Walk On: The Athletic FC's Liverpool show

James Pearce and Andy Jones are alongside Tony Evans as they get stuck into Liverpool suffering back-to-back defeats for just the second time under Arne Slot. Following on from the perfect start to the season, defeats away to both Crystal Palace and Galatasaray have raised questions over the Reds' cohesion and chemistry following a number of high-profile moves in the summer's transfer window. Flor...

Liverpool’s unbeaten run is over — but was the defeat at Crystal Palace just a stumble, or something that’s been coming for a while? Simon Hughes and Mark Carey are with Tony Evans to pick apart what went wrong, from shaky defending to Ryan Gravenberch’s off day and Jeremie Frimpong’s costly mistake.  With Virgil van Dijk calling for quick improvements and Arne Slot’s side facing Galatasaray...

James Pearce and Simon Hughes are alongside Tony Evans to get into Liverpool’s Carabao Cup win over Southampton which had plenty of talking points — from Giovanni Leoni’s cruel debut injury setback to Hugo Ekitike’s costly red card. The guys dig into what it all means for the Reds’ defensive options, transfer plans, and attacking line-up ahead of Saturday’s trip to Crystal Palace. Plus, we’ve been...

James Pearce and Simon Hughes are with Tony Evans to bask in the glory of Liverpool being five points clear at the top of the Premier League win after derby delight over Everton at Anfield. The panel dish out praise for Ryan Gravenberch after another midfield masterclass whilst breaking down a brilliant weekend for the Reds. A derby win, another goal for Hugo Ekitike and Arsenal dropping points to...

Liverpool do it the hard way again! James Pearce and Simon Hughes join Tony Evans to relive that last minute drama in Liverpool’s European clash against Atletico Madrid with Salah shining and Gravenberch impressing. The lads debate why 2–0 has become such a dangerous scoreline, touch on Isak’s debut, and react to Simeone’s antics. Away from the pitch, the guys talk about the significance of the Hi...

James Pearce and Andy Jones are alongside Tony Evans, fresh from a cold Turf Moor! The guys dissect another dramatic finish with Mohamed Salah’s stoppage-time penalty sealing victory at Burnley to keep the Reds perfect at the top of the Premier League. They scrutinise Milos Kerkez’s performance, and answer the big question, where was Alexander Isak? The panel also look ahead to the Champions Leagu...

James Pearce and Simon Hughes are alongside Tony Evans as Liverpool return from the international break.  The guys look ahead to a hectic run of six games in 16 days, starting with Burnley away and Atletico Madrid in the Champions League. Will we see Isak make his debut or should we be patient? Gregg Evans also joins us to share stories from his recent trip to Hungary, exploring the rise of D...

With the international break in full swing, Simon Hughes and Andy Jones are alongside Tony Evans to dig into Liverpool’s uneasy relationship with the England national team. The panel also debate Ibrahima Konate’s future following his recent comments whilst away with France, reflect on Alexander Isak and other players away on international duty, and get Megan Feringa’s take on Liverpool Women’s hea...

James Pearce & Simon Hughes are alongside Tony Evans to unpack a historic transfer window for Liverpool, with more than £400m spent – the biggest outlay in Premier League history. The panel debate the highs of landing Alexander Isak, the disappointment of missing out on Marc Guehi, and what Harvey Elliott’s departure means for the future. They also assess FSG’s bold strategy, look ahead to the...

James Pearce and Andy Jones join Tony Evans to react to the news Liverpool are closing in on a record-breaking deal for Alexander Isak. We also look back on Liverpool’s statement win over Arsenal at Anfield and praise Szoboszlai’s stunning free-kick which keeps the Reds’ perfect start alive. Email us: walkon@theathletic.com Host: Tony Evans With: James Pearce and Andy Jones Producer: Guy Clarke an...

James Pearce and Andy are alongside Tony Evans ahead of Arsenal’s visit to Anfield. The Athletic’s senior data analyst Mark Carey also drops by to look ahead to the game, and discuss Liverpool’s balance within their squad after two exhilarating opening games. The guys also discuss how Liverpool should handle rising star Rio Ngumoha, touch on transfers and finish with a quiz. Email us: walkon@theat...

Fresh from a wild night at St James Park, James Pearce joins Tony Evans and Oli Kay to analyse another disjointed but ultimately victorious performance by the Reds, sealed by that incredible last-minute winner by Rio Ngumoha. How much should we expect of Anfield's latest wunderkind - who only turns 17 at the end of the week. Perhaps more importantly, can we fix our wobbles at the back in time for...

Tony Evans, Simon Hughes and James Pearce are here for the latest Walk On podcast to address the Federico Chiesa chant before discussing the continuing Alexander Isak saga ahead of Monday night's trip to take on Newcastle United. Having written about Chiesa's chant this week both Tony and Simon outline concerns with language used with the chant while discussing the sensitivity of it. Ahead of Mond...

James Pearce and Andy Jones join Tony Evans from Anfield to react to an emotional night at Anfield to kick-off the new Premier League season. The Reds title defence got underway with a 4-2 win over Bournemouth with Hugo Ekitike, Cody Gakpo, Federico Chiesa and Mohamed Salah all on the scoresheet. The panel share their thoughts on the tributes that were paid to Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silv...

James Pearce and Andy Jones are with Tony Evans ahead of Liverpool's Premier League curtain-raiser at home to Bournemouth on Friday night. Before looking ahead to the game, there's plenty of transfer speculation to digest after the Reds opened talks with Crystal Palace over a move for their captain, Marc Guehi while Liverpool are also considering a move for Parma's 18-year-old Giovanni Leoni. The...

James Pearce, Simon Hughes are alongside Tony Evans Tony Evans to react to that Community Shield defeat. With all three of them in attendance at Wembley, they share their thoughts on the positives and negatives of that performance. As well as the match, the guys talk about the latest transfer news and debate which is more important, a new striker or new defender? And finally we say farewell to Dar...

James Pearce, Simon Hughes and Andy Jones are all alongside Tony Evans ahead of a bumper look ahead to the new season. With the Reds beginning their season at Wembley on Sunday we review pre-season, including the sparkling form of Rio Ngumoha before looking ahead to what's to come. Cody Gakpo's role in the squad is also analysed as well as the work Liverpool have already done in the transfer marke...

James Pearce joins Andy Jones and Tony Evans from Tokyo following Liverpool's 3-1 pre-season win over Yokohama F. Marinos with Florian Wirtz, Trey Nyoni and Rio Ngumoha all on the scoresheet. The panel discuss whether or not Ngumoha is ready to make the step up to first team level following the sale of Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich while James also discusses the latest transfer activity around Alexan...

James Pearce and Andy Jones join Tony Evans prior to Liverpool completing the signing of Eintracht Frankfurt forward Hugo Ekitike. The Athletic's Bundesliga correspondent Seb Stafford-Bloor is also back to give us the lowdown on what to expect from the imminent arrival who looks set to supplement the forward options available to Arne Slot. The panel also discuss what other transfer business the Re...

James Pearce and Simon Hughes are alongside Tony Evans as Liverpool kicked off their pre-season schedule in emotional circumstances against Preston North End. James was in attendance at Deepdale as Liverpool played for the first time since the tragic passing of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva. The tributes at the games and reaction of the supporters is discussed as well as the leadership sh...

Tony Evans is joined by James Pearce and Simon Hughes as tributes continue to be shared following the sudden and sad passing of Liverpool striker Diogo Jota and his younger brother Andre Silva. We're also joined by The Athletic's Jack Lang who travelled out to Gondomar last week to observe the public wake and funeral in the hometown of the Silva family. We hear the impact Jota had on the local com...

Tony Evans, James Pearce and Simon Hughes reflect on the tragically sad news Liverpool forward Diogo Jota has died at the age of 28 along with his brother Andre Silva. The brothers were travelling by car in Spain when their vehicle left the carriageway and burst into flames in the early hours of Thursday morning. In this episode, we pay tribute to Diogo Jota sharing memories of the person and the...

Andy Jones and Mark Carey are alongside Tony Evans to react to news Liverpool have turned down an approach for Luis Diaz by Bayern Munich before looking ahead to how well equipped Liverpool are ahead of the return for pre-season. The panel look through each department of the squad discussing the impact Giorgi Mamardashvili's arrival could have, Ibrahima Konate's contract situation before analysing...

James Pearce and Andy Jones are alongside Tony Evans as Liverpool's transfer activity shows no signs of slowing up. After touching on the imminent arrival of Milos Kerkez the panel get stuck into Liverpool's centre-back conundrum with Jarell Quansah closing in on a move to Bayer Leverkusen while holding an interest in Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi. On the exits, there's discussion around Darwin Nune...

Tony Evans is joined by Simon Hughes, Gregg Evans and Seb Stafford-Bloor to discuss the latest on Wirtz and his upcoming medical. The guys also discuss what the move could mean for Jarell Quansah. A listener voice note sparks a conversation on Liverpool's homegrown player quota — Gregg explains the rules, while Simon highlights academy players ready to step up. Plus, with Milos Kerkez linked and B...