A new series of Nessun Dorma starts with the first part of our deep dive into Euro 88, the last major tournament in Europe before the big bang of Italia 90. Martyn Ramsay, Gary Naylor and Rob Smyth set the scene for a much anticipated tournament. “Whatever happens,” wrote David Lacey in his preview for the Guardian, “the 1988 European Championship should set new standards on the field.” Martyn, Gary and Rob discuss where football was at in 1988, recall the highlights of qualification – including Ireland’s favourite Scotsman and the Cypriot keeper who was almost blown up – and preview each team’s prospects ahead of the tournament. Were England valid second favourites? How much did we know about the Netherlands? And who was Matthias Herget? The draw Group 1 West Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark Group 2 England, Netherlands, USSR, Republic of Ireland Pre-tournament odds 7/4 West Germany 5/1 England, Netherlands 13/2 Italy 7/1 USSR 11/1 Spain, Denmark 25/1 Republic of Ireland 

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S5 Ep1: Euro 88 special (tournament preview)

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Our last draft of the year goes back to 1984-85, the season when the greatest team in Everton’s history romped to glory. Martyn, Gary and Mac Millings select their XIs from Division One that season. As you can imagine, Gary is like a pig in Chardonnary throughout. 

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The Nessun Dorma Draft: Division One 1984-85

Martyn and Rob are joined by Rob Fletcher (aka 90s Football Writer) to pick their England XIs from a storied decade. As well as reaching the semi-finals of Italia 90 and Euro 96, England were involved in a true World Cup classic at France 98 and reached Euro 92 when it was still an eight-team tournament. Let’s not dwell on what happened when they got there). Some players were mainstays for large parts of the 1990s: Paul Gascoigne, Alan Shearer, David Platt, Stuart Pearce, David Seaman, Paul Ince and Tony Adams. Others burned brightly and briefly at either end of the decade: Gary Lineker, Michael Owen, Chris Waddle, Paul Scholes and Mark Wright. You can listen the pod and then vote for the winning team @nessundormapod. 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nessundorma.substack.com

The Nessun Dorma Draft: England in the 1990s

With the 2023 World Cup entering its final week, Martyn, Gary and Rob are joined by Jonathan Hungin and Andrew Miller for another cricket draft - this time the fondly remembered 1992 edition in Australia and New Zealand. It was the first World Cup with coloured clothing, white balls and Powerplays at the start of the innings. After a wretched start to the tournament, Pakistan’s cornered tigers roared to victory, beating England in a memorable final at the MCG. This was a different era of ODI cricket, with only eight centuries scored in the entire tournament. But it was chockfull of legends of the past, present and future, from 39-year-old Imran Khan to 18-year-old Sachin Tendulkar, not to mention some celebrated one-tournament wonders. These are the rules of the Nessun Dorma draft: * Each player can only be picked by one person. When Wasim Akram has gone, he’s gone. * Players are judged solely on their performances in the 1992 World Cup. So, for one draft only, Eddo Brandes is a better pick than Malcolm Marshall. * You decide who wins the draft. Go to Twitter/X (@nessundormapod) on Wednesday morning to choose which team you think is the best. The poll will close at 5pm on Friday (UK time). 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nessundorma.substack.com

The Nessun Dorma Draft: Cricket World Cup 1992

Nessun Dorma ventures into new territory this week, with Martyn and Rob joined by two special guests for our first ever cricket episode. Jonathan Hungin and Andrew Miller, who worked with Rob at Wisden.com at the turn of the century, join us to draft their XIs from the memorable 1999 World Cup. The list of players includes all-time greats hitting the heights (Shane Warne, Steve Waugh, Glenn McGrath, Rahul Dravid, Wasim Akram, Allan Donald) and unheralded players having the best month of their careers (Gavin Hamilton, Neil Johnson, Geoff Allott). Somewhere in the middle was Lance Klusener, who dominated the tournament to a frightening degree before a devastating twist in the semi-final against Australia. These are the rules of the Nessun Dorma draft: * Each player can only be picked by one person. When Klusener has gone, he’s gone. * Players are judged solely on their performances in the 1999 World Cup. So, for one draft only, Moin Khan and Ridley Jacobs are better picks than Adam Gilchrist. * You decide who wins the draft. Go to Twitter/X (@nessundormapod) on Wednesday morning to choose which team you think is the best. The poll will close at 5pm on Friday (UK time). 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nessundorma.substack.com

The Nessun Dorma Draft: Cricket World Cup 1999

Martyn and Rob are joined by Rob Fletcher, author of 1992: The Birth of Modern Football, and Ally Bain of Retro Football Analysis to pick their teams from a classic European season. Marquee picks include Raul, Oliver Kahn, Gaizka Mendieta, Fernando Redondo, Patrick Kluivert, Mario Jardel, Roy Keane, Luis Figo, Rivaldo and Jaap Stam. A reminder of the rules of the Nessun Dorma draft: * Each player can only be picked by one person. When Raul has gone, he’s gone. * Players are judged solely on their performances in the Champions League in 1999-2000. So, for one season only, Ivan Campo is a better pick than Tony Adams. * You decide who wins the draft. Go to Twitter/X (@nessundormapod) on Wednesday morning to choose which team you think is the best. The poll will close at 5pm on Friday (UK time). 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nessundorma.substack.com

S5 Ep1: Euro 88 special (tournament preview)

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