The Game

By The TimesSports News Entertainment News Soccer

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The Game episodes

April 13, 2023 "The Biggest Vanity Job You’ve Ever Seen"
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Tony Cascarino and Tom Clarke in London - and Gregor Robertson in Ghent.

Chelsea have it all to do in their Champions League second leg against Real Madrid. Was Frank Lampard the best choice and did the club wait too long to part company with Graham Potter? (00:00)

Manchester City have a lot less to worry about against Bayern Munich. Have they found form at the right time and will they finally achieve European glory? (22:07)

Dean Smith is in at Leicester City. Is he a good choice and did the club miss a trick in keeping the faith with Brendan Rodgers for so long? (40:30)

Liverpool are said to have cooled their interest in Jude Bellingham and Gregor tells us about his trip to Wrexham as we round up the other big stories of the week (52:26)

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1 hr 8 min
April 10, 2023 The Title Races Take Another Twist & More VAR Drama In The Premier League!
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson and Alyson Rudd to look back at the weekend's Premier League football and discuss the biggest stories.
Arsenal draw 2-2 away at Liverpool in a thrilling game to round off the weekend's football, but with the gap now just 6 points between them and Manchester City, are they still favourites to lift the title? What did the panel also make on Trent Alexander-Arnold's new position and his performance in general? (00:00)
Aaron Ramsdale pulled off a string of fantastic saves in the draw at Anfield, but should the Arsenal goalkeeper now be considered England's Number 1? (18:30)
What punishment should Assistant Referee Constantine Hatzidakis receive for his altercation with Andy Robertson? We discuss that and also how behaviour towards officials need to change, and what punishment will allow those changes to happen? (24:10)
VAR was again the talking point at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as Brighton lose 2-1 to Spurs in an incident packed game. The PGMOL have since apologised to Brighton for their error in not awarding them a penalty, but how can we stop the constant scrutiny on VAR decisions? (46:45)
Bournemouth moved out of the relegation zone with a 1-0 win at Leicester City, they discuss the job Gary O'Neill is doing on the South Coast and ask how worried fans should be about Leicester's bid to stay in the top flight? They also look back at a huge win for Crystal Palace against relegation rivals Leeds United. (54:50)
Frank Lampard began his second stint in charge of Chelsea with a 1-0 defeat at Wolves, but what is the point of re-appointing him if they don't beat Real Madrid in the Champions League? (1:06:15)

Ian Hawkey joins the show to look ahead to the week's Champions League action, and discuss how Bayern are faring ahead of meeting Manchester City, and how important it is to have the likes of Napoli and AC Milan in the latter stages. (1:10:30)
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1 hr 23 min
April 06, 2023 Lampard Returns To Chelsea & Will More Owners Sack Their Managers?
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke and Tom Roddy to look back at the midweek Premier League football and discuss the biggest stories.
Frank Lampard has return to Chelsea as their interim manager until the end of the season, but was it a right decision? Will that galvanize the players ahead of the Champions League, or should they have stuck with Potter if there permanent replacement will be appointed in the summer? (00:00)
West Ham were thrashed 5-1 at home to Newcastle on Wednesday night, as the pressure ramps up on David Moyes. Should the club stick with him, or do they make a change to try and keep them in the league? (28:20)
Are Newcastle now favourites to finish in the Top 4? How much credit does Eddie Howe deserve for recovering from a mini-blip last month to lead them to third in the Premier League table? (34:40)
Nottingham Forest show their support to under-fire manager Steve Cooper, but if their eight-match winless run continues, should the club make a change, or is peer pressure from the supporters stopping the owners from sacking him? (38:00)
Leicester City are still without a manager as they lost at home to in-form Aston Villa - do we consider Aston Villa to be a threat next season under Unai Emery? Who should replace Rodgers at Leicester, Martin O'Neill or Rafael Benitez? (44:56)
Fulham's Aleksandr Mitrovic has been banned for 8 games for a push on referee Chris Kavanagh in their defeat to Manchester United last month, but is that the right amount of time, or does he deserve stronger punishment? (53:23)

We end the show by looking ahead to huge games in the EFL and National League, as Burnley can be promoted back to the Premier League this weekend, and Wrexham face Notts County in a huge game at the top of England's fifth tier. (1:00:30)

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1 hr 5 min
April 03, 2023 Potter Sacked, Rodgers Leaves & Should Liverpool Sell Alexander-Arnold?
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tony Cascarino and Alyson Rudd to look back at the weekend's Premier League football.
Graham Potter has been sacked as Chelsea manager after just 7 months in charge, we discuss where it went wrong for him, whether the ownership were at fault for hiring him in the first place, and who could potentially replace him at Stamford Bridge. (00:00)
Aston Villa go to Stamford Bridge and win 2-0, and with the points tally since Unai Emery was appointed only bettered by 3 of the Top 4 in the Premier League, can they make a late charge for Europe? (25:25)
Manchester City maintain their pressure on the league leaders Arsenal after dismantling Liverpool at the Etihad, but how poor were Liverpool, and should they start to conceding selling players such as Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold? (28:50)
Manchester United hold a dressing room inquest following their 2-0 defeat to Newcastle, but is Erik ten Hag already ahead when it comes to his long-term project at the club? Was this defeat a gentle reminder of how much work needs to be done before they're challenging at the top again? (45:40)

Brendan Rodgers leaves Leicester City by mutual consent - what can we do to ensure Premier League clubs are not just firing managers so frequently? Who do Leicester appoint in the interim? (59:48)

We end the show by discussing the weekend's other Premier League football, as West Ham beat Southampton, Bournemouth beat Fulham and Brighton and Brentford share the spoils in a six-goal thriller. (1:11:09)
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1 hr 16 min
March 30, 2023 Sensational Scotland Stun Spain & Roy's Return To The Dugout!
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Roddy and Jonathan Northcroft to look back at the weekend's International football, and look ahead to the return of the Premier League.
Scotland stun Spain with a 2-0 win at Hampden Park to top their Group after the first 2 games of Euro 2024 qualifying, how much credit should we give Steve Clarke for the job he has done with the national side, and what did we make of Rodri's comments about Scotland's style of play? (00:00)
Wales begin life without Gareth Bale with 4 points from their first 2 games - but has the team now been allowed to express themselves without having to fit around his style of play? (16:30)
What's going on at Spurs, and what's next for the club? They discuss the news that their Managing Director of Football Fabio Paratici's ban from football has been extended to worldwide. They also assess the job Daniel Levy has done at the club in the light of this story. (20:00)
Roy Hodgson returns to the Premier League as Crystal Palace manager at the age of 75 when they host Leicester on Saturday, but have the club made a step back with his appointment, and what would the ramifications be if they were to be relegated? (39:20)

The guys end the show by previewing the other big games and the bottom, and look ahead to a huge game at the top between Manchester City and Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium. (48:30)
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58 min
March 27, 2023 What Now For Spurs After Conte, And Is It Job Done For England?!
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson and Tony Cascarino to look back at the weekend's International football.
Spurs have parted company with Antonio Conte, was it always a marriage in hell? Does Daniel Levy deserve the criticism that has come his way? Is it more than just recruitment that's to blame? (00:00)
The former Bayern Munich manager Julien Nagelsmann has been linked with the role, but will he be a good appointment, or shall they appoint someone left-field such as Vincent Kompany (19:55)
Harry Kane surpasses Wayne Rooney to become England's all-time record goalscorer - is he the greatest England striker of all-time? (32:20)
England begin their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with two wins from two - they reflect on a 2-0 win for England against Ukraine, and praise the performances of Bukayo Saka and James Maddison. (42:26)
The guys reflect on the weekend's other International football, as Wales leave it late to secure a point against Croatia in Split, Scotland start their campaign off with a 3-0 thrashing of Cyprus, and the Republic of Ireland beat Latvia. (59:48)
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1 hr 10 min
March 23, 2023 Is Southgate under pressure?
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke, Michael Grant & Matt Lawton

Matt Lawton joins the show from Naples ahead of England's European Championship qualifier plus he gives an update on the protracted takeover of Manchester United.

Is Gareth Southgate under pressure despite qualification for Euro 2024 not even underway?

Michael Grant discusses Scotland as they play their first competitive fixture since September.

And after Mesut Ozil announcing his retirement how should he be remembered? A Premier League legend or a wasted talent?

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1 hr 3 min
March 20, 2023 Conte and Mitrovic take centre stage
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Tom Clarke & Tom Allnutt

Antonio Conte lets rip at his players after throwing away a 3-1 lead at Southampton. Should Conte keep his job? And was his rant directed at the board or the players?

Following the sacking of Patrick Vieira we discussed if that was the right decision. Still in 12th and after a tough run of fixtures should Vieira have been given more time?

Leeds picked up a huge three points as they won at fellow relegation rivals Wolves.

With Alexander Mitrovic losing his cool and being shown red for his actions at Old Trafford what should Mitrovic's punishment be?

Paul Heckingbottom continued to work wonders at Sheffield United with promotion back to the Premier League on the cards and now an FA Cup semi final.

Have Brighton unearthed another gem in Evan Ferguson?
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1 hr 23 min
March 16, 2023 Is Pep A Party Pooper?
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Ian Hawkey and Jonathan Northcroft.

Erling Haaland scored five goals in little over an hour for Manchester City in their 7-0 win over Leipzig. Can we finally put to bed the theory that he’s made their side worse? (00:00)

Liverpool are out of the Champions League after a comprehensive defeat over two legs against Real Madrid. How much of a rebuild do they need to be back challenging in Europe? (21:50)

Trent Alexander-Arnold is in the spotlight again after comments from Jamie Carragher. Is he reaching a crossroads in his career? (30:46)

Hugh gets his random Champions League quarter finals generator out to see how the teams left in the competition could get matched up and could we see a new name from Italy on the trophy this season? (39:12)

We share our favourite individual performances in the history of the Champions League, with a couple of surprise suggestions in the mix (45:00)

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55 min
March 13, 2023 What A Difference A Week Makes
Hugh Woozencroft is joined by Gregor Robertson, Alyson Rudd and Tony Cascarino.

Gary Lineker will return to MOTD this weekend after everything that transpired over the last few days. Have you ever seen football presented in such a miserable way as they did on Saturday night? (00:00)

Liverpool followed their thrashing of Manchester United with a 1-0 loss at Bournemouth. Can the south coast side stay up and will Liverpool bounce back to shock Real Madrid? (08:42)

Everton got a much-needed win over Brentford. How can they stay in the Premier League and how important will Goodison Park be to them? (27:04)

It’s been suggested that Ivan Toney is in line for another England call up - but should he be involved with the possibility of a lengthy ban on the horizon? (35:42)

Leeds battled to get a point against Brighton - was Roberto De Zerbi’s disappointment a sign of how far Brighton have come? (39:36)

How important was West Ham’s point against Aston Villa in their survival hopes under David Moyes? (46:17)

We round up the rest of the weekend’s games with big wins for Chelsea and Spurs (53:13)

Get more of The Times and The Sunday Times for less than £1 a day. Start your free trial: thetimes.co.uk/thegame
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1 hr 15 min