The Game

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tom Roddy for a special episode of The Game podcast with their initial thoughts on the 26-man England squad that Gareth Southgate named today. We'll bring you an extensive two-part World Cup preview next week - and an exclusive conversation with one of England's greatest ever players, ahead of the start of Qatar 2022. Get more of The Times and The Sunday Times for les...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Tony Cascarino. Liverpool came away from North London with three points from Spurs. What’s going on at Tottenham and why do they fall behind so often? (00:00) Arsenal returned to the top of the table with a 1-0 win over Chelsea. Can we finally call Arsenal credible title contenders? (17:17) Unai Emery started well at Aston Villa, beat...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Allnutt and Ian Hawkey - with Charlotte Duncker. Tottenham are through to the knockout stages of the Champions League as group winners after their comeback in Marseille - but how far can they go? (00:00) Liverpool finished second in their group - but they did beat the in-form Napoli. Is Darwin Nunez starting to find his feet? (11:05) Chelsea won...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke and Alyson Rudd, with Tom Roddy. Brighton gave Graham Potter a hostile welcome on his return with Chelsea. Was his in-game management affected by the boos? (00:00) Leeds got the better of Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp’s side continued to struggle. How do they turn the corner? (19:31) Unlike Liverpool, Arsenal didn’t fall foul of Nottingham For...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Jonathan Northcroft and Ian Hawkey. Antonio Conte was sent off as Spurs had a winner ruled out against Sporting on Wednesday night - but was it the right decision? (00:00) Liverpool cruised into the knockout stages with a 3-0 win at Ajax - are we starting to see them find their form again? (10:24) Chelsea are already looking like a Graham Potter side...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Tony Cascarino. Aston Villa looked like a different team this past weekend as they put 4 past Brentford. Were the players not backing Steven Gerrard? (00:00) Leicester also scored four goals, thrashing Wolves without reply. Is the pressure off Brendan Rodgers now? (18:08) Wolves are still looking for a new manager - are they right to...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tom Clarke, Gregor Robertson and Martyn Ziegler. Manchester United looked vastly improved in their 2-0 win over Spurs - is Erik ten Hag’s vision for the club starting to show? (00:00) Ronaldo marched off down the tunnel before the final whistle - but who is to blame for his situation at the club? (09:18) Chelsea are Spurs haven’t had the ‘wow’ factor recently - but wh...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tom Clarke, Molly Hudson and Tony Cascarino. Liverpool beat Manchester City 1-0, but at what cost for their next few matches? (00:00) David Moyes wasn't happy with some of the decisions in their draw against Southampton. Does he have a point? (20:35) Arsenal are still top after another win, this time over Leeds United. Are we getting used to them being a title contend...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson and Tom Clarke - with Ian Hawkey and Owen Slot. Barcelona are on the brink of failing to make the Champions League knockout stages for the second year running. Ian Hawkey was at the game last night and tells us just how problematic this is for the club (00:00) Rangers were embarrassed 7-1 at home to Liverpool in the Champions League. What does that re...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Tony Cascarino - with Martyn Ziegler and Molly Hudson. Arsenal continue to impress - this time with a win over Liverpool. How have both clubs suddenly started moving in different directions? (00:00) Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winner as Manchester United beat Everton - but what’s the latest with their relationship? (17:47) Bourn...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tom Clarke, Jonathan Northcroft, Ian Hawkey and Molly Hudson. Chelsea made short work of the Italian champions, last night. What does their win over AC Milan tell us about where they’re going under Graham Potter? (00:00) Liverpool and Manchester City both won too. What did we learn from their latest games in the Champions League? (5:22) Spurs drew in Frankfurt - what...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke, Charlotte Duncker and Tom Roddy. There were nine goals at the Etihad, but twice as many of those goals went City’s way. What did we learn from the Manchester derby? (00:00) Arsenal also got one over their local rivals - are there some big questions for Antonio Conte following the 3-1 defeat? (13:00) Wolves are on the lookout for a new man...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke and Michael Grant. The Nations League games are over - England haven’t won for 6 matches, they’ve been relegated too - but did we see positive signs against Germany (00:00) Scotland have had a much better Nations League campaign with promotion to the top group. Michael Grant was at their most recent matches and joins to discuss the positiv...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Alyson Rudd, Tom Clarke and Molly Hudson. England have been relegated from the top Nations League group - but is that the least of their worries going into the World Cup? (00:00) Wales have also dropped down a level, but Rob Page has his eyes on the World Cup. What kind of shape will Gareth Bale be in for the finals, though? (27:35) Arsenal set a new WSL attendance re...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Alyson Rudd, Jonathan Northcroft and Martyn Ziegler. England have two more games before the World Cup begins - but has Gareth Southgate got too many problems on his hands? (00:00) Ivan Toney is in the squad for this weekend’s Nations League matches - what chance does he have of becoming Harry Kane’s number two? (16:39) Is the game up for Trent Alexander-Arnold as an E...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tom Clarke, Alyson Rudd and Tony Cascarino. Arsenal continue to surprise many and will be league leaders going into October - how did they turn things around? (00:00) West Ham are having a disastrous season so far, but what can they do to turn things around - and is David Moyes the man to do it? (15:57) Spurs are third in the Premier League, only a point off the lead...

Former England cricketer and national selector Ed Smith joins us to discuss his new book 'Making Decisions: Putting the Human Back in the Machine'. Tom Clarke sits down with Ed to discuss the analysis of data in sport and why it doesn't mean we'll simply rely on algorithms to pick squads and tactics in the future. We also hear his thoughts on the different mentalities of football managers and his...

Tom Clarke is joined by Gregor Robertson, Ian Hawkey and Ed Smith. Erling Haaland scored (again) as Manchester City came from behind to beat his former side Borussia Dortmund. How can he be stopped? (00:00) Graham Potter took charge of Chelsea for the first time - what did we learn from their draw in the Champions League? (13:22) Liverpool left it late to beat Ajax - why aren’t they the team of pr...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Molly Hudson, Tom Roddy and Tony Cascarino. ***This episode was recorded on the morning of Graham Potter’s appointment as new Chelsea manager*** Thomas Tuchel has been fired - did he see it coming? (00:00) Tom Roddy broke the story in The Times and he tells us his understanding of what happened behind the scenes? (9:50) At the time of recording, Grah...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Matt Dickinson. Manchester United vs Arsenal was as eventful as ever. Did Anthony live up to expectation? (00:00) This game featured one of many VAR talking points over the weekend, but was the decision to rule out Arsenal’s goal actually correct? (13:46) Brighton have quietly continued their excellent run - should Graham Potter be of...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Jonathan Northcroft and Molly Hudson. We take a look back at the transfer window for a selection of Premier League clubs - starting with Chelsea and Manchester United (00:00) Nottingham Forest and Arsenal (11:28) Bournemouth, Everton and Southampton (19:19) Manchester City and Leicester City (27:08) Fulham and Liverpool (38:39) Hugh has also pic...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tom Roddy and Alyson Rudd. Liverpool hit Bournemouth for nine goals at the weekend - but why do teams struggle to make double figures? (00:00) Scott Parker made it well known he wants more players at Bournemouth, but will his frustration be resolved? (13:25) Manchester City and Erling Haaland look impressive in front of goal - but are they looking shaky at the back? (...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke and Jonathan Northcroft - with Molly Hudson and Henry Winter. Manchester United surprised a few with their 2-1 win at Old Trafford on Monday. What does that win over Liverpool mean for their progression after a rocky start under ten Hag? (00:00) Liverpool are having a nightmare start to the season - what does Jurgen Klopp need to do and co...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Tony Cascarino. Newcastle gave Manchester City a scare on Sunday - what does this result tell us about their progression since the takeover? (00:00) Hugh is not impressed with VAR again and one incident in that game was largely to blame (16:53) Leeds blew Chelsea away at Elland Road. How desperately do Chelsea need a number 9 and are...

Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke, Matt Dickinson and Martin Hardy. Sir Jim Ratcliffe is keen to explore the possibilities of buying Manchester United. Matt Dickinson broke the story in The Times and joins us to explain how likely this deal is (00:00) What numbers are involved in any potential deal for Manchester United? Football finance expert Kieran Maguire breaks down t...