Footy On The Med

It's a journey to the belly of the beast for John and Alex, as they join Les Nicois in the Populaire Sud for Nice v Paris St Germain. It's loud. It's raucous. It's intense. It's everything that a beast's belly should be. It's also a game of two halves, the first of which was engaging and brimful of tidy touches by Lionel Messi, while the second was so dull that the intrepid duo left before the final whistle. They missed Andy Delort's late winner to make it Nice 1, PSG 0 but comforted themselves by getting from Nice to Menton in under an hour, when their previous late night return from the Allianz Riviera had been a three hour marathon. Look out for an impromptu quiz, some industrial language and a brilliant prediction by John. Recorded at the Allianz Riviera on Saturday on Saturday 5 March 2022.

The jinxed Allianz Riviera loomed large for Nice v Versailles in the semi-final of the Coupe de France - but would Alex and John make it? If they did, would they be in time for kick-off? Would they finally meet Mefi the Eagle? The intrepid duo achieved two of their three goals for a pulsating game which the home side won 2-0, thanks to goals by the outstanding Amine Gouri and Kasper Dolberg. Versailles, from French football's fourth tier, acquitted themselves admirably but perhaps most impressive was the crowd. Les Nicois were in full swing, roaring on Le Gym to bag a place in the final against Nantes. What a season so far for Nice, and what a ground the Allianz Riviera is, if you're there for more than just the second half. Still no Mefi, though. Recorded at the Allianz Riviera on Tuesday 1 March 2022. More at FootyOnTheMed.com

Marseille v Brest... Genoa v Sampdoria... Monaco v Marseille... Barcelona v Real Madrid... Great atmospheres, all, but Footy on the Med's trip to the RCDE Stadium yielded the best yet. What a game. What a sound. What passion and energy. John and Alex couldn't believe their luck in being present for Espanyol's home game v arch-rivals Barcelona. The minnows put on a fantastic performance and all but nicked a 2-1 win. The match was absorbing from start to finish, so much so that the Three Facts were forgotten - although guest Producer Fred and John did find time to explain to Alex that dogs and bears are not related. Class came through in stoppage time as Adama Traore capped a superb game with an inch-perfect cross to the head of Frenkie de Jong. Epsanyol's keeper, the impressive Diego Lopez, could only get the proverbial despairing hand to it. The game ended 2-2, and everyone was gutted. Recorded at the RCDE Stadium on Sunday 13 February 2022.

Spare a thought for Villefranche SJB. John and Alex did, after witnessing The Team with the Amazing No. 10 (27-year-old Elyes Ayeche) collapse in an away game to local rivals, AS Cannes. Ayeche wasn't playing and he was sorely missed, though the final score - 5-0 - was perhaps a little flattering to the hosts. This was a curious outing for FootyontheMed: for once, John and Alex were early, but the game inexplicably started late; the Stade Pierre de Courbetin was impressive, if you considered its two touchline stands, but less so, given the total lack of any provision for fans behind either goal; a man dispensed honey-coated peanuts to the faithful and the hopefully late, great Billy Aitken made an appearance. Look out for some words from Montpellier star, English-born striker Stephy Mavididi, musings on zig-zags and a cautionary tale of a slight excess of speed. Recorded at the Stade Pierre de Courbetin, Cannes, on Saturday 5 February 2022.

John and Alex go posh: yes, it's a trip to the old money football mecca of Cap Ferrat for the clash between Villefranche Saint-Jean Beaulieu and Rousset Ste Victoire. The visitors return to Provence with a 1-0 win thanks to a goal by Sofiane Sidi Ali, but in Elyes Ayeche, Villefranche's no. 10, Footy on the Med encounters a prodigious, but baffling, talent. With an exquisite touch, strength and pace, why is the 27-year-old Ayeche playing in the lower reaches of French football? John and Alex fail to find the answer but have a blast at one of world football's most upmarket locales, complete with mini-ultras, Ferraris, Friedrich Nietzsche, Mr Woo and a tale of a miraculous Weimaraner. Oh, and some time travel to QPR v Swansea. Recorded on 29 January 2022 at Stade JSSJB, 2 Bd du Général de Gaulle, Cap Ferrat.

With their highly developed, unparalleled detective skills, it was only a matter of time before John and Alex unearthed the gem on their doorstep. Yes, that’s right: at last they realised that Menton, their hometown, has a football club. Rapid Omnisports de Menton, to be precise. The fearless duo made the short walk from their homes for Menton’s home game v Cagnes-les-Cros. Families and friends came too, and what with this being a game in the lower reaches of the French football pyramid, the ambience was light on flares, strong on… children running around, the Mediterranean shimmering a short distance away, the sun shining and all-round bonhomie. Except on the pitch, that is. The tackles were industrial verging on criminal, a player was sent off and there was a fight. Have a listen for a benign and gentle outing which ended 1-1, with nothing going wrong at all. Except one thing…

Recorded at the Lucien Rhein Stadium on Sunday 23 January 2022.

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It's the first game of the new year and, deprived of live football for four weeks, John and Alex are excited. Better yet, this game - Nice v Nantes at the Allianz Riviera stadium - is just down the road from their Menton base. Last time they were there, they were only half there (they missed the first half). This time, aided by Paddy 'Dr Patrick' Kennedy and Luciano the Chef (who's also an Architect), they arrive early enough to enjoy a meal at Les Copains in Nice. Surely, with hours to spare, nothing can go wrong this time? Arriving too late for Mefi the Eagle? Equipment failure? Confusing Patrick Kluivert with his son, Justin? Er, well... Nice 2, Nantes 1 was recorded at the Allianz Riviera stadium on Friday 14 January 2022.

Footy on the Med goes home. Well, to its home from home - the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. This is John and Alex's third trip to Genoa and this time it's for the Derby della Lanterna, as Il Grifone take on arch-rivals Sampdoria. There's a lot at stake, with Genoa anchored in Serie A's drop-zone and Sampdoria looking for a win to take them to mid-table security. This is a game about tradition and local pride: Genoa, Italy's oldest professional football club, versus the new kid on the block, Sampdoria. A match to claim the bragging rights to Genoa's lighthouse of lighthouses, the fifth tallest in the world; a match whose significance is encapsulated by what happened when Samp were relegated from Serie A in 2011. More than 30,000 Genoa fans staged a mock funeral procession through the city, carrying a coffin draped in blue. The Navigator - complete with an inside-out Samp hat - joins John and Alex for a convincing 1-3 win to Samp. It was a game of intensity, flares and some perilous chanting on dangerous parts of one of Europe's great, old-school rectangular stadia. Recorded at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Friday 10 December 2021.

It's a first in the recent history of Footy on the Med: John and Alex arrive at a game before kick-off. This small but significant success was due not to a new-found badge of organisational excellence but a simple fact: The Navigator was back in town. Thanks to The Navigator's eponymous skills, there was even time for pizza at Un Jardin de Ville before slick-passing, high-flying Marseille took on mid-table but in form Brest at the magnificent Stade Velodrome. The game is FOTM's highlight so far, with a pumping, high-octane atmosphere throughout, brilliant football by both sides and even some commentary in French from Estate Agent Eric. It ended 2-1 to Brest - the Brittany's side's sixth win in a row - making for a memorable day out in the city of Jean-Claude Izzo. Recorded at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Saturday 4 December 2021. Find out more on FootyOnTheMed.com

Can you watch three European games in three successive days? If one of them is Monaco v Real Sociedad, will you be given the secret to making perfecto spaghetti carbonara? Why is Monaco's motto - 'Rise. Risk. Repeat' - in English, not French? John and Alex head to the Stade Louis II for a Group B Europa League clash between high-flying Monaco and second-placed Real Sociedad, not expecting to encounter any of these questions. They also failed to factor in the home side's security policy, which meant that most of their recording gear was impounded in a nice, well-maintained cabin, just outside the ground next to the Ferrari dealership. There it languished for the entirety of the game but Footy on the Med is nothing if not resourceful: the determined pair still managed to record their thoughts, observations and, in Alex's case, delight at the news, thanks to an English contingent sitting behind them, that Adel Taarabt played a blinder at Camp Nou. (That's Camp Now - hat-tip to Producer Fred.) Monaco ran out 2-1 winners, confounding John's prediction of a 2-1 Real Sociedad win and provoking him into musings on the meaning of the number 0. If it exists, that is. Recorded at the Stade Louis II on Thursday, 25 November 2021.