a little while Have a little look and think about it Yeah just like You know the lads did well Like As long as they're all recovered Yeah We know there's been a lot of games And midweek round of fixtures It's difficult for these teams We weren't sure whether he was 100 % or not Yeah Maybe while he's actually I'd be tempted if everybody's okay And say on you go We're back at home Let's start building this thing up again Let's get these home fans back Believing in us a little bit And I think Mo Salah That's left out And they win And you put them back in and they don't play well, the fans are going to be like, wow, what do you bring him back in?
32:18So I think it would be smart to keep him out a little bit, get the team playing well, and then you edge him back in again. Have we seen that? Did we see that before? With Mo? Did Klopp do that with him a little bit? Klopp had a little spell, didn't he? A couple of times they had a bit of a fallout and he sat him down, didn't he, a couple of times and Mo wasn't happy. When things feel different, you bring him back in again. So I feel like I'd like to see the manager do that, but we'll see. Important for Isaac, wasn't it, that first Premier League goal? It was really well taken as well. I know for a guy who maybe confidence is low and spotless on, beautiful finish.
32:53That's him, isn't it? We know what he can do. It's a lovely finish and he wheeled away and it just felt like, you know, that's it, I've kind of arrived now. But it's been difficult for Liverpool, so we shouldn't assume everything's going to be rosy in the garden. It wasn't a scintillating performance, but I thought it was exactly right. when you go to a place like West Ham United, they're going to give you a chance to play a little bit. Really important for Liverpool, that. Just want to mention, actually, and it's wrong of me not to say before the game, just to mention to Billy Bonds, my friend, who passed away.
33:22Billy Bonds, what a legendary footballer, manager, football man, met him a couple of times and thing. Absolute legend. Tough, aggressive. Cut him open, he bleed claret and blue, mate. He was one of them, wasn't he? give everything to, kind of a throwback of the John Terry type, you know what I mean, would do anything to make sure his team win. They love him, the football courts love him. Quite rightly, yeah. They've had some great players over the time, haven't they? They've had some, and he's a great... Bobby Moore, Trevor Bookie, Jeff Hurst... He was a real great, and you're right, this club's had some real greats, and Billy Barnes is one of those, so sadly, rest in peace, and I think they're going to do a proper tribute.
34:05And it will be proper, mate. It will be proper. but deserving Billy Bond, yeah, our thoughts to him, to his family, friends and family, over the weekend. Right, mate, let's go to some other results. We're going to start at the Palace. And it was... Game with two offs. Yeah, and who does this system best? Three, four, two, one. Kind of both off a similar line. Oliver Glasner continues to go, you know, be impressive in the way that he sets Palace up, impressive in the way that he they're still an attacking threat got some good components in there the Whartons, the Sars, the Matetas and players like that so it was a game a classic game of two halves, Palace first half looked really threatening Mateta gets the goal twice taking penalty kick but the threat was definitely from Palace, the wide players and midfield players balanced didn't they?
34:59Wharton played clever passes through he's a good player But second half, I have to say, Ruman Amren, whatever he said at half-time, it was a bit different. United upped the tempo, their energy, got about it a little bit more, got the goal through Zerksa and then the free kick from Mount. You'd have to say well done for United, because that's a difficult place to go, Sellers, when it's going against you. Yeah, and definitely well done. I thought the first half they looked so average, so lacking of excitement in their football. Why is that, Robbie? You just come off a 1-0 defeat to Abeddon where they were down in town and things aren't going well.
35:36Surely you've got to have a motivation. Surely you've got to have some motivation. My kind of thoughts at half-time were like, God, they're lacking excitement, energy and expectation. Like, we're not... I mean, they didn't play with the expectation, we're Man United here, we're going to control this game, we're going to boss it and we're going to win it. It was like, oh, we're pretty even, us two. And it was pretty even. I thought Crystal Palace, they played on Thursday away at Strasbourg. Yeah, they ran out of legs a little bit. And I think they ran out of legs a little bit. And I know the manager, Oliver Glaser, afterwards in an interview said, we're playing European football.
36:15We've got to invest a little bit more. We need a bigger squad to handle all these games. And I thought this was such an example of, I think Wharton came off in the second half for a substitute. I think a few of them came off. You've got to be careful. And, you know, they haven't got a big squad. and playing European football and extra games. Saru came off as well, but Nketiah. Sar, did Sar start? He was injured. He came off injured, didn't he? Two central midfield players came off. Saru came off injured early on. Will Hughes came into midfield, so they made changes. Fair play to United. It was better.
36:47There was more energy, more determination in their football. Zurgsley scores a good goal, by the way. That's a difficult angle. He needs that, doesn't he? A little bit of confidence for him. A little bit of confidence. Mount gets the goal through some bad organisation that I'm sure Oliver Glasden won't happen with. The wall breaks away, doesn't it? The goalkeeper doesn't get down again. The one thing you've got to do in a wall, and I used to line it up, get it done early, and free kicks in around the box takes so long. So there's no excuse. There's no excuse. There's plenty of time to be ready and then they all split apart when it's taken.
37:17Sometimes tiredness and fatigue, as you talk about, just slows you down a little bit, and you don't quite get it right. It's a good win, that, for Manchester United. Up to seven places in the league table, Man United. Seventh. That's more like it. That's where the United fans are going to be expecting this club to be. Got to be top eight, haven't they? Got to be top eight. Well, if they're not top eight at the end of the season and there's nothing crazy in terms of injuries, that's just not good enough. And there should be a change in manager if they're not in the top eight. I'll say it quite as simple as that because we know there's going to be a bunch of managers available.
37:52Oliver Glasner is one of them. Marco Silva, Andoni Ariola. How about the guys from the World Cup? Yeah, from Anglesman, Pochettino, Thomas Tuchel. Thomas Tuchel, it depends on how all these guys go. Yeah, gets to the final or something. Ancelotti, I mean, there's a few that could be available after the World Cup. But that's better, they're in seventh spot right now. Build on that, get Cunha back, get Cescco back, and crack on and try and get towards that top four. Big Midlands Derby at Villa Park. Villa win it 1-0. Camara with the goal against Wolves. Rob Edwards obviously going back to Wolves, but not getting the results that he'd like.
38:33Although, I think you lost a game a little bit and they didn't play too bad, but can't seem to get the wins. And Villa, Rob, another one of those teams who, after a real shocking start to the season, find themselves fourth in the Premier League. Yeah, they've had a great run. Usual business. They were, I think, 19th. Yeah, after five games. Something like that. And eight games later, they're in the top four. Yeah. So, a great run, great story of turning the team around without that much change in terms of the line-up, the team. Uri Tillemans, I always think is a really important player. He's missed, didn't he, towards the start of the season.
39:03Didn't he miss the start? Yeah, he was injured. He missed four or five games. Just come back. Yeah, and Bubikar Kamara scores a brilliant goal in this game to beat Wolves. And Wolves give it a fair crack, to be fair. Rob Edwards, of course, knew the new manager. The goal disallowed, didn't he? Somebody offside, John Aranis was offside. was offside affecting the goalkeeper wasn't he with Stan Larson shot I think that's the correct core again games going on at the same time and that 9 well the 9 o 'clock window isn't on the Sunday for Aston Villa but when you look at it you know it didn't look particularly I don't know exciting or the game yeah European football young boys they played on Thursday big young boys 2-1 it's a DPS squad aren't they it's a Derby game yeah it's a good game just before we move on Rob, because there's another striker here, Ollie Watkins, who was benched, rested, whatever the new verb you want to describe him with.
40:02One goal all season, I think in 17 games all comps, was once, I think, probably nailed on as the understudied Harry Kane in the England squad. Is that spot up for grabs? The second striker for England, if Thomas Tuchel feels he's got to go striker, because we've got plenty of wide players in number 10s with the Foden's and the Bellingham's and the likes who can play in the Gordon's. English strikers, you know, Watkins, Callum Wilson, Liam DeLapp, Danny Welbeck. I mean, if one of them can have a 12-15 goal season, all I'm saying is that... I don't know. It's a good question. Ollie Watkins is definitely a doubt, we'd have to say now, wouldn't we?
40:51But if he can get back to somewhat... Yeah, he's had good goals in the Euros. Yeah, he's scored in the Euros, a really important goal in the Euros, doesn't it, I remember. So if he can get... It's hard, isn't it? Don't you malign? If you're not in full... Yeah, if you're not in full, I mean, you're not playing for your clubs. Well, that's what Thomas Tuchel said, it's hard, isn't it? You've got to be playing regularly to be in my squad. There might be some exceptions, but I don't know. I think it's a good point. I think he'd be very worried about that. I mean, every player, mate. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I'd run through a blooming brick water play in a World Cup.
41:19I mean, that's a big deal. It's a big question. But Daniel Mallon deserves this. Yeah, yeah, he's got goals. He's been lively. He came on his sub last week. I like his demeanour. Whether he starts, whether he's on the bench, he comes on, he makes a difference. Makes an impact. OK, my friend, let's go to Hill-Dickerton Stadium, where Everton generally do well. Didn't quite go to plant. Everton 1, Newcastle 4. Two goals by Malik Chow for Newcastle, Lewis Marley with a strike and Walter Marder with a lovely lob before. Keenan Dewsby Hall actually scored what I thought was the goal of the game. Beautiful finish with his left foot after he scored against Old Trafford last week.
42:00But 4-1 home defeat for Everton, not generally how things have gone for David Moyes and his team at home. Yeah, funny game this. I mean, looking at Everton, they played really well. They knock it out pretty good. They've got good territory, good possession. But just, I mean, Newcastle United, who've been awful away from home. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I think, I wouldn't be surprised if Eddie Howell says at the end of that game, we've played better than that away from home and lost. It seemed to be a very comfortable win. The goals kind of came, you know, one early, one in the first minute. I think it was the quickest of the weekend, wasn't it?
42:33So that helps you. Yeah, Miley scores. Smiley gets the one in there and you get third one just before half-time, 3-0 at half-time. You've got to do pretty badly to lose that game. I just think they were very efficient in front of goal, weren't they? Voltemada's finish is a really good finish. He gets an opportunity. I thought he linked the play really well. Yeah, he's a good player. And we made a comparison at half-time. Everton actually build up plays really good. But Tierno Barry, the young French striker they've got, is 23. It's kind of painful to watch it a little bit. Because we know, I think it was$37.5 million.
43:02$37.5 million, yeah. And scored goals in VL. Yeah, yeah. In La Liga in Spain. And yet he looks like, he doesn't look like a Premier League striker in terms of his quality. And I know you've got to give him time, I know he's young and that, but right now, Rob, he doesn't look Premier League quality. It doesn't look like, I mean, the goal that he, there was a goal that was chalked off that he handles the ball accidentally and then he hits a ball that he doesn't really hit true. He comes off his ankle, he slides in, he goes in. It would have been a great moment for him and I would have loved him to have got the goal.
43:37But I think we both said, and I've said over the last few weeks with this team, Rob, I'm a little baffled why Beto and Barry don't look like the answer. A couple of times I've seen Jack Grealish, I was doing the game against Manchester United midweek, Jack Grealish does his thing, comes inside, needs somebody to play off, and Barry or Beto are not either reading him, not thinking about it, not the right kind of player. I'm just wondering if you could find a way to get an N 'Jai, a McNeil, Alcaraz in the team, who could link the play and be the false nine. And we're not going to have the centre-forward then, so we'd lose a little bit of aerial set, but we're better and we give teams different challenges.
44:18A little bit how Pedro Neto played as a false nine for Chelsea and caused Barcelona problems. Yeah, I like that. And you've got Dwight McNeil, you've got Tyler Dibblin that could come in if one of those wide players like an N 'Jai or a Grealish plays a false nine. It's just that you've got two out-and-out number nines at the football club. They're getting salaries. They're getting paid twice. Well, both don't look like they're going to score goals. It comes back to recruitment again, doesn't it? Doesn't everything come back to recruitment? One friendly goal between the two of them. Yeah, and I want to mention this because when Tiena Barry comes off, he looks devastated.
44:49His head's in his hands. He got a lovely round of applause for the Everton fans. And that deserves a mention because I get it. And I think fair play to his Everton fans because as a football fan, You want players giving it your very best. Tiano Barry gives it his very best. He works his socks off, he tries to pressure, he looks like he cares, he looks frustrated when he misses chances, and he keeps going all the way through. And I think the Everton fans are smart enough to know, you know what, we appreciate that, and we know, we see that you're lacking some quality. But fair play to you, that you give it your best for this Everton shirt, and they appreciate that, and I think that's good.
45:27The week before, apparently, and I'm pleased you said that, because he came off in that game and he thought he should have scored. And I think the juicer gone again, went over to him and said, by the way, this reception tells you that these fans are happy with you. So don't get your head down. Have a good week's training. And you're right, the Everton fans will try and nurse him through. And listen, he's one of those, we've seen him as strikers, he could hit the ground, get one off his backside, in he goes, start a run, and all of a sudden we could see a very different player. Those Everton fans have seen everything at that football club They've seen some magnificent centre forwards by the way and some not so good and everything in between Bad day at the office Good day for Eddie Howe, on his birthday by the way It was a good birthday It was also a day for squad players Lewis Marley gets his goal, comes into midfield Anthony Lange He's not had a great time since moving to Forest He played really well with Volta Mare The full-backs make a difference, don't they?
46:27The full-backs make a difference, they stay the same. So he made changes to the manager, and he said about it afterwards, he said, it's about time, I think, I've got to trust the squad a little bit more. He did, and they got the win, 4-1, comfortable. What's left? We're going to my team. I'm giving them my team, my stadium of light. When they were 2-0 down at Bournemouth, and I remember saying to you in the studio, this ain't over, Regis has got something sorted. and they did. It was Adley and Adams get two goals early for Bournemouth. Tyler Adams with a great goal, by the way. We've got to mention that, haven't we?
47:02I mean, Tyler Adams is one of those players, Rob, who I think we stereotype as a hard-working midfield player. We don't, mate. We don't. But people generally think he's just a destroyer. He stops the opposition and he can pass from A to B. And I think a lot of the US soccer fans will underestimate a little bit. Yeah. I think they think there's more skillful players, I get that, in the US men's national team. And they grab the headlines a little bit, Pulisic being the headline there. But he's a really good player, Tyler Adams. Technically he's a lot better. Technically he's very good. Really gives the ball away.
47:37Reads the game really well. He's aggressive enough. He's strong enough. He makes good decisions. He's conscientious. He tracks back and gets in good defensive positions. I feel like I know what a good holding midfield player is. I tried to do it myself. He's really, really good. And when the rain's lashing down and you're running forward with the ball, you look up and you see the goalie off his line, it's a split second to judge how much, how are you going to strike that ball with the height, with the power to get it up and down. And he did it perfectly in difficult conditions. And we spoke to him, Rob.
48:08Lovely, intelligent, smart guy. We had him as an interviewer on the Two Robbies podcast. So I was pleased for that. And he looked pretty pleased with himself as well when he saw the ball go in. And so, yeah, really, really good for Bournemouth. They continue, mate. They continue to just surprise. Surprise, yeah. Yeah. Well, let's talk about Sunderland because it's all about Sunderland. I'll go on. So Le Fay gets the penalty. They get them back in the game. Traore drives one in from an acute angle. And then this guy, Brian Brobby, isn't it, comes on late again. He's done that more than once, hasn't he?
48:39He gets themselves a win. And this Regis Labrice, mate, he's a story. He's becoming one of the stories of the Premier. He's a little, I feel like he's under the radar. He's a super quiet little guy. He's a little diamond. Maybe he's a little diamond. He's a little diamond. He's a smart guy. Some of the things he talks about. And the way he plays and what he wants and the way he's doing things. You think this is more than a euphoric Sunderland? I do. Only because, Rob, and our listeners are going to be sick of hearing me say, but I did a little bit of a deep dive on him. They just intrigued me when they came up and what they were doing.
49:16Robby or deep research. And, you know, where he came from, Laurie Hunt with the youth football, where he had Le Fay and people like that. And he's a bit of a disciple of Wenger and the way to play football and understands, like, very into data, but doesn't overload with it. So wanting good size and physicality to say, to play the way I want to play. And I think there's another version. I think there's another more footballing version if and when someone gets safe. That's like 2.0. If they can establish themselves a little bit and move away, but try and play a little bit more. I mean, they do play well.
49:49I mean, there's literally nothing bad to say about Sunderland right now. They're an amazing job. Up to sixth. Sixth place. Above Man United, above Liverpool, above Tottenham, above Newcastle. I mean, and they're in a position where by Christmas, Rob, early New Year, they can probably start planning for the next year. Absolutely. What a bonus that is. They're not going down. What a bonus that is. They're not going down from that position. No chance. They've won six games to 13. They always look to win about ten games, get some draws, you're going to be OK. Well, they're way over that right now.
50:19You just have to mention the red card as well, Lewis Cook, wasn't it? Which was a bit foolish for a player like him. Remember the straight arm? Yeah, he knows what he's doing. He knows what he's doing. It's a silly thing to do and put his team in trouble. But this was about Sunderland's Stadium of Light, another great day. Nottingham Forest didn't quite go to plan against Brighton, mate. De Kuyper with a lovely work goal with Ruter and Welbeck involved in the build-up and Zimas gets a late winner. 2-0 to Brighton. And Brighton and Hove Albion, my friend, are another team that's sitting fifth in the Premier League.
50:54Which brings me very nicely to my underappreciated performer of the weekend, and that's Fabian Herzler, the manager of Brighton and Hove Albion Football Club. I invite you to look down the team list of Brighton. I invite you, because there's changes every year. You've got an old bloke up front in... Whoa, whoa, whoa. Why not? Yeah. Forget the age. Drop the age thing. You've got a very experienced striker still doing it. Thank you. You've got players on there that we don't know very well. We love the Yasin Ayari, the young midfield player that plays in the middle. De Kuyper was a new player that came into the football club as a full-back.
51:23You've got Minta, you've got Ruter, which we like. Van Hecker and Dunk's been around for a long time. But this football club buys and sells, and it does it really well. And oftentimes that's hard to be a consistent, grooved football team when you're changing the team every season. And this guy, young coach, comes in. We're not talking much about Brighton and Hove Albion. They're fifth. They're fifth. You have three points behind. Another team a bit like Fulham, aren't they? They don't often play in the big games, so we're not doing them that often. We haven't had a big Brighton game. We can take a real deep dive in it.
51:59But looking at the line-up, looking at their results, and the way the manager, Sean Dyche, has got them going a little bit. in the city ground to go there and win comfortably like that and to push them up to that point in the league table Fabian Herzler again another one that could be going places we talk about Iriola Rob all the time we talk about all these other guys Marco Silva Oliver Glasner and Brighton with this young German coach are right up there in fifth spot so I've got to give him a mention a shout out and a little underappreciated given where they are and how hard it is at that club we all know as well Paul Barber We've had a friend of the show a number of times.
52:37We know the stats great. We know all the things behind the scenes that are done well, but they find good managers, mate, and they develop them. We've seen Potter, we've seen Deserby now, and we've seen Herzl. They all do good work. The good thing for Brighton fans is if Herzl ends up going at some point, they'll have another one lined up ready to go. It's like the players, like the important people in the football club. I'm going to go to the final game, the G-Tech. it's Brentford 3 Burnley 1 bit of a story coming out of this one two Thiago goals including a penalty I think it's five penalties now he's got this year Fleming with a penalty back and then with Taurus goes a late winner for Brentford but Keith Andrews and this Brentford team I think it's in the 10th league it surprised one or two people and I'm just going to go straight for my underappreciated performer of the week left it right to the end right Igor Jesus my friend Igor Thiago A lot of Ego's Ego Thiago Ego Thiago Brazilian forward 24 years of age 3 goals behind Erling Haaland in the golden boot 3 goals behind and Erling Haaland has been off at an incredible pace of 14 goals played at Club Rouge scored a number of goals started in Brazil was a futsal player in Brazil got picked up there taken to Bulgaria ended up in Club Rouge and Brentford by him To replace Ivan Toni?
54:04To replace Ivan Toni, yeah. He had a bad knee injury, and then apparently he picked up an infection as the injury was healing. And I'll tell you what happened. A couple of people I know, Marcus Gellander likes at the club, where he built up a relation with Keith Andrews, who was the set-piece coach at the time. And so those two have got a bit of a relationship from the past. From his rehab. From his rehab, and probably Keith just being somebody who goes and checks in on his mental health. Obviously now Keith Andrews is the manager. Thiago's now playing some of his best football. And there's a relationship and a way.
54:40And I was just thinking about this football club in terms of, and we know the two, Brighton and Brentford, were together in this bit. We just think of the forwards, Rob, who, you know, the Wises and the Umbermos, you know, the Watkins and the Tonys. And it looks like they've unearthed another one, a 24-year-old Brazilian who looked free-scoring like He's a bit of an old-school, quite physical, technically strong, is going to get goals. We know how hard it is to recruit players for this division, and particularly strikers, and to have strikers that score consistently. They've somehow managed to do it.
55:13I kind of like what Keith Andrews is doing in terms of the team. It's very more set. Of course, you know how Thomas Frank works. Frank was the obviously coach for a while, did a great job. But he's more set, and you can start kind of picking his team for him. because how about another player by the way that's definitely on the radar for underappreciated in the future is Dango Watara Watara yeah from Bournemouth time for big money wasn't he 57 million dollars in Bournemouth record signing he got the penalty I think that's the fourth penalty earned the most in Premier League by quite a stretch he got a hat-trick of penalties one day didn't he earned or something silly did he of course he got the last goal to make it 3-1 so he's another player with Kevin Sharder which I've underappreciated before you love him We'd have Damsgaard in there as well, and Jordan Henderson, who kind of makes it all tick nicely.
56:01It's another good story. It's an underappreciated team, I believe. Yeah, maybe. I mean, given how hard that was, the manager going and the best players leaving, the captain leaving. That could have gone the other way. I think if anybody felt there was one established team that might struggle down there, I think most people would have said Brentford. Given the changes. Given the changes. Well, they sit mid-table, pretty comfortable position, one of the 19 points now and just don't get the sense that there's going to be any real drama there, do you? Too much good recruitment, too many good players in all areas of the team.
56:30Too well-structured the club. Listen, mate, we're going to call it a day on a weekend where the big London derby ended up all square with lots more cards given than goals scored at Stamford Bridge. There were good wins this weekend for both the Manchester clubs, Newcastle and Sunderland, while Liverpool got an EZAC goal and a clean sheet at the London Stadium. We're back on Wednesday, that's December 3rd, after the midweek games on Match Week 14. But for now, I'm Earl. He's mostly together with the two lobbies. Thanks for watching and listening. Be safe, stay healthy. It's a good night from me.
57:04And it's a good night from him. Good night.
57:23Thank you.
From the publisher
Robbie Earle and Robbie Mustoe unpack all the drama from a thrilling Matchweek 13 in the Premier League
00:55 - Ten-man Chelsea hold Arsenal to a gritty 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge after Moises Caicedo’s red card sparks a feisty London derby
13:35 - Boos erupt in Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Spurs stumble against Fulham, increasing the pressure on Thomas Frank
23:34 - Late heroics from Phil Foden snatches a dramatic 3-2 win for Manchester City over Leeds United at the Etihad
27:51 - Alexander Isak’s first Premier League as a Red goal lifts Liverpool to a 2-0 win over West Ham United
34:12 - A roundup of other results: Crystal Palace 1-2 Manchester United, Aston Villa 1-0 Wolves, Everton 1-4 Newcastle, Sunderland 3-2 Bournemouth, Nottingham Forest 0-2 Brighton, Brentford 3-1 Burnley
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