Football Between The Lines

This week we dive into Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat, why so many rival fans seemed to enjoy it, and whether the reaction says more about modern football culture than Arsenal themselves. We also celebrate Crystal Palace’s European triumph, discuss the importance of coaching and club culture, and look at what makes managers like Oliver Glasner, Roberto De Zerbi and Andoni Iraola so influe...

We talk through the emotional aftermath of Tottenham surviving relegation, why the relief from players and fans felt so visceral, and how Roberto De Zerbi instantly changed the mood around the club. We also get into Oliver Glasner’s farewell at Palace, Andoni Iraola’s uncertain future at Bournemouth, Pep Guardiola’s legacy, the strange culture around modern managers, and why the Premier League con...

We talk through the bizarre culture around England squad announcements, why everything gets leaked before a ball is kicked, and whether Thomas Tuchel’s strange selections might actually make sense tactically. We also get into Romero deciding not to attend Spurs’ final game of the season, the anger and confusion around that decision, the chaos left behind after Daniel Levy’s departure, and the horr...

This episode we're talking about everything football has become and everything it still gets right. Adam Wharton’s mum becomes an away-end icon, Manchester City can’t fill their end in an FA Cup final, Liverpool fans turn on Arne Slot, and we wonder whether modern football has lost something along the way. There’s Alonso to Chelsea, Scottish football madness, old terrace stories, kids falling in l...

We get into Southampton’s bizarre spying row, the possible fallout for the play-offs and whether one bloke filming behind a tree is worth a £100m risk. There’s also VAR chaos in Scotland, footballers and loyalty, Jamie Vardy’s ridiculous story, the FA Cup final, European scheduling, and the weird sadness of realising your old man might not want to go to the football forever. Learn more about your...

We’re back to talk chaos in the National League, West Ham nearly giving Spurs a favour, the VAR call that may have changed everything, and the strange emotional gymnastics of needing Arsenal to win but still feeling sick when they do. There’s also a row about celebrating in the wrong end, local fans versus global fans, Palace’s European push, Iraola rumours, Ismaila Sarr being ridiculous, and why...

Palace are one game from a European final, Forest get absolutely pumped by Villa, and somehow the Premier League has created a scenario where teams might actually benefit from losing football matches. Completely normal stuff. We get into the madness of European qualification, whether English clubs are now too powerful for the Europa and Conference League, why Chelsea still look like institutional...

We’re back after a bit of a break and there’s a lot to get through. We talk Spurs finally turning up away at Villa and what’s changed under De Zerbi, while Palace fans start dreaming about a European final after a ridiculous semi first leg. There’s also a proper look at the title race, why City don’t feel quite the same, and whether Arsenal have basically got it done. We get into Villa’s weird vib...

We start with Spurs winning a game but somehow still end up asking what’s actually going on, after yet another serious injury adds to a worrying pattern. From there it spirals into a wider chat about football itself. Playing to the whistle, diving, VAR, and whether the game is slowly losing what made it great in the first place. We get into Wembley fatigue, ticket prices, games abroad, and why it...

We start with the chaos at Chelsea after Liam Rosenior’s exit and ask who is really to blame. We get into the financial mess, the ownership model, the sporting directors, the long contracts, and why none of it seems to point towards an actual football vision. Then we drift into social media misery, World Cup songs, shark chat, Arsenal podcasters, and the usual nonsense from the questions. A proper...

Dan’s back from Florence and feeling human again, so naturally we get into European away days, football getting in the way of drinking, and why Spurs are absolutely definitely probably staying up. We also chat Arsenal and City, Cherki being outrageously good, Moyes quietly doing a brilliant job, Chelsea being a mess, and somehow end up discussing prison cellmates, Deep Blue Sea and why talking abo...

We get into a mad weekend of football, from Spurs losing again at Sunderland and edging closer to relegation, to Arsenal wobbling under pressure and Man City suddenly looking like Man City again. There’s chat about Romero’s injury, the psychology of title races, why booing your own team helps no one, plus Chelsea’s mess, Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup ban drama, listener questions, and decent chunk...

We start with Palace battering Fiorentina and somehow end up in a full blown existential chat about football. Glasner’s leaving, VAR’s ruining everything, PSG remind us what the game can be, and we question why clubs keep voting to keep something nobody seems to like. There’s also hypocrisy, sharks, and a genuinely tricky conversation about what fans do when they disagree with their club. Standard...

Dan’s back from Lake Garda and we somehow go from holidays and football burnout to Chelsea players chatting too freely on international duty, Spurs handing Roberto De Zerbi the keys, and whether fans really care about the morals of the game when results start rolling in. We also get stuck into football’s goodies and baddies, relegation nerves, away days in the Championship, childhood football trau...

Dan's playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5CsykjycxHhDfWAbSfxNXZ?si=d5btK_oJSGO1idRV0DqzDg&pi=k852UlC2SW2ps We veered all over the place on this one. We got into the fuss around Mo Salah and whether anyone outside Liverpool really cares, talked through Rodri flirting with Real Madrid, had a laugh about Wales crashing out, and somehow ended up deep in sharks, herons, cockerels and funeral s...

We start with the most unexpected question possible: what song would we want played at our funeral? From there it spirals nicely into Tottenham’s latest collapse, Palace’s European push, the sack race, Dougie Freedman, bizarre betting stories, bird fights, sharks, giraffes and the general emotional instability that football seems to create in all of us. Basically, another very normal episode. Lear...

This week we spiral through football tattoos, cursed fan behaviour and the strange clarity that comes with a proper relegation scrap. We chat Spurs showing signs of life, the fan-planned coach welcome before Sunday, Chelsea becoming meme FC under Rossini, and why getting knocked out of the Champions League somehow felt fine. There’s also Palace in Europe, dodgy away-end etiquette, Roy Keane in Sai...

We’re back after missing Thursday and, for once, it doesn’t feel like total despair. A draw at Anfield has somehow shifted the mood, even if the table barely has. We get into Spurs finally showing some fight, whether Igor Tudor was right to push back in that awkward post-match interview, and why one scruffy Richarlison goal has changed the emotional weather completely. There’s also chat about Chel...

We start with Palace beating Spurs and what that game revealed about just how bad things have got. From there it turns into a proper spiral through relegation fears, whether the Championship might actually reset Tottenham, VAR ruining the moment, the proposed offside law change, and the absolute chaos of Rangers v Celtic. There’s also a £3 pint, one of the worst pub moments ever told on a football...

We get into Dr Tottenham vs Charity FC, whether anyone actually wants it (players, managers, us), and why football feels like it’s simultaneously life-or-death and deeply stupid. There’s Arsenal discourse, set-piece moaning, and a quick detour into Wolves’ “direction of travel” glow-up, plus why some clubs are happier bottom than others are chasing the Champions League. Also: the Jacob Ramsey “div...

The world feels like it’s on fire, our timelines are chaos, and somehow we still have to talk about football like it’s normal. We get into Arsenal winning ugly and why set pieces and long throws are basically superpowered now, then spiral into VAR doing what VAR does, handball nonsense, the Lacroix red card, and the general death of consistency. We also chat Bundesliga trying to crack the UK via G...

We’re bouncing from Palace’s biggest night of the season vibes to Spurs doomposting in about 30 seconds, which feels about right. Dan’s convinced this European run might not come around again, we talk Zrinjski Mostar and the weird terror of “we should batter them” football, then immediately spiral into absolute refereeing nonsense, handball rules, and the Lloyd Kelly red that made our heads fall o...

Tottenham lose 4-1 to Arsenal again as Igor Tudor takes charge for his first game and the North London derby delivers another brutal reality check. We break down why Spurs were never really in it, how injuries and players out of position shaped the match, and what Tudor was trying to change in such a short turnaround. We also react to Tudor’s early comments about Spurs needing to “become serious,”...

We start with The Overlap aftermath, Arsenal fans asking for “respect”, and why rivalry means you’re not doing favours for anyone. Flav makes the case for relegating Arsenal based on pure skullduggery. Then we talk World Cup hype being non-existent, the sportswashing era, and ticket pricing that turns football into a rich person’s hobby. We finish on VAR and whether refs have become dependent on t...

Not much to talk about, apparently, so naturally we end up on Spurs sacking Frank, Forest binning Dyche at 1am, and why football owners are absolute chaos merchants. Then we spiral into Glasner’s farewell vibes, “style vs survival”, relegation anxiety, injuries, red card bans, Bruno vs Bernardo, and the eternal rage of part-time fans piping up after a result. All very normal, all very bleak, up th...