Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Germany legend Michael Ballack joins Jeff Stelling to discuss his Top 5 Bundesliga players. 

Which midfielder was the best player Michael Ballack played with during his career?
Who has seen off all-comers at Bayern Munich?
Who has changed the way his position on the football pitch is played?

As well as picking his Top 5, Ballack gives his opinion on England’s Jude Bellingham, marks out what has impressed him about Xabi Alonso’s managerial career so far and recalls how he felt when his former clubs Chelsea and Bayern Munich contested the 2012 Champions League Final.

Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket production with BBC Studios.



Football's Greatest Top 5: Michael Ballack - "Jude Bellingham is better than I was"

Welcome to Football's Greatest with Jeff Stelling, a weekly podcast where the legendary host sits down with icons of the sport to talk about those who made a difference in the beautiful game from a players’ perspective: the top keepers, the toughest defenders, the silkiest midfielders and the deadliest strikers. 

The show will also look at those who had great influence off the pitch too - the successful managers, the funniest team-mates and the most impressive leaders in the dressing room - and pay homage to indelible moments from the biggest matches in the Premier League, Champions League, the World Cup and more.

Broken down into two individual episodes with each guest, Football’s Greatest will take you inside the dressing rooms of some of the best soccer teams the world has ever seen. You will hear stories that surprise you, that make you laugh out loud and that you will be thinking of and telling people about for days after.

Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket production with BBC Studios.

Follow Football's Greatest:
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Sports

Football

Soccer

What makes a great leader in football? Thats’s the question Jeff is asking former Liverpool captain Phil Thompson on this week’s episode of the pod. Thommo was himself a born leader, who lifted the European Cup as captain in 1981.

He talks about how Bill Shankly mapped out his entire career and the time Bob Paisley gave him his biggest rollicking, the best leaders he played with and why captaincy seems to matter more in the UK. He also reveals:


the player that scared him the most

how he pranked an England legend into believing he was joining Liverpool

what he really thought about Alex Ferguson’s great Manchester United sides


Phil also talks about some of his lowest moments, including losing the captaincy at Liverpool to Graeme Souness and being overlooked to be England skipper at the 1982 World Cup, and recalls why Steve Gerrard took the armband from Sami Hyypia at Anfield and his emotional team talk before his first match as Liverpool’s caretaker manager.


You can catch our previous episode with Phil Thompson, where he picked his Top 5 Liverpool players, here:

YouTube - https://youtu.be/eLh7e5tZrow?si=aNp7t-cCv0tM5CpJ

Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/footballs-greatest/id1721822502?i=1000647187436

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/episode/5dp0JDg6L2l47xrEX83bp8?si=20fa506086d5416d



Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket Production with BBC Studios.


Follow Football's Greatest and join in the debate:

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Football's Greatest: Phil Thompson | "I admire Gary Neville, believe it or not”

Who were the top 5 British players of the 1980s? Arsenal, Celtic, Aberdeen and Scotland legend Charlie Nicholas discusses his picks with Jeff on the latest episode of the pod.

Who was so good that even Diego Maradona was impressed?
Which opponent used to encourage you during a game?
Which defender used to pull your ears off the ball?

Along the way he explains how joining Arsenal stopped him being picked for Scotland, reveals who his favourite strike partner was during his career and which current Premier League player he’d most like to play alongside.

Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket Production with BBC Studios.


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Football's Greatest Top 5: Charlie Nicholas - "I wasn't picked for Scotland because I joined Arsenal"

This week’s guest joining Jeff Stelling is the former Coventry, Celtic and Scotland manager Gordon Strachan. They look back on his career as a player with Aberdeen, Manchester United and Leeds United and he gives us plenty of stories about managerial legends like Sir Alex Ferguson, Jock Stein, Howard Wilkinson and Ron Atkinson including:


How Fergie scared the Aberdeen players into winning

Why Jock Stein could be brutal with his own players

Whether Big Ron really had a sunbed at the training ground


Gordon also recalls when Fergie banned the players wives from the team bus after a Scottish Cup Final win, the time he and a team-mate dared to ask the great man for a transfer and why winning promotion with Leeds was so special.

He also explains why managing Celtic or Rangers is the biggest test you can face as a manager, how he dealt with difficult characters in his Scotland squads, facing the brilliant Brazil team at the 1982 World Cup and the trip to Tenerife where he ended up in a lookalike competition…as himself.

Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket Production with BBC Studios.


Follow Football's Greatest and join in the debate:

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@footballsgreatestpod
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Football’s Greatest: Gordon Strachan - "Fergie’s petrol was anger"

Kane, Gascoigne, Greaves, Klinsmann, Modric, Bale, Mackay, Waddle, Ardiles, Son, Lineker, Sheringham.

Tottenham have had some great players down the years but who would be in your top 5? That’s the question Jeff Stelling asks Spurs legend Glenn Hoddle in this week’s episode of the pod.


Which forward glided across the pitch?

Who played football like it was a chess match?

Which legend was partly responsible for Glenn being picked up by the club?


Glenn also explains why he thinks Harry Kane finds playing in Germany easier than the Premier League and why he may not have named Alan Shearer as his club captain despite him being his England skipper. 

Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket Production with BBC Studios.


Listen to or watch our previous episode with Glenn Hoddle where he discussed Football's Greatest Midfielders here:

Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/footballs-greatest/id1721822502?i=1000648872418

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/episode/4Dd1hfyKHSgqLKuXlXhopr?si=CPK2ucuwQgOaZZ_DKeXk7w

Watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/Lg3okOZf9l4?si=MgzBZvwNTWoNH6Ur


Follow Football's Greatest and join in the debate:

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@footballsgreatestpod
Instagram: www.instagram.com/footballsgreatestpod
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ftblsgreatest
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@footballsgreatestpod
Facebook: www.facebook.com/footballsgreatestpod
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Football’s Greatest: Glenn Hoddle - Kane would’ve walked into Man City’s team

Matt Le Tissier may not have been a great goalscorer like Alan Shearer or Harry Kane but he was a scorer of great goals. In our latest REPLAY with Jeff Stelling, Le Tiss talks through some of those that have gone down in Premier League folklore and why he was able to often produce brilliant moments.


Which was the best goal from his canon?

Which goals were a turning point in his football career?

What’s his favourite of his strikes?


He also chats about chipping Peter Schmeichel, why he was never afraid to look stupid when playing football and how he compared to another dead ball specialist: David Beckham. That leads to him recalling the day he took part in a free-kick competition in England training with Becks and then manager Glenn Hoddle. But who came out on top?

Football's Greatest is a Folding Pocket Production with BBC Studios.


Listen to or watch the full episode of Football's Greatest Set Piece Takers with Matt Le Tissier here:

Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/footballs-greatest/id1721822502?i=1000645130118

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/episode/0oX5y0VsMI0t3Z1Iz2y6Wb?si=00476557f57b4de3

Watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/V-qPu3ESR-8?si=hL0MP6XLYErwqGkX



Follow Football's Greatest and join in the debate:

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@footballsgreatestpod
Instagram: www.instagram.com/footballsgreatestpod
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ftblsgreatest
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@footballsgreatestpod
Facebook: www.facebook.com/footballsgreatestpod
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Football's Greatest Top 5: Michael Ballack - "Jude Bellingham is better than I was"

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