
The Commentators' View: Xmas bingo & different gravy
19/12/2025 | 52 mins.
John Murray, Ian Dennis & Ali Bruce-Ball discuss what it’s like being a commentator at Christmas. They look ahead to the festive schedule, Ian aims to stretch his lead in Clash of the Commentators, there are more unintended pub and film names, and which commentary phrases will end up in our Great Glossary? Suggestions welcome on WhatsApp voicenotes to 08000 289 369 & emails to [email protected]:40 What is Christmas like for commentators? 03:25 Is it right to play at 8pm on Boxing Day? 05:10 John gets wet at Newcastle 07:40 Christmas commentary bingo 12:30 John’s special treatment in Madrid 17:15 Commentary highlights this festive period 19:10 Unintended pub names & film titles 30:20 Clash of the Commentators 37:15 Great Glossary of Football Commentary5 Live / BBC Sounds Premier League commentaries: Sat 20 Dec 1500 Man City v West Ham, Sat 20 Dec 1500 Brighton v Sunderland on Sports Extra, Sat 20 Dec 1730 Tottenham v Liverpool, Sun 21 Dec 1330 Hearts v Rangers, Sun 21 Dec 1630 Aston Villa v Man Utd, Tue 23 Dec 2000 Arsenal v Palace in EFL Cup QF.Great Glossary of Football Commentary:DIVISION ONE Blaze over the bar, Bosman, Cruyff Turn, Dead-ball specialist, Fox in the box, Giving the goalkeeper the eyes, Head tennis, Hibs it, In a good moment, The Maradona, Off their line, Olimpico, Onion bag, Panenka, Perfect hat-trick, Rabona, Schmeichel-style, Scorpion kick, Spursy, Tiki-taka, Where the kookaburra sleeps, Where the owl sleeps, Where the spiders sleep. DIVISION TWO Ball stays hit, Beaten all ends up, Business end, Came down with snow on it, Catching practice, Camped in the opposition half, Cauldron atmosphere Coat is on a shoogly peg, Come back to haunt them, Corridor of uncertainty, Couldn’t sort their feet out, Easy tap-in, Daisy-cutter, First cab off the rank, Good leave, Half-turn, Has that in his locker, High wide and not very handsome, Hospital pass, Howler, In their pocket, Johnny on the spot, Leading the line, Nice headache to have, Nutmeg, One for the cameras, One for the purists, Played us off the park, Points to the spot, Purple patch, Put their laces through it, Reaches for their pocket, Rolls Royce, Root and branch review, Row Z, Screamer, Seats on the plane, Show across the bows, Slide-rule pass, Steal a march, Stramash, Taking one for the team, Telegraphed that pass, That’s great… (football), Thunderous strike, Walk it in.

Euro Leagues: Mbappé v PSG, Fabregas under fire & Benfica’s Talent Factory
18/12/2025 | 46 mins.
Steve Crossman is joined by James Horncastle, Julien Laurens and Rafa Honigstein to break down the biggest stories across European football.They discuss PSG being ordered to pay Kylian Mbappé €60m, Cesc Fabregas’ fallout with Senegal over Assane Diao, and Fiorentina’s dramatic collapse to the bottom of Serie A.The panel are also joined by Benfica academy director Guilherme Müller to explore why Benfica are world leaders in youth development, before touching on the rapid rise of teenager Lennart Karl.02:35 PSG Pay Mbappé 11:08 Fabregas backlash 25:16 Benfica’s academy gold 37:38 Rise of Karl 41:02 Fiorentina’s Collapse

The Debrief: Another defeat for Celtic & EFL Cup wins for Man City & Newcastle
18/12/2025 | 37 mins.
It’s a busy one on the pod as we are at Tannadice Park, St James’ Park and the Etihad – as Steve Crossman gets the latest from the EFL Cup quarter-finals and asks what’s next for Celtic as they suffer another defeat.The pod starts in Scotland after Wilfried Nancy has now lost all of his first four matches as Celtic manager. It's the first time since January 1978 that the club have had a run like that, that's after Dundee United came from behind to win 2-1. We hear from Nancy himself and Scottish football reporter Kenny Crawford who watched the action unfold. Steve is joined by John Murray and Clinton Morrison as they witnessed Newcastle beat Fulham – in a game that nearly went to penalties! They also hear from Yoane Wissa after he scored his first goal for Newcastle. And not only that, Ian Dennis and Leon Osman join the pod from a very wet Etihad Stadium after they saw Manchester City beat Brentford 2-0 – even Pep Guardiola makes a cameo!And we find out the state of play for the British teams in Women’s Champions League action on Wednesday night, after the final round of league phase fixtures.Timecodes:01:20 – Celtic section. 07:27 – Wilfried Nancy interview. 13:13 – Newcastle v Fulham analysis. 15:00 – Yoane Wissa interview. 1620 – Eddie Howe interview 18:40 – Marco Silva interview. 24:!5 – Manchester City v Brentford chat. 29:20 - Pep Guardiola interview. 33:20 - Keith Andrews audio. 35:00 – Women’s Champions League.

72+ EFL Pod: Steve Evans in at Bristol Rovers
17/12/2025 | 48 mins.
Aaron Paul and Jobi McAnuff are joined by the new Bristol Rovers manager Steve Evans. They chat about his reasons for taking the job, and his sadness at it being of the expense of his friend Darrell Clarke. How did Mrs Evans react when the family’s Christmas holiday was cancelled? Steve’s old Stevenage captain Carl Piergianni is up for debate for the ‘Ultimate Hard Men Squad’, and Steve poses a tribute to former player Sol Bamba. Plus, with boxing back on BBC TV, Barnsley’s Callum Simpson pops by to chat about his upcoming fight on Saturday evening – what does he make of Barnsley’s season? And what do Aaron and Jobi make of Preston and Hull, the surprise packages at the top of the Championship?Time Codes: 00:20 – Jobi feeling festive? 03:10 – Steve Evans in at Bristol Rovers 17:25 – ‘Ultimate Hard Men Squad’ 25:30 – Barnsley’s Callum Simpson 35:45 – Top of Championship: Preston & Hull 44:02 – 72Plus/72MinusCommentaries This Week: Thurs 20:00 Sparta Prague v Aberdeen - Sports Extra Sat 15:00 Man City v West Ham - 5 Live Sat 15:00 Brighton v Sunderland - Sports Extra Sat 17:30 Tottenham v Liverpool - 5 Live Sun 13:30 Hearts v Rangers - 5 Live Sun 16:30 Aston Villa v Manchester United - 5 Live

Chelsea saved by subs, Bruno calls out Man United board & Mbappe wins in court against PSG
16/12/2025 | 35 mins.
Two subs come to Chelsea’s rescue in the Carabao Cup, and is Bruno Fernandes right to be annoyed?Former Cardiff City striker Danny Gabbidon and ex-Chelsea goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer join Kelly Cates and Alistair Bruce-Ball to review a 3-1 win for Enzo Maresca’s side in the Carabao Cup quarter-final.Cardiff did themselves proud with their performance, but Chelsea come out on top, and what does that mean for Blues boss Maresca? We also hear reaction from double-goalscorer Alejandro Garnacho and Cardiff manager Brian Barry-Murphy, whose team will return to focusing on their League One promotion bid.Later in the show, the panel preview Wednesday night’s two quarter-finals: Newcastle v Fulham and Manchester City against Brentford.Away from the Carabao Cup, Ally considers the news that FIFA has released a new tier of cheaper World Cup tickets, and how significant that really is. Our pundits also look at the situation of Bruno Fernandes at Manchester United, after the Reds captain revealed the club told him they wanted to sell him in summer.And Julien Laurens joins Kelly to delve into the news that Kylian Mbappe has won in court against his former club, PSG.Timecodes: 00:30 Reaction to Cardiff 1-3 Chelsea 05:00 Was Maresca making a point with his XI? 06:45 What can Cardiff take from this impressive performance? 09:30 What now for Chelsea? 10:10 Interview with Alejandro Garnacho 12:40 Reaction from Cardiff boss Brian Barry-Murphy 15:00 Preview of Newcastle v Fulham — how important is this for Eddie Howe? 20:15 Preview of Manchester City v Brentford 23:45 FIFA introduce a new round of cheaper World Cup tickets 25:29 Kylian Mbappe wins in court against PSG! 29:17 Bruno Fernandes ‘hurt’ after Manchester United ‘wanted him to leave’ in the summerCommentaries coming up this week: Wed 19:30 Man City v Brentford - 5 Live Wed 20:15 Newcastle v Fulham - Sports Extra Thurs 20:00 Sparta Prague v Aberdeen - Sports Extra Sat 15:00 Man City v West Ham - 5 Live Sat 15:00 Brighton v Sunderland - Sports Extra Sat 17:30 Tottenham v Liverpool - 5 Live Sun 13:30 Hearts v Rangers - 5 Live Sun 16:30 Aston Villa v Manchester United - 5 Live



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