Latest / Into the Channel ⚽️ A Podcast Primarily About Women's Football / CHAMPIONS LEAGUE MD5 PREVIEW! 🏆 UWCL Barcelona v Benfica Manchester United v Lyon Arsenal v Twente Chelsea v AS Roma Real Madrid v Wolfsburg

Transcript

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE MD5 PREVIEW! 🏆 UWCL Barcelona v Benfica Manchester United v Lyon Arsenal v Twente Chelsea v AS Roma Real Madrid v Wolfsburg · Into the Channel ⚽️ A Podcast Primarily About Women's Football

0:04
OK, welcome to Into the Channel podcast primarily about the UEFA
0:10
Women's Champions League. I'm your host the Suspense and
0:13
as always, I'm joined by my Co host Mr. Grant Angle.
0:17
What is up man? I'm feeling fantastic, buddy.
0:21
It's back the tournament, our favorite tournament.
0:24
It's back the UEFA Women's Champions League and I am
0:27
excited to preview match week five with you.
0:32
I'm start, I'm starting to get that that feeling, man, starting
0:34
to let's just try to get that little pain.
0:36
You know, as we we hit the end of the league phase, two big
0:40
weeks obviously left to go. I love that they're back-to-back
0:44
and I love that we're going to start to see, I mean,
0:46
unfortunately we're going to start to see some teams get
0:48
eliminated. Mathematically, we're going to
0:50
start to see some teams clinch this week, probably at least the
0:54
top 12 perhaps. I'm not sure if anybody could
0:57
clinch top 4. It's possible.
1:00
But either way, we're going to start to see some moving and
1:02
shaking. I think we're going to say
1:03
goodbye to some teams. But either way, 9 big time
1:06
matches. I'm excited to kind of like, you
1:09
know, meet a little light touch on each of the 9 just to kind of
1:12
get everybody primed, get our get ourselves excited, get
1:14
ourselves reoriented. You know, in a lot of ways, your
1:17
boys still shaking off some of those NWSL cobwebs.
1:19
You know, we had the world sevens going on.
1:21
I mean, your heads spinning a little bit.
1:23
But I think it's time to settle back into the Champions League,
1:26
get ready, knock to these matches, Mr. Grant, Angle where
1:29
you want to get started. Let's get started with a
1:32
beverage as I also shake off some of the rust.
1:36
As I called it match Week 5. I'm thinking about the league
1:39
season. It's match day 5, even though
1:41
it's two days. It's all a little confusing.
1:43
It's all right. We'll get through this together.
1:45
That we will. Cheers to you.
1:50
Cheers. To you.
1:50
Cheers to the football. Cheers to the football.
1:55
So, you know, in typical sports podcast style, you have you have
2:01
a conceit, you have an idea of how we should speak about these
2:05
matches. What are you thinking, my good
2:06
man? Apologies for springing this on
2:09
you, you know, in the 11th hour here.
2:12
But you know, I I know that you're, you're a chronological
2:16
guy, You know, you like to keep things, you know, even keel
2:19
straight, straightforward in a very literal sense.
2:22
And I like to shake things up a little bit.
2:25
So minutes before, maybe seconds before we recorded, I propose
2:28
that we do a little draft and like, let's just kind of draft
2:31
the the matches that we're most hyped about.
2:33
You know, no offense to anybody who comes in at the bottom.
2:36
We're just going to look at the 9:00 and just say, this is the
2:39
one that really kind of has me amped.
2:42
And I love that. That's going to give us a chance
2:44
to kind of spend a little time with the teams that, you know,
2:47
we have some feelings for. OK, I can do that now.
2:52
You know, I'm always down for a draft that that totally works
2:56
for me. Let's let's pick which matches
2:59
we're interested in. I got him up on the second
3:01
screen. I got the big board ready, you
3:05
know, chronological order be damned.
3:07
Let let's just talk about what what peaks our interest.
3:10
All right, I'll. I'll.
3:11
You want to go first? You want me to go first?
3:15
Yeah, go ahead. You do the honors, my good man.
3:18
All right, I like it and shout out to you for doing a little
3:20
bit of prep. I did.
3:21
I didn't do any prep other than come come in with the idea here.
3:25
All right, let's see, Scrolly, scrolly, scrolly.
3:28
Who do I like? Who do I like?
3:29
I think I'm going to have to go Manchester United, Lyon, this
3:33
one going down Wednesday, 12 PMI mean, these are two top five
3:38
teams if you think about, you know, where the league phase is
3:40
sitting. And I think when you think about
3:43
Manchester United, obviously shot out of the shot out of a
3:46
cannon to start the season WSL wise, super hot start Champions
3:51
League phase. They win the first three
3:53
matches. You look a little closer.
3:54
They went all three by a single goal.
3:57
And you know, not quite a murderous row.
3:59
Valarenga Athleti and PSG for those big, you know, those three
4:03
big wins, it's tough to beat anybody.
4:05
So shout out to United for getting those three.
4:07
But then they give the all the gold differential back against
4:10
Wolfsburg. They they fall 5 to 2 in that
4:13
one. So now they're sitting on an
4:15
even goal differential. They're in 5th and Lyon, you
4:18
know, a little bit of AI, don't know.
4:22
How would you categorize that, that performance versus
4:25
Juventus? I'm very curious.
4:28
Well, I chuckled at first because this was top of my big
4:30
board as well. I think this is obviously very
4:33
important. Manchester United holding on to
4:35
that fourth spot. The Lyon result was weird.
4:40
I think that's the first way I would categorize it.
4:42
They go down 3 nil at halftime. To who vet this?
4:45
I'm sure anybody watching this program is well aware of it.
4:49
When Tabitha Chewinga got that goal, I immediately looked up at
4:54
the clock and what it was at. Like it was like at the hour
4:58
mark, I want to say somewhere right in there and I just kind
5:01
of sat there and said they could win.
5:04
They can win this match. They can they can get three more
5:07
before the time expires. Now, they didn't quite get
5:09
there, but obviously they draw the the obvious penalty on the
5:12
handball inside the 18. Wendy Renar seals the seals the
5:17
draw and you can just see the air deflated from Juventus.
5:20
I just think it was a weird one for for Lyon.
5:22
They, they couldn't get a lot done, you know, in terms of in
5:27
terms of getting like good looks and finishing those looks.
5:30
But the the way they they came back, I think it they still
5:34
managed to salvage some momentum.
5:37
Yeah, and I mean, no doubt. I mean, zooming out, I think the
5:41
the competition has been on another level this year.
5:45
You know, I think I, I just feel like Leon Juventus 2 years ago
5:49
is a total walk, kind of like a maybe catch this one.
5:53
But this was a competitive match, man.
5:55
I mean, Juventus caught Leon slip in in the first half a few
5:58
different times and they were able to defend, you know, and
6:04
just kind of make it difficult for Leon.
6:05
They weren't just they didn't give away anything easy as the
6:08
as the match kind of wears on, they kind of like lose their
6:10
steam a little bit and Leon's able to find some some openings.
6:12
But I think parity wise things feel a lot more balanced.
6:17
I'm very excited to kind of get into it.
6:19
We got eight more to cover. So I want to kind of keep it
6:21
moving. Well, do you have do you have a
6:22
quick prediction for this? And apologies.
6:24
I I said Manchester was fifth. You are right, they're in
6:26
fourth. They've got a slightly better
6:28
goal differential than Byron. So this is actually the second
6:30
best second ranked team facing the 4th ranked team.
6:35
So that brings up you you're on the clock.
6:39
Who do you got further your second matchup?
6:42
Yeah. And let me let me just say, I
6:43
mean that goal differential is going to come into play here.
6:45
Like do I think Leon is is miles better than United?
6:49
Probably not miles better, but they're better, right?
6:51
They have, they do have more talent than United.
6:54
And we've seen Leon in in past iterations.
6:57
I don't know if his time is completely up yet.
7:00
Sometimes they get one on you in the 1st 7 minutes and you're
7:03
reeling and then they smell blood and then they start piling
7:06
in goals. And that would be very bad for
7:09
the Red Devils, real, real, you know, sharp analysis there.
7:13
So that's one thing I'm looking out for is does Leon get on the
7:16
board early and then do they get on the board off?
7:20
Yeah. And I think a quick just to
7:22
tack, tack, tack something on to that.
7:25
It's going to be interesting to see how United bounces back
7:28
versus that big loss versus Wolfsburg.
7:30
That was that was your first big all right, kind of, you know,
7:33
smacking like welcome to the tournament kind of moment.
7:36
I bet they're glad they got that performance out of their system
7:40
before Leon comes to town because I agree with you.
7:43
Leon's more talented, miles more experience, especially in this
7:47
competition. But on a good day, I think
7:51
United could get them. You know, I think this could end
7:52
in a draw, no doubt. I mean, you look at, you know,
7:55
the talent. You know, United is not without
7:56
talent either. So while you you probably give
7:59
Leon the nod, I think this will be competitive.
8:01
It's it was my number one match for a reason.
8:03
But yeah, I'll kick it. Kick it back to you.
8:05
I'm excited to hear who you had second on your big board.
8:10
All right, I'm going to take Atletico Madrid versus Bayern
8:15
Munich. Love it.
8:17
Big result from Atletico Madrid playing in the Netherlands.
8:22
It was a comprehensive 4 nil victory over Twente.
8:26
You know, they pounced on Twente's mistakes and Twente
8:29
made some some pretty egregious errors there.
8:32
But then you also had the wonder strike by Julio Bartel from
8:36
outside the 18 on the quali, just to absolute fire.
8:42
I meant to go. I meant to go back and check the
8:45
the you know, you know, how UEFA puts together like all the goals
8:49
from the from the match days. I wanted to go back just because
8:52
that Bartell goal, I was like, I think that's I think that's the
8:55
goal from the from the whole league phase.
8:57
But I need to go back into Fact Check this.
8:58
Didn't get a chance to do it. But yeah, I mean, it's got to be
9:01
in the running. What if?
9:02
Absolute banger. It was phenomenal.
9:07
And Joe Shannon, in the running for my favorite commentator of
9:13
this tournament so far, said the same thing.
9:16
Probably the goal of the league phase.
9:18
I think you're right. I think we should do a
9:19
comprehensive review, but it was just an absolute laser.
9:24
But I think what's going to have to happen now is that like,
9:27
Madrid was playing a lot of that match, Atleti was playing a lot
9:30
of that match on their terms versus Twente.
9:33
And now I think they're probably even playing at home.
9:35
They'll probably have to shift into a little bit of underdog
9:38
mode against Bayern, considering the talent on on that side.
9:45
You know, Bayern, their last match against PSG, they concede
9:49
to a great shot by Sakina Karshawi and immediately
9:52
equalized through Dolman. And so, you know, Bayern Munich,
9:57
they, they have recovered nicely from when they got trounced by
10:02
Barcelona. And you know, I think Atleti's
10:05
going to certainly have their hands full, but I think they'll
10:09
be up for the challenge. Tons of intrigue in this match.
10:12
I mean, to say Byron's recovered nicely, a bit of an
10:15
understatement, you know, so in front of Boudisiga, they,
10:17
they've they've hung five goals on opponents 2 straight, you
10:21
know, match days, five, one win over Hoffenheim on the road.
10:24
And then today, yeah, this morning, A5 nil win over 4th
10:29
place Eintrek Frankfurt in an environment that was a little
10:34
hellish, like it looked like it looked like the, the crowd was
10:38
into it. It looked cold, it looked nasty.
10:40
And Byron just went in there and didn't blink, you know, So I
10:44
think they're absolutely cooking.
10:45
I'd let that. You mentioned big win obviously
10:48
in the Champions League match day 4, but two straight, you
10:52
know, they they they lose in league after 10 at Efe before
10:56
the break and then a two 2 draw at home to Sevilla yesterday,
11:02
Saturday. So you know, tough to know who
11:07
what which athlete he's going to show up.
11:08
And I think Bayern, you know, if Bayern shows up, it's it's going
11:13
to be a long day. I think for athlete, you know,
11:15
but again, but a lot a lot like the United Leon matchup, This
11:18
one could absolutely be competitive too, But I feel like
11:22
there's a slightly bigger gap between these two, these two
11:25
sides. And I just think Bayern
11:27
consistently has just been on it and they feel like they're
11:32
improving. You know, like we've been
11:33
waiting for a Moko Tanakawa to kind of like take that leap.
11:37
Feels like it's happening. You know, you we've waited for
11:40
some of those players to kind of like join the part, you know,
11:44
Linda Dahlman, a perfect example.
11:45
You know, that that that quick comeback goal, you know, against
11:49
BSG was was a great example of that just kind of getting
11:52
everybody involved. And if they're going to play
11:53
like that, we might finally get the Byron that we've been, you
11:57
know, sort of feeling could have been, you know, like lingering
12:00
just outside the door. I think I think we're we might
12:02
be there. So I'm very, very intrigued by
12:04
this match up too. Yeah, no doubt.
12:08
And this, these two matches, the first two that we've talked
12:10
about, Manchester United versus Lyon and Atleti versus Bayern,
12:13
they're happening at the same time, noon Pacific Time on
12:17
Wednesday. And there's like you talked
12:20
about, like Manchester United is ahead.
12:23
They're level on points with Bayern, but just ahead on two
12:26
goals, goal differential. So we could see the swing happen
12:29
in real time. If if United gets gets, you
12:32
know, pounced on by Leon and Bayern's able to take care of
12:35
business, you can see start to see that drop by United and
12:39
we'll already oh, and and Chelsea's going to be playing at
12:42
the same time there. So there's like guaranteed table
12:45
movement at that 12:00 window on Wednesday.
12:48
Love it. Yeah.
12:49
And I think only one more match day after this.
12:52
So it's like now everybody's scoreboard watching, goal
12:56
differential watching, you know, trying to play that game as
12:59
well, trying to get some of the math nerds and data scientists
13:02
come just come sit in on some of these strategy meetings.
13:04
I'm sure, of course. But let's go to head.
13:07
I want to talk about the third match up on my big board.
13:11
This one's, this one's got some intrigue for some different
13:14
reasons. Give me Barcelona hosting
13:17
Benfica Wednesday, 9:45 AM Pacific in the early slot.
13:23
What I'm interested about this one, and it's a sad 1 is this
13:27
isn't the same Barcelona side, you know, obviously,
13:29
unfortunately, you know, they they've been hit really, really
13:32
hard with injuries. Obviously we know about battery
13:36
a Tanipomatis. I'm a Patiuello recently on a
13:39
Battier joins that list on Twitter.
13:43
Where had it? Yeah, at Barsa Femme on Twitter
13:46
2 days ago, mentioned on about a out for around 3 weeks due to a
13:50
Myo fibrillar injury in the right Soleus muscle, of course.
13:56
So yeah, three weeks, that could really hurt.
13:58
But what I'm going to be watching for and not to kind of
14:02
like downplay Benfica, but they're they're in a position
14:05
where if they lose, they're one of four teams where if they
14:07
lose, they're out. And I believe that they don't
14:10
win their I think I think they might actually need to win to
14:12
stay in. So Benfica, it's been a great
14:15
run, but we'll stick to kind of Barcelona for the moment.
14:17
I feel like Barcelona might be at that point where one more
14:23
injury, one more, you know, player that that is unavailable
14:27
in a big spot. It could be it.
14:30
We could be there because, you know, they they they squeak by
14:33
Tenedife this weekend, a team that they smashed 5 one last
14:38
year at home 2 nil and they didn't really get on the score
14:41
sheet until like the 84th minute.
14:43
Pyre scores and then Alexia scored a few minutes later to
14:46
make it 2 nil. But that one was absolutely in
14:49
the balance. Barcelona only seven shots in
14:51
the first half and a total push and pull.
14:54
And you know that that that not quite full strength.
14:57
Barcelona didn't didn't look like a side that looks like a
15:01
slam dunk Champions League winner, if I can say that.
15:06
Yeah, and I mean, when you're suffering injuries from from all
15:10
those players and players of that caliber that you're talking
15:13
about, yeah, they probably shouldn't look like Champions
15:15
League winners at this moment. I I want to think about it from
15:19
the perspective of imagine that you're a 17 year old midfielder
15:23
and you're playing on a team that has Aitana Bone Mati,
15:26
Alexia Poteas and Patri. You probably don't go into the
15:30
season thinking, Yep, going to get a bunch of starts, going to
15:33
get a bunch of Champions League starts.
15:35
And here we are for Clara, Sarah Jordi Diaz.
15:38
You know, bottom line is there's there's immense talent still all
15:43
over the pitch, but we're going to have to see what, you know,
15:45
how Sarah Jordi plays in these in these minutes, what the
15:50
rotation looks like, how they're going to kind of how they're
15:53
going to kind of work through this.
15:56
You know, I'll be I'll be very interested to see.
16:00
I don't I don't know what a right Soleus muscle is.
16:03
I don't know if I have a soleus. I am not 100% sure if I'm
16:07
familiar with it at all, but I'm really interested to see, you
16:11
know, what Bhatia looks like when she gets back.
16:13
And, you know, kind of, I know, I know she's not like one of
16:17
like the main, main, you know, threats.
16:20
But like you said, like as the injuries start to stack up,
16:23
you're like, we need these glue players especially.
16:25
So I'm interested to see how they're looking.
16:27
I, I still, I, you know, I they're going to finish top 4.
16:32
They're going to go far in the tournament.
16:34
But you know what? How does the ceiling adjust it
16:37
as some of these superstars sit out?
16:40
Yeah. And a little pushback on Bhati,
16:42
I think she's she's at that level of if she's not on the
16:46
pitch, it's like that's a real, you know, that's a real.
16:50
I don't want I don't even want to call it downgrade because
16:52
Aisha Kamara, 18 years old, came in and played really well.
16:57
I think got the the assist on the winner to payor.
17:01
If not was like heavily involved in the build up, but played
17:03
really well, played a ton of minutes and does not look like
17:06
an 18 year old. But you know, as the like as the
17:10
lights get brighter and then the teams get trickier, the stakes
17:13
get higher. You know, it's it's tougher for
17:15
young players to kind of like keep up.
17:17
Sydney shirt and Lib also have been in appearance against
17:19
sanity. But I'm just going to be curious
17:22
to see what Barcelona looks like versus Benfica.
17:26
Like do they, do they, even if they're short staffed, do they
17:31
look like Death Starlight or do they look like got to figure
17:36
some shit out here? I think, I think we, I think
17:38
both of those outcomes are on the table.
17:42
And if they're in the figure it out stage, how good do they look
17:45
while they're figuring it out? And are they capable of pushing
17:50
Benfica around while figuring it out?
17:52
I always kind of think about that of like, oh, OK, well, if
17:54
they're in just the experimental phase, you know, how do they how
17:58
do they look there? And you mentioned it.
18:00
Just a couple quick notes on Benfica.
18:02
Obviously we we enjoy all our pals from Portugal being in a
18:08
now or never like shout out Vespa, always the legend being
18:13
in a now or never situation for your tournament life never good
18:17
versus Barcelona no matter who's on the field.
18:20
Usually just like anybody they find to put in those Barcelona
18:23
shirts are probably pretty awesome.
18:26
And this is a common theme for for teams at the bottom of the
18:29
table like Benfic is right now. If you only manage two goals in
18:32
four matches, you're probably having a pretty rough goal of
18:35
it. So it's, you know, it's not the
18:37
tournament that they've hoped for, but like you said it, they
18:40
they are kind of still in those in those growing phases.
18:44
And I, I look forward to seeing like what they're able to
18:46
capitalize on, even if I don't have super high hopes for them.
18:51
Yeah, no doubt. I think they're going to play
18:52
tough and you know, they're they're they're kind of growing
18:55
slash reloading, you know, so I mean, it's just not the year for
18:58
them and and a tough schedule break.
19:00
But that's our third, that's our third pick.
19:03
I think we've gone on Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday so far a
19:07
lot of Wednesdays at the top of draft.
19:08
But who's 4th on your big board? Or actually, who, who, who?
19:11
Who's next on your big board? Next on my big board is a
19:17
Tuesday match so look at that in that noon window on Tuesday,
19:21
your Real Madrid versus Wolfsburg.
19:25
Real Madrid currently sitting on 7th in the table, Wolfsburg
19:29
currently on 3rd Real Madrid entered match day 4 on 7 points
19:34
and after the conclusion of their loss to also your Arsenal,
19:39
they watched Bayern, Chelsea and Wolfsburg jump them on the
19:41
table. You know, I, I think this is
19:46
going to be a big one here, like not to, not to over, not to
19:52
overstate it, but if you, if you lose this one out right now,
19:56
you're kind of looking at it like, OK, is it, is this a
19:59
tumble? Is this the, the, the, the, you
20:02
know, the, the last Champions League experience where like one
20:06
thing goes wrong and then we're all kind of look at each other.
20:08
We try to dig ourselves out of it and more stuff goes goes
20:11
wrong. You know, it's really tough
20:14
because you look at their they're their last three in the
20:17
Champions League. They get the two one win at PSG
20:19
before we knew PSG was crap. The 11 draw versus pre FC kind
20:24
of pre FCS like last stand a little bit, but obviously you
20:26
you hope for more Real Madrid at home and then Real Madrid didn't
20:31
play terrible versus Arsenal. Arsenal didn't really play great
20:33
either at home. It was like 2 teams getting
20:37
nowhere near their potential for most of the match.
20:40
Sadly, I think Madrid's going to be fine.
20:44
You know, like they, they're, they're sort of like in that
20:50
they're in the process of going from like second tier European
20:53
team to like borderline first tier European team.
20:58
You know, and I think we're just going to, we're just going to
21:00
see some results like that. Now.
21:03
I feel like all bets are off versus Wolfsburg because
21:06
Wolfsburg is kind of like Fran, Bundesliga, Real Madrid, you
21:10
know, like big name, you know, can, can show up and blow the
21:14
doors off you and can show up and also get absolutely hammered
21:18
mostly when they're playing as Bayern Munich.
21:19
But Wolfsburg, you know, they, they have the, the, the
21:23
capability to kind of also go Jekyll and Hyde.
21:27
So for that reason, these two teams, I'm really not sure which
21:31
Real Madrid is going to show up and I'm not sure which Wolfsburg
21:33
is going to show up. But I do know that these two
21:35
teams are, you know, sort of swimming in the same pond, You
21:40
know, in, in terms of like where they're at in the league phase
21:43
and and maybe where they're trying to get to as a club.
21:45
I think both of them are knocking on the door of absolute
21:47
top tier, you know, maybe within the next year or two, like with
21:51
with the right with the right set of circumstances and moves.
21:55
But I, I really love this matchup.
21:57
I think on the pitch, there's a lot to love to a lot of talent
22:01
top to bottom. What are you going to be looking
22:04
for from these two? Well, you mentioned, you know
22:08
Wolfsburg getting mashed by by Lyon.
22:12
Since then they've won four on the spin in All in all
22:16
competitions. And their goal differential
22:18
across those four is 14 goals, four or five conceded.
22:23
But it is worth pointing out that they have conceded at least
22:26
one in all four of those matches that they've won.
22:30
So their defense can be had. And I think that's what I'm
22:33
looking for. And if there is one thing that
22:35
we that for whatever reason, always takes me a couple weeks
22:38
into the group phase or now the league phase to remember is the
22:43
last performance by a Champions League team Doesn't really
22:48
doesn't necessarily indicate what the next one's going to
22:51
look look like. So I think you're right.
22:53
Real Madrid super live, obviously, it's not like I would
22:56
act like they're drawing, drawing dead.
22:57
They're they're at home for this match.
23:00
And Wolfsburg is a good even though Wolfsburg is a good team.
23:02
So yeah, I'm going to look to see, you know, what Madrid's
23:06
attack looks like. Caroline Weir continues to just
23:10
hit volleys and just be awesome all the time.
23:13
And so if she's able to, to get something done and, you know,
23:16
we'll see, see how Kaiseido looks, but, you know, they were
23:19
in a little bit, Madrid was in a little bit of a dog fight.
23:24
They're playing a Real Sociedad on Saturday.
23:27
I, I watched the, I watched that match on the zone in Spanish.
23:31
I didn't quite catch everything the commentator was saying, but
23:34
I'm doing my best. And you know, Madrid, they
23:37
needed a great save by Misa Rodriguez at the end and a
23:39
sliding block from Maya Lacrar just to preserve that win.
23:44
So, you know, I, I think that that all that just added to the
23:47
intrigue for Tuesday's match for me.
23:51
Yeah, it, it, it should be really compelling.
23:53
I think just just from where these these teams are at in the
23:57
table, because also top four, top 4 is available to be either
24:01
of these teams. You know, I think if either, if,
24:03
if you either get the three points, it's so funny too,
24:05
because if you either get the three points, top four,
24:08
absolutely on the table. But then you look at Real
24:10
Madrid, they're on 7 points. Valarenga currently sitting in
24:14
13th is on four points. So can at least catch them on
24:19
points and possibly on on goal differential.
24:23
They're in the neighborhood. Ballaranga is heading, I'm
24:25
sorry, is hosting Puri FC. So that just gives you the the
24:30
how close things are from 7th place where Real Madrid is and
24:33
13th place where Ballaranga is and just how much we're going to
24:37
see shake out this weekend. Incredibly exciting.
24:42
Yeah, no doubt. I think this feels like, I mean,
24:45
obviously it's the first match I'm taking from the Tuesday
24:48
slate. It's definitely the one I'm I'm
24:50
most. It seems like the main event of
24:52
Tuesday in that 12:00 window, but I don't know.
24:55
There are a couple other good matches in there too.
24:57
So it'll be it'll be hard to lose.
24:59
It may if this one ends up being more of a blowout than we expect
25:01
or something like that. You know there there should be
25:03
other viewing options available. No doubt.
25:08
All right. Am I up?
25:10
That's you I am going to take. I'm not going to do that yet.
25:20
Hold on to that one. Put that, put that one in my
25:22
back pocket. I think that'll be there once we
25:24
come back around the other way. OK, Give me give me Chelsea AS
25:29
Roma, Wednesday, 12:00 PM Roma, another team that needs needs a
25:36
bunch of stuff to happen. Let me just double check this.
25:39
They need to win to survive, so right now they're on the outside
25:42
looking and going to Chelsea. Probably a big ask, fair to say,
25:47
but Chelsea obviously coming off a good performance versus
25:50
Barcelona. Follow that up with A1 nil loss
25:54
to Everton today in the WSL. Sure.
25:58
Little tricky. I think I counted Chelsea
26:00
hitting the post 5I counted 5 for sure.
26:04
So it's at least five. It could have been 7:00 or 8:00.
26:08
You know, they were peppering the goal, peppering the, the,
26:11
you know, the, the post and the crossbar all day long and just
26:14
whizzing shots past Everton's goal.
26:16
But you know, they, they don't get the win.
26:19
They're in a little bit of trouble in the WSL.
26:21
They're not quite in a place where it's Champions League or
26:25
bust, but not out of the cards, right?
26:30
I mean, the city's got a, a nice, a nice lead 10 matches in.
26:34
And then, you know, I don't know what we'll we'll see what, what
26:36
kind of bounce back they get because for the first time this
26:40
season, I went to the thought exercise.
26:43
What if Chelsea gets blanked this year?
26:46
What if this is the year where it's just nothing breaks their
26:50
way? They they, they walk away empty
26:52
handed. What do you do at that point?
26:55
You know, like, like where do you start to look at?
26:57
I don't want to get into myself, but I did go through that
27:00
thought experiment. Yeah, I mean, so Sonia Bone
27:04
Pastor, she's a legend. She's the only person walking
27:07
the face of the earth who has won the UEFA Women's Champions
27:09
League as a player and a manager.
27:11
If they get blanked, she is sacked, more fired than maybe
27:17
anybody has ever been fired. Like you can't that if that
27:22
happens, buddy. She is.
27:25
Her head is spinning. She's shown the door so quickly
27:28
there, there's no chance they would keep her.
27:29
I don't think that's going to happen.
27:31
I I get where you're coming from though.
27:33
It's, it's weird. It's a weird result for them for
27:35
sure. Well, right now you you got to
27:37
say they're they're not the betting favorites to win the WSL
27:40
or, or I can't imagine they'd be with, with the the the gap that
27:43
they're currently sitting at and they can't be the betting
27:46
favorites to win the Champions League.
27:47
So we'll need some Sonia magic, I think to to kind of like maybe
27:53
salvage the season. But you know, we'll, we'll we'll
27:56
see what happens. I think, you know, you got to
28:01
expect a big result here from Chelsea, you know, just to kind
28:04
of a get right game for sure. But Roma, you know, like I said,
28:10
they're playing a little bit with house money because it's
28:12
it's pretty much a wrap at this point.
28:13
I mean, I don't I don't think they're going to expect to beat
28:15
Chelsea. And even if they did, they're at
28:16
the very, very, very bottom of the table.
28:19
But this is a team that that played Uvay to a draw this
28:21
weekend, You know, 11. They're they're they're sitting
28:26
at or near the top of the the serial table.
28:29
A lot of young players, but I think they're going to come out
28:31
and and and play. They're going to play hard for
28:33
sure. And Chelsea, you know, like it.
28:39
It's I mean, what's what is your read on Chelsea?
28:42
Like I'm, I'm completely kind of baffled.
28:45
I'm like, I on one hand, I can't believe how many good players
28:49
they have and I can't believe how like, you know, how do I
28:57
want to say this? You brought up the Chelsea
28:59
Americans a few weeks ago and apologies if I butchered the,
29:02
the, the, the name that you, you labeled them with.
29:05
Leanne on her show talked about the same thing about some of
29:07
these players looking at Barcelona not being intimidated.
29:11
Yami Gurmelis, Thompson, Ellie Carp, you know, Ellie Carpenter,
29:13
whoever want to throw in there. But then they follow that up
29:17
with with that performance today.
29:19
And I'm just not really sure what to make of it.
29:21
Very curious on your read on Chelsea so far this season based
29:27
on what we've seen in WSL and Champs Eke.
29:30
It just seems like they're still kind of trying to find their way
29:34
with Bon Pastora. Like, how do we want to play?
29:36
Do we want to sit back and, you know, absorb some possession and
29:40
hit you on the counter like that kind of boom pastor style we
29:42
would see a lot at Lyon. Even when you have an All Star
29:44
team like I don't, we don't necessarily have to dominate the
29:48
ball kind of that the defensive minded style.
29:52
I think they're still, you know, trying to find their way and you
29:55
talk about them in the Champions League.
29:57
So now they have two draws in the Champions League and one of
29:59
those draws is against Barcelona.
30:00
So that's pretty, it's pretty awesome.
30:03
But they have two draws with a with a + 10 gold differentials.
30:08
And so that's a that's a funny quirk to kind of like where it
30:11
puts them on the table. But I'll tell you it's it ceases
30:16
to be a funny quirk if that somehow keeps you out of the top
30:20
4. But I'll, I'll tell you all
30:24
signs. I mean, not really, even though
30:27
all the even though all the signs don't point to them
30:31
defending Stamford Bridge and and crushing Roma, I just refuse
30:36
to be surprised if that's how it turns out.
30:39
I mean, we've already seen Roma get absolutely battered by
30:43
Madrid and then Barcelona. Ellie Carpenter is just a menace
30:49
right now. Like she is scoring that goal
30:53
she scored against Barcelona was an absolute laser.
30:58
I don't think Roma's going to have any real chance at, at
31:02
coping with her. And then then you have, like you
31:05
pointed out, like 8 other players that they, that they
31:07
really have to worry about. I, I want to make, I want to
31:13
make sure I got the name right. The, the commentator for that,
31:16
that Chelsea, Barcelona match, Jonathan Pierce in the running
31:19
for one of my favorite commentators in this tournament,
31:22
described it as a scorcher, which I thought was great.
31:26
It absolutely was a scorcher and I just cannot tell you how much
31:30
I love Ellie Carpenter as a right midfielder, right wing
31:34
type of player in front of Lucy Bronze.
31:37
I think that's an awesome look. Ellie Carpenter is the pride of
31:42
Kaura, New South Wales, Australia.
31:45
It's about a four hour drive from Kaura to Sydney, but at
31:49
Ellie Carpenter's speed I think she could get there in about 3
31:52
hours and 15 minutes. I can tell you right now, I
31:56
don't know where that is, but that's not a drive I ever want
31:58
to make. Can't imagine what kind of
32:00
wildlife you'll see on that drive.
32:01
See. Some sights.
32:03
Oh, my goodness. All right.
32:06
So we'll, I'm, I'm excited about that, for sure.
32:08
Was that mine? That was my pick, right?
32:10
Did they were? Yeah.
32:12
Yes, it was. You're up my turn.
32:16
All right, I guess we're going to do it.
32:17
I don't know if this is who you're bouncing around in your
32:19
head, but on the big board, I live and die by the big board,
32:23
my good man. I'm going Tuesday in that noon
32:26
window as well. Your Arsenal versus FC Twente.
32:31
Not who I had. But real fascinated, OK, all
32:36
right, real fascinated to kind of see where this one goes.
32:40
And this is the fun part about the draft is that we have all
32:44
the matches all over the place, and now I just need to get to my
32:47
notes. And so I'm going to filibuster
32:49
clumsily by talking about my notes, which I'm very excited
32:54
I'm. I'm sure impeccable, very well
32:56
organized. I'm sure.
32:59
All right, let's see Arsenal. Arsenal continues to look super
33:02
choppy reports this week about, you know, maybe some some static
33:08
in the locker room. Hate to see that.
33:11
You know, and there's just been a lot of talk about, you know,
33:15
maybe not not quite constructing this team in a way where, you
33:19
know, you bring in like Olivia Smith and not really sure what
33:24
you know, how to construct the the attack.
33:27
You know, like around her and you you you talked about the
33:29
same thing very, very early in the season.
33:30
It's like what what's the plan exactly?
33:32
I think we're still kind of waiting on the plan.
33:35
I tell you the reason I had this one very low on my list.
33:38
This Twente matchup has got me a little bit nervous.
33:42
I'll say I think Twente didn't quite not not not the
33:49
performance. I think, you know, they they
33:51
would have won him, obviously, you know, but this is a team
33:55
that that still has two draws, you know, like drew Chelsea,
33:59
Drew Benfica, they've got two points.
34:01
You know, like they've been in this tournament in around this
34:03
tournament quite a bit. They lost a a heartbreaker at
34:06
Louvin. You know that and can't blame
34:08
them for that, you know, going into that cauldron and you know,
34:11
at least they kept a close shout out to them.
34:14
But this this match has, you know, is there a Renee Slagers
34:20
issue post match written all over it?
34:23
I'm not predicting that. But Twente is not the kind of
34:27
team that you want to see when you're at that still sorting
34:32
stuff out kind of situation. Arsenal's just not as good.
34:35
They're they're not good enough, even though they're the
34:37
defending champions in this tournament to sort of play their
34:40
way into the tournament. You know, I mean, they're
34:43
sitting in 10th after four games.
34:46
You know, they they have yet to kind of like really leave the
34:49
smack down in a way that lets everybody know this team can win
34:53
the title again, can repeat. So, you know, just not not
34:58
really good enough, you know, to kind of like not be playing at a
35:02
specific level when you get when you get to match day 4 match day
35:05
5 doesn't mean they can't turn it around.
35:07
But if this team kind of comes out and lays a negative against
35:10
Twente A11 or God forbid, a loss or you know, just kind of like a
35:14
flat one nil or two, you know, like something, something flat.
35:18
I think, I think the the chatter, I think the volume of
35:22
the chatter is going to start to get cranked up a little bit
35:24
higher. A loss would be a catastrophe
35:30
like you cannot, they cannot allow that to happen.
35:34
I don't think they will, I I thought.
35:36
I don't think so either. But it's not, you know, it's
35:38
like it's not impossible, right? But that's why, that's why it
35:41
kind of was like, if it's a shitty performance, I think we
35:44
it could be just as bad, Yeah. I, I think this is and it is
35:50
tricky. I love where your head's at on
35:52
like Twente bouncing back from the the the bad four nil loss at
35:56
home and then kind of finding their medal.
35:59
I'll tell you man, going to London to play the holders might
36:02
be a a tough spot to kind of find that.
36:06
But it, you know, I while Arsenal didn't look, didn't look
36:12
like the Champs versus Real Madrid.
36:15
I'm encouraged by the Alessia Russo brace, her getting into
36:18
space, you know, in the 18 being able to, you know, she had that
36:23
nice looping header. I think the looping header was
36:26
the opener. If I remember it happened 2
36:28
weeks ago. Who even knows what happened 2
36:30
weeks ago at this point. I just know the result happened
36:33
and I watched it, but you know, top 8, they had to Arsenal had
36:39
to come into this tournament, you know, playing their way into
36:41
shape. Not well, you know, however we
36:43
want to look at it, top eight had to be the absolute floor for
36:46
them coming in. And so even a draw here would
36:50
feel pretty gross for your Gunners.
36:53
So I think they'll take care of business.
36:55
I I think this it probably ends up being like A2 nil or maybe
36:59
like a three to 1 and Arsenal kind of pushes it out late like
37:02
with the result never being totally in doubt, you know, but
37:06
we'll see that. That's why they play the games.
37:09
A draw here would keep them way out of the top 8.
37:15
And then they've got that nightmare match up looming,
37:17
match day six at Louvin. Don't want any part of that.
37:20
And now it looks like of course Arsenal's going to have some
37:23
stakes side to that. I would hate that.
37:26
And yeah, it's just it's just a real hodgepodge at the bottom of
37:28
the of the standings here. And Arsenal's, I think they're
37:32
going to get the win, you know, like zooming out, you know, just
37:34
kind of let me shake off all my, you know, my, my bad vibes.
37:37
I think they're going to get the win, but they're going to have
37:40
to work for it. They're absolutely going to have
37:42
to work for it. Twente is not it's Twente is not
37:45
the kind of team from what we've seen of them that just gets
37:48
their ass kicked two weeks in a row, like or, or two matches in
37:51
a row. It's like you just that that
37:54
four nil loss was shocking enough, you know, So I think
37:58
like, you know, we hadn't seen any any of that leading up to
38:01
it. So we'll we'll see.
38:02
But am I? Yeah.
38:04
You took Arsenal Puente. So I'm up.
38:06
Who else is up? OK, that leaves where I was
38:10
going to go where it might have gone last round.
38:12
Give me Paris Saint Germain versus.
38:16
There we go. OH, Lubin, Lubin coming off a
38:20
you know, a a tricky 2 nil loss to Club Brugge before the before
38:25
the Thanksgiving break in the Belgian Super League, PSG two
38:29
wins in a row in the Premier League Premier.
38:33
I never know how to pronounce it, but the French Premier
38:35
League, he's just where the women.
38:37
In Premier League, you use the Premier League.
38:39
I can't, but I can't say the Premier League, the for the for
38:42
the French Premier League. You guys know what I'm talking
38:44
about anyway. PSG four, they beat St.
38:47
Etienne 4 to one. They beat Marseille this weekend
38:50
5 to 1. Not sure what to take from it.
38:54
Good to see them knocking balls in, but they still, they still
38:57
have a little bit of a bumper car feel to their offense and
39:00
their attack and just kind of generally how they do business.
39:03
They brought Yaya over from Brazil.
39:05
That was exciting. Great to see.
39:07
Great to see Yaya kind of getting introduced.
39:09
But they've they, I mean, they've got their hands full
39:12
this week against Louvin. Louvin obviously, we've been
39:16
hyped about them since, since the preview.
39:19
It's a preview show for whatever reason, I think we, we just got
39:23
excited about this team and now they're to a point where it's
39:27
they're not, they're less cute than they were before.
39:30
Now it's just like, oh shit, PSG are, are, are they just going to
39:33
get, is it just going to be straight?
39:35
Is it going to be 6 L's for PSG? I think we're, we're, we're
39:38
swimming around in those waters. But I think Louvin's going to
39:41
give him a game. I think Louvin really wants a
39:43
result. Can absolutely get a result, can
39:45
get a big result. Things go their way.
39:48
But PSG, you know they have it within them to put out a
39:53
performance. So with all that said, what are
39:56
you going to be? Expecting this is where the
40:00
weirdness of the tournament and maybe like there is some level
40:04
of weirdness, but we can maybe kind of predict some of that
40:10
weirdness if that makes sense. You point you.
40:13
You rightfully mention PSG is pointless.
40:17
Right now you can maybe make that argument about some of
40:20
their attacking style. Pointless is funny.
40:22
But I, but I, but I mean it in the sense of they have 0 points
40:27
in, in this tournament and going into it, you know, I didn't
40:33
expect a ton from him. I had said like, Hey, I'm not
40:35
high on the other on the French squads outside of Lyon.
40:39
And you know, that's, that's proven.
40:41
That looks like, you know, like I was fairly prescient, but it
40:47
would be outrageous if they don't at least come away with
40:51
something in this stage like 6L's would be disastrous.
40:57
And we know like, and, and our, and our good pal CL2 Filey has,
41:01
has talked to us about, you know, PSG is not really as
41:04
committed as they should be to their women's program.
41:08
They need to figure that out immediately because there's
41:10
obviously huge growth available there and they and they have
41:13
good players and they should be able to do it.
41:15
But like this feels like one of those weird ones where yes, on
41:19
balance, Louvin has been been playing better than PSG all
41:24
league phase. So of course, in in a weird
41:28
setting like this, why wouldn't PSG finally find their footing
41:33
and get a home win Like it? It just kind of feels like one
41:36
of those weird ones. And I'm totally with you.
41:38
Louvin can win this game outright.
41:40
They can travel to to Paris and get it done.
41:44
But I don't know, there's a little bit of and it's not
41:46
scientific and it's kind of dumb.
41:48
You know, I'm not I will never shy away from that.
41:51
Is this when is this when AT when the bill comes due?
41:55
Like, is PSG just due to finally put in a performance in this in
41:59
this Champions League? No, and it's because they're
42:03
playing. Probably not.
42:06
They're playing those big dogs from Belgium.
42:08
No, I mean, you look at Lewin like they've scored in every in
42:11
three of the four, three of the four Champions League matchups.
42:15
Like as debutantes. You know, the last couple years
42:18
we've been watching this tournament, you know, the the
42:21
bottom rung teams put forth bottom rung score lines, you
42:28
know, 3 nil, 4 nil, 51. OK, I was excited we got on
42:32
board OK, hot, big high fives all around.
42:34
But this Lufman's guy scored in three of the four matchups.
42:37
We joked about that visit to Barcelona.
42:39
They held Barcelona to three in at Barcelona like a basically a
42:43
team that was like just didn't exist on the radar, you know,
42:46
globally, you know, six months ago.
42:49
But here we are and PSG just has put forth not I mean, they
42:56
haven't put forward to anything in this tournament.
42:57
You know, like if you look at their season in totality,
43:00
there's there's a little bit more there to chew on.
43:02
But you know, if I'm putting on my betting hat, I mean, there,
43:07
there's got to be a ton of value on Louvin heading to PSG, you
43:10
know, just just with the the brand name disparity.
43:13
But I think on the pitch, this one's going to be an absolute
43:15
banger too. I think fun, you know, fun
43:18
matchups. Louvin is tenacious, you know,
43:21
super opportunistic. Like they'll they'll they'll
43:23
just carve you up in terms of like when and how they use like
43:27
those opportunistic runs and then PSG ton of skill, ton of
43:32
athleticism, ton of creativity. So I think style, you know, if
43:37
styles make fights, this this one, Matt, I mean, stacks up to
43:40
be like a real just I don't like one of those like not quite the
43:44
pay-per-view match, but like the the the lead into the main event
43:47
that ends up, you know, maybe out shining some of those other,
43:50
you know, marquee matchups. I think it's definitely
43:54
possible. I mean, we talked about, you
43:56
know, PSG and my, my principle that I adopt from collegiate
44:02
American football of they ain't played nobody.
44:06
You know, PSG, they tend to beat up on those teams.
44:09
In the Premier League on September 27th, they lost 61 to
44:12
Leon. We saw them get smashed 4 nil by
44:15
Wolfsburg in the Champions League.
44:17
But then they did play, they played Real Madrid tough, they
44:20
played Manchester United pretty tough.
44:22
So they got it. They got the performance in them
44:24
somewhere. It's just, yeah, I, I, I think
44:28
you're right. I'm surprised this one lasted so
44:30
long in the draft because there there's going to be a lot said
44:36
either way of OK, well, PSG, they figured it out.
44:39
But is Louvin, you know, is the clock starting to strike
44:43
midnight a little bit on this kind of little bit of a
44:45
Cinderella story? Or, you know, did PSG cough one
44:50
up again and then they still can't beat good teams?
44:53
And it turns out this Belgian side we didn't expect is a
44:55
really good team. Can't I can't wait, can't wait.
44:59
This is the match that I almost took last round.
45:01
So I, I, I really deliberated. So you know, I'm, I'm glad it
45:04
was still there for me when we came back around, but I think
45:07
you're up. We got two more matchups.
45:11
All right, let's go with the first match kicking off Tuesday,
45:14
9:45 AM Pacific Time, the Lord's time zone on December 9th, St.
45:22
Polton versus Juventus. Juventus coming off that kind of
45:27
soul crushing draw versus Leon. But usually you would be happy
45:31
with a with a draw versus Leon, but not when you're up three nil
45:35
at halftime in your home stadium and then you lose those two
45:39
points basically at the final whistle.
45:42
They I think they should hang their hat on that draw a little
45:44
bit. You you scored three goals
45:46
against Ayonitan Heraldez, coach Leon side I this this feels like
45:53
the definition of a get right game.
45:57
And for all of our European pals, I'm not sure what they
45:59
call them over in Europe, but you know, the get right game is
46:02
exactly what it sounds. It's your opportunity to play an
46:05
inferior opponent and and, you know, kind of shake off the
46:08
cobwebs. I think things are probably
46:12
trending that way now. St.
46:15
Polton though, they were able to, they showed a lot of
46:17
resilience. They clawed back and got a got a
46:19
draw VS Valeringa for their first points of this tournament.
46:23
St. Polton has one more point than
46:25
Paris on Javon. So they should be pretty happy
46:27
about that. And you know, as as we see with
46:30
STP these these past couple years, if they're any indicator,
46:33
we'll see you again in this tournament next year and
46:35
hopefully the results fare a little better for you.
46:38
Yeah, no doubt. I I actually think that they
46:40
might be, they might be under some heat in their local league.
46:42
I'll I'll double check it, but I don't think you.
46:45
Could tell me that a couple weeks ago.
46:46
Yeah, I think, yeah, we'll see. I wanted to ask you this because
46:51
when we ranked our teams a few weeks back, very kind of, and I
46:56
think we made predictions on who we thought would be top 12 and
46:59
who we thought wouldn't. Not famously, but, you know, to
47:03
some fanfare. You know, I think I had Atletico
47:07
Madrid outside my top 12 and I think you had Juventus outside
47:11
your top 12. That was one of our big points
47:13
of contention, that somehow in the moment we couldn't figure
47:16
out, or I could. I'm not going to put you in
47:18
that. I couldn't figure out who had
47:20
what and where. You.
47:22
Know sleepy boys, you already know.
47:25
I wanted to ask you how's your opinion because I've been higher
47:29
on this Juventus side for short, you know, all season champions
47:33
of Syria. I kind of thought they're a
47:35
bullshit team last year and they didn't really play that well
47:37
last year, but there were some flashes.
47:39
But this year I think they've they've kind of grown up a
47:41
little bit, kind of leveled up a little bit.
47:42
I'm curious, as you've watched this event aside, have they
47:46
since that since you had them outside the top 12, have they
47:49
done anything to kind of change your perspective?
47:51
Have you have you picked up anything you noticed anything?
47:53
You're like, maybe I, you know, I didn't really kind of like
47:55
walk into this, but I, I kind of like this, this part of their
47:58
game. Yeah, totally.
48:01
I think, I think one of my one of the things I had mentioned,
48:04
like going in, I was like, I don't know, you know, born and
48:07
say as old, older, sorry, no disrespect there.
48:10
She's a great player, still playing well.
48:13
But I had mentioned, like Bonancia is later in her career,
48:16
Jarelli is later in their in their career.
48:18
How are they going to be able to play?
48:20
And you know what, Grant pretty well still turns out they are
48:23
they are good and they're able to score and they're able to
48:26
move the ball around the field and and you know, they they play
48:29
with a level of toughness. They play that defensive Italian
48:32
style and spots, but they're able they they have players who
48:35
can be dangerous in the final third.
48:37
So they they've absolutely changed my mind.
48:39
I was too low on them going into the tournament.
48:42
Absolutely. I'll wear that one coach.
48:44
I'll raise my hand there. Yeah, I mean, I was, I was with
48:48
you on that Lady, too. I mean, when I saw that, that's
48:49
where I was like, get that one wrong.
48:52
All right, we've got one more match to hit.
48:55
I'm not going to draft it just because I mean, this is the 9th
48:58
pick in in a in a 222 player draft, A2 team draft.
49:03
So I think we're getting we're both going to go ahead and pick
49:05
this one just to round it out. Wednesday, 9:45 AM Fourteenth
49:09
ranked Falaranga, 12th ranked pre FC.
49:13
Some real stakes for this one. Obviously when, when that 12th,
49:16
when that 12th place matters as much as it does 12 versus 14, a
49:22
lot to talk about here. Yeah, it's just an embarrassment
49:26
of riches in this in this in this tournament.
49:30
I mean, once Paris Barry FC scratched out that one, one draw
49:36
versus Real Madrid, like they knew they were, they had created
49:40
for themselves A2 match stretch to punch their ticket into the
49:45
knockout stage. And also, again, Speaking of
49:48
things I may have been wrong about or that I was definitely
49:51
wrong about Juventus, Barry FC could send a personal message of
49:56
Shut Up Grant to me when I talked about how low I was on on
49:59
the 2 French sides outside of Lyon.
50:02
So they took it, you know, they needed to take advantage of A10
50:05
player Benfica and they did when Benfica made those those
50:10
critical errors in that match. So now here they are.
50:13
And this is the first match of the two match stretch.
50:16
Can Perry FC make a little bit make a cool run like they have
50:20
in in Champions League's past? Yeah, I mean, credit to them for
50:27
getting it together because I mean, the the start that they
50:29
put forward was, you know, not, not, not kind of what, what
50:32
you'd want to see. I mean, well, actually we're
50:33
widely back. Wasn't it just like a draw to
50:35
Louvin? Yeah, 22 to Louvin and then they
50:39
lose 4 nil at Chelsea. And I think at that point we're
50:42
like, all right, this team's got to stink on them.
50:44
But to your .11 versus Real Madrid, 2 nil win versus Benfica
50:49
and that two week stretch you're talking about, you know this at
50:51
Valeriega is Week 2 of that two week stretch because week match
50:55
say 6 they host Barcelona and you know who knows that there
51:00
might not. Be sorry, this is week two of
51:01
the stretch. Yeah, yeah.
51:03
No, there, there might not be stakes to that Barcelona match
51:05
up. That's an extra kind of, you
51:08
know, forkball that could, you know, could make things really
51:11
interesting. But this volume that you got to
51:13
get this one. But I mean, I've been really
51:16
impressed with pre FC five points at you know, from 4 after
51:19
that start they're they're they're playing pretty solid,
51:23
you know, domestically in the Premier League, they're getting
51:27
more production, you know, from players other than Clara Mateo,
51:30
you know, so I don't want to say they're dangerous.
51:33
They're certainly tracking towards top 12, but on the flip
51:37
side, you look at Valarenga, just one spot outside that mix
51:42
and what what have we been talking about?
51:44
Karina Savic, Ola Tuten, When are they going to score?
51:48
You know, we know what they've done in top series.
51:50
They they lit that lead on fire last season and we just hadn't
51:54
seen it, you know, and and I think we got a little bit of
51:56
that, you know, against St. Bolton, which was great, but are
52:01
they going to be able to carry that forward?
52:03
They can and pre FC an opponent that will give them
52:07
opportunities. So I mean, it's weird that this
52:10
was like our 9th, our 9th matchup because like, as I'm
52:12
talking about, I'm like, fuck, I really want to see this one.
52:16
No, you're totally right on this.
52:17
I was just thinking the same thing because, you know, you're
52:20
so spot on. I think it was like 3 or 4 weeks
52:23
ago. We're just like, yeah, you know,
52:25
we got to see it in this tournament from Taventin and and
52:28
Shavik. And then they get those two,
52:30
they jump out two ahead and frankly, they squander the lead.
52:34
And not not Shavik and Taventin specifically, but the the team
52:39
squanders the lead. You end in A22 draw versus STPA
52:43
team that you just you had to go in there thinking that you could
52:46
beat. And when you're up two nil, you
52:49
know, then you, you, you cough that lead up and you know, now,
52:54
now you're looking at a a scrappy Perry FC team.
52:57
You're like, OK, well, yeah, at least we have it at home.
52:59
Let's see if we can we can grab all three points here.
53:03
But I just got to think they're probably in a little bit of a
53:06
weird headspace, and that's probably going to make for an
53:09
interesting match. I agree with you and and
53:12
Valeringa, they're out of season, right?
53:16
Yeah. So they only have Champions
53:17
League matches left in the calendar, you know, so we've
53:21
seen that go both ways. You know, we've seen like, I
53:25
kind of feel like at the front end of it, like right after top
53:30
serial ends, there's a little bit of an advantage because
53:33
you're sharp, you're conditioned, you've been
53:35
playing, you know, like you're down the stretch and and you get
53:38
a little bit extra rest, right. But as like it, it goes further
53:43
and further. It's, you know, it's really
53:45
tough to like be like, all right, we're we have one match
53:48
this month, you know, two matches this month and we're two
53:51
months out of season. So I think we're still at that,
53:55
at that point where the season is still fresh enough where
53:58
Valaranga is still going to be riding a little bit of a you
54:01
know, just some of the that that muscle memory from last season
54:05
combined with it with the chance to get a little bit healthier.
54:09
So I I think Valaranga is super duper live in this match up at
54:14
home. And actually, you know, I'm
54:16
going to say right now Valaranga has got at Bayern Munich match
54:19
day 6. I'm not going to flat out close
54:22
the door on that on that result either.
54:24
The two 2 draw to Zen Bolton, obviously huge disappointment,
54:28
but there's something about this team, obviously champions,
54:32
professionals, mid career, late career, a lot of like senior ish
54:37
experienced type players. I think this team still has
54:40
something to say in this tournament and I think this pre
54:42
FC match is going to be a great platform to do a little bit of
54:46
that. It's going to be happening at
54:49
the same time on Wednesday as the Barcelona Benfica match.
54:51
If if that Barcelona Benfica match gets out of hand, it's an
54:55
easy switch over to volaring a Perry FC.
55:00
So yeah, I you know, it goes it goes last in our draft.
55:03
I think, you know, it's maybe St. probably a better watch than
55:08
STP Juventus. But I mean, who knows?
55:10
Like we've talked about how Juventus has been good this this
55:13
year too. So, you know, you can't lose in
55:16
any of these matches. Plenty of intrigue to go around.
55:20
Again, I know I say it about everyone.
55:22
I'm just looking forward to watching the football and then
55:24
being like, oh, wow, totally wrong about this thing.
55:26
But then also with us. Yeah, I think more often than
55:29
not. Obviously, you guys could attest
55:31
to this as pals of the show. Exactly.
55:33
Right on. Plenty of stuff too.
55:35
Yeah, I don't know, man. STP coming off A22 draw.
55:39
They beat Nulenbach 4 nil. They beat RB Salzburg 6/1.
55:44
It could be could be a moment for STP.
55:46
I'm not I'm not really sure. I think I think they they they
55:49
belong right in that eighth spot playing some decent football and
55:53
career Schluter. You already know must see TV
55:56
every every time out. You already know what time it
55:58
is. Quick, quick, quick episode
56:01
calendar. Obviously this has been your
56:03
Champions League match day 5 preview.
56:05
We'll have a match day 5 recap coming very soon, end of this
56:08
week, I'm sure. And then they'll be, I don't
56:10
know if we're going to do a match Day 6 preview or we'll
56:13
lump those into the same episode.
56:15
Either way, we'll sort it out. And there will absolutely be a
56:17
match day six recap. So at least two more Champions
56:20
League episodes coming your way before the end of the year.
56:23
We'll also squeeze in a 2025 best 11 before we get out of
56:27
here. So definitely make sure you're
56:29
subscribed. Follow your boys on the socials.
56:30
Much appreciated in advance. All right, man, I think we did
56:34
it. Anything else we had before we
56:35
got here. Yeah, I mean, we talked about
56:38
top Syrian and I know we've just kind of been avoiding the topic
56:41
here. So if there's going to be one
56:42
last last that I talked about, all right, let's do it for our
56:46
for our pals in beautiful Bergen, Norway, which I hope to
56:48
visit at some point here in the future. 20 year old Norwegian
56:54
international scenic outset from the wonderful club.
56:59
SK Braun, based in beautiful Bergen, Norway, has agreed to
57:02
terms with the contract to join Tottenham Hotspur.
57:05
This news happened all the way back on November 21st.
57:07
And I just want to be honest with you.
57:08
I don't want to talk about it. I didn't want to mention it, I
57:12
didn't like it. She reunites with coach Martin
57:16
Hoe. That part's kind of cool.
57:17
Coach SK Braun, that part is, yeah, that's kind of cool.
57:21
She she reunites with Martin Hoe, who obviously coached SK
57:24
Braun in their awesome Champions League run two seasons ago.
57:30
Real bummer to see or leave Braun, but it's a part of the
57:34
development. And I think I I saw some
57:36
interesting conversation on Blue Sky that kind of was bouncing
57:40
around in my head a little bit too.
57:42
Is is the idea of sometimes you have these amazing star talent
57:47
level players, which senior Gallop said absolutely is
57:49
announced herself. We, your boys had it early by
57:52
the way everybody in Bergen knew, and your boys here in in
57:56
good old US of a maybe not so good old, but in the United
58:00
States of America we knew it too in.
58:02
Old US of A. Yes, in old US of a circling the
58:07
drain USA, some people might think, but we we we saw it a
58:13
while ago and but she made her star turn during the EUR and
58:18
it's cool. It's interesting to see her go
58:20
to a mid level club like Tottenham Hotspur, and I'm sure
58:24
that brings you great joy as an Arsenal fan for me to refer to
58:26
Tottenham as as a mid level club, but instead of her being
58:29
like thrust into like Leon Barcelona, you know what I mean?
58:34
It was just like dropped into like one of the superstar teams.
58:37
Now she kind of gets a little bit more of like a step up, a
58:41
build up. She's going to play elite
58:43
competition still. So senior Gobsett the Lynx, as
58:47
she is so nicknamed in Norway. I'm excited to see the continued
58:52
upward trajectory of her of her career.
58:54
But real bummer for all our Palsenberg and so so our
58:58
condolences the friends. Yeah, I mean, excited for
59:03
Gobsett for sure. You know, tell them what do you
59:06
do? I mean, other place you could
59:08
land it, but talk about that later.
59:09
But I mean, I love your point about landing in a great next
59:14
step, next step for Gobset because that same 23 Champions
59:19
League where we discovered. So you Gobset, go back and check
59:22
the tapes if you want. We had to have been the first
59:24
English speaking show to talk about.
59:25
So you Gobset on the planet, I'll say.
59:29
But Kika was a was a key player in that tournament too.
59:33
And to your point goes to Barcelona a little bit buried
59:37
some injuries at Wilson. I mean, an interesting point in
59:40
time now for Barcelona to see if Kika can get get back into the
59:43
mix. But great call by you.
59:45
First of all, celebrating. So you got to one of the patron
59:49
states of the ITC for sure. But a good landing spot.
59:53
I like the landing spot. And you know, it's a friendly
59:55
coach, a friendly situation, and I'm excited to see her play.
59:59
I'm excited to see her playing in WSL.
1:00:00
Absolutely. She's got a game built to wreck
1:00:04
the WSL. So fucking excited.
1:00:06
I really think she. Does, man, Yeah, it's.
1:00:08
Going to be so cool. And if the, and if the WSL is
1:00:12
going to be anything like, you know, the, the English Premier
1:00:16
League, then I just, I do not look forward to Manchester City
1:00:21
being at the top of the table and playing well.
1:00:24
And then somehow, inexplicably, every time we play Tottenham,
1:00:29
they turned into 2009 Barcelona. For some reason.
1:00:32
I just cannot understand why we can't consistently beat
1:00:35
Tottenham, but I digress. We'll, we'll, we'll, you know,
1:00:38
we'll see how it goes there. Yep, we'll.
1:00:42
We'll keep track of it in the meantime.
1:00:43
A lot of Champions League action to track for sure.
1:00:46
It's been an episode of Instant Channel.
1:00:47
Thank you, thank you, thank you for watching, listening, hanging
1:00:49
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when I used to talk to me about marketing people be back.
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I have a great product. If, if one person will just tell
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Links to all the above and much, much more in the show notes of
1:01:54
this episode. And a big thank in my coast as
1:01:56
well. Mr. Grant Engel 4 just I mean,
1:01:59
champion of champions down the stretch, mid tournament, pre
1:02:02
tournament, post tournament previews, recaps.
1:02:05
It doesn't really matter what I throw at this guy.
1:02:07
Draft chronological. He's just, I mean, he's just
1:02:10
swinging and knocking shit out of the park left and right.
1:02:12
He's the Barry Bonds of this podcast.
1:02:14
I appreciate you bro. Likewise, buddy, thank you for
1:02:18
that. And you know, we're we are the
1:02:20
Champions of champions. I mean, look, you're wearing
1:02:22
your Arsenal beanie. They are the defending reigning
1:02:27
Women's Champions League title holders.
1:02:30
I'm wearing the the Florida Panthers at the two time
1:02:32
defending Stanley Cup winners. Sometimes every once in a while,
1:02:36
our teams are able to come out here and lift some trophies and
1:02:40
there's nobody we would rather lift trophies with than all of
1:02:42
you. Thank you for the support.
1:02:43
Thank you for always dropping knowledge of the comments.
1:02:45
We always appreciate it very much and we will see you all
1:02:49
next time.