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Lukaku Ruins Ranieri Return, Milan-Juve Snoozefest, Inter Vaporise Verona (Ep. 474) image

Lukaku Ruins Ranieri Return, Milan-Juve Snoozefest, Inter Vaporise Verona (Ep. 474)

The Italian Football Podcast
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Carlo Garganese reviews another thrilling weekend of Serie A football. Claudio Ranieri shows encouraging signs on his return at Roma despite Romelu Lukaku sealing a big 1-0 win for leaders Napoli. Inter smash Verona for five, while Atalanta, Lazio and Fiorentina all continue their incredible winning runs. Could one of Juventus or Milan miss out on top four after their snoozefest. We detail our second place finish at the Football Content Awards, as well as Nima'a trip to Bedford. The Champions League action is previewed, and we have our usual Baggio, Premface and Serie Ass of the week plus much, much more as Carlo breaks down all the main talking points from Match Day 13 of the 2024/2025 Serie A season.

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Transcript

Introduction and Host Update

00:00:06
Speaker
hello everybody and Welcome to the italian football podcast i'm carlo garkinnae today i'm doing the show on my own because nimmer is actually still stuck in england he was supposed to fly home on sunday evening after his his trip for the Football Content Awards, but he he got stopped by security again and is ah is currently being held by Kia Starmer's Thought Police because of of some of his tweets about about Palestine.
00:00:37
Speaker
I'm only joking about that. He isn't currently being held by security, but it is very believable, isn't it?

Serie A Weekend Recap

00:00:43
Speaker
and Don't all message him asking him if he's okay. like The last time I joked about this, and he is though stuck in England. He is stuck at Heathrow Airport because of of the weather. and The storm bursts, as they call it, and these storms always have the most stupid names and it caused havoc in England over the weekend and and his and his flight has been delayed to to Monday, I'm recording this on Monday morning and he's hoping to fly back this this evening and so he's unfortunately, apologies, he's not able to to be on the on the show today so I'm doing this alone and it's going to be a much much shorter show because only I'm going to be talking and but I will be reacting to the weekend's steady action, another thrilling
00:01:26
Speaker
Serie A weekend Romelu Lukaku ruining Claudio Ranieri's return to Roma with the winner of the study on Maradona Napoli edging out a 1-0 win. Milan in Juventus was supposed to be the big game but it was a total snooze fest, one of the most boring matches so there's actually not too much to talk about that game. Inter obliterated Hellas Verona 5-0, Taram and an unlikely Jochen Correa, both on fire. Then we had Atalanta, Lazio and Fiorentina, all three of them winning again, continuing their incredible winning runs. and The top five in Serie A is insane. They're all separated by a point.

Support and Subscribe

00:02:03
Speaker
and We'll look ahead to the the Champions of League midweek matches, and I will tell you about the Football Content Awards and Nimr's trip to to Bedford. and We'll also have our usual Bad Show, Kremface and Celia Ass of the Week.
00:02:16
Speaker
For all our first time listeners, this is our weekly free episode that we do every Monday, reviewing the weekend study action and all the biggest talking points in Italian football. If you want to support the Italian football podcast and receive all of our content that we do throughout the week, including a weekly Q and&A episode every Tuesday, where we answer all of the questions from our Patreons, plus the weekly Thursday midweek review show, plus interviews, post-match reaction and much, much more, then go to patreon dot.com slash TIP and become a subscriber for just $2.99 a month.
00:02:42
Speaker
plus VAT. You can also sign up to be paid subscriber on Spotify. We'll provide the link in the description. It's the same price in terms. And for all of you that do listen on Spotify, Apple and iTunes podcasts, we'd really appreciate it. If you give us a five star rating, give us a follow and a like. And also do subscribe to us on YouTube. It really helps us to grow and do more quality content for you guys.
00:03:04
Speaker
Okay, let's get into today's show.

Podcast Awards and Achievements

00:03:08
Speaker
So before we start ah start talking about the football, ah let me tell you about our Nimbus trip to to England and our our our trip to the Football Content Awards at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Thursday. um The FCAs are the biggest award show for the the the online football media and we were nominated for best international ah podcast, which which was which we were really thrilled about. And we managed to take home second place. We won the the silver award and behind the a Celtic podcast. I'm not sure if Celtic Scotland is international, but there you go. and They won the award, I believe, for the fourth year in a row. ah We took silver. We did, though, win the fan vote by a landslide, and which we are very,

Podcast Growth and Independence

00:04:02
Speaker
very proud of, the the way that the award is and
00:04:05
Speaker
is decided is it's 50% vote by the public and then 50% by a judging panel. and We won the the the public vote by by by a landslide, but so when they, yeah, when they decided together with the judges, we we we we ended up coming second. So big thank you to to everyone who voted so for us. and Thank you to to all our patrons, and as I said in and a little video that we did at the stadium.
00:04:32
Speaker
um you You know, you are the lifeblood of the pod. We've built a great community. Thanks to you guys. and We've, you know, Nima and myself, and Ned, our producer, so I have to give a shout out, so he came came with us as well. and You know, we've made some, you know, we've made some some some some fantastic friends for life and, um you know, can't thank you guys enough. And thank you to all our listeners and to all our guests who have been ah very, very generous with with their time. We only started this podcast four years ago during during COVID when we're we're all bored out of our minds and and to see it grow like this um so quickly, it's is it's been really, really great. ah Very, very touching. Usually, I have to say, I never celebrate um not winning. That's just like who I am. I only you know

Nimmer's England Visit Adventures

00:05:18
Speaker
i only celebrate when when I win something, but you know I think I can make an exception this time. Seeing soon as the event was held at at Tottenham, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
00:05:26
Speaker
ah ah ah buts ah But yeah, it is a nice recognition, it's it's a nice achievement. I know Nimmer feels the same, and considering it's you know it is me and Nimmer doing this pod just for two of us in our own time ah around our other jobs with a producer, Ned, who edits the pod in his own time um in and around his other work.
00:05:48
Speaker
um And you know we are we were competing and we are competing against you know big media empires with you know huge budgets, you know TV rights, access, massive, massive teams. I mean, the overlap, um which I'm sure everyone here is familiar with, we know with with Gary Neville, Roy Keane, Jamie Carragher, they won an an award. I think it was in the best national podcast category. They won the they won the first place.
00:06:15
Speaker
when they went up to collect the award there was 13 people who went up on stage to collect it and none of those 13 people were were those in front of the camera so you know it wasn't Neville, Keen, Carricka, is it Ian Wright I think is on there as well, you know none of those were on stage this was 13 people just you know behind the scenes and you know that's that's the overlap and then there's us you know this is just you know two and a half people in in our in our free time you know so it's um
00:06:46
Speaker
that For that reason, that that that makes it kind of that is what I'm proud of um from from what we've done um at the Italian Football Podcast. you know We've done this without any corporate backing, any huge funds from ah from a mainstream media company. no No advantages that being in the MSM gives you you know when it comes to to access, when it comes to to to exposure, promotion, advertisement, support. you know we we We get no direct access to players and clubs through owning TV rights like Sky Sports or or yeah ESPN or CBS or The Zone. like these these get
00:07:24
Speaker
you know what we we we do this all ah all ourselves but you know what we do have and this is again thanks so much thanks to the patrons as well we know we we have you know we can talk about what we want with with you guys um and Nimr and myself we can do it our way we answer to no one we we we don't self censor we're not censored ah like those in the mainstream are, we can talk about any issue or any topic and you know we can criticise a player or a club without fear of of losing access. We can slam the league, we can slam the clowns that are in charge of TV rights without without fear of of being blackballed. you know We can talk about the big issues like
00:08:05
Speaker
like what's going on in Palestine without fear of of being cancelled or without fear of of losing our jobs, which is you know why nobody and in the mainstream media talk about this, because they're scared. you know And that's a big reason why our podcast is so popular. you know It's why the independent media has taken over that the mainstream and the corporate media, because this is what consumers and what football fans want. and They know that they can't get that from the corporate media and because of that censorship and self-censorship. so you know our little independent podcast, Finishing Second and beating so many huge corporate media empires. um you know That makes does make me proud, ah even though it's Finishing Second. I don't like to celebrate Finishing Second. and then you know Again, I have to stress that is a lot down to you guys
00:08:54
Speaker
that support us, our patrons, um because you're part of that. um And um you know it's it's fantastic. So you know we we we celebrate and we share this this this second place with all of you guys. and So I just want to say again, big, big thank you.
00:09:10
Speaker
um Enough of a long monologue. But so we did have a great night. Nimmer got completely drunk, I have to say. Drunk on Rothschild wine, I should add. The irony, eh? Nimmer and Ned. They were they were he went through quite a few bottles, I have to say. and But Nimmer especially was was pretty wasted at the end at the end of the night. um But the the stadium is spectacular, I have to say, the difference between these English stadiums.
00:09:37
Speaker
and the Italian stadiums. I'm just talking about on the inside. you know It's is unbelievable really. It just shows so how far away we are and the Serie A clubs from the from the the Premier League clubs. It's incredible. um But so yeah, it was like we had a great time. It was a good it was good fun.
00:09:57
Speaker
um But most importantly, earlier in the day, Nimmer actually visited Bedford. ah He came to Bedford for the first time and he visited the La Rondinรฉe, visited my family's cake shop and he he loved it. um I'm sure he'll talk about it and on when he's on his one of the next shows.
00:10:16
Speaker
He had such a great time. um i I introduced him to all the classic characters that the patrons all all know about. My dad, who actually got Nimr to put his apron on and and made him do some work, um which he enjoyed, by the way. My auntie, Liz, who who's become Nimr's new bestie.
00:10:32
Speaker
and And also, of course, Shania Twain's ex, Vinnie Jones, who you all know about, he got to meet him. Spikey wasn't there as as he was drunk, even though it was 11 o'clock in the morning, and he got sent home drunk, and which which devastated Nimmer because he really wanted to meet him. and But Nimmer tried all the Italian pastries that we do, the schwellia della, the baba, the zuppetta,
00:10:53
Speaker
ah chocolate toothpaste which is a speciality you can only get in Bedford. What else did he have? Chocolate Chantilly cake. We made him a special Inter into Milan Christmas fruit cake with the Inter logo on and a little Christmas message which he took home with him and which he's going to have at Christmas and I think he'll share that. So he'll he'll show that to you. He loved that.
00:11:14
Speaker
um And I also taught him how to make cannoli with ricotta cream, and and we filmed it as well. So I'm going to, I'll post that video at some point and this week of of nimma of Nimmer. Nimmer's a natural actually. He, he um yeah we've actually talked about potentially opening up ah um a subsidiary in in in in Sweden, a cake shop in in in Sweden um of of La Rondinaire. Maybe Nimmer can run it maybe. So, yeah. Nimr loved it. He loved it. I showed him where the the Youth Offenders Institute is. I showed him where the prison is. I showed him the famous Genevieve's Massage Parlour above KFC. um He had ah had a wait of a time. so yeah That was Nimr's trip to to to to England and our Football Content Awards.
00:12:02
Speaker
and Yeah, that's that.

Roma and Napoli Analysis

00:12:05
Speaker
Let's move on to the onto the football now, ah which was also quite quite eventful. and Napoli Roma um was um well the debut of Claudio Ranieri, his third debut on the bench for Roma after he returned again. um It ended in defeat, but I think from From Ranieri's and Roma's point of view, and I think Ranieri said this after the game, I think there are positives to take from from this game. I think that Roma played as a team. They played collectively. It wasn't just a ah team of individuals that looked so disjointed and just looked so hopeless.
00:12:44
Speaker
and so far this season and I thought they showed the kind of like the character the determination termination get my words out and hunger which Ranieri cited at the end of the game and that was good to see I thought they were they were pretty well organized Napoli didn't really create that much apart from the Kawada chance right at the beginning and the goal from Lukaku. I mean, yeah, Napoli didn't really create clear clearcut that many clear cut chances. I thought Ranieri showed kind of the tactical acumen he has, like he saw
00:13:17
Speaker
that Roma weren't creating enough in the first half and he went to a back three and they kind of held possession better and started to be a threat in after the Napoli rome the nappoli goal um So I thought it was those are the positives to take. I mean they lacked bite in the final third and we know that's been a problem for Roma this season and it probably will continue to be a problem because of the how badly Roma have been constructed offensively in trying to fit all those attacking pieces into a puzzle um that fits and it it doesn't and that's going to be a problem I think for whoever the manager is but you know
00:13:56
Speaker
At the same time, Roma had the chances to get a point out of this game. At 1-0, Dovbic misses an absolute sitter. I mean, you've got to score that from the free kick. Koldin, he's inside the six-yard box. Anywhere, but anywhere on target, really, is a goal when he hits the crossbar. And there was a good, decent chance for Bal Dansi before that, as well, after some some good work. for Angelina was really good. He set up both those chances. Angelina was was very good.
00:14:23
Speaker
um But so I thought that yeah i thought there were there were enough positives to take from this from this game. Ranieri, you can see, he's going to kind of go for more kind of big, tough physical players that he can get guarantees from. And we saw that Christante and Connie, I thought, were really, really good in the middle of the park. like really turned up and showed up. um and And then you can see that with some of the other players that you picked, Dodd-Bic and Deka Mancini, even Hummel was coming on and I actually thought he did pretty well um as well, excuse me, on a whole. But just yeah, Renier, he kind of brought back the spirit and organisation.
00:15:03
Speaker
and And they showed that they won't be pushovers. And he's brought back some togetherness. And I think that's one thing we can kind of we know we'll get from running. We know the team's going to be together. And you know it's one game. There's always a new manager bounce.
00:15:19
Speaker
But um I think, listen, let's take the positives from that. um Yes, the attack needs to be better. In the first half, they had the 0.07xG. I mean, that's that's not acceptable. and but But overall, yeah, something to build on. The next fixtures, I mean, Atalanta next, obviously going to be hard, but then it's got, then then na we've got Lecce, Cormor, Palmer.
00:15:41
Speaker
you know let's Let's see after those games how Roma are doing. and They obviously need to look over their shoulder a bit. Two wins in nine. not to The relegation zone is not too far behind them so they need to be careful but overall I think not a bad start from from Ranieri.

Milan vs Juventus Stalemate

00:16:00
Speaker
um As for Napoli, it's obviously a big, big win for them. and they They stay top of the table by one point in in what is an insanely tight top of the table, one point separating the top five. They had to dig deep. um At the end, Roma were pushing for an equaliser, but they showed kind of what Antonio Conte's Napoli are all about.
00:16:20
Speaker
they they you know they they They took the lead, that they they were dominant in the first half, completely controlled the game, the possessions, they had about over 70% of possession in the first half. They they should have taken the lead through Clouder, who missed a really really big big chance. Mctominay had a half chance,
00:16:39
Speaker
i think that Mani had a hard chance as well didn't create an overwhelming amount of opportunities but were clearly dominant and then Lukaku broke the deadlock and that that was very very important also for Lukaku because he hasn't been at his best recently the last month or two and but he has turned up in two big games now you know this game and also the the game against ah Milan and when he scored and that is definitely a positive and that's something that you know you have to give credit to Kante because Lukaku throughout his career has been someone who let's be honest has been a bit of a big game flop on a whole really let's be honest his performances in big games haven't been good enough and and so that's two big games now that he scored in and and been important in and so that that was good and I thought the the other positives
00:17:30
Speaker
I thought Di Lorenzo was excellent, outstanding. He set up the goal. He also set up the chance for Clara. And I thought ah an interesting tactical twerk in this game from Conte was these inverted fullbacks in a back four, which was very, very interesting. Di Lorenzo and Olivera both coming inside a lot.
00:17:57
Speaker
kind of in between the space between the the left back or the left wing back or and the the the the left centre back and or the right centre back in the case of of Olivera and the they were causing a lot of trouble for for for Roma throughout this game and obviously that's where the goal came from and that's definitely by design that was something they've been working on and something that Conte obviously has been working on so I have to say I have to give credit for that tactically to Conte and I thought Di Lorenzo and Olivero were both both very very good. I thought Anguisa very very powerful good return from La Boca as well in the centre of midfield and again the defence conceded very very little it was just really
00:18:46
Speaker
that chance for the Vodbic where they let him go and that was bad marking and Conte wasn't happy with it about that after the game as well he was critical of that but apart from that yeah they risked very very little and that's kind of what we've what we've come to expect but it was a big win. Roma did put the pressure on in the second half but they held firm and you can see what it mattered to the players and Conte at full time. This was a big win for them and they stayed top of the table.

Critique of Milan's Strategy

00:19:21
Speaker
And they also pull away and extend their lead from to ah two teams who are supposed to be title challengers, but do have to be a little bit careful now not to fall away. And that is Milan in particular, but but also to a lesser extent Juventus. They play out a complete snooze fest at San Siro on Saturday, nil, nil. There really isn't much to talk about in this game. they There should they should be, because it's a huge, huge game. but um it was ah it was ah ah really wasn't a good spectacle for for for Italian football. and Barely any chances to talk about at all in this entire game. Just a lack of of of opportunities, a lack of quality, basic errors. The XG in this game, and we look at this, 0.29 versus 0.5, which really does say all three shots on target in the entire game. Milan, one shot on target, which came in the 95th minute.
00:20:17
Speaker
no big chances really only really half chances and I have to really criticise Milan if we talk about Milan first I have to criticise Milan first then then more than Juventus really I'm not that critical of Juventus because Juventus the circumstances which which will come to of you they're going into this game but you know Milan they needed to win this game um they you know they are falling behind now therere If I've got this correct, let me just check the table. 19 points. There are 10 points behind Napoli now at the top of the table. They do have a game in hand and there are nine points behind the the cluster of four teams in second, including Inter. And nine points behind Inter.
00:21:01
Speaker
Again, they do have a game in hand, but they really are they are at risk now of of really being indefinitely out of the title race. they're not far it's not far We're not far away from from really completely writing them up of the title race. um and they needed to win this game and it didn't feel, and I think Fonseca pretty much admitted this in the game, it didn't feel like they went for it enough um at all. Juventus are there for the taking, Juventus are completely decimated, they've got seven players out, they've got no striker
00:21:32
Speaker
And they had no one on the bench you've entered to change the game. you know Milan had you know not far away from being at full strength, a deep, deep bench with so many options, so many plays to bring on. And and they just didn't they didn't really go for it enough at all. And they didn't open up enough, which is kind of strange because it's kind of what you what we what we've It's what we've seen from Milan is that maybe they've opened up too much. Maybe that was in the back of their minds, but the Juventus are there for the taking and to create nothing, 0.29 XG in this game from Milan, one shot on goal, which came in the 95th minute.
00:22:11
Speaker
only one real half chance I think which was an Emerson Royale header on the stroke of half time from a corner when it was kind of wasn't cleared properly from a Juventus play went high up in the air and then Emerson kind of came onto it and headed it wide kind of half chance wasn't a great chance it was decent chance that's it wasn't really created was it it came from a set piece um nine touches in the Juventus box in the entire game Offensively, really bad. I mean, Murata was dominated by Kalulu and Gatti. Nothing down the right-hand side. Musa was played there. And you know you're you're obviously not expecting him to to to to produce much on the in the right wing. Milan's midfielders made no headway kind of in the attacking center midfield role, let's say, the attacking center midfield area. and Liao had a few bursts, but meant nothing really noteworthy against against Savona.
00:23:11
Speaker
ah you know The midfield was was solid, but I think Juventus' midfield controlled it more, especially Taran. So, yeah, offensively really, really poor. Defensively fine. um They conceded virtually nothing. 0.45 XG. I think Juventus' only real chance Juventus had was with the transfer constantly set on the first half where it really it got blocked, the shot got blocked. It's the only time they kind of got opened up. So nothing wrong with defence, but I can't really praise Milan's defence too much for that because just look at Juventus' attack. They had Mckenny as a false nine. That's how decimated they are. i mean
00:23:47
Speaker
you know you can't really you can't really give too much credit for Milan stopping Juventus from creating when you look at what Juventus were attacking with. so um yeah I'm disappointed in Milan. Fonseca didn't do enough to affect this game for me.
00:24:02
Speaker
He looked at his subs, you know, he had a real great op great options from the bench. I mean, Puducic started from the bench because he wasn't 100%. He came on, that's the first sub for Rievenoff to chic in the 70th minute. And then Fonseca made no other changes till the 84th minute when he brought on Chukwezi for Musa. and But he also brought on two defenders in that in that triple change in the 84th minute. I mean, it was up to Fonseca to affect changes in this game, not Mota. Mota had no options on the bench.
00:24:31
Speaker
and Motta was obviously going to be happy with the point given the circumstances. Fonseca had lots of you know as i said lots of options off the bench, but he seemed scared to make changes and was almost but someone scared more scared to lose than win.
00:24:47
Speaker
um I have to say um I'm very, very disappointed by by Milan and I'm very disappointed by Fonseca. In the big game so far, he's done well you know against Inter, against Real Madrid. They've won those games and and tactically we've given credit for Fonseca. But this game, Fonseca was a letdown, I think.
00:25:08
Speaker
um The only thing I want to give him credit for was his jacket, which I thought was absolutely outstanding. I want to know where Fonseca got that jacket from because I want to buy one myself. I thought it was outstanding. It's not something you probably wear as a football manager. It's like, you know, when you see a football manager on the touch line wearing a leather jacket, it's kind of like not really what you should be wearing. and But

Juventus's Injury Concerns

00:25:30
Speaker
I loved it. I thought it was outstanding. It's something that you, yeah.
00:25:33
Speaker
you you'd wear for a night out with the boys, but he was that's the only thing I can praise Wolf on second floor in this game otherwise. Yeah, it's it's iss probably two drop points but for Milan, um I think. and For Juventus, though, you know I think they they did about as much as i as I expected them to do and can probably be expected to do in the circumstances. I mean, they are decimated. Let's not pretend anything different. They've got seven players out, no striker, you know no Vlaovic, no Milik.
00:26:06
Speaker
then you know Bremmer and Cabal both out with ACLs, Cabal doing his ACL join during the international break, and no Adzic, no Douglas Luiz, only seven players on the bench. Look at that bench, look at Juventus' bench. I mean, again, that's why I'm critical for Fonseca because as Juventus, as the energy levels drop in the second half, that's when you should go for it you know because you've got players to bring on and Juventus have no one really to come on and and influence the game and make you know change the game. and and so and And yeah, Juventus were very, very comfortable. They they they never, never, ever conceded anything. Their defence was rock solid. I thought Kalulu, Gatti, both of them were excellent. Kalulu, I thought, showed again why.
00:26:52
Speaker
yeah Milan made a mistake getting rid of him. I thought Cambiaso was very very good again and what player Cambiaso has turned into now. Fantastic. He's fast turning into Juventus' most important player. Certainly their most irreplaceable player.
00:27:08
Speaker
especially with all the problems in defence, with injuries and everything. And I thought, yeah, defence. I mean, Savona did pretty well. He made a mistake one where he thought the ball had run out of play and he let Liao get away from him, which was a bit of a kind of a naive error, but he'll learn from it. But apart from that, yeah, I thought he did pretty well against Liao. He minimised the danger from Liao.
00:27:32
Speaker
I thought man of the match was Kefran Taram. He's been in good form recently, but he took it onto another level. He was he was a monster in the in the in the sense of midfield. and bit of a but of a young like Some flashes of a young Vieira, Patrick Vieira, and some flashes of a young Pogba, and just some of his movements. you know I'm not saying he's as good as those players, but Vieira, I think, is is you know Unbelievable both of them. I mean as youngsters they were they were phenomenons. Um, but um, yeah He's he's turning into ah to a real quality sign than isn't he um, toran and um, he he dominated that center of midfield Um, but uh, yeah defensively very very good, uh expected goals against have just 0.29 In this game only one shot on target against that came in the 95th minute. I thought structurally
00:28:25
Speaker
Positionally, the patterns, Juventus were better than Milan in this game. um I thought their counter pressing was pretty good in the first half. They were winning it that quickly after they lost it. And that's all structural. That's all down to Mota's work. um And in the long run, that will will pay dividends. The issue was the Again, there was nothing can attack, nothing can attack. Part of that is, if we're talking generally, that is on Tiago Mata, because it's something that I spoke about even with Polanyi last season, um in that, yeah, Juventus are
00:29:04
Speaker
You know, most of the teams are very focused on not leaving themselves open when they have the ball in possession, that they don't open up and throw enough men forward and don't don you know don't create those overloads and and create chances that way. and that yeah that is a motor issue in the long run that he needs to definitely needs to improve on to be to move on to the next level as a manager and but you can't be critical of that in a game like this when just look at who Juventus have they have no they've got no one in the attack they they had Mckenny Winston Mckenny as a as a as a kind of a false nine and Koop miners sometimes moving into that into that position sometimes yield is I mean
00:29:49
Speaker
what could we really expect in this game? We have to be realistic. So so yeah from that from that sense, I think that a draw was kind of what we probably the most generally we could probably expect from Juventus in this game.
00:30:05
Speaker
um And you know they they they stay within three points of inter and the other teams, Atalanta, Fiorentina and Lazio, that's nothing to be to be alarmed about. Obviously now they're four points behind Napoli as well. and So that is you know they've they've got to be a little bit concerned about that. But I think given all the injuries, what they need to do, they just need to try and hang in there.
00:30:33
Speaker
until January, try and keep it, if they can, to three or four points, five points, no more than that. And then in January, Junzli needs to work some magic, try and, I know they don't have much budget to play with, try and do something, if it means having to sacrifice someone like an unbangula or even someone like, I don't know, I mean, it's been talked about gradually, I don't know how I feel about that, but they're gonna have to do something to bring in certainly bring in a couple of defenders and a striker or an offensive player. That has to be done and because if they don't, certainly with an offensive player, the Juventus are still unbeaten, which is great, but they've drawn seven games in 13.
00:31:17
Speaker
And if Juventus keep drawing this number of games, then they do risk the top four. I think top four has to be really the aim. Anything more than that is a bonus. I always thought that this season would probably come one year too early, and that was before the injuries. And now with all these injuries, they've just got to be a little bit careful um and you know because there there isn't that offensive threat. um ah The other thing I would say is, in terms of negatives,
00:31:42
Speaker
um Koop Miners, Tim Koop Miners, he was very, very poor in this game. um I think he's generally been good, he's overall level of play when he hasn't been injured, but he needs to do more. and you know The betting period's over, you've only paid 60 million euros from him, and he you know he hasn't scored, been a little bit unlucky, you know some disallowed goals hitting the woodwork and stuff, but we expect more from Koop Miners. and This game was unacceptable performance from him, so many basic errors,
00:32:13
Speaker
mis-controlling it, bad, really simple passes, not going to their man. It wasn't an easy game from him, trust me. i've played you know I played in that position when you've got no striker in front of you or you've got a really terrible striker in front of you, it becomes so hard because you know he was picking up the ball, had nothing in front of him at all, literally nothing in front of him sometimes and it's like what do you do?
00:32:38
Speaker
you just you know you either lay it back to keep the ball or you try and do something on your own and then you're you're outnumbered and you lose it. So it wasn't an easy game but he he he it wasn't good enough from Koop miners and we need to start seeing more from him because he's supposed to be raising the level of this Juventus team and certainly providing more offensively and and he's not doing enough. So now it's time for Koop miners to to start doing more. There's no there's no doubt about that.
00:33:03
Speaker
um so So yeah, so nil-nil draw. I think the the big question now is really do do one of Juventus and or Milan risk missing top four?
00:33:14
Speaker
um And I think the answer to that is yes. Yes, they do. um Because I think if we look at it, Napoli and Atalanta are pretty much locked in but but to be finishing the top four. There's no doubt about it when you look at the quality that Inza had. There's no doubt about Inza and Napoli playing once a week as well. And Tonya Conte's manager, plus the quality they have, those two are definite. Then we have Atalanta, Lazio and Fiorentina. I mean, Atalanta are an incredible run.
00:33:43
Speaker
And it's looking right now like Atalanta is someone that you're back into finishing the top four, again, with the quality they have. um And then, you know, let's see. So there's three. So if we kind of assume those three are going to get in, then at least one of the events are so or Milan are going to miss out. um Right now, if you had to choose between Atalanta and Milan for the top four,
00:34:08
Speaker
you're going to choose Atalanta, aren't you? um There's just more guarantees right now. Milan just don't look like a team that can put a run of wins together. Obviously, there's continued doubts about Fonseca as well. and you know Five wins in 12 this season, it's not good enough. um so so There are fears for Milan. Juventus, obviously, with all the injuries they've got, and they do need to be a bit careful. I think the Juventus should be okay. but they need to be a little bit, you know, there are worries there because of the number of injuries and they're drawing too many matches. So I think January will be important for Juventus. As for Lazio and Fiorentina, well, you know, Lazio are increasingly becoming a dark course, maybe more than a dark course. I really like Lazio, who we'll talk to. you They've got lots of
00:34:57
Speaker
got really underrated depth in their team, and they're on a great run. I think Fiorentina, wonderful story, that Fiorentina won't stay there. They they won't stay there. that they they're They're overperforming right now, but they're they're doing fantastic. So yeah, I think that the simple answer is that one of Juventus or Milan, there is a very good possibility that one of those two will miss out on the top four. I would i would lean more ah would lean more to towards Milan. I think Juventus will be fine. and But so yeah.
00:35:25
Speaker
It's ah certainly um it's it's amazing and the the race at the top of ah the Serie A right now. ah Let's move on to Inter, who thrashed Hela Sperona 5-0. Incredible ah first half from Inter. It was the the Marcus Taram show once again, two goals and an assist. Nine goals, three assists this season.
00:35:50
Speaker
he really is becoming Inter's main man now isn't he? I mean this season he has become he has been the the the number one talisman of of of of Inter more so than Lautaro Martinez who's been a little bit under par and Lautaro didn't play in this game and it was great to see Taran take on the goalkeeper for both his goals you know I was moaning about this just last week or the other week about how in modern football you just don't get enough players rounding the goalkeeper when they're one-on-one and they're all you know they're all robots, they just slide it past the keeper or maybe dink it over the keeper. And so that was that was great to see. I did think the second one, the the the goalkeeper did make it quite easy for him. He was he was like ah co like a traffic cone. It just made it so simple. But yeah, Taran, monster right now.
00:36:39
Speaker
and the surprises Joaquin Correa, surprise start by Inzaghi, paid off, well done to Inzaghi there. One goal, two assists, lovely finish, dink finish. I believe that's his first league goal in Serie A for like two seasons or something, two years. and The question now really is, is he now above Mark Arnautovic in the pecking order for Inter? I think maybe he is and could he even challenge ah medi terray for being third. Maybe not yet, but maybe yeah if he continues playing like he did in this game, maybe maybe he will. so Completely out from the cold, from the dead, Correa, and suddenly becomes a player of use. and but so yeah This was this was yeah this but this was a such a convincing win for Inter.
00:37:27
Speaker
um they're looking really really strong, aren't they? in sir and That's why they are the favourites to win the Scudetto again and and they there yeah they're there they they' such a powerful, powerful force. They're going great in there and the Champions League as well. It looks like they're going to finish in the top eight.
00:37:45
Speaker
and play two two less games. I think Inzaki starts to do really well. He's doing really, really well with his rotation. He's rotating players. i mean Dimarto didn't play. Lautaro didn't play. He's given the players the rest that they need. I mean, the Champions League this season, he's been playing like second string teams in in a lot of games. Look at the Arsenal match, which Inter won with so many, so many second you know reserve players, backup players playing. This is going to really serve Inter good going into the second half of the season when they will need to be fresh.
00:38:14
Speaker
against the Napoli team that are going to be fresh because they're not in Europe. and So Nzag is doing a great job there. At the same time though, Verona. Rovona's defence is a joke under Zanetti. It really is. m This is the seventh time this season that Verona have conceded three goals or more. They've only played 13 matches.
00:38:34
Speaker
and they've conceded 32 goals this season in 13 games. That is by quite some distance the the highest number of goals. The second worst offensive record in Serie A after Verona is Cormor with 25 goals conceded. So seven whole goals conceded and they conceded five in this. They did concede six to Atalanta recently as well. So yeah, it's um A bit concerning for for Verona. They can't keep con conceding like this. There's still a few points above the relegation zone as we record this, and which is somewhat somewhat surprising. But they are, yeah, the worrying times for for for Zanetti.
00:39:13
Speaker
um Atalanta, their form is unbelievable and they continue it against Parma. They win 3-1, sixth win in ah in a row, ah nine wins and a draw in their last 10 matches in all competitions. That Celtic game, which they completely dominated by the way, being ah the being the the game that that ruins that Sequencer perfect ten and they've scored three or more goals in in five of those of those ten matches so that they're they're scoring for fun right now and I guess the question is now I mean Atalanta are a joint second the the one point behind Napoli in the lead and The question is, now really, um can Atalanta win the Scudetto? I think it's definitely a question that ah is um is is is valid asking now. um I mean that form that I've just that i've just
00:40:13
Speaker
just run through their sixth win in a row, nine wins in a draw in the last 10, scored three or more goals in five of those matches. They are the the top scorers in Serie A with 34 goals. I mean, that the the offensive quality that that they have, I mean, it's unbelievable. I mean, an XG of three in this in this game against Parma, again, I mean,
00:40:36
Speaker
They have arguably the best strike partnership in the league right now, certainly on form. Lautaro Martinez and Magus Taran will definitely challenge that and maybe if we're taking it over a longer period, maybe we'll say Lautaro Taran, but they're they're up there. I mean, this partnership of Lukerman and Rettige is absolutely unbelievable. It really is. And, you know, they've got the top scorer in the league in Rettige. They've got maybe on form, maybe this season, the best player in the league in Lukman? I think there's an argument to say that the Lukman's been the the most complete player in Serie A this season. I mean, goals, assists, dribbles, the moments of individual magic, being able to do something out of nothing, just how flexible he is, can play up front, can play out wide, can play in behind.
00:41:30
Speaker
what a player, what a player lookman is. And, you know, they, you know, Atalanta are really looking good. I mean, they've got the experience now, haven't they? No doubt about that. They've got the experience, the manager is, they've got a wonderful, wonderful manager. Physically, they look in great, great shape. You know, we'll see if Bang's bow and can maintain this amazing physical condition.
00:41:58
Speaker
And, you know, they're they're they're looking unbelievable. They really are looking unbelievable. um I think in terms of what they're missing, the defense.
00:42:10
Speaker
is you know that's the doubt i think over the period of a long season can they win a scudetto with this defense you know they've still conceded quite a lot of goals this season they've conceded 16 this this season they've obviously got a much weaker defense than Napoli than Inter, than Juventus as well. they' They're probably, you know, they're certainly at the very at best at the fourth, fourth best defence in the league. And, you know, so I don't know, we'll see, you know, Scalvini is back now. And that was a great, that was great to see him come back in this game. Scalvini is back.
00:42:50
Speaker
we'll see, you know fingers crossed, I'm praying he hasn't been rushed back too soon because for me that's a bit too too quick to to get a play back in five months from an ACL. So we we pray that he's going to be okay and that he can come back and then maybe you know in the new year he can improve that defense ah even more.
00:43:08
Speaker
um And then, you know, the defence is stronger. My biggest doubts remain what I've always said. I think that Atalanta are missing a backup number nine, classical number nine to Retigee, which you do need in certain games. um And you risk overplaying Retigee and then he his levels declining in the second half later in the season. But number one, they need a backup to Edison. You cannot go through an entire season with Edison.
00:43:33
Speaker
who was a monster in this game, probably actually probably a man in the match in this game, scored. he's he's He's unbelievable. When Edison doesn't play, there is a note of but noticeable drop of Atalanta. You cannot play Edison. they They just don't have anyone else, and they've got Deron, who's 33 now, and it really is those two. I think you play someone like a Pasalich there or a Samadzich.
00:43:56
Speaker
they're more attacking midfielders for me and certainly like if you're away from home or or you know you need someone that's that's more defensively sound, edu you yeah aans need a backup to Edison. so If I want Atalanta to be you know have the the possibility to realistically maintain this title challenge, which is something that Gasparini is not shying away from now,
00:44:18
Speaker
I want to see them go and buy a central midfielder in January. I want them to have another central midfielder option. like You're there. You're up there fighting at the top. Go for it, Atalanta. Go for it. you know You might not get another opportunity than this. you know They're probably going to lose Lookman at the end of the season. and they've already had you know They've already lost Cook miners. They've lost Scalvini and Scamaka to ACLs this season. They've already taken huge hits. I think it's remarkable what they've what they've done.
00:44:42
Speaker
It really is fantastic. and So I want to see them go and buy a c sentiment fielder in January, ideally buy another attacker, another number nine as well, seen as Skamaka. If he does come back, it'll be towards the end of the season. And you know what can you really expect from him, a striker coming back from an ACL, missing the whole season. So I want them to go for it. I want them to to just just just to go for it. They can afford it. They've got the money. um And then who knows? Who knows? for me you know, Inter and Napoli are still ahead, but it would be a beautiful story and no one would be happier if Atalanta, than me, if Atalanta went on and won the skedetto. So yeah, great great win. Lukman, as I said, sensational. One goal, ah two goals disallowed. Retagui, another goal.
00:45:30
Speaker
Edison unbelievable in Senate midfield and Yeah, I thought that the wingbacks were good Ruggieri Bellanova both got an assist Quadrada even getting assist off the bait eventually was contributing. So a dominant win and Palmer's defense not good enough and they've got to be careful Palmer because you know, they Excuse me. they um They've got so many fantastic talented youngsters which is, you know, you have the praise.
00:46:05
Speaker
Kyle Krause and then the management for the job they've done in building this project with young players. And I think there's a lot of there at at least a handful of young Palmer players who have got big futures ahead of them. And I think we'll we'll move to big bigger or big clubs in the future. But the defence is a problem this season and Palmer are way too open. It's way too easy to concede, to create chances against them. They concede way too many goals.
00:46:30
Speaker
Pekia, that's on him as well. Certainly on Pekia, he needs to sort that out. um Because I think with the players that Palma have, I know they're inexperienced and that plays into it. I think they're probably underperforming a little bit for the quality of this Palma team. had They've got a lot of quality and they've only got one clean sheet all season and their defence is letting them down.
00:46:50
Speaker
and they are a bit too inconsistent as well, including in games. They can have games where they're on top and look against big teams and look incredible. And then all of a sudden they they look awful in the same in the same game and for a stretch. So, yeah, Parma, Parma, just they need to needs be a little bit more solid, and I think.
00:47:10
Speaker
um Lazio beat Bologna 3-0. They continued at Atlanta, their incredible run of form. Seven wins in a row, 11 wins in 12 in all competitions for Lazio. Wow, unbelievable. Who could have expected that at the start of the season? 11 wins in 12, just the Juventus loss in that sequence. And that game was conditioned by Lazio getting an early red card in that game, otherwise who knows what could have happened there.
00:47:38
Speaker
um that Again, they're at one point off the top of the table and they Baroni is just doing an an amazing, amazing job. He really is. He's he's shown himself to be a very, very underrated manager, somebody that's really, really liked by Beppe Marotta at Inter.
00:47:57
Speaker
and which is, yeah, if you're liked by Marotta, then I think you you're a good manager. I and ah thought in this game he showed good good tactical acumen. you You start with three sentiment fielders to kind of counter Italiano's strengths of which is dominating the midfield in possession and Lazio were controlling the midfield even before the red.
00:48:18
Speaker
And then when the red card you know came, he took off the CNO, went to a 4-2-3-1 to create the extra man in attack. And eventually that paid and they got they got three goals. They had to wait till the last 20 minutes, but eventually it came and and it was deserved. And and you know the yeah another win for Lazio. We do have to be honest, though, that this game was conditioned by the red card for Pobega.
00:48:40
Speaker
you know, midway through the first half, completely brainless from Pobega. He's on a yellow card and he goes charging in on Glendozzi from <unk> behind. takes him out, cleans him out, in the Lazio penalty area, I mean, brainless. It's the only way of describing that, completely brainless. Gets the second yellow, sent off, and there was only really, there was only gonna be one winner after that. Bologna did well to hold out to the 70th minute, but what could they really do? What could they do? And then the goals came, Gigo, Gijo, I should say, for,
00:49:20
Speaker
the first go off a corner, then Zaccagni with what has become a bit of a trademark finish for him, like left curler into the far corner, and then another sub, ah second sub to score, Dele Besseru with the icing on the cake. And yeah, like I said before, I think Lazio let's see you becoming ah I think we can't even call them a dark horse. They're starting to become more than a dark horse. and you know They didn't have Nuno Tavares in this game, who's the top c assist man in all of Europe, by the way, and who's been an absolute phenomenon this season. um they They won without him in this game. but
00:49:55
Speaker
they have some They have a lot of firepower, Lazio. They have depth. Castellanos, Pedro, Tijani, Nozlin, Gustaf Isakson, Bouladea, even Tchuaona. You've got six players that Barone has been rotating and in the competitions and all of them ah you know have quality, have goals, have have ah you know creativity, they're they're ah dangerous, they're all can play in multiple roles and they're they're you know very tactically flexible, the the attackers. And then in midfield, you know, and then I didn't even, I forgot Zakanya there as well, who's who's obviously having a really great season and and and, you know, coming on from from that magical goal in the Euros.
00:50:39
Speaker
But, you know, Midfield and Guindozzi and Ravello have both been outstanding this season. I mean, I think Dele Bacheru is, looks like a really exciting talent for the future as well. And, you know, even the defence is starting to tighten up a little bit as well. So, you know, I think it's looking great, really, really great for Lazio. And they, the Barones,
00:51:06
Speaker
doing wonderful job there so so yeah watch out for laxiio him who knows how far they can go this season and who knows how farb viin can go as well they make it seven wins in a row as well so many teams in sery out the top that are on incredible winning runs and they win two ne ah at commo and so they are as well joint second on 28 points with Inter and Atalanta. I mean they're they're doing they're doing Anlaxio and doing doing wonderful. Moisuke with another goal four games in a row he scored first time in his career.
00:51:43
Speaker
nine goals in Serie A this season. Adlai also scored as well, though it was a terrible goalkeeper. You have to say that, again, I've said this many times, that all the new signings for Fiorentina, nearly all of them, have been wonderful. i mean They have been Daniela Plade, who's been someone I've been very critical of, and Nima has, for being quite overrated. and I think um he's he's um he's had a almost the perfect transfer window, like all of his signings.
00:52:16
Speaker
have not, you know, they' they've been, all of them been incredible, really. I mean, Moise Kane, Adlai from Milan, Bove, from Roma, Kalpani started to come on strong, Goodmason as well, he had his injuries. Golsens has been very, very good. And then and then of course David De Gea in goal another clean sheet for him what a double save that he made or even triple save you could call it at 1-0 to keep them ahead and so he's De Gea yeah at the age of I think he's about to turn 34 he turns 34 this month if he hasn't turned 34 already and it's showing that he's still
00:52:55
Speaker
Yeah, he's still a quality, quality goalkeeper. So, Fiorentina are doing really, really great. um I believe they have Inter at home next week. So, that will that will really show us this this week, this weekend, first of December. So, this will really show us kind of what Fiorentina are made of. I don't expect them to to stay in the race for the top four, to be a realistic top four challenger this season. But so they're doing fantastic and certainly they should be aiming for for for Europe, which I have to be honest, not not too many people were were that hopeful of at the start of the season. So you have to praise Prada and also Palladino. He's really turned it around since switching from his preferred three-man back line and to a back four, they've um they've just kept winning and winning and winning.
00:53:44
Speaker
um The other weekend Serie A fixtures, just to finish off, Gen 2, Calary 2 on Patrick Vieira's debut, very entertaining game, and Torino 1, Monza 1 in the other game. Then we have on Monday evening, Empoli vs Udenezer and Venezia against Lecce.
00:54:05
Speaker
midweek Champions League fixtures this week, I've just run through them. So we have Slovan Bratislava against Milan, Inter Leipzig and young boys against Atalanta for the Tuesday games. And then the Wednesday evening matches, we have Aston Villa against Juventus and Bologna against Lille. So yeah, I mean, we need wins. ah Milan need to win um because it because it's Slovan Bratislava. Inter need to win if they want to try and and get into that top.
00:54:34
Speaker
eight and the same for Atalanta. Atalanta still have a have ah have ah have a slight chance of getting into that into that top eight. It's going to be difficult because they have Real Madrid and Barcelona still to play, but they have to win this this match against young boys too to to keep that alive. And then Juventus against Aston Villa are going to be difficult because of Juventus' injury crisis, and but you know they should be aiming you know for a draw. They'll they'll be they'll be happy with that. And then Bologna versus Lille, I think it almost doesn't matter for Bologna.
00:55:04
Speaker
They're not going to qualify, but so yeah, just go for it, Bologna. You've got nothing to lose now. Okay, so just before we finish off the show, Badjo, Premface and Celia ass of the week. So, Badjo of the week first.
00:55:24
Speaker
I'm going to go for a non-football one. I'm going to go for the Italy tennis team for for winning both the male and female Davis Cup, which is an incredible achievement. I think it's only the fifth time in history that a country has done it. This is the second year in a row that the men have won the Davis Cup. This is a golden generation for for tennis in Italy. We are quite literally dominating world tennis right now. mean We've got Janik Sinner, who is world number one.
00:55:54
Speaker
he won He's won two Grand Slams this year, eight singles titles, which which makes him makes it one of the best individual years for for a male tennis player in in in history.
00:56:05
Speaker
And but it's not just him. we've We've got so many incredible tennis players and in Italy right now, male male and women, but especially male, nine Italian male players ranked inside the ah top 100, the ATP top 100. And six of these are 23 years of age or under, which just shows, I mean, so the best is still to come. I mean, Italian tennis right now is, it's like Italian football of the,
00:56:32
Speaker
of the 90s is if you're a tennis fan, then savor this moment because because this is a golden age for for Italian tennis and it's incredible what the tennis players are are doing. so So congratulations to the men and the women on ah on a wonderful, wonderful achievement. Prem face of the week. I've got to go for Jamie Vardy. and This video has triggered a lot of ah lot of Italians, unsurprisingly,
00:57:00
Speaker
And this was sent to me by by Patrick Vengekendrik. I'm going to give a shout out to him. because he he He likes to send me videos that trigger me. Is Jamie Vardy doing an interview? And Jamie Vardy is asked what his favorite pizza topping is. And he he says Domino's. First of all, Domino's are a brand that are they're basically like real fast food pizza, and fast cooked pizza, which you have kind of on the you'd have at the end of a drunk night out at like two o'clock, three o'clock in the morning where everything tastes good. He called it Domino's, so he said Domino's stuffed crust, which is like this creation here. I don't know if they they do it. I think it's an English American creation where they stuffed the crust with mozzarella and cheese. And so Jamie Vardy said his favorite pizza topping was Domino's stuffed crust.
00:57:57
Speaker
with meatballs, bacon, and sweet corn. I feel sick. ah and of course I don't need to say anymore. and that that That's triggered a lot of Italians. I should say, though, that I think Jamie Vardy's one of his children, his godfather, is Italian because I think it's the godfather. Anyway, one of his best friends is is Italian because they come to ah ah come to our cake shop a lot and I was speaking to him. m
00:58:29
Speaker
ah few a few years ago. Well-to-do guy, successful guy, Italian guy, and he's one of Jamie Vardy's best friends. I'm pretty sure he's the godfather of of his child if i'm not if i if I've remembered correctly. So yeah, you need to teach Jamie Vardy about pizzas. Definitely not not Domino's and definitely not Meatball's Bacon and Sweetcorn as the top end. So finally, Celia Ass of the Week.
00:58:57
Speaker
This was a great story during the the international break. Piacenza, who went through three coaches in one day. I mean, you can't get more Italy, Italian football or serious than that. So they, first of all, they they sat, carminette palato and the director of sport, Alessio Sesto in the morning, um and they hired Simone Bentivoglio to take over.
00:59:24
Speaker
Now benti volume held one training session which was which was interrupted by an angry fan protest and they invaded the training ground they demanded that venti volume was dismissed and they threaten to boycott matches and they were there with the reason why they were so angry is cuz venti volume had been involved in a gambling scandal in two thousand and eleven.
00:59:44
Speaker
where he he he got a 13 month ban after accepting a plea bargain. So, Binti Volley was in charge basically a couple of hours and then the club realised they decided this wasn't going to work and they by mutual consent they decided to terminate his contract. um and So, Piotr Nza then hired a third person on the day Stefano Rossini, who I believe was fired only on October the 7th to make way for Palo Alto. And so he returned after just over a month. And um so there you have it. So Rossini returned and Piacenza went through three coaches in in one day, which is his
01:00:31
Speaker
absolutely staggering. Has that ever happened before? Three coaches and in one day? I mean, it's unbelievable. only Only in Italian football and can you can something like like that happen.
01:00:44
Speaker
and so they Yes, and they played yesterday, Piacenza, and they lost 3-1 at home to Immoleza. So, yeah, not not a good start for for Rossini back on the bench, will he? Yeah, how long till Rossini gets sacked again. But that's Piacenza, who in my childhood were regular in Serie A, but they had tough times recently. They went bankrupt in 2012.
01:01:08
Speaker
So yeah, Celia asks of the week and that is it for the show today. um Sorry again that it was only me, but ah we hope that Nima can get back home ah safely. ah And we will be back later in this week. We will certainly have a Champions League ah show, post-match reaction show on on Thursday, that's for sure.
01:01:36
Speaker
And then we will try and work out what we can do with the Q and&A depending on Nimmo when he's back and everything so So yeah, that's it for today's show Everybody have a have a great week. Enjoy the the midweek Champions League matches and we will see you later in the week. Ciao. Ciao