The Athletic FC Podcast

Mark Chapman is joined by commentator Robyn Cowen and author Dr Carrie Dunn to look ahead to a big weekend of WSL action where we will be treated to Arsenal v Spurs, Liverpool v Everton, and Chelsea v Man City.We discuss why Manchester City has got itself into the state it has, why Manchester United were able to get ahead of Spurs, and what to expect from the big derby matches in the men's stadiums.All that plus a debate on the best kick off time Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s Rafa Honigstein, Jack Pitt-Brooke & James Pearce to detail the battle between clubs such as Liverpool & Manchester United to sign Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund.Also we hear why, despite impressive performances in the Champions League, Bellingham isn't sure to start for England at this year's World Cup. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes sits down with The Athletic's Adam Crafton for an exclusive in-depth conversation on topics ranging from Bruno's mindset and attitude when on the pitch, his view of why life under Erik ten Hag started so badly, how it's turned around so quickly, how it feels to be handed the captain's armband, and his relationship with teammate Cristiano Ronaldo.There's also fascinating insight from Fernandes on how he uses the referee as a reference for finding space on the pitch, his thoughts on what went wrong for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, why it didn't go well for Ralf Rangnick, and much more besides Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ian Iriving is joined by The Athletic's Sam Lee to discuss the two sides to the Jack Grealish debate – and why they are both right.Andy Naylor explains how and why Brighton appointed Roberto de Zerbi as their new manager.Nick Miller on the mounting pressure on Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper & Leciester City boss Brendan Rodgers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dan Bardell and George Elek are joined by the Athletic's Jay Harris to look ahead to all seven games this weekend as the Premier League returns from a week off. There's a big game on Friday night between two promoted sides Nottingham Forest and Fulham, can Forest pick up some points to match their promising performances of late, or will Mitrovic be too much for that leaky defence?There are question marks over Son's place in the Spurs team as they get set to take on Leicester, Brentford take on Arsenal with Ivan Toney looking to celebrate his England call-up with a big performance, and there's a big game for Steven Gerrard as Aston Villa look to back up that point against Man City with a positive result at home to Southampton on Friday nightAll that plus Wolves v Man City, Everton v West Ham and Newcastle v Bournemouth Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic’s German football writer Raphael Honigstein & Spanish writer Dermot Corrigan to discuss Robert Lewandowski; the reasons he left Bayern Munich & what he offers Barcelona.Also, how do the Barcelona & Bayern Munich compare off the pitch and which club is the greater attraction for elite players. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's Spurs and England correspondent Jack Pitt-Brooke to talk about Marcus Edwards; the 23-year-old English forward lining up against his former club Spurs in the Champions League...Plus, tactics writer Michael Cox is on hand to assess whether Christophe Galtier's PSG are any more balanced than in previous years, as well as, Neymar's imperious form less than two months from the start of the Qatar World Cup. Senior Writer Oli Kay also joins to discuss some fascinating parallels between Klopp's current floundering Liverpool and Arigo Sacchi's great AC Milan side of the late 80s. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Chapman is joined by The Athletic's James Horncastle & Matt Slater to detail how AC Milan was turned around both on and off the pitch, and tell you all you need to know about their new owners RedBird Capital - including their links with the New York Yankees, Drake & Lebron James - and hear about out their plans and challenges for AC Milan in the future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A day on from Chelsea's sacking of Thomas Tuchel, Adam Leventhal is joined by David Ornstein and Simon Johnson to analyse how things turned sour at Stamford Bridge. And with Graham Potter's arrival close to confirmation, we ask why the new Chelsea ownership regard him as the key man for the Blue's next decade. Plus, what next for Tuchel - and how do Brighton prepare for life after Potter? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chelsea have sacked Thomas Tuchel after a string of disappointing results and performances at the start of the new season.Join Mark Chapman, David Ornstein and Liam Twomey as they discuss why tensions have been increasing since the US tour, what this might mean for new boy Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and which manager they could to turn to next.[This episode of the Athletic Football Podcast was originally broadcast as a live stream] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.