Ronaldo to the rescue again and Conte’s Tottenham challenge

11/03/21 • 33 min

3 Listeners

Kelly Cates is joined by former Everton midfielder Leon Osman and our football correspondent John Murray for reaction to Manchester United’s last-gasp 2-2 draw with Atalanta, as Cristiano Ronaldo came to the rescue again with a stoppage time equaliser to keep United top of Group F in the Champions League. Statman Dave drops by to give us the numbers behind another eventful performance by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side. The guys discuss United’s fitness levels, how they’re functioning with the 3-5-2 system and what they’ll need to improve if they’re to win Saturday’s Manchester derby. We hear from Solskjaer himself, who compares Ronaldo’s impact at United to that of Michael Jordan at Chicago Bulls. Chelsea moved closer to the knockout stages with a 1-0 win over Malmo. Vicki Sparks and Rob Green watched this one in Sweden and join us to reflect on another solid defensive showing from the reigning European champions. John Bennett rounds up the rest of the action in Europe as Barcelona claimed a much-needed win against Dynamo Kiev and Robert Lewandowski scored another hat-trick for Bayern Munich. John also gives us the latest on Sergio Aguero, who has been ruled out for a long period after suffering chest pains in a recent match, and we hear Pep Guardiola’s thoughts on his former striker’s situation. Tottenham have appointed Antonio Conte as their new head coach on an 18-month contract to replace Nuno Espirito Santo, who was sacked on Monday. Assistant editor for the Daily Mirror, Darren Lewis, joins us to discuss why he thinks Conte is one of Levy’s greatest appointments at Spurs and how Conte can revitalise Harry Kane. Darren also gives us the latest on Villarreal manager Unai Emery, who is the leading candidate to take over as Newcastle manager. And Liverpool will book their place in the last 16 of the Champions League with a win over Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. John Gibbons from The Anfield Wrap tells us how the team will benefit from qualifying with two games to spare and what he makes of Diego Simeone saying he won’t shake hands with Jurgen Klopp again at the end of the match. TOPICS 00:46 – Manchester United reaction with John and Leon 02:35 – Statman Dave and numbers behind United’s performance 11:09 – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer reaction 12:04 – United fans’ frustrations 15:26 – Chelsea’s win over Malmo with Vicki and Rob 20:29 – John Bennett rounds up the other Champions League headlines 22:15 – Pep Guardiola on Sergio Aguero 23:21 – Antonio Conte at Spurs with Darren Lewis 29:28 – Liverpool v Atletico Madrid preview with John Gibbons

Previous Episode

Nuno out, Conte in?

Spurs have sacked head coach Nuno Espirito Santo after just 10 Premier League games in charge. Mark Chapman is alongside former Manchester City defender Micah Richards, former Blackburn striker Chris Sutton and Rory Smith from the New York Times to discuss what went wrong for Nuno. Who do Spurs bring in as their next manager? Antonio Conte is reported to be in London for talks with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy. Why are Chelsea’s wingbacks so significant to the team and Crystal Palace defender Joel Ward joins the pod to talk about Palace’s bright start to the season. 0’20 – Surprised at Nuno Espirito Santo’s sacking? 10’35 – Senior writer at ESPN Gabriele Marcotti talks about Tottenham’s Managing Director Fabio Paratici 13’30 – What’s changed for Antonio Conte to make himself available? 27’10 – Can Conte turn Spurs around? 29’00 – Chelsea’s wingbacks 38’44 – Crystal Palace defender Joel Ward on Palace

Next Episode

Liverpool cruise into Champions League knockout stages

Mark Chapman is joined by the former Aston Villa striker Dion Dublin and commentator Alistair Bruce-Ball as Liverpool have qualified for the Champions League knockout stages with two games to spare after a 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid. They analyse why Liverpool have been so impressive in all four of their group matches so far and the importance of Fabinho and Diogo Jota to Jurgen Klopp’s side. Former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha and commentator Conor McNamara reflect on a comfortable 4-1 win for Manchester City over Club Brugge and discuss how this could be a boost for Man City heading into this weekend’s Manchester derby. After Unai Emery rejected a move to Newcastle and announced he is staying at Villareal, Spanish football journalist Ernest Macia from Radio Catalunya and The Athletic’s senior writer George Caulkin join the pod to tell us why Emery has decided to stay and if Eddie Howe is now favourite for the Newcastle job. And as Tottenham’s managing director of football Fabio Paratici has spoken for the first time since appointing Antonio Conte as Spurs manager, Italian football journalist Mina Rzouki gives us an insight into the pair’s special relationship. Topics: 0’30” – Reaction to Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid 2’00” – Why was Felipe shown a straight red card? 4’45” – How Liverpool have made light work of a tough Champions League group 8’15” – The importance of Diogo Jota 10’00” – How Fabinho could be crucial to Liverpool this season 12’00” – Jurgen Klopp post-match interview 13’05” – How the ‘false nine’ worked effectively for Manchester City against Club Brugge 17’20” - Pep Guardiola post-match interview 18’20” – Preview of the Manchester derby 21’00” – Chat on Unai Emery staying at Villareal and if Eddie Howe is now favourite for the Newcastle job 28’50” – Fabio Paratici on appointing Antonio Conte as Tottenham manager 37’20” – Wednesday’s night’s EFL Round-up