The Game Football Podcast The Times

Martin Samuel, Jonny Northcroft and Gregor Robertson join Tom Clarke on Thursday’s edition of The Game.
Manchester City lost for the first time at Newcastle, but did Pep Guardiola give his players an excuse for the loss before the game even started. Plus some confidence boosting wins for some big teams.
In the second part of the show a fascinating insight into what it takes to be an elite coach – the methods, dedication and psyche needed to succeed. Jonny Northcroft met Anthony Barry, once a lower league English footballer now coaching Ronaldo. 

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Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Tom Allnut join Tom Clarke to discuss the Ange, Chelsea and thrashings.
The team pick through the aftermath of the north London derby, Ange’s influence, Raya v Ramsdale and the impact of James Maddison.
Chelsea have had their worst start in forty five years, will they even make the top half. Their run of fixtures in the next two months mean it could be tough to turn it around. In contrast Villa are playing good football, climbing the table and looking every inch an Emery team.
Does eight nil mean anything anymore?  Are the three promoted trams already doomed?
 
Timeline:
Arsenal / Spurs
2’ Alyson Rudd was underwhelmed by the north London derby. Error strewn, chaos and mistakes for the goals. Tom Allnut was very impressed with Spurs. They went to the emirates, played the gam they wanted to play and didn’t lose, could even have won. Bigger picture spurs going in the right direction
7’ Gregor says it isn’t a surprise, ‘Ange ball’ has an identity, which Gregor has seen at Celtic, and he is sue he’ll continue in the same vein at Spurs.
12’ Rice’s injury.  Not serious, but what effect did it have on Arsenal?
14’ Playing the Raya way. Alyson believes his selection sets the tone for the whole team. While his distribution wasn’t the best this weekend, she thinks he’ll remains Arteta’s first choice, with no rotation. ‘Raya is like having a coach on the pitch.’ Cleve, quick, vocal and good distribution.
19’ Tom Allnut discusses how and why Arsenal signed Raya, and other historic examples of two ‘first choice’ goalkeepers at the same club. In the end…Raya is number one.
23’ James Maddison…what a great performance in a big game for a new club. They look a good fit. Gregor still baffled no other club tried to sign him. He represents the new sense of joy at spurs. Maddison and son bromance has smoothed the loss of Harry Kane. His value is not just in possession, he is also working hard.
28’ Tottenham predictions
Chelsea
29’ Chelsea…dear oh dear. Worst start in 20 years.
30’ Chelsea a billion pounds and still go backwards. Chelsea are a really bad team. Results go a long way back.
32’ Tom Allnut can’t believe Pochettino went to Chelsea. Dysfunctional club. Poor signings. Lots of ‘punts’ on players who may or may not come good.
35’ two hundred million pound plus players in Caicedo and Fernandez outshone by Villa. Chelsea didn’t just struggle in front of goal. Villa had more shots.
38’ Chelsea’s poor disciplinary record, Jackson in particular.
39’ Chelsea predictions….
 
Villa
41’ Villa doing well. Looked strong, organised, hard to beat, but with a cutting edge. Gregor worried about their high line though.
Promoted clubs under pressure
44’ Eddie Howe steal, Sheffield united woe.
50’ Gregor said Sheff Utd were the worst placed of the promoted teams, he fears that is proving to be true.
52’ All three promoted teams are in the relegation zone. Why and will it change.
55’ The three clubs have different problems. Luton ambition, or lack of… Burnley style of play.
 

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Gregor Robertson, Jonny Northcroft and Martin Samuel join Tom Clarke for a debrief of this weeks Champions league matches. A good week for Arsenal and City, an ok week for Newcastle but another forgettable week for Manchester United.
Can you really sub a goalkeeper for tactical reasons?
Given the strength in depth and the money in the Premier league, is it now almost a super league in its own right?
And Gregor has a new celebrity mate…i
Timeline:
Man Utd
1’ Another bad night for Man Utd. The score was 4-3 but the game was nothing like that. Another defeat, another
6’ Onana Gregor analysis the start to Onana’s Old Trafford career. “Another new player is wobbling.”  
10’ Martin recalls the different approaches from various managers he has dealt with towards goalkeepers. He goes on to give an interesting take on pessimists and optimists on the football field. Mourinho didn’t want optimists as defenders.
13’ Is Onana a good enough footballer, is his defence in front of him good enough. Jonny Northcroft, thinks it could be a mix of the two. Wider concern is the recruitment policy.
15’ Gregor thinks it isn’t the players but players in a dysfunctional set up look worse than they are.
19’ Winter of discontent. Man Utd have a generous run of fixtures in the next few weeks if they want to get back on track. But Marti Samuel has written about how this team may still struggle.
22’ where to start to fix it. Jonny thinks the midfield is the place to begin. He thinks they lack legs, creativity and strength. There is too much pressure on Casimero but he is too old to cover the space in the midfield. Dito Eriksen.
23’ Players get better when they’re not in the team, says Martin. Mason Mount didn’t start well but is now touted as the answer. Could Amrabat be the answer, he’ll need time to adjust.
Arsenal
25’ Arsenal returned to the Champions league as if they had never been away. Gregor thinks it shows the gulf between the Premier league and the rest of Europe. PSV sold their best player this summer…to Nottingham Forest. The development in the Premier League is such that an English team are automatically going to compete well in the Champions league.
27’ Arsenal are no longer a prospect, they are ‘there.’ Jonny is beguiled by the ‘vibe’ from Arsenal, the interplay of players like Odegaard, Trossard, Saka and Jesus was a joy to watch.
29’ Raya retained his place in goal for Arsenal. Is this going to be the new approach to goalkeepers
33’ North London derby. Ange revolution v Arsenal on a high.
Newcastle
38’ Do Newcastle need to evolve, will they be able to? What does the result say about the premier league. Newcastle were average but they got a result, in the San Siro.
44’ Premier League strength, demonstrated by the players brought to the league and also players sold to other major European clubs.
48’ IS the premier league a de-facto super league?
Man City
50’ Jeremy Doku gives Man City a new dimension. Beating men, creating space, staying wide. Are they already favourites.
 
55’ Favourite Champions League moments from the week.
58’ Gregor is star struck after interviewing Norman Cook - Fat Boy slim

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Gregor Robertson, Tony Cascarino and Alyson Rudd join Tom Clarke for the Monday edition of ‘The Game.’
The postmortem on Man Utd v Brighton takes centre stage. Brighton were brilliant, a well run well managed club playing great football. Manchester United were the polar opposite in almost every sense. Will matters improve?
Are Liverpool title contenders. Gregor and Tony are far from convinced but Alyson is a convert.
Chelsea have stalled, no identity, injury prone and yet they have spent a billion pounds. Where next…?
Tinkering from Arteta, resilience from Spurs and what are Everton?
Finally Alyson caught up with Roy Hodgson to ask if he is becoming a national treasure.
 
Man Utd v Brighton
1’ Mystic Tony. Tony Cascarino predicted the result and the score of the Man Utd game. No one was surprised by the result. Was it brilliant Brighton or woeful Utd. Or both. Are the problems on the pitch or off…or both.
7’ Gregor Alyson and Tony all agree Man Utd are a club in chaos. In stark contrast to Brighton. “Man Utd are paying people to attend their party, Brighton just throw a good party.”
12’ off field trouble leaking on to the pitch? Tony thinks there could also be an issue around the type of football that Ten Hag wants to play.
Liverpool…title contenders?
17’ Gregor is so sure. He was at Molineux for Wolves v Liverpool. They are erratic, very poor first half, low in energy. But they have a wealth of riches on the bench and a manager willing to take risks. He thought second half they effectively played 4-2-4, throwing caution to the wind. But is that sustainable? What is their midfield balance. Can Trent defend and is Robertson being shackled? Alyson is convinced. On a bad day Liverpool still got the job done and she sees enormous potential.
25’ Tony doesn’t think they will challenge.  
27’ Gary O’Neil gets a bit tick.
Sleepy Sunday
29’ A slow day on Sunday. Alyson was at Bournemouth v Chelsea. A dull nil nil. The two managers cancelled each other out. One creating ordered chaos, the other well-structured and a bit negative.  Chelsea didn’t have an identity.
32’ lots of injuries at Chelsea, 12 well known players out. But are those players all important, Gregor isn’t so sure.
AI and injuries
33’ Injuries are not just bad luck. In an interesting take Alyson quotes the use of AI to predict potential injuries. She isn’t sure the injury list at Chelsea is just bad luck.
34’ Tony, as an ex blue says the club is in transition. Lots of new players and staff.
Everton
38’ “Everton are a poor version of Dyche’s Burnley” Tony is worried by Everton, a team unsure which way they need to play t get a result.
Arsenal - Ramsdale or Raya?
Is Arteta tinkering too much? Gregor thinks modern football has changed and perhaps interchanging a goalkeeper isn’t that unusual. Interesting all three prefer Raya to Ramsdale.
West Ham – diving headers
46’ Tony loves a diving header. Scored a few, but also talks about the technical benefits of a diving header, not giving the keeper time to get set.
Spurs v Sheff Utd
49’ Heart break for Sheff Utd. But is there a quiet Ange revolution going on at Spurs?
51’ Has Paul Heckingbottom been harshly treated by the media?
Villa comeback
56’ “Villa now look so dynamic.” “Diaby is a real player.”
Roy Hodgson
1’00” Alyson recently chatted to Roy again, before he fell ill. He talked about taking a surprise job on, gaining new fans and giving his players freedom. 

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Gregor Robertson, Tony Cascarino and Martin Samuel join Tom Clarke for this episode of The Game.
The team address the criticism surrounding Harry Maguire. Tony Cascarino says the situation reminds him of one of his former international colleagues. They go on to discuss the fans response, Maguires reaction and how the player rebuilds his confidence.
Looking at England and Judge Bellingham in particular, have England ever had greater strength in depth in the middle of the park? Paul Pogba’s situation is briefly discussed.
As Brighton head to Old Trafford, with many expecting them to win, Martin secured a rare interview with Brighton chairman Tony Bloom. Brighton are doing more than challenging on the pitch, off it, they are now a set up admired throughout Europe.
Finally – lies, damned lies and football stats. Are they worth the paper they are written on?
Times:
Harry Maguire
1’-14’ Is the treatment Harry Maguire has had from fans fair?
4’ – comparisons with Mick McCarthy and his contrasting club and international career
6’. Managers trust certain players and stick with them until they let them down.
14’ Do the media have a case to answer. Are they making Maguire’s situation worse.
Maguires mum has commented on social media.
15’ Gregor on Harrys mum.
England strength and Jude Bellingham
18’ Jude Bellingham shone for England at Hampden park. But Gregor says it isn’t just physical ability, it is his mentality and mindset which sets him apart.
20’ Bellingham’s positioning for Real and for England. Might England still not be getting the best out of him.
22’ England’s strength in depth, especially in the creative positions.
27’ Kalvin Philips. Not playing for city but still getting picked for England. Another case of a player Southgate trusts and continues to use.
30’ Paul Pogba. Is his career heading down the ‘lost talent’ route? With a provisional suspension what happens next. 
Brighton v Man utd
32’ Big week for Brighton who play Manchester Utd and then head to Athens in Europe. Martin has been speaking with Brighton chairman Tony Bloom. On the pitch they have beaten Utd the last four times they have played, they have a coveted centre forward and an international centre half. They go into the game – at Old Trafford – as favourites. A sign of how far they have come.
38’ How far can Brighton go? How to make the step up from being viewed as a ‘smaller club’ dealing with Europe and the squad strength following the loss of their two main midfielders.
48’ And what about Man Utd. If they lose is Ten Hag under pressure?
“Nice kit, but doesn’t look like Man Utd, but neither do the team.”
49’ Lies, damned lies and football stats.
Are football stats worth the paper they’re written on Martin wrote a piece addressing possession stats in particular.
 

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Saudi's football giants - How the signings work and will the spending continue? 
Tom Clarke is joined by regular Monday panellist Alyson Rudd and debutant Tom Kershaw. Messrs Martin Hardy and Michael Grant drop in to give reaction and updates from England and Scotland perspectives. 
Alyson Rudd gives her reaction to the resignation of Luis Rubiales.
Tom Kershaw gives a fascinating and unmissable insight into Saudi sport, how it operates, its fans, culture and the plans in place for the future.
02’.00 – An emotional night as Ukraine fans travelled to see their team play England in Poland. On the pitch - disjointed England. Reaction to England’s less than inspiring performance against Ukraine. How to make the most of the talent on offer, why did the two form players – Bellingham and Maddison appear restricted?
12’00– Are England about to poach a player from the Scottish ranks? Newcastle’s Eliot Anderson could be about to cross the border…Martin Hardy wrote the story.
18’30 - England have the chance to spoil Scotland’s party yet again…” Scottish football correspondent Michael Grant is optimistic this time could be different. Michael updates on the Scotland camp. Are the tartan army booking their tickets to Germany next summer? And what does Michael make of the potential switch of two players from Scotland to England.
25’00 - England Scotland predictions. Will it be a match to remember or a bore draw. Alyson Rudd predicts an underwhelming nil nil.
30’10 – Discussion and reaction to Luis Rubiales resignation. Is it a case of sorry not sorry? Has the Spanish world cup victory become a post script, with the Rubiales incident being the focal point?
33- Tom Kershaw gives a fascinating insight in to Saudi sport. Tom has been to the country on a number of occasions in recent times. he discusses Saudi fans, the atmosphere they create at games and how there are attempts to use football to generate a sports culture, energise the young male population in a country with high rates of diabetes.
36’ atmosphere at matches in the Saudi pro league. Fan culture and behaviour.
41’ the heat and humidity and the effects it has on foreign players.
43’ what are the training facilities like in the pro league?
47’ is this a flash in the pan, will the money dry up. Or do the league and the financial backers have a long term plan…?
49’ What is the financial structure, how is a player signed to play in the pro league. It is different the transfer deadline day type bidding wars we are used to seeing in European leagues.
52’ will the bubble burst. Alyson thinks it might. Tom is sure it won’t.

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