Football Ramble

Imagine losing all thirty of the games you've played as an international side, losing by a combined score of 229-12 as well as sitting bottom of the FIFA rankings. On top of that, imagine suffering a 31-0 loss to Australia in an OFC Nations Cup qualifier as headlines around the world declared you the 'Worst Team in World Football.' On today's episode of Greatest Games, in association with The Bliz...

Well, we’ve made it to the final weekend of the Premier League season! We look ahead to the last day on today’s episode of The Preview Show, sponsored by Betway! Marcus, Luke and Andy work out the state of play regarding Champions League qualification and relegation survival – will Eddie Howe leave Bournemouth if they go down? There’s also chat on Birmingham City retiring Jude Bellingham’s shirt n...

If anyone was in doubt about how crazy the final day of the Championship can be, last night set the record straight! Jules, Luke and Jim are here to recap an unbelievable night of football that saw West Brom promoted, Swansea City sneak into the playoffs and Luton Town complete their dramatic relegation escape.  We also reflect on a bittersweet moment for Liverpool, who finally lifted the Pre...

Aston Villa’s great escape is on! In the race to avoid the drop, last night’s results were seismic and Marcus, Pete and Vish are here to revel in all that glorious tension. We discuss another Watford humbling against Manchester City (Vish was in attendance) and look ahead to which sides can secure promotion in tonight’s final round of the Championship. There’s also time for a thorough breakdown of...

It’s the nature of a post-lockdown Premier League that some matches are going to be just a bit dull. Case in point: last night’s Brighton vs Newcastle. Jules, Jim and Vish are in good spirits regardless, as we celebrate Brighton’s confirmed survival and marvel at Matt Ritchie’s dulcet tones. We also look back over yet another Wolves win, as they further establish themselves as one of the most ente...

So, it’ll be a London derby in this year’s FA Cup final! Kate, Andy and Pete are here to discuss this weekend’s two cracking semi-finals, as well as the latest from the Premier League, on today’s episode of the Football Ramble! We wonder whether David de Gea’s status as an elite goalkeeper is in trouble after some catastrophic errors against Chelsea, meanwhile David Luiz addressed his own critics...

We welcome Chelsea's first black footballer to today's episode of the Book Club, as Kate Mason and Andy Brassell are joined in the studio by Paul Canoville! Paul's award-winning autobiography Black and Blue paints a vivid picture of a thoughtful man trying to make his way in a world that, in many parts, was not ready to accept him. He joins us in the studio to look back on his challenging life, di...

On today's episode of Greatest Games in association with The Blizzard, we look back to a pivotal point in African football history. Mark Gleeson, journalist and FIFA's African Football Archivist, joins us to remember the final of the 1996 Africa Cup of Nations! Amidst wider racial turmoil across the country, South Africa replaced Kenya as hosts in the run-up to the tournament. Mark joins us to hig...

With both the FA Cup semi-finals and some important Premier League matches still to play, it’s going to be a jam-packed weekend of football. We’re talking all about it on today’s episode of The Preview Show, sponsored by Betway!  Brendan Rodgers was purring after Leicester’s win over Sheffield United last night, while Nigel Pearson hopes his Watford players can break out of his escape room in...

Jules, Jim and Andy are here and they cannot begin to fathom how in the world Arsenal managed to walk away from their meeting with Liverpool with all three points. There’s some deserved praise for Alexandre Lacazette and rare condemnation for Virgil van Dijk – Jim doesn’t know what to do with himself! Elsewhere, Harry Kane passed another landmark in his storied career as he hits 200 club goals. We...

My word...that Chelsea vs Norwich game didn’t offer much now did it? Torrid stuff. Thankfully, Wigan's brutal dismantling of Hull City was a much more entertaining affair—we’re talking both those matches and more on today’s episode!  We also get to some of your answers for ‘worst things found in a club shop’ and, after Wilfried Zaha and David McGoldrick both publicised the racist abuse they r...

They’ve waited 133 years, but Wycombe Wanderers - and Gareth Ainsworth’s leather jacket - have made it to the Championship! Marcus, Andy and Pete are here to celebrate their promotion and marvel at the unfaltering career of super sub Adebayo Akinfenwa. We then discuss Manchester United’s latest slip up against Southampton amidst an intriguing race for the top four. We also round up some of the lat...

Kate, Vish and Jim are here to discuss the news of Man City’s successful appeal against their European ban, the fallout from yet another eventful North London derby and Leicester’s catastrophic display against a suddenly revitalised Bournemouth.  Elsewhere, Norwich are finally relegated - at the hand of The Ferryman, no less - Jonathan Pearce provides some instantly classic commentary and we...

In today’s episode of Greatest Games (in association with The Blizzard), we return to the 2010 World Cup. The Independent’s Miguel Delaney was watching from the press box as his Spanish compatriots took on the Netherlands in the final in Johannesburg! This would mark the first time a European nation won the tournament outside of the continent, as the two sides met in a World Cup match for the firs...

Hot off the heels of a shambolic draw with Bournemouth, the first trailer for Spurs' new ‘All or Nothing’ Amazon documentary series has just dropped. Spoiler: it’s nothing... Marcus, Andy and Luke are here to peel back the layers of that terrible performance, as well as marvel at another vintage Man United display. There’s also time for talk of Richard Keys single-handedly saving football, Carlo A...

Kate, Luke and Jim are here to ask; do the champions always get a corridor of applause from everyone once they’ve won the league? Frankly we can’t remember, but then there’s a lot of stuff we’ve forgotten about since the world stopped making sense, like that Eric Dier crowd thing. On the various pitches Liverpool walked through their corridor and all over Brighton, James Tarkowski got away with on...

Jules, Pete and Jim are here to discuss football. All the football. SO much football, and so much GOOD football!  Chelsea came out on top of a five goal thriller at Crystal Palace, Watford overcame Norwich with Danny Welbeck scoring while upside down and Arsenal and Leicester drew after some good old VAR drama. Who doesn’t love that? Everyone.  There’s also big news from IFAB, with a pos...

Just as well Son Heung-min and Hugo Lloris had a scrap, as last night’s game provided sod all else to talk about. Vish managed to miss it from the press box at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium but him, Kate and Pete press on regardless. Also on today’s episode, we marvel at the return of Netflix villain Jack Rodwell and look ahead to some of tonight’s intriguing Premier League ties. Plus, we ask the...

There was no need for Southampton vs Man City to be a crazy, backs-to-the-wall thriller – but what a game it was!  After an understandably sluggish start football seems to have found its groove. Marcus, Andy and Jim also look back over Arsenal’s impressive win over Wolves, Man United’s vintage demolition of Bournemouth and, of course, consider which of Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola you’d pref...

It is almost ten years to the day since one of the most dramatic matches in World Cup history unfolded on a raucous night in Johannesburg. BBC 5 Live commentator Conor McNamara joins us to look back at the iconic clash between Ghana and Uruguay on today’s episode of Greatest Games, in association with The Blizzard! The hopes of a continent, and probably every neutral around the world, rested on a...

They might have underperformed this season by their outrageous standards, but Man City showed last night they’re still capable of handing out a pasting. The new champions were on the end of it this time, as we discuss on today’s jam-packed edition of the Preview Show, sponsored by Betway!  We also give Kate some stick for a calamitous Spurs performance, look ahead to some tasty weekend fixtur...

Nobody wants to secure qualification for Europe, do they?! Jules, Andy and Vish are in situ to pore over last night’s Premier League matches, as Chelsea failed to capitalise on Leicester’s defeat at Everton and climb to third in the table. We also praise another impressive performance from Newcastle, particularly from star man and Twitter legend Allan Saint-Maximin, after a 4-1 result that pr...

We’re gradually coming to terms with Man United being a prominent force again, with today’s episode further evidence of that. Jules, Pete and Luke are here to rave about Bruno Fernandes’ pivotal impact since his arrival after United’s 3-0 win at Brighton last night. We also wonder what’s next for former England goalkeeper Joe Hart, celebrate the mind-boggling genius of Lionel Messi and wonder how...

Even with the possibility of Europa League qualification, might the end of this season be the best time for Sean Dyche to leave Burnley? Marcus, Andy and Vish are here to mull over that question on today’s episode of the Football Ramble! We also discuss the details of a new scheme designed to help more BAME coaches find roles at the top of English football, as well as the PFA’s calls for commentat...

Marcus, Jim and Pete are here to discuss the weekend’s action, where Man City had enough in the tank to overcome the weaponry of Newcastle United, Arsenal got past a wind-powered Sheffield United and Harry Maguire denied us penalties with his late winner against Norwich. Was this Marcus Speller’s deliberate attempt at black magic-based sabotage?  Over in the Premier League we zero in on prais...