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Liverpool Exposed Again
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Join your Global Sports Podcast Network team for your daily briefing on all things premier league – News, transfers, analysis and opinion – you’ll find it here on Daily Premier League part of the Global Sports Podcast Network podcast channel
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Transcript
Introduction and Context
00:00:13
Global Sports Podcast Network
Welcome, welcome everybody to the Daily Permit podcast. It is Wednesday, 1st of October. Yes, it's the first day of the fourth quarter of the year.
00:00:24
Global Sports Podcast Network
When the nights draw in, the floodlights come on, we're on the downward track to Halloween and Christmas.
Champions League Overview with Nick Britton
00:00:31
Global Sports Podcast Network
Good morning to you, Nick Britton, who joins me from Global Sports Podcast Network Towers.
00:00:39
Global Sports Podcast Network
How are you doing?
00:00:40
Nick Britten
I'm doing very well, thank you very much. I'm doing very well. Looking forward to dissecting what was a very interesting, if a little bit underwhelming, night of ah Champions League football.
00:00:49
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, it was an interesting one. That's what we're going to do today. it's It was a packed programme in the Champions League last night. We had three of our Premier League teams involved. That was Liverpool Spurs and Chelsea.
00:01:03
Global Sports Podcast Network
And what we're going to do in this episode is just dissect what we
Liverpool's Loss and Strategic Concerns
00:01:09
Global Sports Podcast Network
saw last night. Well, I suppose we start Liverpool. ah ah They lost 1-0 in Galatasaray. Now, Galatasaray is not a pleasant place to go to.
00:01:20
Global Sports Podcast Network
ah That is true. But the signs that we've been seeing for a while... of the success of Liverpool really just being paper thin.
00:01:33
Global Sports Podcast Network
And once you really start to look under the surface, there's ah there's a lot of stuff not going right at Liverpool. I think there was more of that to see last night. What was your take on the game, Nick?
00:01:43
Nick Britten
Well, I thought we saw a continuation of what's kind of been happening. It was a kind of continuation of what happened at Palace at the weekend, where Liverpool look defensively frail and not overly convincing going forward.
00:01:57
Nick Britten
There were quite a lot of changes. It was quite a surprise to see both Izak and Salah on the bench.
00:02:02
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:02:02
Nick Britten
Frimpong playing in that kind of attacking.
00:02:04
Global Sports Podcast Network
That's the first time Salah started on the bench for ages, isn't it?
00:02:05
Nick Britten
and
00:02:07
Global Sports Podcast Network
Must be.
00:02:08
Nick Britten
It's difficult to kind of... It's a surprise in such a big game, in a Champions League game. The other side of the coin to that argument is he hasn't been playing well this season at all.
00:02:16
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:02:16
Nick Britten
So why should he keep his place? Why should he?
00:02:18
Global Sports Podcast Network
See the other.
00:02:19
Nick Britten
every Every player in any football team should not be so assured of that place that if they're not performing, they should be taken out.
00:02:27
Global Sports Podcast Network
Hmm.
00:02:27
Nick Britten
Although Florian Wurz might be that example because he was terrible again last night. And he probably doesn't. He's taken out the team
Player Performance and Managerial Decisions
00:02:34
Nick Britten
for a little while. But all over the pitch, again, they just look shaky. You Sobberslai, who we love to we love to see...
00:02:41
Global Sports Podcast Network
Mm-hmm.
00:02:41
Nick Britten
in the centre midfield. He's been played at right back last night. He's been played at right back before. He is not a right back and he got absolutely ripped apart ah in stages in the game. We had Kerkhez at left back who is really struggling, really struggling. I would take him out of the team and put Andy Robertson back in there just to bring a bit of stability.
00:03:00
Nick Britten
We had Kanate having one of his horror moments stages during the game and misplaced passes here or there could have cost them Beck has now got injured. ah TK went off injured.
00:03:12
Nick Britten
It's all over. yeah it's' It's not all over the place. liveport And it's only very early on in the season. And it's very early on in the Champions League competition. But there are signs that the players who have come in, who everybody expects to make a big difference and elevate them to the next level, are not working.
00:03:28
Global Sports Podcast Network
No.
00:03:28
Nick Britten
um not And Arnie Slott's got really some really, really big decisions to make, I think, in the coming weeks about how he sets his team up and who he actually plays.
00:03:40
Nick Britten
Because if you look at the players who have come in, other than Ecutike, none of them have made a positive difference so far.
00:03:47
Global Sports Podcast Network
i think I think that's true. um I think Arsenal are a better team than Liverpool right now. by the way, by some distance, based on what I've seen of Liverpool in the course of the last month.
00:03:58
Global Sports Podcast Network
The other thing, of course, Frimpong was playing wide right last night. I mean, as a part of the part of the three behind TK. It's a really, would really, really good set-up.
00:04:07
Nick Britten
Yeah, very curious. Curious selection.
00:04:12
Global Sports Podcast Network
I mean, it's fair to say, Alisson kept him in it as well. I mean, before he was he's off, it could have easily been two or three last night.
00:04:19
Nick Britten
Yep, I thought Galatasaray came forward, came out with real intent. And and I think anybody watching videos so of Liverpool in the last few games and thinking, right, how do we get how do we get at them?
00:04:30
Nick Britten
It's that. It's play with real intensity. Play high up the pitch, get at the fullbacks, go direct, go long, go wide, go quick. And you will get at them.
Liverpool's Balance and Strategy Issues
00:04:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:04:39
Nick Britten
You'll get at them. There's success to be had. All over that back four, other than Van Dijk, leave Van Dijk out of it, target Canate, target the fullbacks, and you will have success.
00:04:48
Global Sports Podcast Network
No question. I mean, they're definitely easier to get at than they were last year. And I was trying to work worked that out. And I was trying to think about last year's Liverpool team and why they were so great last year. And um there's a name that kept getting getting mentioned last year in terms of why they were so good. And that was Gravenberg.
00:05:08
Global Sports Podcast Network
And Gravenberg was really good last year. And he kind of transitioned a little bit into a defensive midfielder. But he did the defensive midfielder role brilliantly well last year.
00:05:14
Nick Britten
I believe.
00:05:19
Global Sports Podcast Network
And he was quietly a very, very significant part of their success, I think, last year. The balance... And it might be to do with versus inclusion, but but the balance seems to have gone really awry on that. And um'm I'm not hearing Gravenberg's name mentioned at all in that context anymore.
00:05:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
Something's just upset the balance. And I'm trying to put my finger on what it is. It isn't quite clear with me yet what it is, but something has upset it.
00:05:51
Nick Britten
I totally agree with you. I totally agree. I think Graven Birch was an outstanding... I think he's played well this season, to be fair. He's one of the very few who can look themselves in the mirror and say, I'm doing all right here. I'm worthy of my shirt, even my shorts as well.
00:06:05
Nick Britten
He played in that defensive two with Curtis Jones last night. And I'm a big fan of Curtis Jones, by the way. I think he's ah he's a good player. But the problem is that if you've got a shaky defence behind you and you've got a really kind of misfiring attack in front of you, there's only so much you can do because you're continually turning the the ball over higher up the pitch and you're not managing defensively
00:06:22
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:06:31
Nick Britten
behind you. So you're kind of stuck in the middle of a rather, ah ah could use a phrase that i'm not going to use, a disaster sandwich is the phrase I was going to use. I think I'll use, you know what I mean here.
00:06:40
Global Sports Podcast Network
Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
00:06:42
Nick Britten
You know mean? You know, if you're in that defensive midfield, hamism it's something like that.
00:06:45
Global Sports Podcast Network
Or a creek without a sandwich.
00:06:49
Nick Britten
Yeah.
00:06:49
Nick Britten
Something like that. It's a family show. So yeah, Graven Birch is probably a victim of just how the team is playing.
00:06:49
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:06:57
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:06:57
Nick Britten
But when it starts clicking, he he was so important. I think he's played well this season. he'll He'll be fine.
00:07:02
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, that's interesting. The other thing that occurred to me, and going back to flying Verts, add ISAC. If you add ISAC's transfer fee to Verts' transfer fee, you get a quarter of a billion pounds.
00:07:17
Global Sports Podcast Network
Virts has just been a huge disappointment. And there's an add-on to that I want to come to. Izak looks like he's had three months off, to be honest. He really does look miles off match fitness.
00:07:28
Global Sports Podcast Network
I think I saw a picture of him or or a ah video of him, i think in the Palace game. He was blowing out of every orifice he had. ah He really looked way off it, way off it.
00:07:41
Global Sports Podcast Network
ah Do you think... And I have to say, ah remember a month ago or so, we said he was going to be the the players to underperform in the new season.
00:07:53
Global Sports Podcast Network
I did say Isaac. I mean, I do think Isaac is going to... He's not he not the player where everyone thought he was. Anyway, do you think Newcastle have had Liverpool on a sandwich, to extend the sandwich analogy, for £125 million for Isaac?
00:08:10
Global Sports Podcast Network
And think there's any doubt that Virts hasn't justified his £116 million.
00:08:16
Nick Britten
Yeah, I'm trying to think what the analogy is. If you had somebody on a sandwich, I'm trying to think what the other what what the word sandwich might replace on this. I don't know. But do you mean have they had the trousers down?
00:08:26
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:08:26
Nick Britten
No, ah don't think so. No, no. Because I think wherever he moved, if if new if Liverpool Sorry, let me try and get this right. If Isaac was going to leave Newcastle, wherever he went, he was going to cost that amount of money, I think.
00:08:37
Global Sports Podcast Network
Hmm.
00:08:38
Nick Britten
So i think that's a fair valuation in the current market. you can You can talk about whether the current market is realistic or not, or we like. But he just looks like he's a player who, A, as you rightly say, has had all that time off and is getting up to speed. But also probably...
00:08:53
Nick Britten
A player who everything that's happened is weighing on his shoulders. The transfer fee, the expectation, the whole saga. It's just weighing on his shoulders. What he needs to do is just bag a couple of goals and I think he'll be fine.
00:09:07
Nick Britten
i don't We've seen the advantage that Izzak has over Vert is that we know Izzak can do it in the Premier League. We know that. We know he's got capability against every single defence in the Premier League.
00:09:17
Nick Britten
The problem Florian Vert has got is we don't. And right here, right now, since he's coming to the team, since he's signing, he looks like a little kid lost.
00:09:26
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:09:26
Nick Britten
Because everything everything is happening at 20 times the pace it does in the Bundesliga and elsewhere.
00:09:31
Global Sports Podcast Network
which which is Which is the point I want to come to, because is the is success in the Bundesliga actually... a reliable indicator of success in Premier Because, you know, looking back on this, Jordan Sancho looked like a world beater in the Bundesliga.
00:09:50
Global Sports Podcast Network
ah He looked like one of the greatest players there's ever been. Harry Kane, bless him, looks like Pele in the Bundesliga.
00:10:01
Global Sports Podcast Network
ah th Florian Vert, well, he went...
00:10:02
Nick Britten
well yeah but yeah i know that Sorry, i'm going to stop I'm going to stop you there because i'm going to before you start getting on your Harry Kane bandwagon. but Yeah, but Harry Kane was doing that in the Premier League with Tottenham.
00:10:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
No, i I don't think he was quite doing that. I think he was great. But in in the Bundesliga, he's like, amazing. what The point I'm making is, is is the Bundesliga reliable indicator of success? Because these players that have come across, Sancho, now Wurz, have just been ah absolute failure.
00:10:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
But they were they considered the greats of the Bundesliga.
00:10:41
Nick Britten
Well, as was Erling Haaland. And yeah, it's fair, he hasn't done much at Man City, has he?
00:10:45
Global Sports Podcast Network
um
00:10:46
Nick Britten
get your point. I get your point. And it's probably as close an indicator as any other league in Europe, unless you're playing for like Real Madrid or something like that. But if you're coming from coming from anything other than the absolute top teams in Europe, PSG, Real, those types of teams, then yeah, I think the Bundesliga is probably as close as you're going to get to Premier League football.
00:11:08
Nick Britten
but No, of course. I mean, i would i would say moving from any league to any league is difficult. Moving from the Premier League the Premier League is difficult. So, and it is very different.
00:11:15
Global Sports Podcast Network
think Premier League is just so different?
00:11:19
Nick Britten
It's really different. It's
00:11:20
Global Sports Podcast Network
It's a real outlier in terms of the way teams play and the competition.
00:11:24
Nick Britten
Well, I think it's just an outlier in terms of of pace and skill and expectation and spotlight. And, know, it's the biggest footballing expert export in the world. And everybody wants a piece If you you play for a Premier League team, you know, your profile is much higher.
00:11:38
Nick Britten
Play for even a mid-level Premier League team, your profile is much higher than it would be playing for a mid-level team anywhere else in Europe. So it is an outlier, but the the pace of the game and the quality of the game is much higher.
00:11:53
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, I was
00:11:53
Nick Britten
which is why it's the most successful ah competition and most high-profile competition in global football.
00:11:59
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah i mean i was surprised. I saw a league ah game couple of weeks ago. ah It was like a friendly. It was like a friendly. And with occasional extremely impressive bits of skill ah and great technical competency, but played at the pace of a friendly.
00:12:17
Global Sports Podcast Network
It was really quite interesting.
00:12:19
Nick Britten
And I think that's... And and look, Bayer Leverkusen are a much better team than either of the teams you saw. But even then, moving from there to a place like Liverpool, the the pressure on you is enormous. And the pace of the game, the pace that you have to do everything in your brain.
00:12:34
Nick Britten
And that's the key. we're not Nobody's disputing the talent that Florian Virts has got in his feet. Nobody's disputing that he's not a really, really good footballer. He's shown it for Leverkusen. He's shown it for Germany.
00:12:45
Nick Britten
But it's the pace of the game in the Premier League where your brain has to operate at a totally different level. Even against average sides, even against well-organised sides who are kind mid-level in the league.
00:12:57
Nick Britten
And that's, I think, where he's really, really struggling. I would take him out of the team for now. I would just say, look he needs a bit of a break. He looks like a player who increasingly is coming under pressure.
00:13:05
Global Sports Podcast Network
Who would you in his place?
00:13:09
Nick Britten
You could easily put Gakpo in his place, yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah. Gakpo's good player. I mean, that that would be that would be that that would be the obvious choice.
00:13:15
Global Sports Podcast Network
Gakbo? that's great
00:13:19
Nick Britten
I think right now.
00:13:19
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, I mean, Liverpool just seem very exposed at the moment.
00:13:22
Global Sports Podcast Network
and It makes for a very interesting watch. It makes for a very, very interesting ah point in the season, I think. I think could be a turning point where we're we're watching right now.
00:13:31
Nick Britten
I mean, you could put Gakpo in that middle. I mean, they tried Sobersleid there last season as well.
00:13:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah. Yeah.
00:13:39
Nick Britten
and And have Eketike out wide left.
00:13:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:13:42
Nick Britten
And then he's like up front. They could do that. They could try that.
00:13:46
Global Sports Podcast Network
And no Salah.
00:13:48
Nick Britten
No, Salah on the other side.
00:13:49
Global Sports Podcast Network
so Okay, interesting. Interesting.
Spurs' Challenges and Performance Analysis
00:13:52
Global Sports Podcast Network
Interesting game coming up, of course. you've got Chelsea away. Chelsea looked pretty out of sorts, to be honest, last night. But we'll come to that in the second part of the Program, as we know, in football, it pays to get your team selection right.
00:14:06
Global Sports Podcast Network
Here at Global Sports Podcast Network, we spent a lot of time selecting our delivery partner. We chose Zencastr because Zencastr makes it easy to bring your vision to life and share it with the audience, wherever they may be.
00:14:17
Global Sports Podcast Network
With 4K video recording, easy AI editing, and top-tier distribution, that's all in one place. That's all on one platform. That makes it so much easier. So if you've got a story to tell, tell it with Zencastr.
00:14:28
Global Sports Podcast Network
Check the show notes for more details.
00:14:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
Right, but before we get to Chelsea, just want to have a quick conversation about the Spurs game. Spurs drew 2-2 with Bodo Glimpt.
00:14:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
Great game. don't know you saw this, but it was great game. I saw it in the highlights, but it was it was great. Bodo Glimt could have been 5-0 up in this game. They missed a penalty.
00:15:01
Global Sports Podcast Network
ah Very dubious penalty, by the way. ah Spurs were just absolutely second best for the rest of the first half. It's easy, obviously, and it's it's somewhat patronising to go, oh, Bodo Glimt. It's middle-earth place. It's something that... they that is middle earth place it and
00:15:17
Nick Britten
like It's in the Arctic Circle for anybody who doesn't know where it is.
00:15:20
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, yeah.
00:15:21
Nick Britten
It is in the end the building.
00:15:21
Global Sports Podcast Network
I always thought it was part of Lord of the Rings, to be honest. But anyway, ah they were great. And in fact, I've looked at their track record. They've got a formidable track record at a European level at home.
00:15:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
I mean, it is a long way for people to go. But they were full of passion. They were full of energy. The crowd was all over the place. It was... mr good It was a very, very good performance by then.
00:15:47
Global Sports Podcast Network
Spurs looked proper out of sorts in the first half, and they really only got going when they went two down.
00:15:53
Nick Britten
Yeah, Tottenham are a funny one this season because they started the season really well. Everybody's looking at, okay, fine, Ange's gone. Thomas Frank has come in as manager. They've made some good signings. They've moved one in the transfer market. But suddenly it's it's it's kind of settling in at the moment, isn't it? suddenly kind of I think the problem is Richarlison scored a couple of goals early on and he's never going to be the answer.
00:16:12
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:16:15
Nick Britten
So when he stops scoring, which he generally does,
00:16:16
Global Sports Podcast Network
Was the answer last night, though?
00:16:18
Nick Britten
Well, he was the answer last night. Well, yeah. But generally, I mean, generally. and
00:16:22
Global Sports Podcast Network
You can't rely on him for 15 goals a season. and
00:16:25
Nick Britten
No. So when he suddenly kind of had his two goals season in the first game... since then it's been a little bit up and down for Tottenham. I think they've generally played well, but they've not been dominating games from start to finish.
00:16:36
Nick Britten
they they They got out of jail on Saturday against Wolves, which is a game home to Wolves, bottom the table, no wins, no points.
00:16:39
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:16:43
Nick Britten
Or actually, do they have a point? they have a point going into Saturday's game? I'm not sure.
00:16:48
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yes.
00:16:49
Nick Britten
ah and and And to rely on a kind of deep ninety deep into injury time ninety four minute goal. ah wasn't great. Wasn't great. And the week before, I kind of feel I should have beat Brian. don't know, it's a funny one. had come from behind to get a point Brighton.
00:17:09
Nick Britten
They're not quite firing. They look they should be. They're not quite firing. They beat Bodo Glimp twice last season in the Europa League and beat them together very comfortably.
00:17:13
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah um't know
00:17:15
Nick Britten
But last night, they were second best.
00:17:15
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:17:17
Nick Britten
And the fact that it took 53 minutes for Bodo Glimp to get on the score sheet was quite a surprise because they battered them.
00:17:24
Global Sports Podcast Network
button
00:17:24
Nick Britten
like They battered them. And if you look down the statistics of the game, they all say you know exactly the same thing. More shots on goal, higher XG. I mean, 18 shots they had to eight.
00:17:38
Nick Britten
Four on target against three. An XG of 2.57 against 1.46. It means they were creating better chances. yeah They look more likely to score.
00:17:49
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah. Very threatening, very threatening all all all the way through the game.
00:17:53
Nick Britten
Yeah, so and Tottenham totham really only looked a bigger threat at set pieces. So I would say if you're Tottenham, taking everything into consideration, that's a very good point.
00:18:04
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:18:04
Nick Britten
That's a very good point because they could easily, easily have come away from that game with nothing. And four points from two games in the Champions League is a good start.
00:18:09
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah. It was. performance ah Performance was lacking. No no question. And the question about that... I do i do wonder about their forward situation with Charleston.
00:18:22
Global Sports Podcast Network
Solanke injured still.
00:18:23
Nick Britten
He's still injured, yeah. He needs to come back in the team.
00:18:25
Global Sports Podcast Network
they really haven't got They really haven't got the depth, have they, up front to...
00:18:25
Nick Britten
He really does.
00:18:28
Nick Britten
No.
00:18:29
Global Sports Podcast Network
church
00:18:29
Nick Britten
I mean, when Charleston played last night, to me, he's not he's not quality enough to start games at this level, either in the Premier League or certainly not Champions League.
00:18:34
Global Sports Podcast Network
right
00:18:39
Nick Britten
But I suppose if you want to look at the positives, that's three games in a row now where Tottenham have come back to score a very late goal. all right, it was a bit of a lucky home goal last night, but it was 89th minute. Saturday it was 94th minute. Against Brighton, it was very late in the game.
00:18:51
Nick Britten
So they will keep going.
00:18:52
Global Sports Podcast Network
And that's not really a Spurs-y trend, is it? That's not a Spurs-y kind thing.
00:18:54
Nick Britten
no
00:18:55
Global Sports Podcast Network
Normally, there you don't have them down as to one of those teams with that kind of grit determination to make it happen right at the end. But, I mean, they've had to do that.
00:19:03
Nick Britten
Yeah, look, in the great wash-up of it all, you go, okay, home home game in the Champions League, we've won 1-0. First away game in the Champions League, we've taken a point out of it.
00:19:15
Nick Britten
Great, great.
00:19:16
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:19:17
Nick Britten
I think they'll be perfectly satisfied on the long flight back with
Product Promotion - Bionique Supplements
00:19:21
Nick Britten
Santa Claus in the back of Newfoundland.
00:19:21
Global Sports Podcast Network
with From Project Glimt, one final little bit of information. My understanding is that the population of Glimt, which I think is where they're based, is less than the Spurs Stadium capacity.
00:19:36
Nick Britten
Very good.
00:19:37
Global Sports Podcast Network
Very interesting.
00:19:38
Nick Britten
good and a Fair play to them.
00:19:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
Absolutely.
00:19:40
Nick Britten
Yeah, the attendance night was 7,988.
00:19:40
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah
00:19:46
Global Sports Podcast Network
I thought they were great.
00:19:46
Nick Britten
talking about Talking about the draw of, yeah, that's that's right. yeah I was at a game last night in the championship. It was 26,000.
00:19:52
Global Sports Podcast Network
Oh, the Derby one. How did that that work out?
00:19:54
Nick Britten
and
00:19:54
Global Sports Podcast Network
Were they as good as a boat of glimmed?
00:19:56
Nick Britten
I think I'll be rather watching Bolo Glimm, to be honest.
00:20:00
Global Sports Podcast Network
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Global Sports Podcast Network
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Chelsea's Victory and Leadership Struggles
00:20:27
Global Sports Podcast Network
ah first
00:20:41
Global Sports Podcast Network
Right, it was the return of the chosen one to Stamford Bridge last night. Jose Mourinho brought his Benfica team back to to Chelsea. Chelsea won 1-0.
00:20:53
Global Sports Podcast Network
Again, interesting in the context there are also Liverpool's next opponents at Chelsea. I just can't work Chelsea out ah they it was a They won 1-0.
00:21:03
Global Sports Podcast Network
It was far from a great performance. ah I don't know why they spent the money on Garnaccio. I mean, it just doesn't look a player to me.
00:21:12
Nick Britten
um
00:21:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
But yeah anyway, it's close.
00:21:14
Nick Britten
Well, we've talked about Garnaccio a lot, haven't we? yeah We've talked about Garnaccio a lot. ah yeah I mean, to fair, he did the business last night. He did the business. He, in one bit of real quality, got round a back post, kept it in play and forced the own goal, which won the game.
00:21:31
Nick Britten
So, fair play to him.
00:21:31
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, fair play.
00:21:33
Nick Britten
But broadly, i tell yeah i don't I don't see it. Huge amount of money for a player who is not that good, if I'm honest you.
00:21:41
Global Sports Podcast Network
It's ordinary, isn't it? It's ordinary Premier League level.
00:21:43
Nick Britten
Yeah.
00:21:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah. Yeah, third red card in four games, Chelsea. Is is that is that is that just a blit is that just a statistical aberration or is there something going on there? i know if you saw the red card. It was a very dodgy one, by the way.
00:21:58
Nick Britten
Well, I saw this, yeah. I mean, look, sometimes you can look at teams who keep picking up red cards and you go, well, the manager's got to sort this out because they're clearly ah clearly playing in a certain way or they're clearly being so sent out to do certain things, which then ends up in in red cards.
00:22:10
Global Sports Podcast Network
Hmm.
00:22:16
Nick Britten
I don't think that's the case with Chelsea. I mean, if you go back to Robert Sanchez, who was sent off against Manchester United, the goalkeeper after five minutes of the game the other week, he just had a rush of blood to the head.
00:22:28
Nick Britten
came out and missed the ball when Mbouma was going past him and clattered into Mbouma. That's just kind of one of those things. Last night, it was just unfortunate. I mean, when Pedro went for his...
00:22:39
Global Sports Podcast Network
I don't think there's any contact.
00:22:41
Nick Britten
Well, yeah, but the minute he boots up there...
00:22:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, I mean, it's foot is very, very high, but I mean...
00:22:46
Nick Britten
that mean It doesn't really matter where there's contact. It doesn't actually, in the rules of the game, matter where there's contact or not that not. That's not the point. If you are playing in a way that puts your opponent in danger and having your boot shoulder high does, it doesn't matter where there's contact.
00:22:55
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah. Yeah.
00:22:58
Nick Britten
It's a yellow card. But it was just one of those moments.
00:23:00
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:23:02
Nick Britten
and we saw we've we've seen a few this season already where... were You're just following the ball and it's just a natural instinct to raise your foot because you think going to get the ball.
00:23:08
Global Sports Podcast Network
yeah yeah um Yeah, I kind of get that.
00:23:11
Nick Britten
and you's not there's nothing deliberate about it. There's nothing dirty about it. There's nothing malicious about it. It's just one of those things, but it will result. It will result in a yellow card.
00:23:20
Global Sports Podcast Network
i thought i thought the Benfica player feigned injury, to be honest, because I don't think there was any contact. But he seemed to indicate that there was, which I didn't like to say.
00:23:28
Nick Britten
Well, hang about. Yeah, but I mean, that happens every single game. around the entire planet. If somebody puts their foot up and you're within five yards of it as a professional football player, you go down clutching your face as if somebody shot you.
00:23:40
Nick Britten
That's what football is like these days.
00:23:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
Oh, dear.
00:23:43
Nick Britten
You know, yeah, it's not but it's nothing to do with Benfica.
00:23:43
Global Sports Podcast Network
out
00:23:45
Nick Britten
Every single football player in the world would have done what he did
00:23:47
Global Sports Podcast Network
Probably. ah So, Chelsea, lot of possession, very little threat, I thought, really. ah You know what struck me when I was when i was watching know Leaderless.
00:23:59
Global Sports Podcast Network
I think they're leaderless on the pitch. I i see a lot of players, lot lot of talented players. i don't see any leaders. I don't know your viewers on that.
00:24:07
Nick Britten
Well, Chelsea have, as we know, ah young side. It's their transfer policy to to bring in young players and then make money on them. Last night, the Chelsea line-up had an average age of 24, which is the youngest ever, ever for a Champions League game.
00:24:25
Nick Britten
And I think that shows.
00:24:27
Global Sports Podcast Network
It did show. It did show.
00:24:28
Nick Britten
ah think that shows. I think they need they need experience in there. They more experience in there. Look at what's going on at Brentford. Everybody laughed when Jordan Henderson, at the ripe old age of 30, whatever he is, what was he now?
00:24:42
Nick Britten
34, 35, 36, whatever.
00:24:44
Global Sports Podcast Network
It's anderson's probably 35, I thought.
00:24:46
Nick Britten
Has come back from spell in Saudi via Ajax into the Brentford line-up in the Premier League. Everybody's going, ah, he's too old for the Premier League. But he's been he's been perfect. he's been exactly... Chelsea need a Jordan Henderson in there.
00:24:58
Global Sports Podcast Network
I think you're right. What strikes me as odd is these are the World Club champions we're talking about. They look miles off. Miles and miles and miles off.
00:25:09
Global Sports Podcast Network
Even being any any threat in the Premier League, certainly not going to be any threat in the Champions League. They just seem to... I could just see him finishing 7th in the Premier League. They just don't look to have the threat to do anything else.
00:25:22
Global Sports Podcast Network
João Pedro is a very good player and I think he... And Caicedo is a very good player. But... Beyond that, ordinary.
00:25:31
Nick Britten
Yeah, I mean, look the Club World Championship is what it is, Club World Cup rather. It is what it is. And you know my thoughts on that. Them being the best club in the world by winning that is it is a complete misnomer.
00:25:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
Hmm. Hmm.
00:25:44
Nick Britten
Yeah, they don't look they don't look at it, particularly the Premier League. Nobody does this season so far, do they? ah Particularly. um well Well, yes and no.
00:25:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
Personal, maybe.
00:25:54
Nick Britten
yeah We've talked about Arsenal and we've looked at their performances against Arsenal. Liverpool, looked at their performance against Man City, and we looked at their performance in the first 95 minutes against Newcastle. They don't really look anything that special.
00:26:06
Nick Britten
They got the win against Newcastle, but they needed that win because they hadn't been in Newcastle the weekend. We would have been looking at them going, right, they just can't turn up in the big games.
00:26:13
Global Sports Podcast Network
Mm-hmm.
00:26:13
Nick Britten
They can't do it in the games that really, really matter. Well, they did against Newcastle, fair play, and they deserve all the credit for that. But, yeah, Chelsea, oh Chelsea don't there they look that that they don't look to have that much about them.
00:26:26
Nick Britten
To be honest, you don't look at them and go, they look an imposing side. You don't look at them go, they look a real threat. They have good players, but they have bits in games, moments in games, Ken, ah your favorite phrase. so They have moments in games where it happens for them, but they also have moments in games where get players sent off and they look a bit calamitous.
Predicting Future Matches
00:26:43
Global Sports Podcast Network
Well, be interesting on Saturday, very early in the week for this, but actually I think Chelsea away is not a bad game for Liverpool increasingly because I don't think Chelsea are anything. um what How do you think that one will be?
00:26:55
Nick Britten
is It's a really hard one to call because you're looking at two teams where they're really, really unpredictable.
00:26:57
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:27:02
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:27:03
Nick Britten
They're really unpredictable. At what stage do we say about Liverpool, ah they'll they just need to click in and they'll suddenly turn up and be amazing? Or do we just not now? Has that shit passed?
00:27:15
Nick Britten
Do we now kind of accept that they're going through a little bit of a transition, which might take moment?
00:27:18
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, I do do. I do think we we we accept that. I'm just look looking at Liverpool team. I'm thinking, who's going to score for them? It's just going through my head when we're having this conversation. I'm thinking, well, Ekitike might.
00:27:30
Global Sports Podcast Network
I don't see Isaac scoring. I can't see Werner scoring. I can't see Salah scoring. I mean, I just don't see... um And they're real frail at the back, so...
00:27:37
Nick Britten
given Yeah, the difficulty with that is that we know Salah can. We know Ekotiki can.
00:27:42
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:27:43
Nick Britten
We know Izak can. We know they can. And it's just a question of trying to work out where exactly they are. It could be it could be it could be a five-all draw.
00:27:50
Global Sports Podcast Network
what Yeah, it isn't going to
00:27:54
Nick Britten
It could be Chelsea win. could be Liverpool win. I have no idea how to call that game. No idea.
00:27:59
Global Sports Podcast Network
be. No. Well, I suppose we'll leave it for later in the week, but it's an interesting thought because at the moment, the Premier League just feels like teams who are not on the boil. No one's on the boil.
00:28:11
Global Sports Podcast Network
And, you know, it'd be interesting to which team emerges.
00:28:12
Nick Britten
is it been called a It's been quite an unpredictable start, hasn't it?
00:28:21
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah.
00:28:21
Nick Britten
Hence the reason why Palace are third, Sunderland are fifth, Bournemouth are sixth. And you're looking at some of the bigger teams, Man City seven, Chelsea eight. I'm not going to include Manchester United in that. Newcastle, I would include in that. Fifteenth, Villa, sixteenth.
00:28:34
Nick Britten
It's been that kind of weird start.
00:28:35
Global Sports Podcast Network
that Funny old start the season. What we should do what we we do, I think, is after 10 games, i think we'll have a proper 10-game review of the the winners and the losers. I think that would be interesting thing to do.
00:28:47
Global Sports Podcast Network
But for now, that will let's call it a day there. That was an interesting night of Champions League football. There was another interesting night tonight.
00:28:54
Nick Britten
There's another night. i'm just looking at I'm just going to look at who we've who we've got who we've got tonight. Who's playing tonight? have look, shall we?
00:29:01
Global Sports Podcast Network
Arsenal play it.
00:29:02
Nick Britten
Yeah, Newcastle are away at Union SG. Arsenal are home to Olympiacos. Oh, Barcelona PSG. That's good game. That's a good game. That's their pick the game. Man City go to Monaco.
00:29:13
Nick Britten
So...
00:29:14
Global Sports Podcast Network
Monaco had a good win at the weekend. I wouldn't be at all surprised if Monaco turned over Man City. And interestingly, Napoli are playing tonight.
00:29:19
Nick Britten
What about Napoli? What about you? What about Napoli? The team that you've gone on the record and said on this podcast a couple of weeks ago, even was it last week, Napoli will win the Champions League.
00:29:25
Global Sports Podcast Network
Winning the Champions League.
00:29:29
Global Sports Podcast Network
And they're playing tonight. and And you'll you'll see ah that I'm right.
00:29:32
Nick Britten
Just before they lost. Just before lost to Manchester City. Yeah.
00:29:36
Global Sports Podcast Network
But...
00:29:36
Nick Britten
Home Sporting Lisbon tonight.
00:29:38
Global Sports Podcast Network
Yeah, interesting games to come. Thank you, everybody, for your company this morning on on the first day of October. ah Welcome to autumn, everyone. And we'll see you all again tomorrow.
00:29:51
Global Sports Podcast Network
Bye-bye.