Hand Of Pod

The two hundred and forty-ninth episode of Hand Of Pod sees Sam and Andrés discuss a week of domestic action which saw Boca Juniors lose for the first time since the opening weekend, San Lorenzo also defeated and an Ignacio Scocco hat trick for Newell's Old Boys (surprisingly, his first) put the top of the title race back to how it was two weeks ago. River Plate impressed away to Lanús on Tuesday, and there's plenty more to talk about besides. Not least, Argentina's World Cup qualifying clash at home to Chile on Thursday evening, which we preview, and whether Mauro Icardi should maybe be in the squad given he appears incapable of entering a pitch without scoring at least one goal these days.

The first weekend of Argentine football this year has finally been played, and in HOP248 Sam and Andrés are here to go over the main talking points, consider how many teams were affected by a long and hard-to-time-just-right pre-season (nearly all of them) and look at whether this factor also influenced performances in the Copa Libertadores (yes). Boca Juniors were the undoubted winners of the weekend, though San Lorenzo also took advantage. Listeners' questions include Copa Libertadores qualification rules this year and our opinion of Lautaro Martínez. A series of technical errors befell this recording, so you might notice the odd slight jump in sound or speech as bits had to be cut slightly, but enjoy!

What on Earth is going on in the world of Argentine football? The season was supposed to get underway on the second weekend of February and was only finally scheduled at all last week, and now we have some dates and kick off times it's still not been anything like clear whether this weekend's matches will even be played. Sam, English Dan and Andrés are back for the first HOP of 2017, and even by the standards set by Argentine football since we started recording in 2010, this one might get eye-wateringly confusing. Allow us to guide you through the summer break in Argentina, the vested interests, the arguments and the recriminations, as we attempt to explain to the layperson just what the bloody hell is happening (and, indeed, work that out ourselves). This episode is out of date before it's even online - there was no way we could avoid that - but the uncertainty over whether games will take place is still just as strong a mere 24 hours from the supposed start of action. The chaos is back.

The two hundred and forty-sixth episode of Hand Of Pod is the last one of the year. Sam, Andrés and English Dan round up the last week of Primera action this year, which included two good results for River Plate (who claimed the Copa Argentina last week), another big win for Boca Juniors, who thus end the year at the top of the table, more dropped points for Estudiantes and plenty of other talking points, including a number of emotional farewells to players and various managers either resigning or being fired. As well as all this, there's also time to take a brief look at the current situation regarding TV rights for next year - which is currently up in the air. You'll be hearing from us again at the end of the summer break - if you're celebrating over the next week or two, enjoy!

The two hundred and forty-fifth episode of Hand Of Pod is the penultimate one of 2016, and Sam and Andrés meet to discuss Boca Juniors' 4-2 away win over River Plate in what - even as River sympathisers - we cant deny was a tremendously entertaining superclásico. Carlos Tevez was superb, and as well as praising his performance we also look at the reports he might be off to China soon. For River, there's a chance for some compensation in the form of the Copa Argentina final against Rosario Central, which is played on the evening this podcast goes live, and could see one - or both - of the managers, Marcelo Gallardo for River and Eduardo Coudet for Central, leave their club. All this, and there's still one more round of league action to preview, thanks to the one-week delay to the season kicking off back in August. As a result of that, we'll be back next week with an unusually festive edition.

The two hundred and forty-fourth episode of Hand Of Pod sees Sam and Peter meet to discuss Independiente's first win in a while, against River Plate's reserve side, and look into some of the struggles Gabriel Milito faces as manager. We have praise for Boca Juniors after an impressive win over Racing, ask whether Estudiantes' grip on first place is slipping, and look at Banfield's remarkable upturn in form, as a week after beating the league leaders they've now claimed a win over second placed Newell's Old Boys. All this, and some pre-superclásico thoughts too, as River Plate prepare to host Boca Juniors this Sunday. Enjoy!

The two hundred and forty-third episode of Hand Of Pod couldn't be solely about Argentine football, given events earlier in the week. Sam, Andrés and guest Lex meet up to discuss some of the Argentine reaction to the tragic plane crash on Monday night, with tributes planned across Argentina - and the rest of the continent - this weekend. There's also a look at a surprisingly entertaining clásico de Avellaneda, a very good performance from Boca Juniors and a rather fortunate win for River Plate, as well as Estudiantes' first defeat of the season, among much more.

The two hundred and forty-second episode of Hand Of Pod brings together Sam and Andrés to talk about a weekend in which the football was overshadowed in many press pages by Teo Gutiérrez once again being Teo Gutiérrez. The Rosario Central forward was sent off for his goal celebration during a 1-1 draw in La Bombonera. Elsewhere, River Plate lost 1-0 away to Newell's Old Boys, and there are rumours beginning that Marcelo Gallardo could leave the club if he fails to bring home the Copa Argentina (the semi-finals of which will be played next week). Estudiantes still lead the league, and have found a replacement for injured goalkeeper Mariano Andújar at last, while the relegation situation is beginning to clarify a little even with twenty games still to go (we're sticking our necks out now and saying Atlético de Rafaela will go down). There's also news about the television rights negotiations.

The two hundred and forty-first episode of Hand Of Pod sees Sam and Andrés celebrate the podcast's sixth birthday by discussing two Argentina matches; last Thursday's awful defeat to Brazil in Belo Horizonte, and Tuesday's much-improved win over Colombia in San Juan. Does the national team need a clearout? If so, who should be the new names coming in? We also round up some of the main stories from the last week, including Argentinos Juniors arguing with River Plate over youth recruitment, and suggestions that Argentina's next World Cup qualifier, at home to Chile in March, could be played at La Bombonera. Oh, and there's a return to league action this weekend to look forward to.

In the two hundred and fortieth episode of Hand Of Pod, Sam and Andrés discuss a weekend of Primera action in which River Plate improved somewhat from recent showings to draw with top of the league Estudiantes, and Boca Juniors won away in the league for the first time since February. There was also an impressive win for Racing against Newell's Old Boys, while Independiente dominated but still couldn't score against Rosario Central. The main course of this week's podcast is of course a preview of Argentina's World Cup qualifier away to Brazil in Belo Horizonte on Thursday night, with a switch to 4-4-2 and the return to Lionel Messi the main talking points in the Argentine camp.