Tottenham full back Djed Spence joins Rio and Joel and delivers a fascinating insight into the role of a current full-back in the Premier League. He reveals why Antonio Conte was “never happy” at Spurs and the role team mate James Maddison has played in his recent run of impressive form plus his reaction to Maddison's back and forth with Manchester United legend Roy Keane.

Spence believes he suffered from being “too humble” after arriving at Spurs and details the struggles he went through on loan spells in France and at Leeds. There’s reflection on his time at Middlesbrough under Neil Warnock and what happened in the altercation with Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola following a recent match.

Following intense scrutiny of Ange Postecoglu’s tactical principles, Spence reveals what the demands are for his players and why the players will never deviate from his strident philosophy.

He also discusses why he believes Kyle Walker is the Premier League’s best ever right-back and the two best players he’s played with and the importance of young players being able to show their personality and his reaction to Myles Lewis-Skelly’s Erling Haaland inspired celebration.

Timecodes:

00:02:30 Djed Spence Is Feeling Different This Season

00:04:15 How Long It Took For Djed To Feel Comfortable At Spurs

00:05:20 Difficulties Of Constantly Going Out On Loan

00:08:50 Djed “Football Is Not Fair”

00:11:00 Djed Give Too Much Respect To Spurs Teammates

00:14:05 Never Getting A Chance Until Now

00:14:40 Djed’s Reaction To Ange Comments On His Development

00:17:00 Rio Remembering Watching Djed When His Morale Was Low

00:18:15 Antonio Conte’s Management Of Djed

00:20:35 Djed’s Assessment Of Conte’s Quotes On Him

00:23:20 Neil Warnock “You’ll Either Be Non-League Or Premier League”

00:24:30 What Drives Djed To Be Better And Improve Every Day

00:25:05 Djed On What Pep Guardiola Said To Him Post-Match

00:28:00 Commenting On Doku’s Instagram - Players Personalities

00:29:55 Djed On Myles Lewis-Skelly’s Celebration

00:31:00 The Importance Of Player’s Showing Their Personalities

00:32:00 Was It Djed Spence Playing In YouTuber’s Charity Match?

00:34:10 What Are Djed And Spurs’ Ambitions? Aiming For England?

00:35:45 Which Players Does Djed Look Up To?

00:37:30 If Djed could Steal Any Attribute, Which Would It Be?

00:38:40 Why Djed Can’t Learn Extra Skills. Playing On “Autopilot”

00:40:20 Ange’s Very Clear Style Of Play

00:42:15 How Much Freedom Do Players Get Under Ange At Spurs?

00:45:00 Spurs Being A Young Squad - Who Gives The Best Advice?

00:46:00 James Maddison Is One Of The Best In The League

00:47:45 Who Are The Leaders In The Spurs Squad?

00:48:30 “Sky Is The Limit” For Archie Gray

00:49:10 Who Is The Hardest Opponent Djed Plays Against?

00:53:00 Centre Backs That Djed Rates Highly

00:54:30 Djed On His Style of Play And Best Attributes

00:56:10 Djed’s Dream 5-A-Side Team From Players He’s Played With

00:57:10 Desire Doue Is “Generational”

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Serial winner Marco Materazzi sits down in Qatar with Rio to discuss his favourite victory, the headbutt by Zinedine Zidane and why nobody can compare to the ability of his former team mate R9 Ronaldo.

Materazzi looks back at his time with Jose Mourinho and opens up about why he had such a positive impact on the treble-winning Inter Milan side.

After spending 10 months in the Premier League with Everton, Materazzi also discusses how the game has evolved in England and in Italy and reveals who his idols were when he was beginning his career.

You’ll also hear why Zlatan Ibrahimovic wasn’t able to make an impact at Inter in the same way Samuel Eto’o did and why defending now is ‘easier’ when compared to his playing days.

R9 = Cristiano and Messi Combined!

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Former Leicester, Chelsea and Manchester United midfielder Danny Drinkwater joins Rio and Joel to discuss coming through at the club when Rio was a senior pro, the partnership he enjoyed with N’Golo Kante at Leicester and gives his unfiltered take on his time at Chelsea.

Drinkwater reveals the way the former owners tried to force him out of the club, what happened during tense meetings when he was looking for a transfer move and the players that helped him when he was in and around the first team.

There’s special praise for Paul Scholes and Cristiano Ronaldo from his time at Old Trafford and Drinkwater reveals a surprising reason for the success of the title winning Leicester City side from 2016.

Drinkwater admits he regrets a loan move to Aston Villa didn’t work out and why he got fined two weeks wages for an incident on the training ground.

There’s a review of Liverpool’s Carabao Cup Final loss to Newcastle, how Slot’s team should have changed their defensive set-up at corners and why Rio thinks that loss could have an impact on the contract negotiations of Mohamed Salah, Virgil; Van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold. 

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Former coach of the England senior and U21 side, Joleon Lescott joins Rio and Joel to analyse the players that he worked with whilst at the FA. There’s a debate around who is the best English holding midfielder, praise for Djed Spence and memories of how Steven Gerrard would make team mates “crumble” during matches with a simple withering look.

Curtis Jones is a player that Lescott has admired since he worked with the midfielder at the U21s so the trio analyse what has made him step up a level this year for club and country. And there’s insight into the simple messages required from coaches who get the best out of maverick players like Cole Palmer.

And Lescott also details the thoughts and considerations for the coaching staff and Thomas Tuchel for picking the players that were named in the squad.

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Yes guys! I’m back for Rio Reacts, delivered by Just Eat and Pepsi Max, bringing you my raw reactions to all the biggest talking points from the UEFA Champions League.

In this episode, we dive deep into:

Lamine Yamal's Historic Performance: Is he the best 17-year-old we've ever seen? We compare his rise to legends like Messi, Rooney, and Owen.

PSG's European Threat: How impressed are we by their dominance? And who's the standout player? Plus, we discuss Van Dijk's future.

My Ultimate UCL Front 3: If you're heading into the final, who are your top picks? Kane, Yamal, Rodrygo, and more!

Plus my Predictions on who will win the Champions League!

Big shoutout to Just Eat and Pepsi Max for the amazing prizes. We reveal last week's winner and set this week's challenge: Build your Ultimate Current Champions League Player! Get creative and share your answers on X!

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Rio and Joel are joined by former England coach and Premier League winner Joleon Lescott to discuss the reports about Kobbie Maine’s contractual situation, debate how much the midfielder is worth to the club and prospective buyers and analyse the way that Ruben Amorim tweaked his philosophy in the draw against Arsenal plus there’s a review of the performance of youngster Ayden Heaven.

There’s analysis of Arsenal’s struggles in front of goal and the type of striker that Mikel Arteta needs to buy as well as debating whether there’s a realistic prospect of the Spaniard winning a title at the Emirates. Rio also opens up a debate as to whether the club would benefit more from selling William Saliba in order to purchase Alexander Isak.

Rio discusses some data which suggests Arteta’s side are still relying on their right-hand side attack to create and score despite losing their talisman on the wing, Bukayo Saka who receives special praise from Lescott who coached him at England and reveals his single ‘world class attribute’.

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Yes guys! Welcome to Rio Reacts, delivered by Just Eat and Pepsi Max, where I give you my raw and unfiltered reaction to the biggest talking points from Europe’s biggest stage. Joined by my good mate and the voice of football, Darren Fletcher, we dive deep into the heart of the Champions League.

In this episode, we dissect the intense atmosphere of PSG vs. Liverpool, exploring the pressure cooker environment and how it compares to my playing days. Was Liverpool lucky to escape with a result? We break down key moments, including a controversial potential red card and a game-changing substitution from Arne Slot.

Arsenal's historic 7-1 away victory. Can they win the Champions League? We discuss their potential path to the final and the remarkable achievement of scoring seven goals away from home in a knockout tie. Plus, we celebrate the rise of young talents like Ethan Nwaneri and debate his future potential, comparing him to other young stars making waves in the competition.

Finally, we round up the strongest contenders for the Champions League title after the first leg.

Fan’s Edition Delivered by Just Eat & Pepsi Max:

It’s time for you to get involved! This Champions League gameweek, I want to know: What’s your Ultimate Matchday Meal? Share your answers with tweets, photos, or videos on X! The best response wins an incredible prize. Find all the details and T&Cs in the Rio Ferdinand Presents Instagram bio.

Don’t forget to tune in every gameweek for more Rio Reacts and your chance to win unbelievable prizes from Just Eat and Pepsi Max. Get involved and let your voice be heard!

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Manchester United legend Andrew Cole joins Rio and Joel to analyse the club’s recent performances and their struggles in front of goal. Cole gives advice to Rasmus Hojlund and 17 year old Chido Obi and praises Bruno’s ability and mentality.

There’s special praise for former captain Roy Keane both as a leader and as a player as well as former strike partner Dwight Yorke. Cole admits he doesn’t think his career gets the credit it deserves and discusses the shortage of elite number 9s in the game today.

Cole also discusses Erling Haaland’s ability and reveals that there’s only three strikers that he thought was better than him from his era, along with the striker he thought was the “best finisher”.

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Rio and Joel are joined by a Professor of football finance, Kieran Maguire to analyse Manchester United’s financial position after they announced their “financial transformation plan". Maguire discusses the potential ’naivety’ shown by INEOS, the impact of the job losses on the club’s PSR and details the moves made by the hierarchy that have caused the most damage to the club’s finances.

The trio also discuss how much the Glazers are hampering Man Utd’s performances with the way the debt from their purchase in 2005 is being serviced.

Rio discusses the inadvertent effect of PSR on the way clubs are looking to sell their academy products before analysing the team’s performance in the 2-2 draw with Everton. You’ll hear why Bruno Fernandes is being ‘disrespected’ and Rio gives some advice for the squad in a bid to improve their confidence.

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Real Madrid’s number one joins Rio to discuss his career and achievements after he accepted a title at the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai. He reveals how players like Jude Bellingham, Vinicius Jr. and Antony Rudiger integrated themselves into the Madrid squad and what they’re like off the pitch.

Courtois reserves special praise for Diego Simeone’s winning culture and obsession and credits the three seasons on loan at Atletico Madrid as a huge reason why he has achieved so much.

There’s analysis of players like Eden Hazard and Karim Benzema and reflections on why Belgium’s golden generation were not able to win anything.

Jose Mourinho played a big role in Courtois’ development so he shares stories about the ’Special One’ including how he intentionally blanked him after a match and why his constant striving to tap into the mentality of players may have contributed to players like Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah needing to move away from Stamford Bridge.

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