Revista de la Liga with Graham Hunter

You might remember Jan Age Fjortoft from the 1990s as a formidable striker for the likes of Swindon, Middlesbrough and Sheffield United, but nowadays this erudite man grabs the likes of Jose Mourinho, Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp for post-match television interviews. The Norwegian gives us fascinating insights into the art of interviewing, telling us how he draws players and coaches away from th...

Here’s another chance to hear my second Big Interview with Kevin Bridges from season four. We hear about Celtic fan Kevin’s adoration for Henrik Larsson, what it felt like to get his phone number and how he can’t rewatch the 2003 UEFA Cup Final because of Henke’s despair at winning just a runners-up medal. As well as being one of the world’s funniest guys, Kevin is a genuine football connoisseur a...

In part two of my fascinating conversation with Mark Hateley, we hear how his success with Portsmouth and England led to a transfer to the mighty AC Milan. Coach Nils Liedholm was an incredible influence as Mark improved and scored a famous winner in the first victory over Inter in six years – after which he was a hit with the Ultras forevermore. Graeme Souness signed Mark for Rangers where after...

Here comes a peculiar Clasico - Real Madrid v Barcelona ... in Saudi Arabia. Here's what I think about the circumstances around the Supercopa clash and then, as I wrote for ESPNFC, a little something about the connections between the two men in charge, and the power balance between these two titanic rivals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If y...

Mark Hateley’s new autobiography Hitting The Mark brilliantly defines the extraordinary career of a truly great British centre-forward. In part one of an in-depth, fascinating Big Interview, Mark tells us how trying to better his late father Tony – himself a successful striker – was his major motivation as he relentlessly drove himself to improve. His father was furious that Mark chose a move from...

Welcome to our Big Interview Icons series where we shine a light on a legend whose name has lit up some of the conversations I’ve had with my guests over the years. This episode focuses on Pep Guardiola. Rio Ferdinand reflects on Manchester United’s two Champions League final defeats to Pep’s Barcelona and is bighearted enough to wax lyrical about Pep’s genius. He is gutted that he was not brought...

Welcome to part two of our annual Oscars show, where our listeners - as well as Graham and Pete - decide who wins categories including lifetime achievement and best original song. It's the only review of 2021 that comes with red carpet, evening wear and tapas. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers...

Welcome to our annual Oscars show, where our listeners - as well as Graham and Pete - decide who wins categories including best performer in a lead role and best director (of football). It's the only review of 2021 that comes with red carpet, evening wear and tapas. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subsc...

Scot Gemmill is currently a very successful manager of the Scotland under-21 team. In part two of this absorbing Big Interview, you’ll hear how he hadn’t planned a transition from playing to coaching, and got there through his own initiative, effort and a little slice of luck. He expanded his coaching brain by observing how it was done at Barcelona, Espanyol… and Paisley. And we hear how Scot nurt...

Being the son of Scotland and Nottingham Forest legend Archie was normality for Scot Gemmill when growing up, but having Brian Clough critiquing your performance for a Sunday youth side was downright surreal in anyone’s book. Despite his initial self-doubt, Gemmill jnr. went on to play for Cloughie at Forest and nowadays he realises the spell the great man cast on him when he coaches footballers....

Welcome to our Big Interview Icons series where we shine a light on a legend whose name has lit up some of the conversations I’ve had with my guests over the years. This episode focuses on Paul Scholes. Michael Carrick describes how when he arrived at Manchester United he was slated for passing to midfield colleague Paul too often – but why wouldn’t you utilise the talents of one of England’s grea...

In part two of my extraordinary conversation with Graeme Le Saux, we hear about dressing-room bigotry and bullying, and the seismic culture change that needs to occur at a club in order to smash the conspiracy of fearful silence that sustains it. If Graeme felt like an outsider at Chelsea, at Blackburn Rovers he was part of a band of brothers whose incredible work-ethic and self-belief narrowly wo...

Hola! Here's my latest column for ESPN, for your listening pleasure.  With four of Spain’s teams in danger of getting knocked out of the Champions League there's lots for Simeone, Emery and Lopetegui to learn from Rayo Vallecano and Iraola.  Enjoy G Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acc...

Graeme Le Saux spent numerous family holidays in Mallorca, but he couldn’t have guessed that one day he would become a non-executive director at the island’s – now La Liga – football club. Real got promoted after a thrilling play-off with Deportivo and now the challenge is to keep improving while staying in the top flight. Graeme was an elegant left-back with Chelsea, Blackburn and Southampton, an...

Here’s another chance to hear my interview with Thierry Henry from season four. You’ll hear about how Barcelona’s talented players adapted to the visionary Pep Guardiola’s methods. The 2009 6-2 victory at the Bernabéu – in which Thierry scored a double and then went off injured –felt like the moment things fully clicked, and the Frenchman recovered in time to star in the Champions League final aga...

Here comes part two of the November Q & A, in which Graham and Pete mourn Levante's demise, look at interim managers from recent Spanish history and examine the tea leaves of Xavi's first weeks in charge of Barcelona. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit...

Hola Welcome to this month's Q and A. Here myself and Pete Jenson talk Vinicius Jnr, the rise of La Real, Rayo Vallecano and who might win tonight's Ballon d'Or. Enjoy G Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.revistadelaliga.com/subscribe

Watching Real Madrid - and in particular how their coach, Carlo Ancelotti, handles his veteran midfield trio of Casemiro, Modric and Kroos - I saw one side of a theological divide. Call it hawks versus doves; Robin Williams versus the Marx Brothers; systems versus players. Here is why I think the Madrid ideology cannot navigate a critical run of games ahead, and why it all means Zinedine Zidane wa...

For such an intelligent football man, you might be surprised to learn how Brad Friedel was once in the grip of crippling superstitions. Oddly, when he crossed the white line, the nerves disappeared. Also in part two, you’ll hear about the one man Brad feared facing most of all: Alan Shearer. And there’s great stuff about how goalkeepers must never let their inner feelings show on the field of play...

Today, I'm presenting to you an episode of Between The Lines, a podcast that tells the stories behind great sports writing, produced by Martin and Neil at BackPage, my producers and the publishers of the books I wrote on Barcelona under Pep Guardiola and the Spain team that won a hat-trick of tournaments. In this episode, Neil and Martin talk to Mark Palmer, the translator of The Immortals, Arrigo...

Brad Friedel fell in love with English football long before he arrived on UK shores to grace the No.1 jerseys of Liverpool, Blackburn, Villa and Spurs. A trip to Wembley during a childhood family tour of Europe gave him the bug. He was hardened by his Ohio upbringing, which set him in good stead for coping with the glorious craziness of Galatasaray. This is an absolute corker of a Big Interview. G...

Here's my latest for ESPNFC - on Xavi's first game in charge of his beloved Barcelona, against their city rivals, Espanyol. The two teams are level on points, which means Espanyol have a sniff of finishing ahead of their neigbours for the first time since World War Two concluded. And they have, in Vicente Moreno, a coach who, like Xavi, has a very high ceiling in terms of what he might achieve. No...

Welcome to our Big Interview Icons series where we shine a light on a legend whose name has lit up some of the conversations I’ve had with my guests over the years. This episode focuses on Luka Modric. Former Tottenham colleague Robbie Keane admired the unassuming Luka’s particular courage: his willingness to take the ball under any circumstances. I interviewed John McGinn ahead of Euro 2020, and...

As Spain prepare for a World Cup duel with Sweden, here are my thoughts on a player who is absent from the mission: the evergreen Iago Aspas, a player who continues to deliver in the biggest games in La Liga.  This is the audio version of the column I write every week at ESPNFC. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this wit...

Olivier Giroud believes he was destined to play for Arsenal and current club AC Milan because he followed the fortunes of both as a kid. Also in part two, we hear about Olivier’s brother Romain who was a real talent but who didn’t make it in the professional game. And, of course, there’s France’s 2018 World Cup triumph, delivered, Olivier says, by team spirit. Did you know that N’Golo Kanté really...