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The Football Weekend
The Nico Williams Derby (Feat. Graham Hunter)
Season 2, Ep. 2
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La Liga is back and so is one of its true classics. BARCELONA and ATHLETIC CLUB have been duking it out in this division for as long as it's been around. Along with Real Madrid, they're the only clubs who've never been relegated.
Like Barça, Athletic represents a part of Spain—the Basque region—with a serious independent streak, but that hasn't always made them allies off or on the pitch. In the 1980s, especially, these two clubs entered an explosive feud, one that culminated with none other than Diego Maradona launching into a flying kick at an Athletic player in the final of the Copa del Rey. That's the competition that has revived this rivalry more recently, too, as these two clubs have a habit of running into each other in the king's cup final.
But the biggest story going into this league fixture might just be Nico Williams, the electric winger who starred for Spain at EURO 2024 this summer, who appears to have turned down a move to Barcelona to stay in Bilbao. What does that say about the state of the Blaugrana at the moment, about Athletic, and about Williams?
Here to offer some insight is Graham Hunter, who's covered Spanish football for decades and now does so for ESPN. He also hosts a podcast of his own, The Big Interview. He helps us trace the history of this fixture and its politics, explains the origins and consequences of Athletic's policy of only fielding Basque players, and offers a look behind the scenes of Spain's camp at EURO 2024. He followed the champions up close throughout the tournament.
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4. The North London Derby (Feat. Arseblog)
40:46||Season 2, Ep. 4There are few feuds like the 111-year-old dispute between Arsenal and Tottenham over who exactly owns North London. These two first met in 1896, but that was when Arsenal were in Woolwich, south of the River Thames. It wasn’t until the Gunners crossed the waterway in 1913 and set up shop in Tottenham’s neighborhood that the trouble began, and it hasn’t let up since. Though as an Arsenal fan, I feel obligated to weigh in on who owns what: the red side may be seeking a first league title in two decades, but Tottenham haven’t won the first division for 63 years. They’ve won two trophies in the last 30, and they were both League Cups.There might be just a bit of Arsenal partisanship in this episode, because joining the show to preview this North London derby is Andrew Mangan—blogger, podcaster, and proprietor at Arseblog, the foremost Arsenal fan channel. We delved into his path to The Arsenal as a Dubliner, Arsenal’s rather disastrous injury and suspension situation coming into this one, those frightening times when Mauricio Pochettino threatened to win Spurs a trophy, his memories of the Sol Campbell transfer—an all-time North London flashpoint—and why he wants bad things to happen to Tottenham, everywhere and all the time.
3. The Old Firm (Feat. Chris McLaughlin)
01:03:18||Season 2, Ep. 3It's the battle of Glasgow, one of the most combustible matches in world football. CELTIC vs RANGERS is a fixture like no other, a vehicle for ancient blood feuds and sectarian strife. In the beginning of the 20th century, these two sets of fans marked the final whistle of a cup final by attempting to burn down Scotland's famed Hampden Park. After the 1980 final, supporters from both sides rioted on the pitch, fighting hand-to-hand and flinging bottles and more at each other until mounted police charged in to rescue control of the situation. This is a match that carries questions of what it means to be Scottish, baggage tied up in The Troubles of Northern Ireland and the quest for Scottish independence from Great Britain. And it's also, partly, about football.Joining us to trace this history and preview this Sunday's match is Chris McLaughlin, Sports News Correspondent at BBC Scotland and a man of Glasgow. He also covered the Scottish national team at EURO 2024 and offered some insight into a raucous atmosphere and an ultimately disappointing campaign.If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.
1. CHELSEA vs MAN CITY (Feat. Sanny Rudravajhala)
45:36||Season 2, Ep. 1The Premier League is back following a breathless summer where we scarcely had any break from football at all. Still, it's a new season brimming with possibilities, and CHELSEA vs MAN CITY is a fine marquee fixture for the opening weekend. These are two teams making considerable news off the pitch, with Chelsea's freewheeling—some would say "chaotic"—transfer spending and City finally (maybe) facing the music on those 115 charges. Could this be Pep Guardiola's last season in Manchester regardless of how that inquiry turns out, or whether the Citizens take a fifth-straight Premier League title? And what will Cole Palmer do to his former employers under the tutelage of new manager (and Guardiola acolyte) Enzo Maresca?Joining us to preview the match and the Prem season writ large is SANNY RUDRAVAJHALA, reporter for Sky Sports News and beyond who hails from the Manchester area. He zoomed in from his back garden to assess Chelsea's 40-something-player squad, the new-look Manchester United under the same old ten Hag, whether Tottenham could be a dark horse to compete at the top of the league, and whether Darwin Núñez is his dark-horse pick for this season's top scorer.If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review on this podcast platform! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.
21. The EURO 2024 Final (Feat. Dan Bardell)
50:08||Season 1, Ep. 21The EURO 2024 final is upon us, and DAN BARDELL of Sky Sports and TalkSPORT returns to the show this week to preview ENGLAND vs SPAIN. Together we make the case that Gareth Southgate is among the very best England managers of all time, and Dan describes the unique joy of watching Ollie Watkins’ winner in the semifinal as a lifelong Aston Villa fan. We also discuss the stress of watching players from your club team play international tournaments, Xavi Simons' wondergoal and the Netherlands' fine tournament, whether the French will be kicking themselves—and Didier Deschamps—about how they approached this competition, and of course Lamine Yamal's thunderbolt to crack their vaunted defense. Then there's some talk about how England might deal with the threat of Yamal and Nico Williams, the midfield battle between Rice and Rodri, and our unrelenting FOMO having missed out on a trip to Germany.If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review on this podcast platform! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.
20. The EURO Quarterfinals (Feat. Carl Anka)
01:07:50||Season 1, Ep. 20The quarterfinals kick off at EURO 2024 on Friday with SPAIN vs GERMANY and FRANCE vs PORTUGAL, before ENGLAND and SWITZERLAND meet Saturday and the NETHERLANDS face TÜRKIYE shortly after to round out the last eight. Joining us to preview this sweet schedule of seismic sporting encounters is CARL ANKA, a staff writer for The Athletic. He covers Manchester United during the club season but was deployed to Germany for the group stage of this competition and has some wonderful stories to tell from on the ground at the EUROs. We also covered Cristiano Ronaldo's tearful and torrid time in the Round of 16, the largely disappointing performances from Kylian Mbappé's France and Gareth Southgate's England, the exemplary coaching of Murat Yakin for the Swiss national team, Cody Gakpo's transformation when he represents his nation as opposed to his club, and Türkiye's distinction as this tournament's great entertainers. If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review on this podcast platform! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.
19. The Copa Quarterfinals (Feat. Alexis Guerreros)
52:30||Season 1, Ep. 19The Copa América quarterfinals begin Thursday with Lionel Messi's ARGENTINA against ECUADOR, while the marquee match of the round comes last: BRAZIL vs URUGUAY.Joining the show to preview both—and the two other matches in between—is ALEXIS GUERREROS of The Cooligans podcast and Morning Footy on the CBS Sports Golazo Network. We also spared some time for the USA's disastrous group-stage exit from the tournament and Gregg Berhalter's future with the U.S. Men's National Team, COLOMBIA's fine performance at this Copa and their fans traveling in force, Jesse Marsch's revenge tour with CANADA, and the general vibe that Copa América is the EUROs after dark.If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review on this podcast platform! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.
18. The Round of 16 (Feat. @RoryTalksFootball)
51:40||Season 1, Ep. 18The EURO 2024 group stage is done and dusted, and the tournament's sudden-death phase is upon us. It's the Round of 16, with SWITZERLAND vs ITALY and GERMANY vs DENMARK on Saturday, ENGLAND-SLOVAKIA and SPAIN vs GEORGIA on Sunday, FRANCE vs BELGIUM and PORTUGAL vs SLOVENIA on Monday, and finally, ROMANIA vs the NETHERLANDS and AUSTRIA-TURKIYE on Tuesday.Joining us this week to preview the knockout rounds is @RoryTalksFootball, who returns to the show to offer some of the same insight he serves up to hundreds of thousands of followers across TikTok and beyond every single day. We of course touched on England's woes and the trials of Gareth Southgate, the power of Germany and Spain, the weakness of Belgium and France, the value of quality coaching for Austria and Switzerland, and whether a lack thereof could cost the Netherlands and Portugal. Or is Cristiano Ronaldo what will hold the Portuguese back?If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review on this podcast platform! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.
17. Copa América (Feat. Stu Holden)
29:49||Season 1, Ep. 17What a time to be alive as a football fan, as COPA AMÉRICA joins EURO 2024 on our television screens. Here to preview the Western Hemisphere's championship is STU HOLDEN, who played for the U.S. Men’s National Team and was one of the first Americans I ever saw play in a Premier League midfield. Now he’s a co-commentator and analyst for FOX Sports, which will be broadcasting the Copa América here in the United States along with the EUROs.We touched on how American players have gone to a new level in Europe since Stu’s days, Jesse Marsch’s appointment as Canada’s head coach, Lionel Messi and the mighty Argentines’ clash with nemesis Chile, the North Americans getting torched by the South Americans in pre-tournament friendlies, how the USMNT should line up, the major threats posed by Colombia and Uruguay, and whether there’s a mismatch between Coach Gregg Berhalter and the current crop of American footballers.If you're enjoying The Football Weekend, please give us a rating and leave a review on this podcast platform! It will help spread the word to more fans who might like a big match preview to start their Fridays.