Can Man City handle the fury at Anfield as the Premier League returns?

0:00Guessing is for game shows, not your business. Workday is the enterprise AI platform for HR, finance and IT, with AI grounded in your context to get work done and done right. It's a new Workday. Do you snore? Did somebody hand you a CPAP and did you quietly stop using it? The mask that never quite seals? The hose tugging at you every time you roll over? A machine sitting abandoned in a closet? that ExciteOSA works a different way. It treats a root cause instead of managing the noise, and you use it while you're awake. 20 minutes a day, while the coffee brews, while you set your fantasy lineup.

0:43An FDA-cleared prescription device for primary snoring and mild obstructive sleep apnea. Then you go to bed like a person, nothing strapped on, nothing plugged in. In clinical studies, 90 % of patients saw a reduction in snoring, No sleep study required. Prescribed online, shipped to your door. ExciteOSA at springsleep.com slash sleep20. Code sleep20 for 20 % off. ExciteOSA is an FDA-cleared prescription-only device for primary snoring and mild obstructive sleep apnea. Not for everyone. Individual results vary. Risks and benefits at springsleep.com. Hi, this is Brooke DeVard from Naked Beauty.

1:30I am always looking for ways to elevate our daily rituals and the Kohler Smart Toilet is proof that design changes everything. It's this stunning sculptural piece that feels like quiet luxury for your bathroom. It totally transforms your daily ritual into something elevated with customizable cleansing and touchscreen controls. It's functional art that makes your space feel cleaner and more intentional. A modern home deserves a modern toilet. Experience the difference of Kohler smart toilets. Find more at Kohler.com.

2:13It's only a football show.

2:21Today, not going to lie, we're going to talk some Nations League. Tommy Tuchel gets credit as England blank checks while Spain and Portugal earn quarters. Then it's asterisk and the Premier League table. After a man said he had the gall to fall in the potion, is this now a 19-team league? On what awaits on Sunday as City travel to Liverpool. All that and the rest of the weekend in store in this Totally Football Show. Thursday the 8th of October welcome to the Totally Football Show. Here in the studio we have Duncan Alexander. Hello James. Hi Duncan. Hello, Julian and Ronald. Hello, boys. Hello there.

2:54Lovely to see you. We've also got Simon Hughes along a little bit later on, who's going to be talking about the game Sunday, Liverpool Man City, because the Premier League is back. Finally. And I've got to say, fantastic. Did you miss it? Did you miss it? Well, just the whole, the way the script rises did it, it's magnificent. You have this big cliffhanger just as the league is taking a break. Yeah. And then when the show returns, you have the villain, we just had the big reveal, the villain takes on head to head, goes face to face with arguably their biggest victim. Outstanding work. It is. Yeah.

3:34It's always two steps ahead of us. It really, really is. Yes. So I'm looking forward to the return of the Premier League. Jules, how about you?

3:41Julien Laurens: Yeah, although maybe it's slightly different in Europe than in England because the Premier League is so big here, so strong, and everybody loves the Premier League more than anything else. I think the rest of Europe has enjoyed the international break, even if it was a bit longer, even if there was quite a lot of games to be played. There was a lot of great stories, obviously, from Cristiano to Messi to all those new head coaches making debut, Klopp, Xavi, Zidane, Jean-José, all of that. So I thought it was a great hiatus in between these crazy players Premier League, start of the season with the Champions League, coming back with big games as already as next week too.

4:15Of course, big games in the Champions League next week as well. What about you, Duncan? Nations League's been good, but Premier League, eh? I mean, I live for the Premier League. Cut me open and I bleed. Do you still bleed Premier League? Or are you now like, I don't know what to do with this? Well, yeah, it's a bit uneasy. I think my years as a cycling fan has kind of innured me to, you know, not quite knowing if something is true or not, or whether you can fully celebrate stuff. Schrodinger's Premier League. Yeah, I think you kind of just have to focus on the hyper-local reality of matchday six and maybe not think too far ahead because, like you say, we don't know what's going to happen with City and sanctions.

4:56Well, even beyond that. Well, true, but away at Anfield is a good way to, you know, lance those wounds briefly. I think there's the question for me of what's going to happen to them off-field, but there's also the question of how do we now regard anything they do on the field, given how they came about that team. But that's a question we can maybe get onto later on as a matter for all of us and our individual consciences, perhaps. You mentioned Hyper. This week also brought Cristiano Ronaldo's letter. Yeah. Or Instagram. How many pages?

5:27Julien Laurens: I don't know. It was 1 ,740 words. I think it's about 16 pages. It doesn't finish with, thank you for your attention to this matter, which it really should have. It should have. Yeah. Thank you for the time you spent reading this. But I don't know where to even begin with that. Me neither, although it's probably not surprising if you know Cristiano a bit. And Narcissist is probably right or maybe strong, but maybe not too strong either. The ego is the biggest ego I've ever met in football to start with. So in a way... And you know James Horncastle. And I know James Horncastle. And we all know James Horncastle.

6:07Julien Laurens: So it's not surprising. However, to have got it that much wrong and that much, how silly this went down to turn out, when you know it's not even just Cristiano, there's a lot of people around him who thought, yeah, this is a great idea. Let's go ahead with it. I think he just, they don't want to say no to him. He didn't write it. So the idea, whatever his decision to walk out on the team, the idea that it's somehow going to convince people to take his side if he tells them that he had agreed with the coach, that the coach should say that it was a mistake having someone of the stature of Pele or Diego Maradona warm up and then not put him on.

6:45I won't do that again with the words that he said the coach had agreed to say. He also said that the coach had agreed to say to close the subject, I want Cristiano in the national team. I do not want him a little I want him a lot and when George Jesus for whatever reason didn't say that in the press conference that's when Cristiano snapped as we all would I think I mean I did love George Jesus saying I haven't read it I'll get round to it at some point with his statement I mean you do need a couple of hours to go through it I guess I actually feel a bit I'm a bit worried about Cristiano Ronaldo because like no footballer wants to retire right right but I've never seen a footballer kind of almost refuse to accept that the career is coming to an end more than him Yeah, yeah.

7:26And it really is. Well, Portugal's certainly doing all right without them. Already booked their quarterfinal place in the Nations League. Let's get a quick roundup on where things sit in that competition after the international break. So since our last show, everyone's completed their first four of six matches. Two teams already in the quarters. As mentioned, Portugal, also Spain, England are all but. Duncan, what did you make of the 3-0 win against Czechia? Very good. Sort of continuation of the vibes from the weekend against Croatia, really. And yeah, I mean, obviously everyone's excited, the interplay and the fact that Tuchel said that the team's been given more freedom to make decisions on the pitch and craft the game how they see fit.

8:06But I mean, basically it's all going to come down. I know England are going to be three to the knockouts, but that away game in Spain is the test. Because it's all very well thrashing the Republic and Croatia. But yeah, we'll see. But it is, as someone who you might remember was rattled after the Argentina game, I feel like a sense of peace has descended. Really, because a lot of the reactions I've seen, it's almost as if people are even more angry when England play well, when they score a goal, for example, like that second one, because people say, why didn't you do this against Argentina? But it was a World Cup semi-final, and it was against an inspired Leo Messi.

8:47But my theory is if they held World Cups in Western Europe in late September and October, England would never lose a World Cup. That's when English national teams at its absolute peak. Late on in a hot, humid tournament. Okay, so we blend the weather. It was a nice second goal, Jules.

9:04Julien Laurens: It was, I think, one of the goals, certainly collectively, of the whole international break. We've had some incredible bangers individually, you know, Voles and Ayer and Cancelo and all that kind of stuff. But as a team goal, I think this was the best. The ball from Anderson, the cross from Rodgers, first time. I mean, then the tap-in, the tap-in is a tap-in. But everything that came before, I think, was very, very special. And it showed you as well, it was a good win. But it shows you that that front four, Bellingham, Kane, Gordon and Sakai, really is the one. You could have decent replacement and serves when you want to rest them.

9:41Julien Laurens: But it's not the same when those four play together. and when you have a Rashford a Rodgers whatever other options you might have wide I don't think it's but Rodgers put in the assist for that yeah which is a great assist to be fair and it's a difficult assist I think to do like that first time but it's not the same as Saka so I think there's a few debates like we had Rashford or Gordon on the left I think this is sorted it has to be Gordon I think on the right there was probably never really a debate about Saka but I think he showed again how well he complements the others and you have two different profiles of a winger plus Bellingham in the form of his life, really, and Kane.

10:14Julien Laurens: And Kane. 125 caps. 125 caps. A lot of caps. That's a lot of caps. A lot of caps. A lot of goals as well. 91 now and 125. I remember when Bobby Charlton, 49 goals, was this untouchable high-water mile for so long. Obviously, Gary Linekut got to 48 and tried to Penenka a penalty against Brazil and it didn't work. And obviously, Wayne Rooney eventually overtook it. But for someone, I mean, Kane's clearly going to get to 100 goals. and that's just that is madness and really when his debut was what 2015 national team so he would have been already 22 imagine if he'd started as young as I don't know Rooney had he started that that early who knows what his body would be doing yeah true true true but he could have easily had a few more than 125 he's in exceptional form 13 goals in 13 England appearances in 2026 and he could add to that before the year is out of course because there's another international break in November England just need a point from their final two games to join Spain in the final eight.

11:17Spain already there, as I say. Jules, you were having a go at Croatia's Moldeodis last time, but they were doing all right. They took the lead at home to Spain. Modric, I thought, played well. Perisic put Croatia into the lead. Yeah, in a different position. Then he got sent off, and that's when the problems really started, and Spain ran out to 2-1 winners. Turn that one around thanks to Mikel Marino.

11:44Julien Laurens: You know, super sub appearance. I mean, Spain have won a lot of games in the last 12, 18 months because of their subs, because of the coaching from De La Fuente, but also the depth that they have now in the squad. And Marino's second goal, the first touch is outrageous. Right. Sub-Marino. Sub-Marino. Sub-Marino, yeah. So that's four wins out of four for Spain in this break and now 42 matches unbeaten, smashing that record. The other groups, you say, well, in Group A1, League A1, who's top, Jules? It is Van France's top. Right. Although you had a shaky moment, didn't you? Shaky 75 minutes, actually.

12:27Julien Laurens: Yeah, you're right, because Belgium took the lead in Paris and then it was a little bit stale. So the interesting thing, for example, is that, and like other head coaches, Zidane did a lot of rotation within the game. So I think there was nine changes from the first game to the second game, another seven, second to third game, another seven or eight, third to fourth game, which I'm not sure I agree completely with because he gave six players a debut. For example, the likes of Jacquet and Leni Jorot did really well. Esteban Lepoel who finished the Ligue 1 top scorer last season. So, you know, those kind of guys, which I think is a good thing.

13:01Julien Laurens: But for me, it was a little bit too many changes. and we saw against Belgium that as soon as Olisse and Cherki and Dwayne came on it changed the whole dynamic of the game so there was a lot of really good things that Zidane has done in his first international break some of the style of football he wants to play some of those debuts some of the performances individually some others were not so good like Guzman Dembele who was despite having the armband was not good enough probably for his liking and his standards but overall it was very positive and Olisse with two goals in an assist as France racked up four goals in the final quarter of an hour to storm to three points.

13:40They are, I believe, three points ahead of Italy who are second in the group. Italy are a point ahead of Belgium. Italy continuing their resurgence, which is great to see. They beat Turkey. To be honest, they were a bit shaky as well. Donnarumma again with an exceptional performance. But Italy in the final minutes racing to a 3-1 victory. You win. It's the most important Yeah, given the way that things started under Manachini, it's remarkable. Oh, and the other thing about Italy is that the under-19s are absolutely tearing it up in the under-19 Euro qualifying. And Gazette are getting very excited because the notion is, of course, if your Unders are doing well, they should.

14:21Last time they won the Euros was 2004, and two years later, Italy win the Senior World Cup. But the under-19s had a game against Poland the day before Italy's game with Turkey, which they won 6-2. And in that game, there's a guy called Sian Dorr, who's, you know, the Fiorentina-Metroder. Yeah, he was a PSG. Oh, yeah. Yeah.

14:42Julien Laurens: He scored... The goal. Yeah. Incredible. Not just on the halfway line. Well into his own half. Yeah. Extraordinary goal. That group, so you've got France, then a bit below them Italy, and then just behind them Belgium. So it's quite tight. It's quite tight in Group A2 as well, Duncan, where Netherlands and Greece are level. Greece were unbeaten after four matches. Again, Apollo Ador, you were so right in tipping them as dark horses. So dark. So dark, yeah. So horse-like. They had a nil-nil draw with Germany. Germany was struggling a bit. Germany is three points back from those two leaders. they've only scored three goals so far in their four matches from 79 shots yeah and two against Serbia when they had again 35 shots and they were all over them where Viet scored and was really good but yeah Klopp of all I think the new head coaches that we've had so we mentioned Giorgio Edismancini Zidane Chavi he's the one I think he's struggling a little bit more to get all these ideas across and maybe because he's the one actually maybe even more than Chavi that he's very much a club mentality type of manager.

15:54Julien Laurens: And that's probably harder to implement on a national team than a stadium. Well, he was wearing a Liverpool cap, Jim, wasn't he? Yeah, was he? Yeah, which I found a bit like... That's strange. You know, when you've been on a really nice holiday and you keep reminding people, like... Right. Oh, I've been in Grieg's salad for the last six months. I used to be a manager of Liverpool, Jim. That's Group A, whatever that was, two, I think. And then Group A4 is the other one, where Portugal are through. Denmark are fully six points behind them with Wales third. It's good that Ronaldo did his statement as part of A4, isn't it?

16:28Yeah. Nice. That's very nice. Ronaldo's statement. He says that he would like to come back for a final game. We should say, or possibly more than one final game, which stretches the concept a little bit for me. But Portugal's certainly not missing him.

16:42Julien Laurens: No, but he needs a farewell game. We saw what happened with Messi and Argentina. and I know it's very different, but he needs something. He can't end like this. I think they would be wrong. Even if I think a lot of the country has taken not his side, as we mentioned, I still think he deserves something a bit better. I'm not going to disagree with you, Jules. But it's nice to see. I think they're a more enjoyable side. They've been a very enjoyable side to watch. Let's put it that way. They'd be better without him, for sure. Okay. Norway, bottom of that group, behind even Wales. should mention Scotland.

17:16Another new manager there, Sebastian Pocignoli. They went up by a goal at home to Slovenia this week and ended up losing 2-1. Yikes, that's two home defeats out of two. They are third in their group. They're down in League B. Northern Ireland, who are also in League B, top their group. They are a point ahead of Hungary after their 0-0 draw at home to Georgia. and Republic of Ireland lie third in their League B group. Sunday they drew 1-1 with Israel. Just to finish off on the international break, it concluded with those scenes in Buenos Aires.

17:56Julien Laurens: The drone. That's the only little sore note. The drone was spectacular. What, with the sponsor? Yeah, it was a sponsor there, but it's football. Yeah, but not the sponsor. Don't give me the sponsor on that night, the night that everybody will remember for. Messi and the fair were incredible my emotional moment in association with exactly I agree with that that's how I'll sell mine yeah but everything else apart from that from Messi's crying already on the bus on the way to the moment that was a great drone I mean drone work because the camera basically you see the bus going along you've probably seen the footage and it zooms in over the city's gate and manages to find Messi crying through the coach window superb superb superb everything else work script writers a lot of tears for grown men you know enzo scaloni when did you last cry jose uh no probably not that long ago really but even me watching on television and it was late at night for us here obviously but you you had to stay up and and and or try to and watch it because it was just because you because you prefer cycling to football now that's the problem uh if he had been pogacar the greatest cyclist of all time This is still the greatest footballer of all time, really.

19:12Julien Laurens: Retiring like that from international football. And you knew it would be very emotional. And I think it was. And it was beautiful. Is Pogacar the Messi of cycling? It will be when he retires, surely. Yeah, he's on the way. All right. Or Eddie Merckx, but we were not born. No. When Eddie Merckx retired. Not even I was born. No, no. A little bit. A little bit. Maybe, yeah. A little bit. All right then. Premier League, eh? Let's get on to that.

19:40Hey, it's Paige from Giggly Squad. I'm a big believer that sometimes a new workout outfit is all the motivation you need. And luckily, Abercrombie just teamed up with Barry's to bring a YPB collection made for the Red Room. I'm talking about YPB's sculpt luxe leggings, shorts, double-layered bras, and the new 6am jacket. Basically everything you need to go from looking like you're just trying to survive a workout class to looking like you're achieving your personal best. Shop YPB by Abercrombie in the app, online and in stores, and bring your personal best to the Red Room.

20:13Julien Laurens: Hi, this is Mark Bittman from the podcast Food with Mark Bittman. I've been writing about food and restaurants for almost 50 years, my whole career, really. And what I know is that the good restaurants all have something in common. They're busy, genuinely, chaotically busy. And somehow, in the last few years, the best of them have begun to make it look easy. And do you know why? Because they're running on Toast's technology. Toast is built for restaurant owners who understand that Toast's tools keep the line moving and keep their customers happy, with fewer mistakes and hiccups in ordering and paying.

20:51Julien Laurens: For owners, that turns busy into business. To learn more, head to toasttab.com. That's T-O-A-S-T-T-A-B, toasttab.com. Toast, built for busy. This ad is sponsored by ZocDoc. Hi, it's Danny Pellegrino from Everything Iconic. Have you been putting off that annual doctor's appointment because you don't want to make the call? Or maybe you've been meaning to find a new dentist, but you have no idea where to start. I find that's especially true when you move. It's hard to find your people. I've been there, which is why I use ZocDoc. Now, as a busy podcaster, parent, and someone who's always juggling a million things, I love anything that makes life easier.

21:31And ZocDoc lets you search and compare local in-network doctors with over 250 ,000 providers across more than 200 specialties. You can read reviews from real patients, find a provider who feels like the right fit, see actual appointment openings, and book instantly. I recently had a last-minute health issue pop up and needed to see someone fast. and instead of calling around or sitting on hold, I found a doctor on ZocDoc and booked an appointment in just a few minutes. It made the whole process so much less stressful. Now, taking care of your health just got easier. Download the ZocDoc app today.

22:05That's ZocDoc, Z-O-C-D-O-C, and book that appointment on your to-do list. It's the Premier League and it's back this weekend and it feels like it's been a while and heightening that sensation of... otherness are the revelations about Man City and the 114 cases that they've been found guilty of. I was waiting to tell you this, Duncan. 114 guilty verdicts of inflating their finances to the tune of about a billion pounds. We all know, apart from Duncan, the story, but it does feel like almost a different season now to the one before that knowledge was widespread. Man City are the team on top of the table.

22:51How much do those points matter? How much do any points they win on the field now matter, given the penalties that could be on the way for them? And what are the responses of other teams going to be? Those are big questions, and questions that are pretty relevant this weekend, when, of course, Man City travel to the team. They narrowly pipped to the title in two recent seasons, by a point in each case, Liverpool. What kind of fury awaits there? Well, going along to that game will be Simon Hughes of the Athletic's very own Walk On Liverpool podcast. And he joins us right now. Simon, thank you for being on Totally today.

23:31Thank you for inviting me. Always a pleasure. Are you looking forward to Sunday? And how hard is it to even see that as a football match? I am looking forward to it. but I guess my thoughts swing dramatically either way when I start to think about what has happened and what is about to happen. You know when in the Middle Ages when villagers assemble for public execution, it feels a little bit like that but then when I really stop and think about what this means and whether it actually means anything anymore, I feel very differently there's a sort of underbelly of maybe fury and frustration but also sadness when it prompts me to think about the last 15 years and maybe makes me question everything that I've witnessed between these two teams because there's been some great matches but I just think that this game on Sunday now with us not really knowing what it's going to mean in the long term it sort of feels a bit inconsequential in a lot of ways.

24:39As you say, the Middle Ages parallel. I think a lot of people are thinking that it means a lot because of the chance to express their unhappiness with what has emerged. What kind of preparations are there for the reception that Man City are going to get on Sunday? Well, I mean, the sort of the heat point, if you like, and the reference point leads back to 2018 when Manchester City arrived for a Champions League game. having complained about the arrangements around that. And it then led to, well, an assault on the bus, really. That's the only way to describe it. You know, bottles and cans and things thrown at the bus and created damage, which created a lot of headlines around that time.

25:28So I guess there are concerns around the approach to the game, but City haven't verbalised that yet. And as it stands, Liverpool and Maerside Police both said it's the preparations will go on as normal you know but again I think at the moment there's a lot of sort of people outside the situation I mean everybody's involved in this situation this is the thing it's not just Liverpool it's not just Manchester City fans I think supporters and observers or whatever way you want to call yourself have been affected by this one way or the other and there's almost this sort of expectation that it's going to be this certain type of atmosphere but everybody I speak to particularly from a Liverpool perspective just feels very mixed about it all really at the moment I'm sure on the match day you know there'll be a volatile atmosphere and you know the City players particularly are going to feel it but there's a lot of unknowns as well and I think those unknowns stem from the fact that we don't really know where this is all heading and what this game actually means because it doesn't really feel like a game football anymore to be honest it doesn't you know you think about those big games between Manchester City and Liverpool, big Champions League games.

26:38They've all sort of stayed the direction of the entire season. And then that gets me thinking about, I don't know, a game like in 2019, which was one of the best games of football I've ever seen when Manchester City beat Liverpool 2-1. It was the only game that Liverpool lost that season. Had they won that game, they'd have won the league. They'd have gone the whole season unbeaten. So you'll think about everything totally differently now. So, yeah, it's a very strange feeling, actually. I think there's a lot of pressure on, I guess, both sets of supporters to act a certain way when we're sort of treading in chartered territory and nobody really knows how to feel about it at the moment.

27:19As it stands, Liverpool are currently like sixth in the Premier League, three points off the best of the non-asterisks teams, if I can put it that way, Arsenal. But Ideola, who's unbeaten in his first five league games, three clean sheets in a row for the Reds. So in strictly football terms, if I can force you to think about those, Simon, where are you standing now on the start that they've made under him? Well, I'm going to contradict what I've just said to some degree, because it is a big game for Iriola, because it's his first really big game at Anfield. And if Liverpool can win this game, they've got a run of fixtures, which are quite tough, but it'll set them up well for that.

27:56It's still very clear that it's a work in progress. I mean, they have kept three clean sheets and the defensive performances have improved. But there hasn't been a sort of performance yet where I'd say the defence is connected with the attack and vice versa. It's been either one or the other where they haven't been able to get the balance quite right. You know, the early signs, I would say, are quite promising. But this is a real test for Areola to sort of get his methods across and prove that it works. Because the whole idea is that Liverpool play front foot of football, get on top of the opposition, direct, make it difficult for them.

28:29and you would think that the environment of Anfield on Sunday would be conducive to him getting that sort of style of football on the pitch so let's see I mean I think you know defensively they have looked better and that's been the big improvement so far further up the pitch it hasn't quite connected yet and I think it's understandable given the changes that have taken place in that area of the pitch One or two injuries as well that are going to affect Iriola's team selection but we can talk about that in a second And Simon, thank you so much for joining us today and enjoy yourself on Sunday.

29:02Thanks very much. Simon Hughes. All right, then. Well, how is this going to be for Manchester City's players, I wonder? Are you going to say it might actually bring them together? Well, there's the galvanised angle, maybe. But I also think it might. City's players have been so good for so long, obviously. I think for opposition teams, it might be a bit like, well, they are good players, but should they even be at this club? I think it could inspire opponents to sort of step up or maybe fear them slightly less. And let's not forget, in their last Premier League game, they conceded almost 4xG to Sunderland.

29:39I would say Moreska Starr obviously has been decent with five wins out of five, but they're not a five wins out of five team. No, I agree. And I think Liverpool, as Simon was saying, are improving. And I think, you know, it's in a good time slot, 4.30 as well. I think the atmosphere is obviously going to be pretty good and I think Liverpool will get after them and I don't think City are particularly good at the back at the moment

30:01Julien Laurens: If you're Liverpool you smell blood really this whole City squad as a player have been shaken massively by the news imagine a Mark Gehry or Elliot Anderson or those kind of players when they signed would have asked about those charges at the time inevitably would have been very much reassured and both looked out of sorts in the first England game just after the news or Riley as well and now So I think certainly some of the players that I know talk a lot about what's going to happen, what are the risks, what could we do, what kind of clauses is there in the contract, if there's relegation, if there's this, if there's that.

30:39What about if there's a Middle Ages-style execution?

30:42Julien Laurens: I don't think that came up to their mind just yet. I mean, let's not forget football is very popular in the Middle Ages. we don't know who the best footballer is Jules says Lionel Messi because there could have been someone in 13-12 who we simply don't know we simply don't know to your point it only takes like 1 % less for players a team just immediately fine margins and do you think Maresca to go back to the galvanized it's us against the world you know they're all against us Pep you would have said 100 % Klopp probably I think you could see Arteta's intensity going like really thriving in this Even Emery or someone.

31:18Julien Laurens: Yeah, yeah. Mares, I'm just like, you know, your warm, friendly uncle. I'm not just sure. Do you reckon? No, he's got a bit of edge to him, I think, Mares. I don't think so. No? I don't think it's a galvanising edge. I think it's more of a sort of cross edge. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Right. Well, sure. Speaking of those managers, this is the first Liverpool-Man City game in 11 and a half years that won't feature either Klopp or Guardiola. So among Man City's disciplinary concerns is the fact that Phil Foden is still suspended for this game. He's not the only likely absentee. Erling Haaland came off for Norway during Sunday's defeat to Portugal, although afterwards they were playing down the magnitude of that injury.

32:01Yeah?

32:02Julien Laurens: Yeah. And also Alexander Isaac missed the last three fixtures for Sweden with a thigh injury. Oh, Cody Yakpo. Yeah, he's the one. He's the one really. I think he's that would be fair. Yakpo looks a little bit more serious. Right. and he's been outstanding for the last season. Probably their best player. And scored their brilliant goal against Germany. Yeah. After almost joining Man City. Exactly. I know. Better you thought about that. BB-29, remember? BB-29. Bradley Barcola, 29. I know. Yeah, of course. Who hasn't fired yet with Liverpool. Yes. Again, was a bit disappointing with France in its national break.

32:39Who could have foreseen this?

32:40Julien Laurens: No, no, no. I mean, well, him not being that good for Liverpool straight away, you mean? Zolidore was a crisp. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He needs a bit of time. But this could be a big game for him, like we said, for a lot of those players and managers. Absolutely. All right. We're going to be live on the Toadie Football Show very shortly after the final whistle at Anfield. So if you fancy a Sunday night roundup, then do join us or catch it later on on Monday when you have a moment to spare. Speaking of Champions League, which you were earlier, Jules, City have Paris Saint-Germain next Wednesday. Adi Etihad.

33:17Julien Laurens: And guess who's going to show up? Pep. Pep Guardiola. Like, well, like, and clearly he still thinks that they are innocent and they will be able to prove it. And this is a show of support and we're all in this together and I'm with you even if I'm not there anymore. He's always said, hasn't he, in his press conferences, no, I believe them. They say that we are innocent and if they lie to me, we will never be friends again, all of that, blah, blah, blah. Did you say that? Yeah. He also said if they ever went down to the National League, he'd manage them. So maybe he's just checking out Hyde and Stadley-Bridge-Celtic.

33:53Before we talk any further about the National League, let's move on to the rest of the weekend next.

34:04Is there anything better than your team bringing home a W? How about a personal W for your health? If you're 45 or older and at average risk, it's time to screen for colon cancer. Now the number one cancer killer of people under 50 in the U.S. It's easy to put off when screening feels like a hassle, but Cologuard Plus makes it simple. It's non-invasive, requires no prep, can be completed at home in about 15 minutes, and is 95 % effective. Talk to your healthcare provider or request Cologuard Plus online, Rx only. Hey, it's Hannah Burner from Giggly Squad, and the holidays are around the corner, which means I'm officially entering my hostess Hannah era with Arm & Hammer Hardball Cat Litter.

34:43You guys know I love cats and fostering, but when I'm hosting, I do not want my house smelling like cats. I want people focusing on my hosting skills. That's why I love Arm & Hammer Hardwell Cat Litter. It delivers long-lasting odor control and forms compact clumps that make cleanup easy, so that's one less thing I need to worry about when people come over. Be guest-ready with Arm & Hammer Cat Litter. Find it now at Walmart or Amazon. Grainger knows if you're a procurement manager at an industrial manufacturing facility, you're balancing inventory and budget while sourcing critical supplies across the operation.

35:16Too much inventory? Costs climb. Too little? Production slows. Grainger's$2 billion in odd-hand inventory helps you get what you need when you need it, so you can help keep budgets balanced and lines moving. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com, or just stop by. Grainger, for the ones who get it done. When you're running a growing business, the right systems can unlock your full sales potential and make fulfilling every order effortless. Switch to ShipStation before peak season so you're prepped and ready before the rush hits. ShipStation connects Shopify, Amazon, TikTok Shop, and over 200 more marketplaces with one platform that does it all.

35:52You can manage orders, sync inventory, track returns, all automatically. Everything your operation needs, all in one place. Upgrade your shipping operations to stress-proof your biggest sales days and capture every bit of potential revenue. Go to ShipStation.com and use code AUDIO and get 30 days free. Rest of the weekend So as we left things Man City had won 5 from 5 Which we know isn't important Well we do because Duncan very helpfully wrote an article A lot of people wrote in to explain to you Why you shouldn't have bothered But the point that he made was That winning 5 from 5 You think well there's a clear winner here No In 11 of the last 10 of the 14 times it's happened You do it Yeah.

36:34Yeah. Ten of the last 14 times. Of the 14 times. Ten of the only 14 times that the team has won their first five. They haven't won. Correct. Including the last two times that Man City have done it. Yeah. And obviously Liverpool last year, Arsenal in 22, 23. Newcastle in the 90s. There's plenty of examples. Okay. The small sample size. City, of course, there are other factors involved in their possibility of winning the league or not. But moving beyond them, Arsenal, who've let slip the lead, having been thrashed last time by Brighton. They're in second place. Brighton, Brentford and Leeds are all in the top five.

37:16Coventry, Fulham and Spurs are in the bottom three. Spurs in last place, of course. They haven't won a game yet this season. Neither have Fulham or Marco Ruzza's Bournemouth. Matchday six gets underway. 12.30 Saturday, Arsenal taking on Leeds. At three o 'clock, you've got Villa-Brentford, Ipswich Fulham Chelsea Bournemouth and Sunderland Brighton the home side without Dan Ballard and Brian Brobby who both suffered hamstring injuries on international duties that's a bit of a concern for the Black Cats at 5.30 on Saturday Man United take on bottom of the table Spurs Sunday two o 'clock there's Palace Forest which was the Lord Greystoke dilemma derby then became El Casico but is now surely El Glasnico, I think.

38:03Absolutely. Oliver Glasnico, facing the Palace team with whom he won two trophies. Three, even if you count the Community Shield. Three trophies. Three. Shield, it's not a trophy, yeah. I mean, what is a trophy? Does it have to be a... I suppose it does, doesn't it? Does a trophy have to be... Surely a trophy. If I go to war and I come back with trophies, they're not necessarily little cups. They could be the head of my... It's gone quite dark, hasn't it? Yeah, it's a very good back in the medieval village, don't we? Yeah. Anyway. Unbelievable. Hal Everton is also at 2 o 'clock on Sunday. Everton, also unbelievably, with their teeny squad, are still unbeaten in all competitions this season.

38:404.30 on Sunday, Liverpool take on Man City. And then on Monday, Coventry-Newcastle. I would like to have a chat about one or two. Jules, anything you want to have?

38:49Julien Laurens: I mean, the Saki-Ko, of course, between United and Spurs. It's not the first time. I remember when Nuno was there and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was there. Is it a Saki-Ko, do you think? I think whoever loses this whether it's Carrick or De Zerbe obviously and whatever especially if it's a heavy defeat or if you know if it's a you know you could lose 3-2 but still playing well and being a little bit but let's say you get battered I think the pressure will mount so much on that loser there that it could be very difficult to follow because I think this break was good in a way for a team like United who just need the break.

39:29Julien Laurens: Baliba, for example, had some minutes in the friendly match that they played on Friday night. Others had two, like Acuna who was not with Brazil. Things like that. Maguire too. I think that was good also to just almost forget about those first five games who have been terrible for United, let's be honest here. And then start again from this game against Spurs. If you are Old Trafford, don't win that and get comprehensively beaten. I'm not sure what happens to Michael Carrick, but it would be very difficult. Man United, before the start of the season, their opening five games were rated as the easiest that any team's calendar offered.

40:04The easiest of any team. And where are they? 12th in the table with five points from five matches. They haven't won any of their last four games domestically, including that League Cup defeat to Bryans. So they want to put that start behind them. What about Spurs though, Duncan? And could this actually be a good fixture for them? Not least because it's not at home at Tottenham Stadium. Lads, it's Man United. I'm sure De Zerbe will be saying. But yeah, I think Spurs have actually shown progression as the season's gone on, which I don't think United necessarily have. So what have they progressed in?

40:38Well, I think you can see patterns of play coming through now that De Zerbe didn't install when he took over at the end of last season because he was just like... But he did get results then. Yeah, but that was like his grind-out results just stay up, you know. Right. Whereas I think now he wants to craft the team in his image. Okay. And they're getting there. They just don't really have anyone to finish their chances. But they're playing Man Utd. I just worry about United quite a bit. Man Utd's your football club. Yeah, I do. I think, let's not forget, when the window slammed shut on the first bit of the Premier League season and the international break opened, this was the fixture.

41:15Everyone was like, this is huge. Because the City charges hadn't dropped. I think Carrot will be pleased with everything that's going on because it has allowed him to scussell under the radar. Right. But yeah, I fancy Spurs to do something.

41:29Julien Laurens: Yeah, you need a massive improvement from United. Yeah, I think so. It hasn't been good enough. Carrick hasn't been good enough. His own decision, his own coaching, even his attitude on the touchline, I don't think has kind of responded well to what was happening on the pitch. Right. Which I think has been a problem. And I think, yeah, the response has to come in this game on Saturday, even more than the Champions League games that they have after that coming up. They need a response there. OK, Man United playing Atletico Madrid. That's on Tuesday. Spurs, by the way, have won four of their last six meetings with Man United, including that Europa League final.

42:04They have won, though, none of their last five meetings with other Premier League teams and failed to score in four of those five. But fine, you reckon they're going to win at Old Trafford. It could well happen. They will possibly be without both Van Hecken van der Ven, because of injury scares with the Netherlands. We'll see. Anyway, Arsenal lead second against fifth. Tough three weeks for Mikel Arteta after that 3-0 thrashing at Brighton. Can Leeds do something similar to them? Well, last season, the two Leeds games were pretty much the only time Arsenal were able to sort of cut loose and win comfortably.

42:40They're probably Victor Gokras' two best games as well, if you don't count Burnley away, which he probably shouldn't. And he might be back. It looks like he will, because Havertz picked up an injury and Gokered very much didn't and scored in all four of Sweden's Nations League matches. Looked good. But, you know, is the Nations League and the Portuguese League the Premier League? Probably not. And Leeds are a different prospect this time round. But I still think Arsenal... Mikel Arteta learns, doesn't he? It's like no defeat goes wasted in Arteta. And he's had three weeks to mull on the Brighton game.

43:17and I think even though it's a 12-30 Saturday game I think the intensity from Arsenal in the first 10 minutes might be big because he will have made that clear George you're wearing an Arsenal shirt today

43:28Julien Laurens: yes 95-96 it's a beautiful shirt absolutely that ziggy slash yeah exactly Bruce Ria classic it is a classic it is a classic and I agree with Dunk I think they will be up for it which was really the thing missing against Brighton you could look again at that game and how clinical Brighton were and Gray the first two goals especially the Costolas and the Gross shots from outside of the box were just very low XG goals but they took them really well and they put Arsenal under pressure who never really showed up I think they will very much show up certainly in terms of attitude Leeds and their back five might be okay and might be able to defend and counter that whole intensity and press but I think from an Arsenal point of view that's what you see and you talked about Jocheres I wouldn't be surprised if Merino started up front and not Jokaris in this game Arsenal won the two fixtures against Leeds last season aggregate score of 9-0 of course Leeds progressed dramatically midway through the campaign we'll see what happens this weekend that one's coming up on Saturday lunchtime later on in the weekend or actually at 3 o 'clock on Saturday you've got Villa Brentford and Chelsea Bournemouth Villa lost both games against the Bees last season and also got knocked out of the League Cup by them as well.

44:46Villa got their first win three weeks ago of the season. That was against Spurs, but they still rank bottom of all 20 teams this season for expected goals, shots attempted, shots on target, and touches in the opposition box. Yeah, but they did this last season and they're absolutely fine. Very true. I expect them to surge back. There's an article about that. Teams who do really badly in their first five games. Yeah.

45:09Julien Laurens: Chelsea up at Utrecht. Madjo is back as well. He played in their friendly. He was obviously very good and everybody got really excited after his European Super Cup cameo against PSG and then he picked up an injury and now he's back and I think they could do with another player up front like that, you know, with Tammy Abraham and with Nico Jackson and I don't know how many minutes he will get and how much he will play but at least even off the bench he's a great weapon to have. Manzambi looked great. There you go. And Manzambi's with Switzerland. Chelsea Bournemouth, what have we got here? One point from the last nine available for Xabi Alonso where might Chelsea's problems lie well so far they conceded at least two goals in all of their five matches it's hard to say then really what it's a mystery problem if you're if you're reminiscing about Robert Sanchez you're in a tricky position are you are we at that point well I'm not sure Martinez was much of an upgrade really but yeah I think defensively they look all over the shop so but Bournemouth they get to win aren't they so They are.

46:13It's funny because everyone's sort of – in football it takes so long for like truths to realign. And at the moment everyone's a well-run club. They're unbeaten under Areola for ages. It's really good. They're in Europe. But they actually – they could deal with a win pretty soon. Indeed so. They're not going to be able to field Alex Scott after the quad injury he picked up on England duty. Could be out of two months. Big blue to the Cherries. Palace against Forest. That looks fun. Oliver Glasner back at Selhurst Park. What kind of reception do you think he'll get?

46:45Julien Laurens: Oh, great reception. I hope so. Yeah, us too. I mean, they're the greatest manager they've ever had. You see the difference now, and as much as I love Pierre Sage, or Stonewise, as we like to call him on the show, obviously.

47:00Julien Laurens: And it's interesting because they clearly picked Sage because there was a lot of similarities in the way... Like a chef. In the way that he plays football, it's the same system as Glasner. kind of the pressing is probably the same but it's a very different mentality or personality sorry than Glasner is far more laid back and I think for a team and a squad that is quite similar really to the ones that has had Glasner for those like two and a half years or so to go from Glasner's personality to Saj I think is quite difficult and I think I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the players found Saj a little bit too laid back and that's maybe explained why the team hasn't really responded well to Saj so far.

47:42Julien Laurens: There's been a few issues. Jadid Convo has been dropped from the first team squad because Saj was not happy with the attitude and things like that. So as much as the football transition seems okay, same system, same ideology pretty much, the transition from the personality of one manager to the other being so different, I think it's probably troubled a little bit the squad. He's used 27 different players so far this season, chopping and changing around. Some suggestions that the club might be doing some chopping themselves. So I think we had somebody on before the international break positing that Pierre Sarge might not be there afterwards, but he very much still is.

48:20Julien Laurens: Yeah, but he needs points. The win against Fulham was good, but then after that he said that he felt sorry for Fulham, which you cannot say anywhere, but especially not in the Premier League. And I think, yeah, if they get beaten at home by a glass in the steam, I think that'll look really bad on him. It increased the pressure. Duncan, your thoughts on Ipswich, Fulham, or Sunderland, Brighton, or Hull, Everton, or even Monday night's Coventry in Newcastle. I think that I'm interested to see how long Everton can, you know, with their squad of three players, maintain their challenge. But they've looked good, I think.

48:54I think Moyes quite enjoys that sort of backs against the wall. Yeah, but again, Hull have looked all right as well. Yeah, it's concede at home where they very much are this weekend. What about Brighton? Team of the moment, Brighton. Not only did they have that astonishing 3-0 win against Arsenal. But Fabian Herzlach is the Premier League Manager of the Month. Louis Dunk has just scored the Goal of the Month. And Pascal Gross is the Player of the Month. And they're the top scorers in the division. They've forced the most high turnovers in the Premier League as well. Good luck. There are so many things we could say about Brighton.

49:29They take on Sunderland, who, as I mentioned before, are going to be without Dan Ballard and, again, Brian Broby. the inclusion of the R in the second name

49:41Julien Laurens: yeah that throws you away it throws me with the first I want to call him Brian Brobby I don't have one R in there you're putting it in the second it's Brian Brobby because you can say Brighton Brentford easily right? but you can't say Brian Brobby properly maybe the names the fascinating thing about Brighton is they've been amazing against the top six teams you know they beat Arsenal as we said they beat City before Liverpool Chelsea everybody every big club is finding it difficult against them and yet if they finish eighth twice in a row in the Hurtles because in the easiest game if you want against teams that are not the top top teams they struggle and they have those really bad patches of games where they go 10 without a win between I don't know January and March or February and March and you don't really know why maybe it's just the intensity they can't sustain or maybe some keep players like Pascal Gross at 35 just can't do it the whole season like he's done so far Gross for me is the best player in the league so far this season I think he's been outstanding but can he do it over the whole season plus in Europe because now they're in Europe I'm not too sure and that's maybe why they will finish 8th again or maybe in this strange transitional season where we don't know you know maybe this is their chance to win the league or win the league yeah do Leicester I mean it is early in the season sample size etc but their numbers attacking numbers particularly are like legit they're really really good ok so team wins first five games no chance winning the league team does alright scores a lot of goals yeah they're going to win the league I'm paraphrasing a little bit if they were not in Europe I would say like yeah I would go with them but they're in the conference league which I think you can probably win with your B team your B team yeah yeah sure we said the conference league is the FA Cup really right it's always an English club winning and all of that without Mitoma who would be missing you know without Minte who'd been missing with Hinchelwood and Ruter getting injured early in the season right are any of those due back anytime soon I think Ruter yeah Ruter is back I think he was on the bench and came on maybe before the international break I think Mitoma I saw him in the picture yeah summer training so they should be even better once all of those guys are back.

52:03Although, can they even get back in the team? Yeah, but then they will play

52:08Julien Laurens: in the Conference League. Conference League. It's happening. All right then. What, the odds? Do you know the odds for Brighton to win a title? We're less than 5 ,000 to 1. Yeah. Are they? I mean, we've learned that lesson.

52:21I thought the lesson was you need to make the, oh no, you're right. All righty. Anything else about the Premier League weekend or should we just sit back and let it happen?

52:30Julien Laurens: Yeah, let's see how everybody feels on Sunday when City do you think people will scream even at the TV you think because I don't feel doctors scream at my TV for sure but people at the pub in front of the TV in the living room like I think in a pub they'll be performative you know but I think if you're doing it on your own in a living room will you not have perhaps a can going maybe we'll find out we'll find out excellent we will be in the Totally Football Show studio the other one on Sunday so perhaps you'd like So Jonas has mentioned it will be live on YouTube probably from around about 7.30.

53:06So, yeah, there's that. And if you're hungry for content in the meantime, you can't say fairer than our latest Totally Extra, which features a footballer by the name of Sir David Beckham. Maybe you've heard of him. All right, Duncan, it'll all be new to you. Excellent. Thank you so much, Duncan, for making it in today. Jules, to you as well, always delight. Many thanks to Simon Hughes earlier on and to producers Jake and Charlie. We'll be back with you soon. For now, from all of us here, it's goodbye.

53:58impressions. Cut the bull spend. See revenue, not just reach. LinkedIn delivers the highest return on ad spend of major ad networks. Advertise on LinkedIn. Spend$250 on your first campaign and get a$250 credit. Go to linkedin.com slash campaign. Terms and conditions apply. Still waiting in line? Again? That's time you'll never get back. Save time and money with stamps.com. Over 4 million businesses have skipped the line with stamps.com. Join them to save up to 90 % off carrier rates from your computer or phone right now. Print postage for certified mail, registered mail, and packages in seconds.

54:34Then schedule a pickup right from your home or office. For a limited time, go to stamps.com and use code podcast for a free welcome gift. Taxes and fees apply. Every restaurant wants to be busy. Most restaurants aren't ready for it. I'm Chef Mike from Detroit 75, and Toast helps us stay ready when the lunch rush hits. We prepare for lunch like we're preparing for battle. Orders are flying, tickets are stacking, and the guests should never fill the chaos. Toast keeps our team organized so we can serve more people, stay consistent, and keep growing. Visit toasttab.com to learn more. Pay testimonial from an actual Toast customer.

55:07Some days, getting the work done isn't the problem. Staying locked in is. AlphaBrain is Onnit's daily nootropic formula for cognitive support, designed to support memory, focus, attention, and mental clarity. Its formula with science-driven ingredients include theanine and huperzine A to support focus and memory. And it's caffeine-free. So when you're deep in the work, AlphaBrain helps support enhanced productivity and tune-out distractions. Get focused on what matters. Shop AlphaBrain now at onnit.com.