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Rio Ferdinand Presents
Tuchel should use Mainoo more | What really happened after Ronaldo's wink vs Rooney
As the group stage nears its conclusion, Rio looks at the players and teams that have impressed him the most whilst analysing England’s midfield and revealing who initiated the first contact between Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney following the famous “wink” incident and Rooney’s red card in the 2006 World Cup.
Paul Scholes suggestion that Tuchel’s focus on overpowering opposition means the midfield “doesn’t look right” is discussed along with the improvements and changes Rio would make as the tournament progresses. Kobbie Mainoo is spoken about as the type of player that will help England dominate the ball, sustain more attacks and offer a different option for opening up defences.
Following Jose Mourinho’s comments about the “privilege” of managing the egos in the Real Madrid dressing room and the need for harmony after the problems within the camp last season - Rio makes a plea for Aurélien Tchouaméni to join Manchester United if he’s in a position to leave Real Madrid.
And when speaking about how Tchouaméni and Federico Valverde could re-integrate together into the Real Madrid squad (following their well-publicised bust up last season) he is reminded of the fallout from the incident where Cristiano Ronaldo winked after his Manchester United team mate Wayne Rooney was sent off in the 2006 World Cup match against Portugal.
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Jude Bellingham Always Over-Delivers | Zero minutes for Mainoo 😑
14:47|England got the job done against Panama, but was it the convincing World Cup performance everyone expected? Rio Ferdinand is back at his Airbnb in Los Angeles with Joel Beya and Ste Howson to break down England’s latest win, the standout performers and the questions that still remain as the tournament starts to heat up. There’s huge praise for Jude Bellingham after yet another big-tournament display, with Rio revealing what his former Real Madrid teammate Toni Kroos told him about playing alongside Jude and the mentality he brought into the dressing room at the Bernabéu. The lads also discuss Kobbie Mainoo, who is still waiting for his first minutes of the tournament. How will the Manchester United midfielder be feeling, and does Thomas Tuchel have a bigger role planned for him later in the competition? There’s also a brilliant bit of football trivia from Ste after another active player joins the exclusive club of footballers with over 200 international appearances. Can you work out who the three players are before the lads reveal the answer?Brought to you in partnership with Airbnb
Seedorf: I love “Old School" Jude Bellingham | People should respect Cristiano Ronaldo
01:03:30|This is Clarence Seedorf as you've rarely seen him before - thoughtful, uncompromising and still analysing the game with the same intensity that defined his playing career.Seedorf joins Rio at his Airbnb in Los Angeles and delivers a fascinating assessment of the current World Cup, explaining why England fans are often too tense watching their team, why Jude Bellingham reminds him of an old-school footballer, the one personality trait he'd love to see Declan Rice add to his game and why Elliot Anderson is worth £100m. He also discusses the Netherlands' chances of winning the tournament, whether Virgil van Dijk belongs amongst the greatest Dutch defenders ever and the reasons why the modern game is producing fewer creative players compared to previous generations.There's brilliant insight into some of the biggest stars in football too, with Seedorf defending Cristiano Ronaldo's place in Portugal's team, explaining why Kylian Mbappé hasn't yet reached his ceiling and sharing stories about the extraordinary talent of Roberto Baggio and Ronaldo Nazário Fenômeno. He reveals why R9 was capable of things even team-mates never saw in matches, compares different types of elite strikers and explains why football sometimes underestimates players who make those around them better.The conversation also revisits some pivotal moments from Seedorf's own career, including the phone call that convinced him to turn down Manchester United and sign for Inter Milan instead. He reflects on the values that made Ajax's academy so successful, why character-building was prioritised alongside technical ability and why he believes modern coaching can sometimes limit a young player's freedom to think for themselves.There's also brilliant insight into the legendary AC Milan dressing room, what made Paolo Maldini the most complete defender he ever saw, the battles that side had with Rio’s Manchester United in the Champions League and why some of football's most important players never receive the recognition they deserve.Brought to you in partnership with Airbnb
There will be an overreaction in England | Why would you doubt Cristiano?
12:52|After watching England’s draw with Ghana at a local bar in West Hollywood, Rio is joined by Ste Howson and Joel Beya to look at what England needed to break down an organised defence.There’s praise for Rio’s former assistant manager at Manchester United, Carlos Queiroz, who led the Ghanaian side and Rio reveals his former team mates were reminded of Queiroz’s coaching sessions during his time at Old Trafford.And after Cristiano Ronaldo’s 2 goals - Rio also has a bone to pick with both of his co-hosts who seemingly wrote off the prospect of Ronaldo performing and leading Portugal to the latter stages of the tournament.The trio debate whether it’s time for Thomas Tuchel to start Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford who both made positive impacts off the bench for the second match in a row and Ste details why England’s tactics were frustating to watch.Brought to you in partnership with Airbnb.
Rio Defends Jeremy Doku and Cristiano Ronaldo & Picks His Top Front 3
22:00|Rio is poolside at his Beverly Hills Airbnb with Ste Howson and Joel Beya to discuss a pair of players who have been criticised heavily at the World Cup.Jeremy Doku has faced huge media pressure after he announced his intention to travel home from the tournament to be with his wife for the birth of his first child - Rio backs his decision and recounts his own experience at the births of his own children as moments where family puts football into perspective.After failing to score in his opening game - Rio’s former team mate Cristiano Ronaldo has been criticised and compared to other forwards who started the tournament in impressive fashion.Following Joao Neves’ comments on his captain’s role within the team - Rio details how Ronaldo bought into the team mentality in the Manchester United dressing room and shuts down any criticism of Ronaldo’s willingness to work as part of a collective.Rio also picks his front three of the tournament so far which will surprise some people and Ste asks you to get in touch with the teams, players and moments that have surprised you the most for the next podcast recording and Joel is left in the dark about an escapade booked by Rio and Ste for the trio to experience whilst they're in LA together.Brought to you in partnership with Airbnb #ad
Thierry Henry Explains Messi's Dressing Room Aura | How France win the World Cup
01:00:18|This is Thierry Henry as you rarely hear him - brutally honest, analytical and still completely obsessed with competition, winning and perfection at the highest level of football.Henry visits Rio at his Airbnb in LA and opens up on the mentality behind his legendary career, including the coach at Clairefontaine who completely changed his understanding of how he moved on the pitch and why he genuinely preferred creating goals over scoring them himself - even if people never believe him. There’s some extraordinary insight into Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, with Henry explaining why Messi’s work ethic is hugely underrated, how quickly he justified the total freedom given to him by manager Pep Guardiola and why football should stop trying to compare the two greatest players of their generation. He also shares brilliant stories around Messi’s mentality, aura inside the dressing room and how he developed into a killer from set-pieces.The conversation dives into the modern game too, with Henry arguing football has become too robotic and explaining why players like Lamine Yamal, Michael Olise and Rayan Cherki stand out because they still take risks and play with freedom. There’s also special praise for Cherki’s dribbling ability whilst pointing out that if the Man City forward develops his mentality off the ball he could become unstoppable.There’s huge praise too for Harry Kane, Julian Alvarez and Bruno Fernandes, with Henry defending Bruno’s mentality before Henry also discusses France’s World Cup chances, Ousmane Dembélé’s evolution into a winning player and why England genuinely could have won the 2002 World Cup if they had beaten Brazil. Brought to you in partnership with Airbnb #ad
Praise for Bellingham, Rashford and England's Bench - That Could be the Difference
26:02|Following England’s opening victory over Croatia, Rio is full of praise for the way Thomas Tuchel set up and managed the team after they scored 4 goals and created many more opportunities. After watching the match in his Airbnb with Joel Beya and Ste Howson - Rio praises the performances of Jude Bellingham, Marcus Rashford and Elliot Anderson. There were some concerns about the defence who were put under pressure numerous times but Rio explains why John Stones challenge of switching sides as a centre-back is such a difficult one to overcome. Harry Kane joins the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi who all scored at least two goals in their opening fixture which prompts a debate around the effectiveness of Cristiano Ronaldo after he drew a blank for Portugal against DR Congo. According to Rio - England’s squad depth could be a hugely decisive factor in their journey through the tournament and suggests only France can compete with the attacking prowess on the bench that Tuchel has at his disposal
World Cup of Strikers | Messi, Mbappe and Haaland all strike gold
43:28|Rio invites his old team mate Robbie Keane to his Airbnb to discuss the big-name strikers who have started so impressively at the World Cup.With Mbappe and Haaland scoring braces and Messi going one better with a hat-trick - Keane declares this as a tournament that Kylian Mbappe can “take hold” of before debating whether Haaland or Zlatan is the better player.Keane praises former team-mate Luka Modric and warns England about his playmaking abilities coming to the fore in the heat of the United States and also gives some brilliant insight into the mentality of Tuchel’s captain Harry Kane after he worked with Kane as a youngster at Tottenham.Rio gives his advice to the players who are in line to make their tournament debut for the Three Lions and discusses the BBQ he threw for the famous names of Beverly Hills who pitched up to the Airbnb to enjoy their evening overlooking the Los Angeles sunset.#worldcup2026 #WorldCup #FIFAWorldCup #WorldCupLA #LionelMessi #CristianoRonaldo #Messi #Ronaldo #BeverlyHills #LA #LosAngeles #RioFerdinand #RobbieKeane #Five #FootballPodcast #BehindTheScenes #ThreeLions #England #KylianMbappe #ErlingHaaland #ZlatanIbrahimovic #HarryKane #ThomasTuchel #LukaModric #Tottenham #Spurs #StrikerMentality #LAStyle #SunsetBBQ #SoccerStories #exclusiveinterview Subscribe: http://bit.ly/15QO9WERio Ferdinand Presents: rioferdinandpresents.comRio Ferdinand Presents Instagram: https://instagram.com/rioferdinandpresentsRio Ferdinand Presents Twitter/X: https://x.com/RioMeetsRio Ferdinand Presents Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rioferdinandpresentsRio Ferdinand Presents TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rioferdinandpresentsRio Ferdinand Presents Threads: https://www.threads.net/@rioferdinandpresentsRio Ferdinand Instagram: https://instagram.com/rioferdy5Rio Ferdinand Twitter/X: https://x.com/rioferdy5Rio Ferdinand Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RioFerdinandOfficialRio Ferdinand TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rioferdy5Rio Ferdinand Threads: https://www.threads.net/@rioferdy5
Kaka On Neymar, Brazil’s World Cup Chances & Why Ancelotti is 'Perfect'
56:47|This is Kaká as you rarely see or hear him - one of football’s most private superstars sitting down in Rio's Airbnb for a remarkably open reflection on a career that made him a global icon and one of the last true Ballon d’Or winning number 10s.The Brazilian legend opens up about the swimming pool accident that nearly ended his journey before it had even begun and why his faith became even stronger after what doctors described as a “miracle” recovery.Despite becoming one of the biggest stars in world football, Kaká remains remarkably humble throughout this conversation - discussing how his family kept him grounded and why his mentality was completely different to Cristiano Ronaldo’s obsession with becoming “the best”.He also gives rare insight into the legendary AC Milan dressing room under Carlo Ancelotti, including how Pirlo, Gattuso and Seedorf helped shape him into a Ballon d’Or winner and why Pirlo could “find him anywhere” on the pitch.The conversation leads into a fascinating discussion around the disappearance of classic number 10s in modern football, with Kaká explaining why the game no longer creates enough space for maverick players to thrive. He names Cole Palmer as his favourite English player to watch because of the freedom and simplicity in his game, while also revealing that Lamine Yamal and Neymar still excite him in a way most modern footballers don’t.There are also brilliant stories around Ronaldo, Neymar and Brazil’s dressing room culture - while Kaká explains why Ancelotti is the perfect manager to lead Brazil into the World Cup and why players instantly trust his leadership.Brought to you in partnership with Airbnb #ad