And welcome back to the P .D. Football Podcast.
My name is Presh. What's up, everybody? My name
is Darren. And how are you doing today? I'm good,
I'm good. Tired from work, as usual. What about
you? I'm just chilled out, bro. Chilled out and
ready to try to board Arsenal vs. Chelsea. Arsenal,
the Carabao Cup. Yes. That's where we're starting.
Well, we only have two topics today. Well, excuse
me. One topic has two matches. I guess... It's
the Carabao Cup and the January transfer window.
Okay, yeah. Right, so Carabao Cup is split into
two games, right? So the first game I want to
speak about in the Carabao Cup is Arsenal versus
Chelsea. And Chelsea set up in a 3 -5 -2, presumably
to go man -for -man with Arsenal's front three
and to overload the midfield area so that they
can gain control. Yeah, that would be the assumption.
Right. Arsenal set up pretty much like they usually
do, except Kepa in for Raya, Eze in for Odegaard,
Meduike in for the injured Saka, and Martinelli
in for Trossard, being the main changes. And
I guess, like you would say, Jokeres shouldn't
be starting. It should be either Havertz or Jesus.
Yeah, I mean, that would be my preferred choice
of starter. But I think I understand starting
Jokeres yesterday, given... I don't think Havertz
or Jesus will probably fully fit. So this is
one of, if not the most boring game I've watched
this season. The person to blame is Liam Roseno.
I often call Arteta a coward for not taking the
game to the opposition. So in this case, I have
to say, Liam Roseno, you are a coward. And your
team is playing cowardly football. His game plan
was to sit deep and defend. while losing, I might
add, and then bring on Estavao, who was on compassionate
leave, and Palmer, whose minutes have been managed,
on to try and get a late goal to take it to extra
time, right? Yeah, that was pretty much their
game plan. If it had worked, people would be
calling him a genius, but right now he just looks
like a tit, because he wasted 60 minutes of time,
which, you know, could have been you spent attacking.
yeah i mean i think they didn't really pressure
us i think also from our perspective we didn't
have to trace the game so it made sense to kind
of conserve energy i mean we don't want to like
our players to overexert themselves if there's
no need so i think chelsea made the game very
easy for us so i don't think arsenal would have
wanted to play this game You know, like you always
talk about, you prefer a single leg instead of
double or two legs. So I assume Arteta feels
the same way. Especially, I guess, as the season
goes on because a player getting injured now
is going to be more impactful than them getting
injured. Yeah, for the FA Cup, Champions League,
etc. Yeah. So, Liam Roseno's game plan was flawed
from the beginning. But I also disagree with
the choice to play Liam DeLapp on the right -hand
side wing. He did absolutely nothing and actually
wasted several good opportunities that he had
in space. Garnaccio should have started because,
like I mentioned, Esteval was on compassionate
leave. I'm not exactly sure what happened, but
he flew back to Brazil to be with his family
for a while. Oh, okay. I didn't know that. Again,
I don't want to know about some... That has nothing
to do with me. irrelevant yes that uh and palmer
uh because he's been played a lot he played 90
minutes against uh west ham on the other day
uh so you know he he wasn't going to start this
game so the only other option i could say is
garnacho and i understand garnacho is a left
wing play jao pedro on the right play garnacho
on the left right uh that that's what i thought
he should have done uh because the lap didn't
contribute anything there's a second game in
a row that i'm mentioning the lap just being
useless yeah i mean i don't i think even watching
the game i didn't really feel like threatened
even with with all the position chelsea had in
the first even i mean even when they when they
began i guess you could say taking the initiative
yeah in the last 30 minutes It didn't really
feel like, I mean, outside of Enzo Fernandes,
I think that was the most threatening player
for me. But even that, those were speculative
shots from outside of the box. It wasn't well
worked. Yeah, yeah. I'm saying more from a perspective
of, I think he was the one who was keeping Kelsey
ticking. If there was any player in Kelsey that
was playing well. Yeah, sure, sure, sure. Yes.
The playmaker. Yeah. Whatever you want to call
him. The dictator. The orchestrator. He also
looked a bit frustrated by the way, I guess,
rossini set up you know i think he he he made
a lot of good passes and i think the momentum
broke down because the second the receiver didn't
have many options after that it's not like he
has the athleticism necessarily to always follow
his pass like i was saying with the uh the lap
it was actually enzo was the one who was finding
him in space and giving him the opportunity to
run at arsenal's back line but then the lap couldn't
make use of Enzo's passes yeah I mean I think
even I think Cucurella was struggling a bit with
interpreting when to press and when to I guess
hang back within the context of I guess coming
from Maresca where it was like generally you
would know I guess more clearly which moments
to press and which not to press whereas it seemed
like maybe the back five was something that they
probably just practiced in the days leading up
to the game I felt like Kukuru gave Timbo a lot
of space and Timbo was able to escape pressure.
When Chelsea did create pressure a lot, he kind
of dragged the ball out just to like a simple
dribble. It really was honestly not a difficult
game for Arsenal. I didn't really feel threatened
at any point. So, yeah. As for Arsenal, they
did nothing because they didn't need to do anything.
In the first half, I was thinking, oh wow, Chelsea's
press was working quite well because they kept
winning the ball in midfield. But it was actually
Arsenal giving the ball away to Chelsea quite
a few times. A lot of sloppy passes. I guess
with Zubimendi, a bit of his first touch was
let him down. He over -controlled the ball a
bit. I would also say Rice. And it's not a once
-off thing. I've seen this in a few games. Rice
struggles to break the lines with his passes.
Especially from deep. I don't think he's necessarily
been a line -breaker. It's still something he's
developed. Not everyone has to do it. Because
he plays at 8 now, he doesn't need to do that.
But when he plays deeper... it makes more sense
it struggles for him he struggles then to break
the lines when he's deeper but if he's a little
bit higher up he doesn't need to I mean Zubimendi
I guess is the one who usually comes with the
line breakers so I mean he's probably it depends
what you're looking for out of like in that specific
position I guess like Chelsea didn't offer much
so you couldn't really say that the midfield
was stretched or the mistakes that were there
were taken advantage of so it's much more so
that there were outnumbered in midfield because
they played Caicedo, Andre Santos and Enzo who
were all in the midfield versus Rice and Zubamendi
because Eze was pushing a bit forward. Yeah and
I mean Eze was also rotating a lot with the wingers.
So in that sense you could see why the midfield
battle was quote unquote won by Chelsea because
they just outnumbered them. Yeah, I think it
was just a matter of numbers, but Chelsea didn't
really create numbers in a way where I guess
the players were familiar with which patterns
to use. Outside of Enzo Fernandes, again, it
didn't seem like anyone knew how to progress
the ball beyond a certain point. They just seemed
dead for ideas. It could have been down to Arsenal's
structure, but again, I don't think we were that
good. Like you said, I don't think we were flawless.
It wasn't one of our best defensive displays.
Well, to the edge, when they did attack, I did
think Arsenal were very resolute in their defense.
that again like that last 20 -30 minutes yeah
when the pressure came on but then we also threw
on our like more disciplined players tactically
so that helped us but like again it's hard to
say because I felt like they gave us more in
the first leg where we dominated the first half
they came back and I expected them to kind of
play how they did in the second half again and
they just didn't didn't put the same i guess
numbers up or whatever the phrase is that i'm
looking for yeah palmer couldn't find the space
he needed when he came on he looked very frustrated
not only did he look frustrated he who was it
i think it's garnacho he refused to pass to garnacho
uh he just there was a garage was totally open
like three or four times and palmer looked up
They looked away. I mean, from an Arsenal perspective,
I'd say that that was probably Hincapie's best
game that I've seen him play. I mean, Estabal's
a tricky player. He's obviously still developing,
but I think he did well against Estabal when
Estabal came on, and I guess someone saw that
they had to swap Estabal's side, but Timber also
did well. I don't necessarily think that Estevao
should be the player taking on the responsibility
of single -handedly breaking down the best defence
in Europe. Alright. Then, I have two points I
want to make about the corners for Arsenal. One,
Roseno tried out a new tactic to stop Arsenal's...
Which was Maresca's tactic of pushing the players
up. Well... I don't want to say, I've seen Pep
do it. I think Mariska was the first one to do
it, though. Alright, but just having a bunch
of players stay up instead of being in the box,
it makes the box less congested. Yeah, you can't
crowd the keeper out as much. Yes. speaking of
which the second thing is i really saw because
it's so uncrowded now you can really see arsenal's
tactic is to just fuck with the keeper yeah to
prevent the keeper's movement but i still think
uh create like like my thing is if the players
push up it creates the option for a short corner
i think arsenal should use that more if i if
i would say going forward all right but you're
just kind of glossing over the fact that that's
cheating right to bump into the keeper i don't
i don't see it as cheating because the keeper
with the players are standing still they're is
on the keeper to move I'm much more of a wow
keepers are too protected but watching what Saliba
was doing to the keeper not last night two nights
ago I was like a bit of shock I was like wow
I still really take it to the I mean every team
pulls and pushes but I think the thing is in
the moments of blocking the keeper the The person
taking the corner, Madueke, waited until Saliba
got a run in on the keeper before he took the
corner. Because João Pedro was holding him back,
holding him back, holding him back. And Madueke
refused to take it until he got the run in. But
it's not necessarily cheating if he runs and
stops. Because the onus is on the keeper. It's
like, as a defender, you jockey a player. It's
their duty to dribble you, dribble past you or
past the ball. So if Saliba was barging into
the keeper and pushing him over, that would be
a different story. but our players run and hold
it like a pre they're given a position to run
to to block the keeper's path and I guess other
teams are supposed to figure that out how to
stop it because it's within the laws alright
fair enough so I hope more teams take on this
tactic to try and stop Arsenal to corner dominance
but yeah Moving on with the last kick of the
game, Havertz scores on a breakaway. I couldn't
have been happier. Yeah, happy for him because
he clearly hates Chelsea. They must have treated
him very poorly or he must have had a bad time
there because every time he scores against Chelsea,
he looks so happy. He's kissing the badge. It's
also a thing of, I guess... From the social media
angle, at that stage in Chelsea's history, when
we bought him, him and Werner were really getting
a lot of abuse online from a lot of Chelsea fans,
so I guess he took that personal. I see. Well,
he should take it personally. You know, like,
they're being dicks to him, so why not return
the favour? I don't see an issue with that. Yeah,
I mean, you have a point to prove, so you've
proved it, you know. Do you have any other points
you want to make about the Arsenal -Chelsea match?
How do you feel going into the final? I feel
confident enough going into the final. We'll
see. I mean, I still think the priority should
be the league, obviously. But beating Pep in
the final is no easy task. So that man is probably
the... How many finals? He's lost like two finals
in his career. I can only think of one, which
is Tuchel in the Chelsea vs... And I think he
lost the Copa del Rey final to Jose Mourinho
once. Don't quote me on that. I have no idea.
No, I think those were his only two final defeats.
So Pepe is a different animal in the final. So
let's see. A ruthless winner. It promises to
be an interesting game, but I do have confidence
that we can get the better of them. So we're
done with that. Let's move on to Man City versus
Newcastle. So City... Sorry. We didn't even mention
the... The scoreline for the other one, we just
said that. No, yeah, Arsenal 1 -0. Yes, Arsenal
1 -1 -0 and 4 -2 overall in this game. Man City
1 -3 -1 and 5 -1 overall. Yeah. Right? So, I
watched the first half of this game last night.
That was all you needed to watch, really? Yeah,
and then I went to bed because... Not because
the match was boring, because I was just tired.
and yeah City are 5 -0 up so I was like alright
I mean strangely enough that looked like that
first half performance to me looked like a Jurgen
Klopp blow them away type of performance particularly
the goals that were scored the way that I guess
it's like they don't attack with as many it's
like rapid transitions the front three like get
the ball to the front three and create as much
space for them as possible or let them exploit
the space that's there it's I don't know if that
has a lot to do with Pep Lyon I don't know how
it has to be yeah I mean in terms of I don't
know how how much they want to play that way
if that's Pep Guardiola's way of wanting to play
but it really it really did look like a Liverpool
performance of old and they were dominant it's
what you expected though I probably did expect
this game to be a thrashing honestly I would
not take the opposite point of view but I would
just say more so that Newcastle were bad yeah
we I said the same thing for the previous game
where Liverpool played Newcastle. We just walked
all over them. Same thing happened with City.
They kind of walked all over them. I don't want
to give credit to City. That City were incredible.
City were over -the -top impressive. Not really.
It was more that Newcastle gave the ball away
and allowed themselves to be taken advantage
of on transition, I think. Yeah, no, I agree.
But I think there were certain things you could
see in City that maybe the last two games or
so haven't been there. I think Rodri is not at
his best. So I think having Nico Gonzalez there,
he looked a bit better. The dynamics in midfield
looked a bit better right now. Obviously, he
still has a long way to go to be Rodri at his
peak. And obviously, Rodri could still conceivably
get back to that same level. But I think right
now, the fluidity, the rotations look better
with Nico Gonzalez. I think Rodri hasn't got
back to his athletic peak as yet so he can't
really rotate as much within within the structure
as nico gonzalez so he kind of has to hold his
position which i think affects the midfield dynamics
especially if they're as reliant on the press
as they currently are all right so uh do you
have anything else you want to say about the
dynamics of the game because uh like i said i
not just that i went to sleep at halftime it's
that i was falling asleep in the first half So
if you could give us more of a... I mean, yeah,
it was kind of like, in a weird way, it was like
an old -school Eddie Howe versus Jurgen Klopp
game. Newcastle started well, but I think the
problem with Newcastle is always that their play
is very, very heavily dependent on their pressing.
The minute, like... opposition settles down and
can beat their press regularly they kind of offer
nothing and they just get opened up time and
time again and that was the dynamic in the first
half City could have had five six maybe like
it was just every time Nico Gonzalez got the
ball and pushed it forward something looked like
it was going to happen anytime the front three
got the ball in particular Semenya I guess you
could see some deficiencies in his game now that
perhaps you couldn't see in Bournemouth like
I guess in a way I would say he has he has like
As you've described Salah, Salah's deficiencies,
which I still rate Salah as one of the greatest
players in the history of the league, but I think
he has those similar deficiencies where he needs
the rest of the front three. He needs a Firmino
type player. I don't think... I just think he
can't take a man on. Yeah, I mean... Not can't,
it's just he's bad at it. Yeah, he's very bad
at it, but I guess... If he's running into space,
if the space is created for him, he can use the
space. And that's why he was perfect at Bournemouth,
because Bournemouth themselves would generate
the space and then... But it makes sense if they're
going to play like how you guys played in the
past, because you guys generated the space for
Salah the whole time, who wasn't necessarily
the best in tight spaces either. Could be. Could
be. No, I'm saying it could work out. That's
what I mean when I say it could be that it'll
work out, but... We'll have to see. So let's
talk about individual moments. Man City's first
goal, they do a quick one -two to break Newcastle's
press, and then they get a lucky bounce off Mahmoud
for the goal. What do you think about that? I
mean, it was, I guess, like a fortunate goal
in a sense, but it was coming. City had the momentum
they were creating consistently, so it was a
deserved goal, if slightly fortunate. The second
goal... Reinders carries the ball, at least like
from his half, into the final third, passes to
Semenyo, Semenyo crosses, and Mahmoud heads in.
Oh, yes. I mean, I think Reinders was probably
my man of the match overall. Yeah, we'll see
a pattern. Oh, sorry, excuse me. You carry on.
Yeah, no, I think, no, I was just saying, I think
Reinders, like, when the space is there, he's
one of the best ball carriers, I think, in Europe.
And that came through a lot yesterday. He was
consistently able to go on, like you said, 30
-odd runs, 20 runs, but at least five or six
times, I think. Which brings us to the third
goal, which was a counterattack. which Newcastle
lose the ball in the final third. Then Reinders
runs from midfield once again to the final third,
passes to Semenyo. Semenyo not passes back, but
he gets a lucky bounce and then Reinders finishes
it off himself. Good finish. Good finish. But
what we're seeing is a pattern here of players
running through midfield without being challenged.
And I saw it these past few weeks with Liverpool
because, not to make everything about Liverpool,
but just it's a pattern I've seen. because when
Konate is not playing, Konate is the guy who
will go out and charge at the player, whereas
Van Dijk is the one who will lay off. So you
need one guy that's going to run up and one guy
that's going to lay off. Both centre -backs can't
lay off because it's allowing the guy just to
run up on you. Or, alternatively, a midfielder
should be tracking back and tracking the man
and, you know, maybe chopping him down, maybe.
I mean, like, Newcastle, they look like a completely
different team with Bruno G in the team. So I
think not having him there was... Maybe it shows
how much of a good player he could be in the
right team. I still think, I don't know how long
he'll stay loyal to Newcastle, but the fact that
they're almost always a Champions League or Europa
League level team with him in the team, and there's
a couple of weeks or months... the month or so
that he's been injured they've looked like one
of the worst teams in the league honestly yeah
small note I'm thinking about keeping Ego Thiago
in my fantasy team because they're playing Newcastle
this week instead of Jao Pedro Jao Pedro's playing
Wolves and I'm thinking Ego Thiago might fuck
up Newcastle so badly that makes more sense to
go for him yeah but that's how bad Newcastle
are right now anyway for their goal a moment
of brilliance from Anthony Alanga to score the
goal to make it 3 -1. What did you make of that?
I mean, yeah, it was an incredible goal. A bit
reminiscent of, I guess you could say, like Gareth
Bale or something when he used to play off the
right wing at Madrid. So, yeah, it was a good
goal. I don't know if Newcastle fans will be
happy with the price tag. I know Newcastle fans
have pretty much been all over his case since
he signed. I've seen the quote, worst Newcastle
signing in years. yeah i've seen that multi i've
seen i saw someone saying it was the worst signing
of all time so yeah I mean, it's the price point,
I guess. But like I said, I've never really agreed
with taking it out on the player themselves because
the player is still like a human being. The player
didn't pay the, you know, set the price tag.
It's the club that paid it. Yeah, I mean, just
like talking, like we were talking about mental
health last week. So as someone who like struggles
with mental health disorders, it was like, like
I understand banter, but it's like when you see
like things of like calling people useless or
like personally attacking them and their families
could be online and friends. it's not something
I like to see personally well I disagree in terms
of like I think giving them fair criticism yeah
fair criticism is fine if I say like you did
this very poorly I don't think that's off yeah
that's expect that's like holding someone to
a standard but some of the things you've seen
is like useless waste of space things like i
don't think those would be used as descriptions
to describe any human being it's like if someone
doesn't do a job properly working alongside you
you don't motivate them by calling them a waste
of space you know so true true it's absolutely
correct uh but yeah any other thoughts you have
about this game i know just completely what i
expected both games kind of went as you expected
i think the the better sides control the games.
Different ways, I think Man City naturally attacked
Arsenal, controlled the game, but not really
exerting themselves, not really giving Chelsea
anything. So, yeah, let's see. It's good to have
a final with the current two best teams in the
country. I would point out City's lack of shots
on target in second halves. The prior two games,
They didn't have a shot on targeting the second
half. So the game against Spurs and... And I
mean, if you couple that with the fact that they
concede a high amount of clear -cut chances in
a lot of games. Yeah, I wonder if... pep liners
very high intensity type of football is tiring
them out badly yeah i don't think the squad have
played in that way before so it's uh i don't
know you would know better what was it like what
was what was the first season like was there
a difference when pep liners came in as opposed
to before him i don't think so because we already
gagged pressing and like you know high intensity
football already for about three years before
he came in. The former guy, I forget his name,
his name was Buvak. Do you remember him? No,
I don't remember much, but you can update me
on. No, he was just a guy with like a very weird
hairstyle that he used to sit next to Klopp.
Oh, okay, yes, now I remember him. I didn't know
his name. He used to sit next to Klopp and apparently
he was the brain. But yeah, after he left, he
won the Champions League. So, you know. Can't
have been that smart. I guess, what is the brain?
People always say that the people behind Ancelotti
were the brains, but I think the man -management
aspect of football is the most important. Anyone
can lay a message to someone, but to get that
message across to a group of players and motivate
them to play well, that's the most difficult
thing in coaching. Apparently Klopp was really
bad at tactics. And Bouvac was the tactical guy.
And same with Leidners. Leidners is the tactical
guy. Klopp was just a bad manager. That's, I
mean... That's what people used to... Obviously,
now we're going back in time, so he ended up
having a failed managerial career, but that's
what people used to say about Alex Ferguson's
assistant, Alex McLeish, I think, that he was
the brains behind Opry, but he turned out to
be a horrible coach when he went on his own.
Well, same thing. Leiden has failed in, like,
where did he fail? In Austria. Yeah, with the
Salzburg. Yeah, Redwoods. So, just because you're
tactical doesn't mean you have the bad management
skills to dictate. Oh, yeah, one thing I did
notice in the City game, though, was that I think
at some point Pep structured them in a 4 -2 -2
-2 so I don't know if this is the if De Zerbi's
influence is as you want it maybe it's seeping
into other coaches maybe it's seeping into people
who can actually execute the football to the
standard you wish yeah Okay. I don't appreciate
that slight slander at the Zerby, but... No,
no, I mean... Alright. No, no, I get your point.
I have the same problem with Spalletti. I'm hoping
Spalletti is one day going to prove himself.
But so far, he's defensive. You already proved
himself. He won Serie A with Napoli, didn't he?
Yeah, he did. I mean, but in terms of the same
way you're saying with Deserbi maybe going on
in the Champions League or going to produce a
great side, I really do think Spalletti is the
manager that excites me the most after Pep. So
are we done here? Do you have any other points
you want to make about the City game? i mean
not really i think uh i was just uh curious as
to maybe see like what do you think the the future
of of doku is in with simenio there well actually
i will bring that up right now okay yeah not
right now but soon we'll put up an in there okay
no problem yeah then we can go on so let's move
on to the transfer news uh well not transferred
use the transfer window segment right I didn't
keep up with much of the deal, so I'll go with
what you've told me. So my initial thought was
to go team by team and judge their transfer window.
I got until Bournemouth when I realized that
this was a bad idea. I'm simply not qualified
to judge if Alex Toth from Ferencváros is a good
transfer or not. I don't watch the Hungarian
league. So I thought we should go through a selection
of transfers that I can express an opinion about.
I assume similar because these are all intra
-league transfers. Intra -league transfers between
other Premier League teams or players we know.
Big money signings. So all transfer fees are
given in pounds. So if you maybe have the Euro
number in your head, that's the reason there's
a discrepancy here, right? So first transfer,
Tammy Abram going from Besiktas to Aston Villa
for 18 .2 million. So first, I recognize that
Villa need attacking reinforcements, but I just
don't think he's good enough even as a backup.
What is Tammy Abram's age right now? He's 28.
Okay, I mean... I don't think he's... It depends
who's the first choice if he's good as a backup
or not. Because I'm sure they're going to move
Watkins on. So it depends if it's a long -term
signing. But yeah, I don't feel it much either.
Villa wants to be a Champions League level club.
And in my opinion, he's a Conference League level
player at best. I mean, he's done well in the
Europa League. I'd say he's a Europa player.
We can disagree. We can agree to disagree. Yeah,
I just think this is a bad transfer. Especially
since he was playing for Besiktas. I think Una
Emer tried to sign him at Arsenal. So I don't
know if it's something... The one that got away.
The one that got away, maybe. Maybe he sees something
he can do with him. Next, Antoine Semenyo from
Bournemouth to Man City for 64 million. This
is probably the most controversial one because
he's played well so far. But I don't necessarily
think it was what City needed right now. So I
think Semenyo is better than both Doku and Semenyo
in terms of output. And walk straight into their
team. Yeah. Doku is a much better dribbler. And
1v1 attacker. Do you think Semenyo elevates the
team right now? In terms of... I think the problems
that we're making them... Their most, I guess,
glaring problems are still there. Which are?
Defensive, blocking defensive transitions, especially,
or keeping control of a game through, like, the
holding midfield, I guess, since Rodri's injury.
Yeah, I would argue that there's more problems.
And one of those problems is they're very reliant
on Haaland for goals. And since his goals have
dried up at the moment, he's not playing very
well, they've had a goal drought. And I think
a winger... who can contribute goals is very
useful in alleviating that problem because all
the other wingers, except Chucky, doesn't even
score goals. Chucky is more of a creator, right?
But I mean, okay, now you can finish quickly.
No, you carry on. No, I'm saying, wouldn't, like,
then, based on the argument you're making, wouldn't
Semenyo, because we were talking, I guess, earlier
about... how he's like kind of a Salah type of
player and I'd say Salah and Haaland are similar
like they need their teammates to open the pitch
for them so no but I'm saying Haaland is getting
chances he's just not finishing them off yeah
no but so if Semenyo gets chances he will finish
them off but then it could be a point in the
future where you've face the same problem where
like you say if the if the midfield is not dominating
enough if they're not getting enough chances
from the midfield or the fullbacks depending
how you go about creating chances all right let's
ignore the rest of Sati's problems let's just
say in a vacuum he he's better than all the other
wingers currently he's 26 which is the beginning
of his prime he can play on either wing so he's
very versatile and then they got him for a good
fee so in if you look at that I think it's a
pretty good transfer it is a good transfer I
think overall, I don't think, like you said,
with Haaland in the team, are they going to drop
him? Because I think both of them together might
affect the dynamics a bit because, like you said,
the third winger is going to have to do a lot
of off -the -ball work and a lot of... occupying
space and creating chances because I feel like
Schurke should have more responsibility on the
ball and he can't really do that when the thing
is to try create as much space as you can for
Semenya and Haaland and then that it's like like
you said if Haaland is missing the chances but
they're only falling to him that becomes a problem
if you have Haaland and Semenya who are both
going to run in behind constantly. Our next transfer
is Pascal Gross from Borussia Dortmund to Brighton
for 1 .2 million. I mean, he's a Brighton legend
at this point. So I'm usually very suspect of
deals for somebody over the age of 30. We had
this conversation before we started doing the
podcast. When I say before we started doing the
podcast, I don't mean like an hour ago. I mean
like before the podcast. Since we've been friends.
We've been talking about longevity in players,
right? And I think Pascal Gross has all the signs
of being a player that can play till he's like
38, maybe even 40. Why is that? Because he's
not particularly quick or physical. His game
is mainly about technique. And intelligence,
I think. And intelligence, yes. I'd say he's
less talented, but in the same kind of profile
as Luka Modric. Getting him in for a little over
a million is good business in my eyes. And I
think, yeah, he's a Brighton legend. I guess
they're in a bit of a, I don't know what the
term is, but a period, a transition period where
they've come out of being a European -level club
and now they're sitting in mid -table. Nostalgia
can be good. I think when Arsenal signed back
Thierry Henry for six months, the club was in
doom and gloom at the time. And for a little
while, everyone felt better, you know. So it's
a good signing for me for Brighton to get back
a club legend. He wasn't playing much. Next,
we have Jorgen Strand Larsson from Wolves to
Crystal Palace for 48 million. Last season, he
had 40 goals and 4 assists. This season, he has
1 goal and 1 assist. I mean, Wolves have been
atrocious. Yeah, so I think they're more looking
at his previous record. you know for future outcomes
instead of this season because uh they view it
as an outlier i mean yeah it could be last season
he was very good i think he has a very much a
traditional striker profile maybe like he's a
bit of a throwback old school number nine so
i i liked him last season When we played Wolves
this season, he was very good. He gave us a lot
of problems. So I think it's a good signing.
48 million, I don't think it's what Crystal Palace
need right now. And given everything that's happening
with that club off the pitch, I don't think they
should have thrown that much at a signing without
being sure of how they're going to go forward.
Yeah, I would say... 14 goals last season, plus
the fact that he's 25, makes 48 million look
like a reasonable fee. He's obviously not the
finished article, but Palace will be hoping that
Glasner and whoever the future coaches will coach
him into being a top striker. It's crazy that
we've, just as a side note, got to the days where
48 million is a reasonable fee for a team like
Crystal Palace. What is it? 10 million more 20
years ago, 25 years ago, got you Kaká and Zinedine
Zidane. Yeah. I was going to say 50 million is
what we sold Torres to Chelsea for. And that
was like one of the ripoffs of the century at
the time. Yeah. So, yeah, I think it's a good
transfer. Any other thoughts? I mean, yeah, I
think it's a good transfer as well. I think it
depends. Like, what's Crystal Palace's direction?
Are they going to play the type of football that
suits him? Because if they get in a coach that
doesn't play to his strengths, it could also
be a big knock for a club like that. So, time
will tell. Okay, I didn't write this down, but
I would say also the other side of this transfer
is that John Philippe Petetto was supposed to
leave Crystal Palace. He tried everything he
could. His transfer for... fell through. So,
now both he and Stradlarsson are both strikers
at Palace. And it's unclear how they're going
to move forward. Well, I mean, it's like weird.
They both, in a way, remind me of Giroud. They're
very similar to a Giroud type of player. So,
I don't think either of them are going to necessarily
be world -class players, but I do think at a
club like Crystal Palace they can. elevate a
team like I would take Mateta as a backup I really
liked him last season I thought like when we
played him in the games I watched him against
Man City against you guys he seemed very threatening
and at the start of the season when he did start
29 years old yeah that's the thing Giroud went
to Chelsea at 31 Help them win the Champions
League. Fair enough. Fair enough. Did he? Yeah.
Are you sure? Did he come? No, he came after
they won the Champions League. You're right.
Sorry. I was getting him confused with David
Luiz. David Luiz, who was... Okay, whatever the
case is, our next story or next transfer is Brendan
Johnson from Spurs to Crystal Palace for 35 million.
What do you think? I don't know. I don't fully
understand the signing from Crystal Palace or
Tottenham side because I think... He was one
of Tottenham's only outlets for pace. I think
when I watched them against Man City, they kind
of did lack that electric pace. Even if he wasn't
the best player, I think mid -season, especially
as a club that's going to defend deep a lot,
I don't think it would have made sense to get
rid of him. And I don't think it makes sense
for Crystal Palace to sign him. I just don't
think he's a good player. Yeah, I mean, that's
the thing. I don't think he's a good player.
That's all that there is to it. Not even Palace
-level worthy. I don't think he's a Premier League
-level player. has the thing is he has scored
in the Europa League final he has a lot of high
profile goals next to his name so it looks like
I'm talking shit when I you know say that but
with all due respect I just don't think he's
at the level for even Palace he should be like
at a Wolves maybe yeah well I mean I can understand
Tottenham's point of view for taking the money
like obviously it's a lot of money but at the
same time I think what's the trade -off because
like i feel like they're gonna struggle a lot
till the end of the season because he might not
have been the best player but again he was the
outlet that helped him escape pressure when i
think they're facing so much pressure how long
can that continue for the rest of the season
like but does he play over ismail assar or jeremy
pino or jeremy pino no i don't think so but i
i i think i don't think pino will be there much
longer all right next we have evan gasson to
from Aston Villa to Crystal Palace on loan. Yeah,
I mean, I didn't watch much of Cassandre, so
I'll let you... I've only watched him a handful
of times, but in those times, I thought, you
know, he looks like he's one of those long -legged
players, like a Pogba type. Don't take that as
me comparing him to a Pogba. I'm just saying
his body type looks the same. That's all I'm
saying. Like I said, I've only watched him about
three, four times. He has potential and Aston
Villa don't want him. So Palace actually wanted
to sign him before Aston Villa came in and gazumped
them too. But then what would you make of Crystal
Palace's approach? How are they building a squad?
Maybe they have their next manager in mind that's
been signed behind the scenes, but why would
they keep Glasner there? It doesn't make sense,
everything that's happening, and the transfer
policy in relation to that. What do you think?
A club shouldn't rely on a manager. I think the
director of football should understand, okay,
this is the way we play. We play an attacking
brand of football. Once my manager goes, I'm
going to bring in another attacking manager.
I'm not going to go from an attacking manager
to a defending manager. The director of football
should be choosing the players. I understand
that there should be some input from the manager,
but... It should be like 60 % director of football,
40 % manager, in my opinion. But I mean, like
in this situation where the manager, like you've
been outspoken about slot disrespecting Liverpool.
So in a situation where the manager comes out
and disrespects the club, shouldn't the director
of football then be like, okay, even if we have
to go with the academy coach, let's... let's
move this guy out and get in someone else. Whether
the signings are for the next coach or not, I
understand that the transfer policy, perhaps
they're signing players based on what they want,
but I think they are based on the future. But
it's hard to say because it seems like a lot
of the players are still contextualizing within
this current system. Okay, aside from that, Gasson
is on loan. uh stran larson is 25 so he can still
be sold on in like two years for a very good
fee yeah uh the only one i think is brandon johnson
uh i don't think can they can con somebody to
get a good fee from but the others i believe
are just good signings in that they can be uh
what's the word moved on later on for a bigger
fee yes not a bigger fee but uh a reasonable
fee to recoup what they've spent yeah yeah that
makes sense i'm just if they were spending like
if they had bought mateta age 29 for 50 million
i would be suspect because that's a you know
if he doesn't work out then how do you move him
on you're going to get a very low fee for him
yeah i mean it depends what you're getting you
know i think if you're getting like one of the
absolute best players in the world it makes sense
to go for 28 or 29 year old all right our next
uh transfer mark wehi from palace to man city
for 20 million yeah that would be the signing
of the window for me the the price point i mean
i don't know what his waitlists are i heard they're
very high so maybe the the rumor i've heard is
that they're close to 300 000 okay that's ridiculous
like for for anyone like i mean he's in the top
three earners at city yeah that doesn't make
sense but at the same time i think they're getting
one of the best defenders in the league for for
20 million so it uh it kind of evens itself out
well we've kind of spoken about this on the podcast
before but just to reiterate what i've said in
the past One, he played in a back three at Palace.
I don't know how that's going to translate into
a back four. I'm not saying he can't be very
good in a back four. I'm just saying we haven't
seen it. So, you know, once I see it, then I
can believe it. Two, he's apparently homophobic
because he wrote on the, you know, the, what's
it called? The rainbow armband, Jesus loves you
or something like that. Something along those
lines. Implying that, you know, that there's
something wrong and Jesus loves you because.
there's something wrong uh but whatever the case
is uh that's the reasons i didn't want him to
come to low pool so going to city fair enough
i hope they enjoy him uh i think it's like it's
a good signing on paper but we'll see we'll have
to see uh we'll have to see how it pans out yes
i guess like he's a he's a ball player right
yeah i mean a ball playing center back i should
say so i think he would be the john stones replacement
long term i do i mean yeah i guess uh in an ideological
sense if if they were going to move stones on
that well i mean he's going to retire soon he's
like in his studies yeah but i mean i think he
probably has another season or two in the man
city team so my question is that i always thought
that uh vario was gonna i didn't see him as a
as a fullback forever because i think he's one
of the best center back profiles in the world
so signing two of the best profiles in that position
at the same time i think That would be a critique
if you're planning on turning Vardyol into a
left back. I don't think that's... I think you
lose a lot from him in that sense. And I think
he has a higher ceiling than Gueye at centre
back. So I don't know how they'll work around
that. Our next transfer is Oscar Bob from Man
City to Fulham for $27 million. I like Oscar
Bob. I love Oscar Bob. When I found out he was
for sale, I thought, obviously, they're not going
to sell to us. But I would have wanted him. Top
player. I saw his first couple of games, and
I was just immediately taken by him. And then
after about three, four games, he breaks his
leg. And then he takes a long time to get back.
And when he does, he's just not the same player.
I mean, what is the, like, I guess, what is the
patience level a coach has with the player? Obviously,
at Man City, you can't really have that level
of patience to allow him to develop. But we saw
with Aaron Ramsey, he eventually became, he hit
his potential after all these injuries. I'm a
big fan of sale, but with a buyback. Yeah, me
too, honestly. I like those conditions. Because
you can go off and develop. If you develop good,
we'll get you back. If not... you know, carry
on. Yeah, I mean, he falls into, like, the same
bracket as Smith Rowe, like, when he signed for
Fulham, I think. It's, like, top player, but
the injury record, the way the team is performing,
it makes sense for him to go somewhere where
he can develop better. Do you think Marco Silva's
the right coach to develop him? No. Unfortunately,
I don't remember a winger that he's improved
at all. Can you think of somebody? No, I don't.
He gets a lot out of workman -like wingers, not
the exciting, really fast, tricky wingers. That's
not who he prefers. I remember him having Willian
and somebody else on the other wing that was
very boring. That's just not him, I don't think.
We'll see how it pans out, but I think Fulham
is a good club to develop because he will get
a lot of game time. Okay. Conor Gallagher from
Atletico Madrid to Spurs for 34 million. I don't
like Conor Gallagher, but at the same time, I
kind of understand the signing from Tottenham's
standpoint, given that they really don't have
a ball winner. I hate players like this. No offence.
But it's not expensive. I just think he's like
Jordan Henderson. He's a guy who's going to work
hard. Run, get the ball, and he just doesn't
have technique. He doesn't have that, you know...
But it makes sense for Tottenham right now. The
stuff that attracts you to football, like, you
know, beautiful football, that's not Conor Gallagher.
Yeah, it's not. But he did well against Man City.
He did do very well, but that's what I'm saying.
He's very workmanlike, very doing the hard yards.
And I don't know, a lot of people will be like,
how are you saying that's a negative? But to
me, I believe that you can both have a player
that does the hard yards and has technique. For
example, Sabotslai. For years and years and years,
they told me we couldn't upgrade on Henderson.
And I said, yes, we can. And finally, Sabotslai
came along and I said, here we go. He runs, he
socks off every game, but he still has technique.
And that's possible for every team. I don't believe
that teams should be forced into playing players
that do the hard yards and don't have technique.
I just don't believe that. Yeah, I mean, it just
depends on how you look at it, because I think
what's the most accessible for a club like Tottenham?
Because I think a player who's that complete
is usually going to cost a lot of money and are
they going to want to go to Tottenham? That's
true. That's true. You caught me there. Because
that's the thing. If it was Tottenham, maybe
in the Pochettino days, the signing wouldn't
have made sense because you're trying to elevate
a midfield that was already one of the best in
Europe at that time. So it's like now you're
coming into a midfield where arguably the best
midfielder right now is... Well, I mean, I think
Bergweil would probably be the best. For me,
it's like the two guys with potential or the
biggest ceiling in my mind is Archie Gray and
Bergweil. But now Archie Gray is being played
at right back. He's been played in holding midfield.
Gray has been messed around. He's dropped into
left back. It's very unfortunate. because he
was like uh when he came up from the championship
uh i mean he didn't come up as in got promoted
he was bought from the championship when he came
up he was like touted as this very good defensive
midfielder that can play the ball from from deep
uh like a an adam wharton type yeah so he came
up with the same kind of reputation as like calvin
phillips i guess yeah so imagine having that
profile in your team and just misusing him totally
misusing him it would just be a A damn shame,
in my opinion, which is what's happening. So
I think slotting into that midfield, maybe like
where you have someone like Bergweil who you
need to get more out of. Right now, I think it's
a good signing for them. I'd still put it in
the good signing thing because I think what he
showed against Man City is that he can win the
ball. And if he's tactically disciplined enough
to just lay it off, like you said, your problem
with Henderson was that he took on too much responsibility
and you try absurd things or he overhit the ball
one -on -one. I think with a player like that,
perhaps the way you guys opened up the pitch
to Henderson meant that the decisions he had
to make were a lot more out of his skill range.
I think for now, if you can limit Conor Gallagher's
influence to just winning the ball back and moving
it on, he can elevate Tottenham for me. And I'd
say he's a good signing right now in the context.
Lucas Paqueta from West Ham to Flamengo for $36
.5 million. I've watched a lot of Flamengo this
season, last season. I like Felipe Luiz. I like
his approach to football. He has a very much
a throwback approach. It's weird because he came
out of playing from Simeone, but he seems to
be playing in a very similar... When I watch
his interviews, when I see him talk, he's really
trying to... He's studied Saki a lot. I think
that's the implement... He's trying to bring
the same tactics back. bring like a more old
-school version of high -pressing. So I can understand
Paquetas, maybe he's thinking about the national
team, maybe he's thinking about playing in those
dynamics, maybe he's homesick, but I would have
taken him at Arsenal. I just, I wonder if this
ruins his World Cup chances or improves them.
Do you think... I think it improves them because
I think that, well, I don't know with Ancelotti
because I don't know how he'll select his squad.
But I follow the Brazilian team quite closely
and generally... They prefer within their league?
No, but Flamengo's players have had, so long
as Felipe Luiz has been there, they've had seven
or eight players in the national team. Oh, that's
pretty good. So, yeah, I do think it could increase
his chances because playing at West Ham, he's
going to look shit right now. Well, he actually
looked like the best out of a bad bunch. Yeah,
but I mean in terms of how does he... How is
he going to, I guess, force the issue of himself
getting in above? He's actually already gotten
a yellow card. I wonder who bet on him. Yeah,
I wonder who benefited. Him. He bet on himself.
This last story, or the last transfer, I didn't
write down, but it's in my head. Jeremy Jacquet
from, I think, Lille for 55 million to Liverpool.
Thoughts? I mean, I've read a lot about him.
I've watched. I watched Lille maybe two or three
seasons ago I don't think he was there yet but
I've heard him a lot of people say he profiles
similarly to Lenny Euro so I think I do rate
Lenny Euro's profile I really like a lot of what
he has he obviously has to develop whether Man
United was the right decision who knows but his
other option is Real Madrid which is just as
toxic right now so I would have liked to see
him and Hoyssen next to each other though I think
that The idea of them together is a very good
back four. So I think Xhaka could work out. If
he profiles similarly to Euro, it just depends.
Is he the Van Dijk replacement? Because I guess
Van Dijk, he kind of exudes control composure.
And what I've heard about Xhaka is that he's
a bit rash. Just like Euro, he has to tame it
down a bit. So what do you think of it? So the
reason I brought this up was not to talk about
Xhaka. No, to talk about Swat. To talk about
Liverpool. Yes, to an extent, Slott, because
I think they have left him shorthanded. We've
been speaking on this podcast the past couple
of weeks about Liverpool need a defensive signing.
Liverpool need a defensive signing. Gomez is
injured. Connor Bradley is injured. Frimpong
is injured. Kanate was on compassionate leave.
We're in a very bad place. We have three defenders
and two of them are left -backs. Not the best
spot to be in. We needed a defender in this window,
if at all possible. Xhaka is only joining us
in June, July, where, you know, the next transfer.
It's a signing for the future. Yes. So it's good
that we're planning for the future. We got a
young up -and -coming player that's, you know,
looking very good. But what about this season?
We're just throwing this season in the bin. It's...
They're writing it off. The league is already
done. I can accept that now. But we still need
to finish top four or top five to get into the
Champions League. And the way things are looking,
it's like we need all the help that we can to
get there, right? I mean, what would you think?
It's like maybe they've had a discussion with
Slot and they've decided to see it out. Okay,
I was getting angry at Slot because we have a
player. His name is Calvin Ramsey, who's our
quote -unquote backup right back. He was actually
bought in as Trent's right back like four or
five years ago. He's never seen the pitch, not
once. I haven't even heard of him, to be honest.
He's been on our bench the season, the entire
season, and slots sold him this window, or he
got loaned out this window. So we actually had
a backup right back that left as well. How bad
do you have to be to not be given a single minute?
Not that he's bad in that sense, but I mean,
maybe it's like... Or is slot so caught up in
his ways? Because he refused to give Kayser minutes,
and we know Kayser is good. He refused to give,
okay, Endo's not good, but he refused to give
Endo any minutes unless it's like emergency.
When did you guys sign this guy? Calvin Ramsey.
Like I said, four years ago. Yes, I mean, but
that means he's gone over two coaches and hasn't
got any game time. So, they must be seeing something
in training. Maybe he looked good when they signed
him, then they said in training. This guy doesn't
have, he's going to create a lot of problems
if we throw him on the pitch, you know. Whatever
the case is, he's just been here for so long
and he's just never gotten a chance. So, yeah,
so. So, more Sabozlai right back shifts on the
way. Yes, unfortunately. So, this is what. I'm
using this opportunity to point out that Liverpool
should have made signings. At least one defensive
signing, if not more. And it's very disappointing
to see how they've thrown the season away. But,
yeah. I mean, maybe they're thinking they still
have enough. Because, I mean, right now, you're
also going to pay over market value. So maybe
they're saying we have enough to get into top
four. Go as deep as we can in the Champions League
and then blow the budget in the off -season again
like you did last season. Say we paid $20 million
over the top for a player. A player costs $40
million, but we're paying a premium that costs
$60 million. We're going to get like $120 million
to play in the Champions League. But what's the
guarantee that that player would necessarily...
Like you said, if you're missing so many players,
it's practically an injury crisis. You're only
going to sign one player, probably. Maybe two.
You also would have to consider the future of
those players. Like you said, you'd have to...
Okay, get them in on loan. It doesn't matter.
You know, do something. To do nothing is to accept
your situation, which is bad. I think they're
thinking they're still going to make top four.
That's the boards. Like, let's save the money
till the offseason. We're probably going to get
in the top four anyway. Well, they're in for
a rude awakening if things carry on going as
they're going. I think you guys might have enough,
in my opinion. Might. You see, it should not
be down to might. The amount of resources at
our disposal, it shouldn't be a question of we
might make top four or not. I mean, obviously
you can't be 100 % sure of anything. No, okay,
sorry. I don't want to jump on you saying might,
but I'm saying... It is a question of whether
we make it or not. And it shouldn't be a question.
We should be top four every year with the resources
we've invested, with the players we have, with
the talent at our disposal. It's just not right
that we're not in the top four. I think they're
looking at it like the squad is going to balance
itself out. I think in the course of the season,
I think you guys have maybe the best chance of,
I think... being the team to get the third spot,
in my opinion, because I think Aston Villa are
going to fade away in terms of... I'm just saying,
I think as the season gets stretched, the size
of their squad is going to tell. It's not a personal
thing, even though... What about Man United?
Yeah, I think... You guys and Man United will
take those spots. I don't see Chelsea being consistent
enough defensively especially to compete. I think
the expectation of you guys is so high that obviously
last season you guys were one of the best teams
in the world. So it's like the fall off is now.
appearing more significant because it's like
people are saying that oh last season we were
the best team so you're saying you're saying
the table was lying and we should have been second
or third last year so can i just uh yeah let
me just work this out see if you agree so we
should have finished maybe second or third last
year so us finishing fifth going from third to
fifth isn't the shock that going from first to
fifth is Yeah. No, no, that's not what I'm saying.
I think it is a disappointing season. I think
if they've had a board meeting internally, they've
discussed that. But I think they've discussed
it like, okay, let's plan around the summer.
Maybe Slot's going to be here, maybe he's not.
That's what they're thinking. So I think they're
saying, whether he's here or not, let's keep
the budget for the offseason because I think
we're going to have enough to finish in the top
three or four this season. And I think you guys
will, honestly. Well... I think we're done here.
Do you have any other transfers you want to bring
up? No, I think those are the main ones if anything
else did occur. I mean, I guess I'm out. As an
Arsenal fan, I was happy to see Waneri go to
Marseille, but then De Zerbi left. Did he leave,
or did he threaten to leave? Yeah, I think there
was a threat, or I saw something about he might
be about to leave, or he's getting sacked soon.
I don't know if it was confirmed, but I'm happy
if De Zerbi stays for, I think, Waneri. De Zerbi's
very good at developing teams, creativity especially,
so hopefully by the time we get him back, he
can save us a bit of money on maybe going out.
buying an expensive player alright well thank
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